Virtual Playground

China's first offline "digital festival", LAN Story, attracts some 100,000 visitors, mostly young people, to the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai in August. They play all kinds of games, socialize with friends and attend live concerts at the event. [Photo provided to China Daily]

The party first appeared overseas - a group of 40 schoolmates and friends gathered in a school cafeteria in Malung, Sweden, as early as 1994 for it.

The event grew to include more than 20,000 participants a decade later and it has traveled to other parts of the world including France, Spain, Romania and the United Kingdom.

In late August, the LAN party was rolled out at the National Exhibition and Convention Center in Shanghai. The event in Shanghai lasted three days and two nights, attracting nearly 100,000 visitors.

Zhanqi TV, established by Zhejiang Daily Media Group at the beginning of 2014, organized the event.

Visitors to the party were able to meet video bloggers, view many cyber matches live and explore areas dedicated to mobile games, video arcades and other forms of esports.

"The eight game zones helped connect my personal experiences of games right from my childhood. I believe that everyone who loves video games will feel the same," says a video blogger on Zhanqi TV, whose online moniker is 12dora.

He tried out the games at the event's Bring Your Own Computer, or BYOC, area with other bloggers and visitors.

Visitors also had a taste of nostalgia at the event's Old Boys' Club area, which showcased the huge arcade game machines of yesteryear.

It was a trip back in time for many gamers who were born in the 1970s, when they had to save up coins and spend them all on the machines in video arcades, says Fu.

"We offered what gamers love, past and present," he says.

The efforts to reach out to the growing Chinese gaming community struck a chord with many other participants at the event.

"Playing games used to be my private pleasure, but I'm more than happy to share it," says Shanghai resident Chi Zhijie, 21, who took part as a BYOC player.