Game Grumps Live: Salt Lake City (Review)
My siblings and I got the extraordinary opportunity to see Game Grumps Live! In Salt Lake City on July 15, 2017, at Rockwell @The Complex. We had general admission seating. Here are my thoughts and recommendations!
(Note: This post contains pics but they are bad pics. My apologies. My phoneâs focus could not keep up with the frenzy.)
They started off with Vernon coming on-stage and greeting the crowd....
...and picking an audience member who is âSo good at Super Mario Bros. they could play it with their eyes closedâ to...play it with their eyes closed.
(Vernon placing a Sonic hat over the lucky participantâs eyes so he canât see.)
He then asked the crowd to shout instructions (Mainly âJUMP!â) at the participant at the right times. This made for 10 minutes of amusing intro to hype us up.
BUT THEN...VERNON LED US IN THE âHEY IâM GRUMPâ INTRO...AND THEN THERE WAS A DEAFENING ROARâŠ
(The blur here is a perfect representation of the chaos that ensued)
...Arin and Dan EXPLODED ONTO THE STAGE AND THERE WAS NO MERCY FROM THE CROWD.
(Seriously though itâs hard to get good pics when youâre short and the crowd has no chill.)
The Game Grumps were on the scene and gave us a hearty hello!
(*Hushed screaming* THERRRE THEY ARRRRRREEEE)
The bulk part of the show was an interactive Mario Party 10 game. Arin picked Peach (of course) and Dan picked Yoshi. They then split the crowd into two and had the crowd pick players 3 and 4. 3 picked Waluigi, and 4 (my team) picked Toad.
They had hype chants all prepared for us (âWA-LU-I-GIâ *THREE CLAPS* and âGO TOADâ) and told us to hype and cheer as much as possible. They played the game and at each mini game they brought up audience members to play for their respective teams, each time asking their names and asking them for silly hype phrases (Like âWhatâs your favorite pasta?â) or insults to the other team. There was also dabbing and occasional shenanigans from Dan and Arin.
(One of my favorite moments was Dan doing some ridiculous dance/posing at the crowd. Arin asked âWhat the f*** are you doing, Dan?â and Dan responded with âIâm appealing to the crowd! For Star Points!â XD <3 )
At the conclusion of the game, TEAM TOAD WON!! GO TOAD!!!!! *Deafening roar*
Afterwards they opened it up for questions for about 20 min. (The game went kind of long.) Then they had to bid us goodbye!! Sad!! :(
I was SUPER hyped to see these guys. Like, really really hyped. Itâs still surreal to me that I saw them in person, but at the same time, itâs like âOMG I know these guys.â Mostly, Iâm just really glad I got to see them.
The show was fun, but halfway through I realized something: I wasnât laughing.
Sure, I was cheering and screaming along with everyone else, but I didnât feel like I was witnessing a live episode of Game Grumps like I had expected. It felt more like a sporting event than a comedy show. It was only really fun if you were one of the people picked to go on stage with the Grumps. Once I realized this I was really disappointed that this was all I had come to see, and hoped in vain that they would play another game afterward.
This is more disappointing when you consider how these guys really are very talented performers and improv artists. I paid to go see them and I didnât get much of that at all. Mostly people just trying to soak in their 3 minutes of fame. (Which admittedly Iâd have done too.) Iâve heard that theyâve played Mario Maker at other shows and I really wish theyâd have done that instead.
I would recommend that if you are ho-hum about going to see them live that you definitely keep this in consideration. (Also, bring earplugs to protect your hearing.)
The Q&A was actually a bit more enjoyable in some aspects, even though I didnât get a chance to ask a question. I was surprised that the questions asked were pretty quality. (They said at the start, No âCan I get a selfie/hug?â questions, and only one person asked a âMonkeyâ question, like âCan you say/do X.â) Iâll go over notable questions in a later section.
I donât regret going to see them, but Iâm still disappointed I didnât get exactly what I thought I paid for. (And drove 6 hours and paid for a hotel for.) If youâre a huge fan though, I probably donât have to tell you that itâs worth it anyway. :)
I will be issuing a complaint with The Complex. We stood in line in 100+ degree weather for over an hour (on top of the hours weâd already spent wandering the outdoor mall) with the comfort that we would soon be in an air conditioned building...except it wasnât.
I had confirmed with The Complex ahead of time that seats would definitely be put out, but I had not at all expected or thought to ask about the air conditioning. It shouldnât be unreasonable to expect an event venue to be able to cool their crowd, right? Iâm not sure if itâs the unexpectedly hot temperatures, the fact that the smoke patio door was open the whole time, or a crowd larger than expected, but it it was sweltering in there and I found myself using my hand fan the entire time, and it wasnât much help. I do not find this acceptable and I would not consider going to an event there again for this reason. (At least not in the summer, jeez.)
BONUS: Notable Questions and Answers!
Will we ever have an episode of âDad Grumpsâ?
After a roaring audience chant of âA-VI, A-VIâ, Dan said Avi (his dad) has been warming up a little more to the idea of being on the show in some capacity. He doesnât want to be on camera but he *may* consider doing a podcast interview similar to the interview Dan did with his grandma.
Are the Grumps ever going to finish âA Link Between Worlds?â
They are apparently waiting on a custom controller being built for Danâs enormous thumbs. They are hoping this will happen, though.
Will there ever be a three-way Game Grumps episode featuring Jontron?
There was a loud roar at this question, mostly âYEEEAH!â BUT there were definitely some audible âBoos.â They have considered it in the past but after...recent eventsâŠ(Google it if you donât know)...itâs leaning toward a strong âNo.â I got the impression that this wasnât an outright âNo,â but my guess is itâs going to be hard to see how Jonâs reputation erodes or blows over in the next few years.
Has Arin taught Dan how to draw yet?
This is a reference to âSuper Mario Galaxy: Part 69âł where Dan mentioned how he couldnât draw and Arin mentioned how he could possibly teach him. They said this has not happened as of yet. The crowd then proceeded to chant âDOODLE DUDES,â and Arin, surprised, said that having Dan on an episode of Doodle Doods could possibly happen, and if it does, we have Salt Lake to thank for it. :)
Thatâs it for now! Please let me know if you find my review useful, helpful, entertaining, or if you were also there, accurate. :) Thanks!