MANILA -- Visitors of all ages were swamped with nostalgia at the Retro Gaming Expo (RGX) held in Quezon City over the weekend.

Various classic gaming consoles and devices from Atari to Gameboy to Playstation, either go for sale, on display, or were available to play for free for various levels of gamers to enjoy, during the two-day expo held from Feb. 22 to 23.

Tournaments for Tekken Tag, Dance Dance Revolution, and various Nintendo 64 classics were also featured in the event.

The expo may be the first of its kind in the country, evolving from smaller events organized by the Retro Gamers and Collectors Philippines (RGCP), according to the event's program head, Jaeson Cho.

"They held different activities relating to their interests but most of time it remained inside the group. What was actually lacking before in the retro gaming community was an actual avenue for the retro gaming enthusiasts, and even those just interested in the event, to gather in," Cho said.

For RGCP co-founder Erwin Esteban, it's high time for such a large event like RGX to be staged to make the retro gaming community known and discover like-minded people outside of the group who share the love.

"Yung gusto ko na malaman nila, 'yung retro gaming sa 'tin ay meron! Kaya 'yun 'yung sinabi ko na pilitin natin magkaroon tayo ng expo kahit makita man lang nila na magkasama-sama tayo mga pare. 'Yun lang 'yung nasa isip namin, baka malaman natin meron tayong ka-retro na nandyan lang, hindi nagsasalita. Kasi nahihiya sila, hindi nila alam na merong ganito," he said.

RGCP was established 5 years ago and now has around 10,000 members in Facebook, tracing back to the early days when the founders got to know each other through transactions via the magazine Buy and Sell.

Esteban is surprised and happy to see a resurgence in retro gaming, thanks to various Facebook groups dedicated to retro gaming items and the growing desire for classic and ongoing IPs such as Super Mario, Legend of Zelda, or Resident Evil.

And at the core of it all is the sense of nostalgia.

"As they experience different games, people would certainly want to re-experience the games of old. That's why there are a lot of remakes recently. There are a lot of people who would want to play those games again," said Cho.

For those who want to go further -- or start out -- in retro gaming, Esteban said RGCP is open to all.

"Kasi doon, nae-educate namin sila about retro gaming. Ibig sabihin, ano ito? Kailan to? Kailan lumabas? Anong value nito? Ano ang halaga nito? Ganito 'yan noon. Mae-educate sila sa retro gaming," he said.