Convention Reviews

[Anonymous No.7282639]

Could we have a thread of convention reviews? Looking for a new convention to go to can be daunting, but seeing what other people have to say about it can help with the decision making. Talk about the location, the attendees, the events, the pros and the cons, etc.

[Anonymous No.7282654]

>>7282639
Weather a convention is good or not doesn't factor much in how much you are willing to spend and travel. I could easily say that a convention half way across the world where they don't speck english is the best but that wouldn't help you much.

[Anti-Zionist Jew No.7282664]

>>7282654
>weather

[Anonymous No.7283007]

>>7282639
Depends on what you wanna fucking do
Take pictures? Katsucon
Party? Dragoncon
Dont go to dragoncon if you want nice pictures, its a fucking sausage fest

[Anonymous No.7283032]

Gonna post from the major ones I've been to or regularly attend.

A-kon, Dallas, TX
Pros:
-Large (22k+), one of the top 10 cons by size
-New, bigger hotel
-Large amount of panels
-Decently 18+ friendly
-Industry panels with perks
-Scholarly/academic track

Cons:
-Large, wait time for badges can be long
-Poorly run and organized
-Non-anime guests, guests in general aren't stellar
-Expensive for the hassle
-Cosplay contest is not tiered
-Food sources are limited and expensive
-Con is hard to get to from public transit, parking limited for cars
-Extremely hot weather

[Anonymous No.7283034]

>>7283032

Anime Boston, Boston, MA
Pros:
-Large, one of the top 10 cons by size
-Con space is large, easy to walk through
-Large amount of panels, panels are quite good (and some great annual favorites)
-18+ friendly
-Industry panels with perks
-Relatively good guests
-Musical guest fairly well known
-City has other things to do if you want to extend your stay
-Food is easy to get to
-Con is easy to get to from public transit

Cons:
-Large
-Boston can be an expensive city
-Has a bad history of lines and badge wait time (Line Con '08)
-Depending on time of year can be quite cold

[Anonymous No.7283039]

>>7283034

>>7283032

Anime Weekend Atlanta, Atlanta, GA
Pros:
-Medium-Large, one of the top 10 cons by size (but barely)
-Decently good panels
-18+ friendly
-Industry panels with perks
-Relatively good guests
-City has other things to do if you want to extend your stay
-Food is easy to get to
-Great weather, perfect time of year (early autumn)


Cons:
-18+ panels suck
-Not in Atlanta proper, so difficult to get to from public transit
-Getting expensive for the size of the con
-Guests and industry panels are at the tail end of con season, so you're usually getting stale perennials or the leftovers
-Mangina's panel
-Con hotel is a bit of a maze, things aren't always clearly marked

[Anonymous No.7283049]

>>7283039

A-fest, Dallas, TX
Pros:
-Medium-small
-Relatively good guests (or a history of it)
-Super easy to get to from public transit
-Food is easy to get to
-Relatively affordable and worth the money
-Great sense of local community
-AA doesn't require a badge
-Panel submissions are transparent
-4 day con, so Sunday is actually really big!


Cons:
-Family friendly, heavily policed and restricted 18+ content
-Panels are voted on and are only as good as the submissions and people who vote (so it's a highly mixed bag)
-Extremely hot weather
-Can end up double booked with other events (like Jesusfest)

[Anonymous No.7283067]

bump [spoiler]I want to know about ohayocon[spoiler]

[Anonymous No.7283087]

>>7283067
nice

nice

[Anonymous No.7283120]

>>7283067
You can check out the Ohayocon thread btw >>7248242. It's the largest con in the state and I think it's pretty decent. It still brings in some good guests, has one of the best dealers rooms in the area and various industry guests as well. The staff, especially security, can be difficult though. Real sticklers for rules and a lack of communication is evident. However I still go every year and have a good time. In terms of Ohio conventions, Colossalcon is still the best IMO but Ohayocon is enjoyable as well.

[Anonymous No.7283144]

Otakon: Fucking baller but wait times are too long
Katuscon: Best con on the east coast
Nekocon: Pretty cliquey and people don't go out of their way to talk to you like at other cons

[Anonymous No.7283153]

A friend of mine wants us to go to Emerald City Comic Con in Seattle but neither of us have been there. Is it worth the cost/drive from Vancouver?

[Anonymous No.7283154]

>>7283032
>-Cosplay contest is not tiered

Don't forget that they only started including craftsmanship judging last year. Their cosplay contest is epically terrible.

[Anonymous No.7283166]

Shutocon
- Small
- Average Dealers Room
- Good organization
- More of a younger audience
- Good guests
- Cap of 7K
- Nice venue
- Food court in a big red barn (???), about half a mile away from the con center, that has delicious, cheap food. (Not many chains though)

Anime Central
- Big
- Amazing giant dealer's room
- Horrible organization
- More of a variety of audience
- Good guests
- Decent venue, depends on the year
- Has turned into more of a rave/party con
- Con takes over the city it is in, food choices are limited, the closest McDonalds is a mile away and it is always overflowing.

Ohayocon
- Fairly big
- Wonderful dealer's room
- Staff are kind of shitty
- Poor organization
- Good venue, slightly overcrowded
- Good guests
- Food court!!

Matsuricon
- Average, not too big and not too small
- Nice dealer's room (Nothing special, but not bad.)
- Organization is good, staff is fairly friendly and helpful
- Good venue (Same as Ohayocon)
- Wonderful guests
- Audience is more young than older
- Food court!!

Youmacon (I hope I don't sound biased from staffing here)
- More on the large scale
- Two venues, RenCen and Cobo (You can use the people mover to travel)
- Rencen ~ Complicated layout, pretty and unique (good for pictures) but not really meant for a 10K+ convention. Overcrowded, not a lot of open space.
- Cobo ~ Simple layout. More of a traditional convention center. No real complaints.
- Dealer's room is fairly large, generic and doesn't really stick out much
- Decent organization
- Have more of a variety w/ media, less anime oriented
- Audience is all ages
- Food court in the Rencen, there was food served in the Dealer's room but it was TERRIBLY overpriced.

[Anonymous No.7283170]

A-kon: 8/10
(what >>7283032 said but also..)
-lines are tediously long so you have to plan your time well
-artists alley spread to 2 floors and because of its' size the artists were really high quality

Anime Matsuri: 8/10
-Jfashion Show is unique and BTSSB has been coming with Misako for the past few years. The price of the tea party has increased to $45 this year so it may not be as worthwhile
-Long lines (wrapped around the 3rd floor of the con for the cosplay contest 2 hours before it started.)
-Events/Panels run late and they dont do a good job of enforcing panel lengths, thus some were unreasonably shorter. Cosplay contest and etc have a tendency of running late.
-Panels are low quality
-Hard to judge what the con will be like because the venue has changed almost every year

Onicon: 2/10
-Location is tiny and they dont check your badge so random parents are everywhere
-Panels suck
-Artists alley sucks
-Dealers room is passable, a decent variety and quantity of people come
-In Galveston, so you can easily ditch the con and hang out on the beach.

Unrelated but...
Supernatural Con in Dallas: 3/10
Too expensive to be able to do anything. $200 to listen to panels by the actors for 3 days, plus expect $30-80 for a picture with them and the same for an autograph. Its ok if you have a lot of money, but I thought after going that its not worth the price as they have only 1 event going on at any time, and you need to bring your own food or drive to be able to eat.
>feel free to ask questions, i'm forgetting a lot probably

[Anonymous No.7283176]

How about Sakuracon and AX? I'm planning on going to both for the first time.

[Anonymous No.7283177]

Not exclusively for Anime, but MAGfest in Maryland is really fucking awesome. It's more for video games and music, but there's def an anime/manga crowd there as well.

Pros!
> The Gaylord hotel is huge and beautiful
> The Dealer's room doesn't really close, only some of the shops close up at night
> 24 hour accessible gaming room = console games and arcade games set to free play
> lots of food options in the area ranging from cheap to expensive
> pretty good guests
> the community is amazing, everyone is friendly and outgoing
>Good photo-shoot locations
>Staff is awesome

Nuetral?
> BIG party con. If you wanna play Super SMASHED brothers, this is the right con for you. It's also a fun con sober, though.
>The con seems to be growing in size every year
> DC is nearby if you want to sight-see or get more out of your trip?

Cons-
>you might have to wait a few rounds to play a particular game
>the area is kind of expensive
>Not hugely a cosplaying con, though the numbers seem to have gotten larger (basing this on my experience the past few years)
>???? it's such a good con

[Anonymous No.7283199]

I'll do some of the DMV cons.
Katsucon:
-- Large, but not so much so that it's impossible to get around and see everything
-- Lines are usually decent
-- Cool venue that's fairly easy to navigate
-- Decent restaurants that usually aren't too crowded
-- Cold and fucking WINDY (because it's on the water)

Anime USA
-- Small, but not too small (except for this year when it was a month after Otakon...)
-- Decent dealer's room and artist's alley for the size of the con
-- Very friendly and relaxed
-- Hotel is fucking impossible to navigate. It is literally in the shape of several hexagons smashed together.
-- Organization is shit

Otakon:
-- Fucking huge, you know that
-- Good guests because it's Otakon
-- Cool city that isn't as ghetto as you white bitches think it is
-- Organization can be iffy
-- You will wait in lines
-- Can be overwhelming

[Anonymous No.7283206]

>>7283199
Oh, something to add:
Katsu is 24 hours, Otakon isn't. Otakon will kick you out around three or four.

[Anonymous No.7283235]

Anyone ever been to Anime Detour in Minnesota?

[Anonymous No.7283345]

>>7283007
Seconding for Dragon Con review. It's an absolute blast, easily my favorite convention, but it's heaps of dudes and girls you probably don't want to touch anyway. Day drinking and heckling people is the way to go here.

[Anonymous No.7283367]

What about MTAC in Nashville?

[Anonymous No.7283417]

>>7283176
Seconding AX

[Anonymous No.7283474]

Has anyone ever been to Q-Con in Belfast or any other Irish conventions?

[Anonymous No.7283504]

>>7283417
Third-ing AX
Going for the first time this year

[Anonymous No.7283560]

>>7283120

I only went to Colossalcon once (Iowafag here), in 2009, but it was an absolute blast. Then I became poor and had to cut down to two conventions a year.

[Anonymous No.7283577]

>>7283235

Yes. It's easily my favorite con, not that I have very much experience. I'm bad at detailed reviews, though.

[Anonymous No.7283602]

>>7283176
>>7283417
>>7283504

Pros:
- big con
- big dealers room
- industry panels and US premiers
- GSC started offering AX-exclusive merch this year
- big name guests (sometimes hit or miss)
- added a photoshoot room last year

Cons:
- ticket prices keep going up
- need to shuttle to all hotels but the mariott, and even that's a bit of a walk
- at-con parking price increased again this year
- everywhere you can eat is far and/or expensive
- too many people
- gathering locations are butt ugly and most are in the LA summer sun

The con was balls for a few years and it's only started getting better the past 2 or so, but it's still one of the best places to see people break out their most impressive costumes.

[Anonymous No.7283622]

>>7283176
>>7283417
>>7283504
I've only been once but
Pros:
-Ridiculously huge dealers room
-Huge convention center too
-Very cheap dealers room because of this
-Interesting guests
-Doesn't feel too crowded
-Scenes set up for cosplay photos are nice
-Organized lines, people working actually well informed for once. They have rooms set aside for lines to form in
-Lots of photo opportunities if you hang out in the atrium

Cons:
-Hotels are kind of far, can still walk but they do have trams running which is nice
-Not many close food places unless you go a decent distance
-Expensive food trucks
-Game machines require quarters, not in free play mode
-Rooms in hotels are expensive and small
-Expect to wait forever for your badge. You wait outside. I was pretty badly sunburned and several people collapsed from the heat. I recommend just registering there if you don't want to wait 3 hours
-It's Line con
-They kept shutting off paths to get around at random points which made it difficult to get around

I do really recommend it, I had a lot of fun.

[Anonymous No.7283639]

>>7283602
And quick bits on other cons...

ALA
- very laid-back; people call it a party con for a reason
- convention staff is entirely convention attendees; they want the con to be great as much as you do
- guests are pretty small-time in comparison to the ones larger cons secure
- seating everywhere
- con suite
- paneling is hit or miss

PMX
- good music/fashion guests
- food truck lines are insane
- AA and dealer's hall are both tiny
- good luck finding parking at the hotel
- you can ghost the con pretty easily since everyone loiters in the lobby and the gathering locations aren't badge-checked
- best fucking karaoke room of the socal cons

Fanime
- very good size. not too small as to be boring, but not too large as to be overcrowded
- plenty of food options; wait staff everywhere is courteous even if you're in full cosplay (my suggestions: wake up early and go to Psycho Donuts before they sell out, and eat the Roast Beef sandwich at the Original Joes. If you go late at night, they'll give you tons of free bread)
- decent guests
- nicely-sized dealers hall
- fairly pretty shoot locations
- 4/5 main hotels are right next to the con; fifth is a short walk
- elevators at the mariott always break down. always.

[Anonymous No.7283656]

Anyone familiar with Tekkoshocon in Pittsburgh?

[Anonymous No.7283756]

>>7283153
As far as being able to attend a Comic-Con period, its pretty alright. I went once and spent my entire day in just the dealers hall and had a blast honestly. Plenty of things around the area to do as well.

I didn't really get a super comprehensive view of the con, but it seems alright.

[Anonymous No.7283809]

>>7283049
You mean /ALWAYS/ ends up double-booked.

Whether it's Jesusfest, sports events, A FUCKING WEDDING... They will forever book something at the same con during Afest. Been happening since 2006.

- Guests have also been going downhill as of late, as has their budget.
- A great hang-out con. You can always find something to do or somewhere to go if you bring a friend. I'm never bored at afest despite its lack of stuff sometimes.

[Tim No.7283810]

>>7283176
>SakuraCon
Pros:
-Seattle is awesome. Nice location and venue (if unconventional- it's several stories high so there's lots of elevator/escalatoring) in the heart of downtown Seattle. Gameworks and restaurants nearby so there are things to do outside of the con
-Decent guests?
-Very chill vibe for a larger (20k+) con. Good hangout con
-Good use of space. Never feels overcrowded
-Large Vendor's Hall/AA
-Feels well-run/organized

Cons
-Escalators can be kind of a hassle?
-Nearby eateries can be quite a wait. The crepe stand on the ground floor of the con has a mile-long line at like 8AM

>Anime Expo
Pros:
-Industry guests, lots of big attractions, huge variety of panels and events
-Enormous vendor's hall. Like SDCC but for anime, since it's an industry con
-By far one of the most talented Artist Alleys in the circuit
-Lots of late-night programming

Cons:
-In a kinda shitty part of LA. Nearby places to eat are overpriced and overhyped.
-Crowded as fuark, lines lines lines lines
-They charge out the ass for everything (concerts, events, etc.)
-Gotta walk everywhere. Not very conveniently located, and driving is worse than walking.

[Anonymous No.7283822]

>acen
- nice spread out venue
- plenty of areas to use as backdrops for shoots
- decent sized dealer's room
- majority of people are very friendly

>c2e2
- HUGE dealer's room
- a ton of great guests
- convention provides free shuttles between various hotels and the convention center
- half the people we talked to were amazing, lovely people. the other half were the exact opposite and were quite stuck up.

overall for c2e2 i'd say the convention itself was great, but if you try talking to people there's a 50/50 chance of them being a dickbag.

[Anonymous No.7283832]

>>7282639
Youmacon, Detroit
I've been going since 2010, so I think I can give a pretty decent run down of the convention. I won't really break it down in terms of pros and cons because I think if I lay out facts, you can decide for yourself.

They are now using two buildings to fit the massive attendee rate that keeps growing exponentially.
To get between the two buildings, you can either walk the few blocks or buy a People Mover pass. Walking led to both me and my girlfriend receiving a couple rape threats and street harassment, so I suggest you opt for the pass or walk in massive groups of cosplayers.

The weather is usually cold around this time of year, so the more revealing cosplays turned out to be an invitation for shivers and numb legs. This makes some photo gatherings quite the pain in the ass, but if you can cope, it shouldn't be a problem.

The location is great, the riverfront is so beautiful and alive when this convention comes. It is also in walking distance of really amazing restaurants, and all of the overflow hotels are relatively close. Nothing a hop on the People Mover won't fix, if transportation is an issue.

The crowd it attracts? You get some of the best and the worst of cosplay at this convention. A lot of meme screaming idiots, drunken bronies, and cretin of that ilk, but it's easily avoidable. That being said, everyone seems to be very nice. You can get along with almost anyone in registration or event lines, and I've remained friends with all of the people I talked to. It's fun, plain and simple.

Some of the panels really blow, and I honestly have really stopped bothering with the majority of them. Don't give up, though.

There is a lot of sexual harassment within the convention. A lot, and I mean, a lot of creeps. However, the staff are so kind and responsible that just the mentioning of such crime will be dealt with promptly.

The organization is pretty hit or miss, but it is what it is. It's not that hard to figure out.

[Anonymous No.7283845]

This seems like a good thread to ask -
I've been going to Sakuracon for 6 years now, but I live in between Sakuracon and Fanime (well, sakuracon is about 6 hours where Fanime is 8)
Anyways, I really, really love Sakuracon, but I've been thinking of checking out Fanime just for a new experience (Since they're so close together, I can only afford to go to one)
has anyone been to both? Which one did you prefer? how are they different or similar? any input would be much appreciated.

[Anonymous No.7283849]

>>7283577
where do you live MN? or is it worth the travel?

[Tim No.7283865]

>>7283845
The only reason why I like Fanime better than SakuraCon is because the AA is consistently more profitable and I go to cons primarily to table. Otherwise, they're both pretty evenly matched for me. I think if you're more into anime, Fanime might edge out because they tend to have better guests, making it a nice balance between a fan con and an industry con. SakuraCon has been getting better about this, but it still seems to me that they can't pull quite as many of the high-profile punches that Fanime can.

The one downside to Fanime is that they're infuriatingly retarded about their registration. It's become so bad in the last couple years that it's significantly threatening the growth/popularity of the convention. People lost an entire day of the con last year due to their poor line management. This year might be a make-or-break for them, so keep that in mind.

IN terms of con experience, they're both very similar. I would wait until both cons announce some guests/events and see which ones you end up liking better and going to that one.

[Anonymous No.7283897]

Anything for Eastern Canada cons? Just moved to Toronto from the west coast this year and definitely going to Anime North, but other than that I'm a bit lost.

[Anonymous No.7283906]

>>7283865
Fanime is fucking horrible with registration and oh my god trying to get a table last year, I'd have an easier time giving a lion an enema.

[Katsumiyo !pGNZlskXEI No.7283928]

Looking for any and all info on WonderCon and PMX. Never been to PMX and haven't been to WonderCon since it was held in SF.
>>7283639
This is super helpful, thank you!

[Anonymous No.7284006]

What are the best LA/near LA cons?

[Anonymous No.7285144]

>>7283849

I live in Iowa, so it's about a five-hour drive, but I think it's very worth it. I'd say definitely try it, if you have the money to add a con.

[Anonymous No.7285170]

anyone know much about anime midwest?

[Anonymous No.7285205]

>>7284006
Anime Los Angeles and Wondercon are the only two I can think of. AX is going down and it's only a matter of time until the SPJA implodes from within. I love Comic Con (I'm a local San Diegan) and it will always be my favorite con, but it's getting crowded and will only get worst during the renovation of the San Diego Convention Center. Until then, it's more of a giant media circus. Comikaze is another one that is up and coming, definitely worth the one day trip for now while it's still growing. It grew big time in its third year. I have yet to go to PMX because I'm not big into the Asian media scene. I want to check out that anime convention in Irvine, anyone gone to that?

[Anonymous No.7285209]

Most of mine are Ohio conventions...

OHAYOCON:
+Panels and guests are pretty good since it's a large con
-Run by douchebag fun police who do whatever they want and end up with like 5+ horrible stories about security every year

MATSURICON:
+Small con if you're looking for a chance to get a panel in or something
-Theres fucking nothing to do

COLOSSALCON:
+Perfect size con, perfect location, good panels and great for pictures
+Really chilled and fun atmosphere? It's easy to stumble across a group of people and just start hanging out
-If you don't plan early enough to stay at the Kalahari, it's not nearly as fun

OTAKON:
+Huge industry panels, huge guests, huge con
-This was my first con ever and thats a huge goddamn mistake because if you don't know exactly what you're doing you're going to spend the entire time confused and upset like a baby deer in the middle of the road

[Anonymous No.7285223]

>>7285205
a-x is too big for its own fucking good.
1-2 hour lines for all panels even the shitty ones
the guests are turning more into japan general than anime . Other than that i have a great time.
Also wish people would be more willing to hangout with new people instead of stick to their clique (but that can be said about every convention).
There is one in irvine?
wot

Fanime is alright (besides the horrible as fuck 7-8 hour line that will NEVER be forgiven)
other than that though it was nice and had some unique small panels. Wish they could get more guests though

[Anonymous No.7285225]

Anyone have any ideas on Phoenix Comi-Con.

[Anonymous No.7285227]

>>7283845
I've been to both multiple times. Didn't go to Fanime last year since I skipped out because of personal reasons here in Seattle and went to CCEE instead.

I tend to like Fanime a lot more-- it's laid back, things tend to be a lot cheaper in the AA along with me preferring the artists at Fanime better, better partycon in my opinion, though the actual con raves suck. Everyone I partied with the year before last was chill and I always meet people I like. Most the people I meet there too tend to be drama free, but that could be luck. I think this is the year that construction is supposed to be ending, which was a big problem the last year I went, and I heart was an even bigger problem last year. Registration can take a while on both ends, which was weird since every year before I never pre-registered and I was able to walk to the front of the line-- the last year I went was the prereg pick up blackout, so there was no such luck, but the con staff was really nice and just capped the line and said they'd get everyone who was already in line if it took all night. Heard last year wasn't good, though.

In my opinion, SakuraCon's way more high strung, though that could be because of the people I know. I dislike the WSCC as well, but that's a personal thing, probably.

[Anonymous No.7285234]

>>7285223
also a-x has the best fucking dances

[Clau No.7285242]

>>7283865
>>7283906
Seriously. Fanime's registration slowness and constant are the worst for how great everything else is. I don't know what their problem is but they always seem to have only like, four people working registration. Other than that, always an excellent con.

>>7283120
>>7283560
Ahhh glad to hear good things about ColossalCon! I've wanted to go just based on hearsay/a few friends who live around there, but I live in California, so.

ALA: Last year was my first year and I had an awesome time! The con suite was great considering the nearby food options are restaurant hotels, Carl's Jr, and Denny's.

SDCC: I've gone since 2008 and I always have a badass time. HOWEVER I always go with a pretty big group (therefore multiple people waiting in multiple panel lines), and I have a really wide range of interests which is helpful when they don't post the panel list until a fucking week before the con. Food selection is A+, there are a ton of hotels which are covered under their shuttle service (which runs 24/7). I've never had to wait in registration for more than half an hour, but they seriously need more crowd/foot traffic control. It's obvious cons are that it's expensive and that you need to be ready to wait in lines until the end of time.

[Anonymous No.7285294]

Phoenix Comi-Con
+It's big
+It gets good guests
+Lots of local shops show off their cool stuff
+Plenty of decent artists
+Some impressive things
+Decent auto-show
+Good food if you're willing to walk a few blocks
+Nice game room, lots of fighting games
+That great Jack Sparrow cosplayer is there every year

-Every hot girl is underage
-Hard to figure out where you're going
-Price this year is huge due to them expanding
-Hot
-Dear God is it hot
-Don't bother cosplaying unless you've got something impressive
-Too many "lel im such a nurd" people
-Rave last year was only one night, had a huge line, and was in a cramped building, but was good otherwise
-One side of the building the rave line was in, it looked like Silent Hill was on the other side

[Anonymous No.7285318]

best cons for lolita/jfashion?
other than matsuri.

[Anonymous No.7285341]

>>7285318
Oddly enough, PMX

[Anonymous No.7285356]

>>7285170
Pure shit. Guests charging for autographs without prior notice. Crowded. Security blocking off areas of the Hyatt.

captcha: higoloa stain

[Anonymous No.7285376]

>>7285209
>Otakon
>Ohio

[Anonymous No.7285377]

>>7285223
From what I understand, yes. It's on a weekend in August.

[Anonymous No.7285389]

>>7283177
MAGFest has grown the past few years, but the guy running it has gotten involved with bands, and despite having nothing, get to bypass the application process. It's all Megaman and Final Fantasy bands now, all people kissing fatass to get there.I just quit vg music. I am not gonna play megaman and final fantasy music, or change my style to chiptunes, so I have zero chance of playing the fest unless I am in a band that sucks up to the chairman.

The community is very nice on the surface, but very back stabby. You can help them 1,000 times over but they will not return a favor, ever. It's nothing but screaming liberals, disagree with them, and you are cast out of the community.

Also, somewhat true on the food, but every affordable place sells out by friday or saturday, and the wait is horrendous, throw a con in with a heavy tourist location, and it's very fucking bad.

Simply put, MAGFest is shit now. Call it what it is Matfest, since he is in so many of the bands playing there now, and it's just his friends that get chosen.

[Anonymous No.7285393]

>>7285389
Oh also, they talk bad about the shizz, but they kept the con alive for a good 8-9 years. Fucking shitty to piss on the people that made you what you are.

[Anonymous No.7285501]

>>7283177
>MAGfest in Maryland is really fucking awesome. It's more for video games and music
You don't say?

[Anonymous No.7285558]

>>7285376

I think that's why he/she included the description "most" not "all"

[Anonymous No.7285581]

AX:

Pros:
Huge as fuck

Tons of good cosplayers to see

dealer room is massive

food trucks are fucking delicious

lots of stuff to do

tons of late night partying opportunities

lots of good looking people

Cons:
It can be HOT

Many places can be crowded, especially the main lobby

Security can be strange and unorganized, they close off random places for no reason, and some are pretty scummy ex-con looking types

lines are long as shit

walking to the hotels can be dangerous, as it's a seedy area in parts

ALA:

Pros:
Great weather, perfect for me (from Colorado)

Awesome parties and late night scene, definitely a party con

Dealers room is decent for the size

Pretty laid back

Cons:
Getting too big for its venue, as evident by the 4k cap this year

Guests aren't the best

Not much around to eat

Not as many good cosplayers

[Anonymous No.7285595]

Someone do the FL cons!

[Anonymous No.7285598]

>>7283177
been watching magfest videos all week and it looks amazing, it basically looks like a /vr/ con, i'm definitely going next year even if i have to go by myself

[Anonymous No.7285633]

>>7285581
Youmacon:

Pros:
Pretty big

Venue is really nice, like super nice, and the way it's separated between two venues is cool

Fuarking huge dealers room

awesome video game area, there were tons of cool niggas playing

TONS of panels and activities

Cons:

If you want to get mugged, be sure to walk outside by yourself at night

It gets cold if it's windy

if you can't ride the train between venues, it sucks

Wasabi con:

Pros:
Small, but not too small to not be fun

easy to get around

fun parties

Cons:
Can be chilly (in Colorado in early March)

Con staff is pretty strict

Hotel staff are fucking dicks (luckily, venue is changing this year)

Can be boring if you're not a party person


NDK:

Awesome size

Perfect weather (late summer in Colorado)

good dealers room

venue is pretty swell

great guests

fun panels

Cons:

Party scene isn't the best

staff is super strict about dress code. I had an outfit where my nipples were SLIGHTLY exposed (I'm a dude), and I was forced to cover them up, so I had to go to the first aid tent and get band aids to cover them up. Best part was that they were Sponge Bob ones. My female friends had similarly shitty experiences in regards to their costumes.

[Anonymous No.7286050]

>Connecticon:
* Great size for running into people just often enough
* Food options are pretty good
* Semi-crummy area
* The party scene is okay, but not good
* Board games everywhere
* Mixed age audience, older than AB, younger than PAX
* Very friendly atmosphere

>Anime Boston:
* Their reg lines have improved amazingly
* So many food options
* Pretty darn big
* Very young audience
* Excellent for parties
* Rave is great
* Excellent location
* Has part of CTcon's board game library
* Bigger, more party-friendly Connecticon with a younger audience

>PAX East:
* So massive you can barely see it all in three days
* Expo hall is "off the hook"
* Free swag everywhere
* Holy crap, I have NEVER seen this many redheads in my LIFE
* Older audience of very chill and cool people
* If room parties are happening, they're pretty darn hidden; though there are many pub crawls
* Many third party sponsored events going on outside of the convention
* Oh, my God... I think this is the first time I've seen good panels at a con, and there are plenty of them
* Games of all kinds everywhere
* Sumo beanbag chairs to chill out in
* Food options are insanely limited (you're most likely eating convention food without a drive)
* Not much to do outside of the con, as it's isolated by the harbor
* So much to do at the con, you'll find it difficult to make time to rest and take it all in (though, I suppose you don't need rest when Five Hour Energy is there promoting / giving out seemingly limitless amounts of the stuff)

>Otakon:
* Bigger than AB but dwarfed by PAX East
* Mixed age, older than AB, younger than others
* Lots of food options
* Ice Cold Water Guy
* Pretty decent area
* Rave line takes an eternity and doesn't seem as good as AB's secondary to overactive "fun police"
* People are friendly, and while the atmosphere is more "busy" than AB's, the amount of places to hang out or bump into people is greater
* Game room is big, but doesn't have much going on
* Board games are almost absent

[Anonymous No.7286066]

>>7283235
Hi I've gone to detour for 5 years and I'm done with it.

Pros-
Minnesotans are p good people
good con suite
Super safe area

Cons-
Tickets are impossible to get ahold of
Artist's alley is absolute shit
Dealers room is also shit.
Organization of buying tickets and hotel rooms is impossible
Masquerade is dull
A million goddamn panels of the same thing, no quality control
Minnesotans are like 3 years behind the popular anime circuit

I mean to be honest the main reason i'm not going is because the aa is incredibly skeevy (People selling Creative Commons work year after year, even after we brought it up to the AA head, big name artists turned down for "variety", emphasis on arts and crafts, not quality) as hell and the tickets sell out insanely fast and they refuse to expand despite the popularity, even though convergence is at the same location with three times as many attendees.

But like, its the only con in minnesota not run by a weird pedophile.

[Anonymous No.7286117]

>5 years straight of NYCC it's my home con regretfully.

NYCC:
Goal- it's a comic book convention that overtook its smaller sister con NYAF therefore taking in its anime fans by default. In the last couple years, dealing with renovations and the merge of the two cons, NYCC has molded itself to a near exact replica of sdcc. THIS CON IS EXTREMELY HIT AND MISS.

Pros:
- it's on about 37th street by the water in the middle of manhattan. The venue is about 5 blocks long, one block deep and usually has events at nearby wear houses. Big venue.
-it's pretty scenic if you're looking for that city scape view
-pretty diverse /co/splay.
-a few blocks from penn station so easy to get around and to.
-guests are pretty decent. Artists more than actual guests.

Cons:
-Insanely crowded and right on a busy 4 lane street.
-Always poor security and usually poor organization.
-every fucking year they mail out badges before the con. Used to be easy to copy but now they're the tap and go kind so god forbid that got fucked up in the mail.
-the ratio of showered to non showered is dangerously low.

[Anonymous No.7286131]

>>7286117
I live in NYC and only been to NYCC since 2009, but the biggest con IMO is the food. The only options are over priced Javits food in the cafeteria or McDonald's. the con isn't that close to penn station. NYC avenues are long as fuck, and even though there is a bus that goes to NYCC, you can never get on it because if it isn't late, it's packed with con goers.

Not really any place to sit and chill at the NYCC venue.

Good luck doing anything in the dealers room with the crowds. Not to mention the whole "Thursday only" pass this year made my favorite day of my four day con the worst.

[Anonymous No.7286135]

>>7286131
Go down 10th ave there's a bunch of cheap places to eat there. My group has a tradition of the Chinese Powow over there. Fucking delish.

It's a soft relief to the ever increasing badge price. That shit where they sold the badges while everyone was at otakon was shady as hell. I hate going to forbidden planet or midtown for a fucking badge.

[Anonymous No.7286140]

This might not get replies, but how is AVCON in Adelaide?

Thinking of going this year. I have never been and am curious as to whether we even have panels, and what the general con is like.

[Anonymous No.7286157]

>>7286131

I heard NYCC food is either super expensive or super cheap. The cheap stuff is harder to find though.

[Anonymous No.7286167]

Anything on Naka-Kon?
Tell me about the little cons close to bumfuck nowhere (Kansas)

[Anonymous No.7286388]

>>7286140
It's good to give it a go, it's been running for over a decade and can be good fun

You might get bored though if the guests aren't up your alley. Be sure to go with some friends or be prepared to piss off away a few hours over the weekend outside the venue to fill gaps in your schedule

[Anonymous No.7287099]

San Japan

Despite going onto 7 years, nothing has really stood out with the con. Guests are usually dull and hardly there for any events. Musical guests are limited to 1 or 2 acts, 30 DJs for a rave. Panels are generally mismanaged, uncoordinated, and cancelled last minute.

I have volunteered for them for numerous years. Every year they treat me worse and worse. The chairman is very unhelpful when a problem arises. He has allowed forum users to sexually harass girls and will not do anything to them, as he is doing the same.

His lieutenants only scream and cuss at you, unable to answer a simple question. They will hold a grudge over a complaint from 4 years ago, make verbal threats when asked to move to allow work to be completed, lie and deny it, even when it was caught on camera.

They take negative feedback personal and allow other users to troll anyone that has anything negative to say, even allowing users to give personal information out, such as home address and all that in hopes for an attack to shut up the dissentient party.

Also, they have screwed numerous volunteers out of pay. Most guests and hired services also have had similar experiences when it comes to contract terms. They will fail to uphold their agreement and blast you for complaining.

The chairman is also a super tightwad, he skips on equipment rentals, volunteer pay, rental fees, and pockets the money to live off for a year. The IATSE has blacklisted the con in San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Dallas, etc, meaning no union company will work there until a resolution is made with whomever filed the complaint. He really messed up bad this last year.

Stay away from the forum, as it's a small group of hispanics that like to make stir up drama but cry when they can't win and devolve into making threats, cyberstalking, and attempts to cause trouble with law enforcement.

In short, worst con to work for ever. Worst con to make friends. Nothing outstanding aside from dishonest practices.

[Anonymous No.7287749]

>>7285501
Not everyone has heard of MAGfest, especially if they're not in the area. I was mentioning it from the stance that maybe someone hadn't really heard of it/ justifying writing a review for it on /cgl/. Cool your jets, Sarcasm Sam.

[Anonymous No.7287842]

>>7283177
I agree with this post, MAGfest is the best con i've attended. There is always something to do, and tons of friendly people.

The only con to magfest is that food is really expensive

[Anonymous No.7287894]

>>7285356
Which guests, and maybe security had their reasons?

[Anonymous No.7287906]

>>7286167
-rude staff
-alienates their own community
-acts too big despite only pulling 7,000ish people

[Anonymous No.7287918]

>>7286066
>weird pedophile
lol who?

[Anonymous No.7287944]

>>7285318
AWA was pretty nice this year, if not a bit disorganized.

[Anonymous No.7287968]

Nekocon:
-Kind of large for a "local" con
-Usually plenty of cosplayers
-Tends to be unfriendly in general, hard to meet new people
-Dealer's room is decent, Artist's alley subpar and catered exclusively to fujoshit this year
-Panels tend to suck
-Sparse entertainment in general, expect a lot of bored downtime
-Food is not too far away or too expensive
-Few noteworthy guests, the ones there get mobbed and crowded
-Staff is nice and chill in my experience, I was given a warning for something a more uptight staffer could have called the cops for.

I don't recommend traveling very far for it. If you live nearby it's a decent little con to tide you over until bigger and more fun one like Katsu or Ota. I wouldn't stay for the whole con either, if you live far enough away that you can't drive back to your home to sleep it's not worth the hotel money.

[Anonymous No.7287969]

>>7286167
I've never had a problem other than the one the one time I was in a skit and the judges played favorites/picked at the stupidest shit

>>7287906
I think they act big since for Kansas they're kinda the biggest con we have compared to the other shit cons we have in the state

[Anonymous No.7287978]

>>7287099
Another Texas congoer. I've always had fun at SJ but I normally hang out with specific groups and... stopped staffing. I had more of a blast being a con-goer than volunteering, but I still rank SJ better than A-kon.

The head con chair is an ass and the main guy he has helping him is really rude. Normally when I have issues, I go to the girl with the corgi. Idr her name but she's usually pretty helpful with the con.

- The cosplay staff is pretty A++ though. And the contest was ten times better this year than last year.

- The guests are more geared towards webcomics and internet celebrities than j-material guests. So if you're going for things you like on the internet, you'll probably end up having a blast.

- Their panels are very meh. I've only sat through one of them.

- But the registration line is pretty quick, and decent for the price.

- The cosplay is pretty nice. Location is gorgeous and perfect for photos.

- People in San Antonio are fucking nice, but you'll end up with a lot of tourists asking questions. A friend and I took a stroll down the riverwalk and ended up just being Volunteer Explainers to the normies.

- The scene around the area is pretty cheap. Texas is just a fairly cheap state overall so I ALWAYS end up shopping for at least a few hours at the mall itself.

- Safe to be outside any time of the day.

The con itself is kind of lacking but the atmosphere is pretty great.

[Anonymous No.7287991]

>>7286167
Would rather go to Naka-kon than the other tiny bumfuck cons in Kansas

Anime Festival Wichita
>Super kid friendly
>Little to no 18+ panles
>Venue is small
>Staff is kinda stupid over small things most of the time
>"Master of Ceremonies" is stupid and can't pronounce anything japanese or foreign and can usually be seen at a lot of other cons
>Guests are decent
>Not a lot of noteworthy cosplayers
>Vendor's room is eh along with artist alley

[Anonymous No.7288016]

>>7287968

>tends to be unfriendly in general

Jesus fuck I thought I was the only one who thought that. People didn't expand upon their circles and it was cliquey as shit

[Anonymous No.7288046]

>>7283656
I've gone for the past three years, it's not bad especially now that it's in the convention center. I can't really compare it to anything else though. They get interesting bands. Not sure if it's something you'd want to travel to if you don't live nearby but I'd say it's a nice local con.

[Anonymous No.7288073]

>>7288046
Also the food at the convention center is expensive but there's a million places to go for food downtown and it's not a long walk.

[Anonymous No.7288075]

>>7287991
Yeah, it is the better of the local cons.

[Anonymous No.7288124]

>>7287991
Oh good, as long as its better than AFW, that's the kind of con you shouldn't have wasted the money on, you run out of stuff to do after the first day.

>>7287906
That sounds a bit unfortunate. Since it's in KS City, I was hoping with the bigger venue, they'd put more effort into making it good.
But:
> How about the surrounding area, good food/not too expensive?
> What about the vendor room and AA?
> How's the hotel?

I do know that the military base is around if you have an ID and can catch a ride there and they're pretty happy to see cosplayers. Last year, the Gamestop was giving out stuff to the video game cosplayers but...Who knows if they're still allowed to do that.

[Anonymous No.7288132]

>>7283809

Afest is also not on Labor Day weekend this year too. Something about the college kids complaining about school and stuff?

Trust me, that's not why your attendance has been going down.

[Anonymous No.7288135]

>>7288132
For everyone who complained about college, a shitton of us really did commute from the dorms together...

Afest just needs to get its shit together.

[Anonymous No.7288316]

>>7283367

I went to MTAC back in 2006 and 2007 and had a blast for my first con. It was an all around decent con from what I remember. Cosplay contest is tiered, they had great guests, it was a good size. Dealer's room was small and such, but I can't really say much as I haven't been in 5+ years. I have fond memories though.

I've also got reviews for KamiCon, HamaCon, PortCon Maine, and Anime North Texas if people want them.

[Anonymous No.7288322]

>>7288132
>>7288135

No, MegaFest is run by the Potter's House Christian denomination and they wanted to have their denomination conference that weekend at the Shertaon. So AFest could either move hotels or move weekends.

From a logistics POV, it works out better because the attendance of students (whether high school or college) will be greater over the 4 days. So if you usually have Labor Day off and it fucks things up, sorry, it does suck they moved the date (earlier too, so it's gonna be even more godawful hot). But it's still a 4 day con and still, in my opinion, works out to be a decent deal. Hopefully we get better panel submissions this year and maybe we'll actually have a skit contest. At least they still have anime guests.

But it wasn't switched because of college kids. It was switched because of Jesus freaks.

[Anonymous No.7288342]

>>7286066
How are the other two cons then? Garbage too?

It's way too hard to get an Anime Detour ticket for me to bother going.

[Anonymous No.7288365]

Any reviews on Anime Mid-Atlantic?

[Anonymous No.7288384]

The only major con I've been to is Dragon Con. It just turns in to one mega drunken party. I'm not sure I'd agree with all the comments about hambeasts and sausage fests. I feel that there is a pretty even spread between genders and there are more "normal" people as opposed to mouth breathers and neckbeards.

PROS
Variety of panels. Always something to do.
Decent guests.
Rocking alternate history/steampunk track.
Friendly con goers. Everyone talks while in line.
Booze. Atlanta cops practically look the other way about open containers and drunken debauchery.
Skyways between the con hotels.
Variety of cosplay.

CONS
Super crowded.
Getting hotels and parking is ridiculous. People now arrive two days prior to con for hotels and parking.
If you don't book next years con hotel right when Dragon con ends you probably won't get one.
Good luck getting an elevator.

[Anonymous No.7288575]

Hi 3BravoZero.

[Anonymous No.7288594]

>>7288124
Don't get me wrong, I just dislike what it's grown into. And that's not to say growing is bad, I've been going since about 2007. Things just seem different now that it's not in Kansas City, actually. They recently relocated to the Overland Park con center. The surrounding area is nice/inexpensive, but they lost Crown Center being in walking distance and everything else with it.
tl;dr better con site, worse location.

[Anonymous No.7288622]

>>7288384
The cons sound horrible. Also, it's during one of the hottest months in Atlanta. Argh

[Anonymous No.7288708]

>>7288575
Yeah, that was me leaving >>7287099

See
>They will hold a grudge over a complaint from 4 years ago

Thanks for confirming that dough.

[Anonymous No.7288721]

>>7288575
Hi, always glad to know I have fans out there.

[Anonymous No.7288805]

Otakon:
- it's fucking otakon. Everything's been said.

Phoenix Comicon:
- if you thought you liked (comic/series/anime), prepare to meet thousands of people who know more about it than you'll ever care to know. I went to a Buffy panel and the entire thing didn't even touch on the TV show.
- GREAT guests. Holy shit. I met Jayne from Firefly, and the guy from Battlestar who was also in Full Metal Jacket. Went to a panel by Pam from Trueblood.
- Phoenix is really easy to get around, so you can stay anywhere in the valley and easily go to the convention.

I am not super into comics or that whole fandom though, which meant there was a LOT of stuff I didn't care about going on.

Sabotencon
- it's nice, but just too small. Feels more like a social hangout than a really put-together con. Panels are... spread out. Quality is thin. Which is nice in its own way, but it's mostly just people who already know each other dressing up and hanging out.

[Anonymous No.7289069]

>>7288721
We implore for you join Swag Expo. They'll greatly appreciate your contribution.

[Anonymous No.7289380]

>>7283034
I have anime PTSD about 08

[Anonymous No.7289405]

>>7288622
It's actually a really good time. The heat is probably the worst thing about it, otherwise everyone is very friendly, it's an older crowd so not so many screaming teenagers, lots of variety in cosplay, and great parties. And some pretty cool guests at a decent price; I'd rather go see some sci-fi actors over a four day weekend for 85$ than some anime voice actors during a three day weekend for 50$, but that's just me.

[Anonymous No.7289409]

Anybody have feedback on All-Con in Texas? Thinking about going this year.

[Anonymous No.7290239]

Interested in Planet Comic Con in Kansas. Is it a pretty typical comic convention?

[Anonymous No.7290245]

>>7290239
It's not much more than a dealer's room honestly.

Plus it's the same weekend as Naka-kon this year, so honestly I wouldn't bother.

[Anonymous No.7290771]

>>7289380

(Reviewer) It STILL haunts me to this day. Friends wonder why I'm so paranoid and staunchly defend pre-registering. I'll stand in line for 3 hours pre-reg any day over 6-8 hours line con at the door (and I'll save $20 give or take).

Case in point A-kon this year. Pre-reg Thursday night was 3 hours. Not bad since I spent it with friends. At the door Friday was 5-6 hours. NOPE.

[Anonymous No.7290789]

>>7283154
Christ, I hate when cons don't do judging for craftsmanship. The main con I go to only has a contest based around how much you can act like your character, so a shitty cosplay can beat out an excellently made one. It's the main reason I still haven't entered their competition.

[Anonymous No.7292393]

>>7289069
I will check them out. Anything worth doing is worth doing right, no?

[Anonymous No.7292504]

>>7287968
Thank you for the review I was planning to attend it on the previous year but didn't