Last year I fully intended to attend a convention where I knew that I’d know no one, I’d be forced to interact with people without the safety net of familiar faces around me. That plan fell through and I ended up with Tim at ALcon 2014. After this year I now know that I’ll never be able to attempt a convention flying solo ever again. Let me explain: Continue reading “ALcon 2015”
Tag: Alcon
Timlah’s Convention Preparation Guide
Are you stuck trying to suss out what you should take to, or be prepared for, at a convention? Look no further, today I am listing some of the things you should expect to see and some of the things you really should take with you… And believe me: There’s a lot more than you might immediately think.
It’s that time of year, where we’re getting through the Spring time and we’ll be looking towards the bright summer sun. Whilst many people opt to go to the beach, or they go on a big vacation somewhere, thousands of people across the UK will be going to an entirely different kind of holiday: A convention. Be it an anime convention, a video games convention, a Sci-Fi/Fantasy convention – No matter what it is, people will start making their way to these spectacles.
For those who have never attended one though, it can be a little bit daunting. People with incredible costumes are going to be strutting their stuff around the place, showing off the creative crafts they’ve poured hours and days over. As I look forward to a week off my day job, I will be spending my time off working on one of my impending cosplay costumes: Deku Link. Before then however, let’s look at what you need to know about the convention scene and the sorts of things you will need to take with you.
List – What to take with you
- ID
- Lods of emone
- Phone & Charger *
- Laptop/Tablet & Chargers (If you’re bringing these!)
- Camera
- If you’re keen on taking high quality pictures, I’d recommend a good standalone camera. Check out my Panasonic DMC-G5 review, which cost less than £250!
- Costumes (If going in costume! I once forgot half of my costume pieces and had to make costumes up as I went along. It went well, weirdly.)
- 3DS – If you have one, take it with you. Trust me: You’ll be Street Passed like there’s no tomorrow!
- Clothes – Or just costumes if you’re doing costumes for the whole event… But it’s better to be safe than sorry and take actual clothes with you!
- Toiletries – Because not all places you stay at will provide these, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
- A towel.
Isn’t a lot of this common sense?
Of course it is.
Ultimately, when you go to a convention, a lot of book-smarts will kind of fly out of the window. It’s an exciting time and if you’re going alone, it’s really daunting. When I went to EGX Rezzed in March, I had to travel to London on the Wednesday night after work. I was on a coach to London by myself and got to my room at 10:00pm! Whilst I wanted to go and par-tay in the local pubs, I decided to remain good and get myself ready for the upcoming days.
Whilst Rezzed is more like an expo than it is a convention, let me assure you the above list still came in handy. In some cases, once you were there, getting money out was actually pretty awkward… So most things I bought remained on card payments. Not the best way to keep track of your expenditure, I have to admit. By having my plan and taking only what was needed with me, I was able to keep on top of everything and yes: It kind of helps having a plan.
Speaking of plans…
Do I need to do anything beforehand?
Research the venue you’re going to. Ayacon Apocalypse and Alcon 2014 were both on university campuses. This meant there was a lot of walking between venues. Our dorms for Ayacon & Alcon were quite far away from the main buildings where events and the clubbing happened. So wear sensible shoes for those.
Conversely, Kitacon last year I stayed in the Hilton itself. This meant I was just going on an elevator then around a corner to go to bed. Seriously, I lucked out! For this years Kitacon, I am going to be staying in a nearby hotel, which is a good 15 minutes walk away from the venue. That’s long enough, so again sensible footwear will make all the difference in the world here.
Also be sure you know about what facilities are nearby. Chances are you won’t actually live inside of the venue the whole time, but in some cases you could luck out and get a venue that covers everything. With Kitacon, although we had food and drink on site, it was expensive. As such we often went to restaurants and shops off site, such as a nearby Frankie & Benny’s and the budget saviour that was the nearby Spar.
Once you know what’s nearby, you can decide: Do you need to take anything food and drink related with you to your venue? Do you need to be weary of your costumes at all? For example, if you have a costume that’s long and flowing, is standing outside all day a good idea? If there are a lot of steps, are robes really such a good idea? I should ask myself those questions in future.
Is there anything to be wary of?
Other than people being into the same things as you, be prepared to be surprised by everyone else’s knowledge. A lot of people will have been to many conventions, so a new face in the scene can be particularly exciting to them! They might want to discuss and find out what you know about certain topics or fandoms.
If you see a cosplay that you really like, be respectful. I cannot stress this enough, be damned respectful. Do not jump at them even if it’s for a hug. “Glomps”, hugs and the likes are all around the place at conventions – But you need to be wary of other people and not be a total jerk to others. Not everyone wants your body touching theirs in any way – That can be quite off putting. Some cosplayers don costumes to gain confidence and trust me, it is a liberating experience. Be wary of others and let others be wary of you…
But most important of all: Have fun.
Hopefully this little guide gives you some ideas as to what to look out for and what to take with you to conventions. Do you have anything to add to the list? Anything about research you’d like to add to the guidance here? As always, comments below, over on Facebook or Twitter and we’ll see what helpful hints and tips you all have to share!
Cosplayer Highlight – Komplex
Welcome to Cosplayer Highlight, where we are joined by an incredible Cosplayer from the cosplay community.
Today we’re joined by a familiar face from a previous Cosplayer Highlight in Komplex from the Cosplay Duo, the British Bumpkins. We thought we’d interview these two lovely ladies separately this time around and see what’s new for each of them.
So read on for another awesome interview with an incredible member of the cosplay community.
Welcome to Cosplayer Highlight, where we are joined by an incredible Cosplayer from the cosplay community.
Today we’re joined by a familiar face from a previous Cosplayer Highlight in Komplex from the Cosplay Duo, the British Bumpkins. We thought we’d interview these two lovely ladies separately this time around and see what’s new for each of them.
So read on for another awesome interview with an incredible member of the cosplay community.
Blogversation – Conventions
We travel for miles across the country to wait in queues longer than the trip to stay in rooms with hard beds only to be kept awake by the party outside and rudely awoken by the fire alarm. We get lost, we get rinsed of all our cash, and we get bombarded with more smells than anyone should endure.
Conventions are great!
GeekOut Updates – We’re at Alcon
Hi everyone,
Where are we?
Joel and myself are at Alcon today. Actually, we were here yesterday too, but you might have guessed that we love you guys so much: We didn’t want to leave you all out of the fun and activities here on GeekOut.
During Alcon we’ll be taking plenty of pictures, like these terrible ones from Timlah’s phone (I apologise for my lack of crop facilities!)
I… Might have gone mad!
Yes, we’re having a great time already but we thought we’d explain a few things about what’s happening here on the GeekOut blog and generally how things are going. Well it’s been a roller-coaster ride of a year. This website started thanks to me attending Ayacon 2013 and I’ve spouted this a few times but I’ll explain the premise all over again – because it has been a year.
What we’ve come from
During Ayacon 2013, it was like everything suddenly clicked for me. I understood why I was a geek: It was to share in my experiences and my passion with you guys, my fellow geeks. However, I also met a man at Ayacon Apocalypse. His name is Joel and we gelled immediately. I was dressed up as “Hoshimitsu Samu-San“, the American man who tried desperately to be a Japanese warrior, but he was a bit of a lumbering idiot. No: This character does NOT exist and yes – people believed he did after I sold the character with such conviction. Joel approached me, probably with caution, to promote Quotes From the Tabletop – So go check it out. It ended up that we just chilled out and spoke for over an hour solid and we traded details so we could keep in touch with one another.
After 6 months of being around, I met up with Joel for a second time at Kitacon Invasion… And it was from here that everything truly kicked off for us. We physically met up with the beautiful Kim and the ingenious Phil of 1001-Up, now both Joel and myself write there as well as here. We met up as both myself and the 1001-Up team loved one another’s works and we just wanted the chance to meet our fellow blogger. I also offered them a chance to see some cosplay up close and play a game of Cards Against Humanity. We want to share our passions with the world so much, that we write as much as we can – No matter how good or bad our articles might get. GeekOut South-West is a free blog for life.
Joel joined us in May 2014 and we finally started work on pushing out to the tabletop gamers out there. It helps that Joel is also an avid video gamer and to make it even better: He taps into an audience I never could – the TV geeks which is an audience we want to tap into some time in the foreseeable future. Our reach over the whole of geekdom is a long and arduous path, but it’s one we intend to see to the end.
Now where are we?
It’s bizarrely fitting that we post this whilst Joel and myself are at Alcon 2014. We met at a convention one year ago now… one year ago also gave birth to GeekOut South-West, a social group, a blog and a chance to talk geek amongst peers.
In this year, we’ve had over 8500 views,
Tell us if we’re doing things right – or even if we’re not doing things right! We love to hear from you, no matter what it is you want to tell us. We read everything you guys send us, so thank you for all of the time you have put in to reading our articles. It means the world to us. Hey better yet: Are you interested in joining our tiny little crew here at GeekOut and spreading the Geek Love!? Write to us and drop us an e-mail. Below is a contact form, use it to tell us whatever you want… And now I’m worried but I shouldn’t be, as you guys are amazing.
GeekOut Meetup 15/08/2014 – Photos
The Blogversation is on hold for this week, as next week we touch on a new topic within our Blogversation on the “Merits of gaming”.
However, just yesterday we had a Big Geek Meet here in lovely ol’ Bristol and as such, I thought I’d share with you all: Some pictures of our meet.
We started the game with a Geek Quiz which I will include at the bottom of this. If you know the answers great, answer in the comments section. Try not to use Google please ;)! I’ll give the answers to the quiz next Saturday.
So go ahead and have a gander through. Come join in the fun, here’s our quiz questions – Answer them as best you can and next Saturday, the answers will be here. Our next GeekOut meet is now set for Friday 12th September – The Friday after Alcon!
Geek quiz
Book time
1) How many Game of Thrones books are currently released?
2) In Discworld, how many books feature the character Rincewind in some way?
3) What book was written in 1965 by Frank Herbert?
4) Marvin, the Manically Depressed Robot is from The Hitchhikers Guide To The Galaxy, but he also has been known by another name – What was it?
5) How many Harry Potter books are there in all?
Otaku time
1) You can find the characters “Chiaotzu”, “Dende” and “Trunks” in what anime?
2) Who am I dressed up “like” today? (N.B: The truly astute among you will notice there’s lots of things wrong with my costume, yes, thank you, I get it.)
3) How many Pokemon were featured in the original Pokemon games?
4) What does the character Hatsune Miku originate from?
5) What’s the name of the band of all female teenage Japanese singers and dancers who perform a mix of Metal and Idol music? Their songs include “Gimme Chocolate” and “Headbanger”.
Gaming time
1) What is the video game genre characterised by level randomisation, tile-based graphics and permanent death?
2) Guybrush Threepwood is a mighty pirate, but what video game series is he from?
3) The Software Distribution platform “Steam” was developed by who?
4) What was the horror board game where you played either a VHS Tape or a DVD in the background to act as a timer and the “host” of the game you had to beat?
5) Trafalgar Square is a card and property in Monopoly. What colour set is it from?
Tech time
1) What programming language was the game Minecraft written in?
2) How many Operating Systems are made under the “Windows” name? N.B If you know the exact answer, WHAT THE HECK!? But, I will accept a rounded number to the nearest 10s.
3) What is the Virtual Reality headset that was backed on Kickstarter which has people like John Carmack (Of Id Software(Doom) fame) working on it?
4) Who initially developed Structured Query Language?
5) Who sold the Amiga personal computers in the 1980s and 1990s?
Comic time
1) What superhero was recently recast as a female.
2) Which comic is the character “Gambit” from?
3) Who is “The Merc With a Mouth”?
4) “Dr. Alec Holland had all the answers… he was an intelligent man… but Alec Holland is dead… and in his place stands only a… “ what?
5) “The Weird” is a fictional character in the Marvel Comics universe or the DC Comics universe?
Geek time
1) What is the hypothetical device that manipulates symbols on a strip of tape according to a table of rules? This has been used to simulate the logic of computer algorithms.
2) What is the “Party game for Horrible People” called? (Yes, this is shameless advertising.)
3) What is the most popular series on YouTube? (N.B: My clue to this is simply that it’s not PewDiePie.)
4) When was the movie “The Dark Knight” released?
5) Who lit lamps wirelessly in two separate locations, proving the power of wireless transmission in 1891? We need the first and last name please.
Picture time
Check out the PDF for the cropped pictures. You don’t need to give us specifics.
So okay, it was all a little cheeky and cheesy, but it got people talking and teams of 3s were formed. Although we had one team end up a team of 5… But the winning team was called A Really Bad Stripper. Hoo boy, that’s probably not PG.
Come forward, answer the quiz questions and tell us how beautiful we all look. We know it’s true. I’ve got some really unflattering pictures as I was having beard troubles that day. I literally had a full beard earlier that day and it wasn’t shaving off properly. Great, isn’t it?
Cosplayer Highlight – Andy Valentine
Welcome back once more ladies and gents to another week of Cosplayer Highlight.
We’re slowly coming towards an end of this series *Audible groan of sadness from everyone*. Yes, it’s sad I know. But don’t worry – We’ve got another 5 great interviews including todays one which is with the awesome Andy Valentine. We’ll then be wrapping up the series at Alcon where we’ll grab a bunch of cosplayers and do a podcast. Oh yes, we will! If you’re coming to Alcon, drop me an e-mail at GeekOutSW@gmail.com and we’ll get you involved! Otherwise, I might just randomly run up to people and get them involved in some way!
Andy has been taking commissions for a while now and has been gaining more and more popularity, even being asked to be a guest for some conventions. He sells props and costumes via his store which is powered by Etsy. Genuinely an interested and interesting individual who I noticed is attending Alcon, Andy took the time to sit down and have an interview with us. Let’s see what he has to offer!
Interview with the Cosplayer – Andy Valentine
Q: Welcome to GeekOut South-West! In case our readers are unaware who you are, could you give us an introduction of yourself?
A: Hey. I’m Andy Valentine of Valentine Cosplay. I’m obviously a cosplayer, but also a prop and costume maker based out of Bristol.
Q: I’d first like to thank you – I’ve known about your cosplays since I started cosplaying (last year) and I find them incredible. When did it all start for you? What were the driving factors behind your first costume?
A: Actually not all that long ago in the scheme of things. I went to my first con mid 2013 so have only really been on the circuit for a little over a year. My first cosplay was a version of Ezio from Assassin’s Creed 2 which I’d just replayed in the weeks leading up to it and re-discovered a love for the character. At the time, I’d never used a sewing machine, never hammered, cut, or finished leather, never made foam armour; none of the things I needed to do in order to construct the outfit, so it was a major learning curve and threw me right in at the deep end.
Q: How proud were you of your Ezio costume, have you modified it since and would you do anything more on it?
A: Initially, not proud at all. When I finished the build, I stood back and looked at it, then looked at the skills I’d picked up along the way, and decided that I could definitely make it better, so I started the whole thing again. By the time I got to the end of version two, I was proud with what I’d done. The first time I put it all on and looked in a mirror I thought “Damn, I can’t believe this was a pile of fabric a few weeks ago”. I still love that feeling.
Since the con, I’ve sold that outfit, so there won’t be anything more done to it. Not by me anyway. Version one I still wear out sometimes though. I installed EL wire around the trim of the outer tunic so that it glows at night and wore it to BrisFest last year. That thing got a lot of love amongst the drunks.
Q: Your Facebook page shows just how professionally and seriously you take cosplaying and it’s a real delight to read through. We recently did an article on the upcoming calendar: Men vs Cosplay. When did you decide you wanted to take that next step in your costume work? Was the step from hobbyist to a more professional level tricky?
A: To be honest, I still entirely consider myself a hobbyist, albeit a hobbyist that is getting some amazing opportunities. Being ‘successful’ within the community isn’t all that difficult I find. Obviously, being able to construct quality cosplays is a must, but also it’s an attitude thing. If you’re a decent human being and other people like you, they’ll share your stuff and you’ll get more exposure. If the professional photographers like you, they’ll want to photograph you in your outfits, meaning the quality of the photos taken of you increases, and thus the cycle of increased sharing begins again. This wheel keeps turning and eventually the right person will see your stuff and want to work with you. This is how I got asked to be in the Men vs Cosplay calendar. The organiser saw a photo of mine taken by the very reputable photographer Lucas from Super Cosplay Guys / Girls and invited me to be a part of it, so obviously I jumped at the chance. That’s the other tip: make yourself available.
Q: We ask this question of all of the cosplayers who do interviews with us here on GeekOut South-West: What costumes have you done; which were your proudest and least favourites?
A: Ok… so, in chronological order:
Ezio – Assassin’s Creed 2
Commander Shepard – Mass Effect 2
NCR Veteran – Fallout New Vegas
Vaas – Far Cry 3
Prince of Persia – Warrior Within
The Lone Wanderer – Fallout 3
Kurt Cobain – Nirvana
Tom Raider (Rule 63 Lara Croft) – Tomb Raider
“Dick in a Box” – Lonely Island Music Video
Fortunately I can still remember them all considering it’s only been a year. What a fun year it’s been though!
My favourite one to date was the Fallout Lone Wanderer. I tried to take that outfit to as “other level” as I could and had tonnes of little details in it, including a glowing Nuka Cola Quantum, my business cards were in a Mentats tin, full leather armour, screen accurate 10mm Pistol, and a massive AER-9 Laser Rifle. I had a bunch of photoshoots with some amazing photographers in that attire and was so overwhelmed by the results. The attention it got on convention floors was unbelievable too. Definitely a franchise I intend to revisit, costume wise.
Worst moment was probably Prince of Persia. The armour and whatnot was fine, but I made some bad fabric choices for the trousers and wrap, as well as using a poor quality wig, and now looking back at it I can’t help but see the issues. We all learn from out mistakes though, so onwards and upwards from there.
Q: I’ve noticed you are extremely engaged with all of your fans, how often do you get approached by newer cosplayers who are looking for advice and inspiration to move to that next level?
A: Roughly three or four times a day. I get a lot of messages on my page from people wanting advice or tips, or just wanting me to plug their new page (not something I do, but that’s a side point). I think engagement with your followers is key. Heck, I wouldn’t be where I am now if it wasn’t for the love and support I get from those guys, so I owe them everything. That’s why I like to give back whenever I can, and I’m always happy to help someone out if I can.
Q: In this interview so far, we’ve discussed your costumes and your geekdoms. We know about the costumes you’ve made but the next question we have revolves around the convention scene. Which have you attended? Do you think the convention scene is important for cosplayers and why?
A: As far as conventions go, I go to pretty much as many as I can afford, though that’s getting easier now that I’m being approached to go as a guest more often. I’ve been to loads all up and down the UK: too many to list really. I’ve haven’t really got any preference of the kind of event, so like to try and explore as many different ones as I can.
Not only is it important for a cosplayer to get “out there” and have your work seen, but they’re a hell of a lot of fun. I get to spend a weekend surrounded by awesome people who like the same stuff that I do, chilling out, having a few drinks and laughs, meeting my followers, and admiring everyone else’s cosplays. If nothing else, you can pick up loads of inspiration from what other people have made too.
Q: When the costume is off, what are you like as a person? Do you feel any different when you are wearing a costume?
A: I’m wouldn’t say I’m a different person really. Maybe a tad milder when I’m at home, but not a lot. If I’m not strutting around in cosplay, I’m typically making it, or planning it, or exploring one of the geekdoms that lead me to it. Also, I flutter between feelings of finding it weird how often I get recognised as a con with strangers coming up to me who know me, through to finding it odd that people don’t recognise me in my regular life (and why would they, really?). It’s like I’m living two lives sometimes, but I quite like that.
Q: We love to celebrate Geekdoms of all kinds and we like to get together and discuss. Stepping away from cosplay for a moment then: What other geeky hobbies do you have? Would you say it’s fairly common amongst fellow cosplayers?
A: 100%. At the end of the day, something lead us all down this path, and I don’t think it matters what it was, just that we all got here. Personally, outside of cosplay, I also LARP, although I’m super new to that and still finding my place in the world there, but it’s super fun and certainly something I’m looking forward to exploring more. I’m a big gaming fan too – hence so many of my cosplays being based on computer game characters. I play a lot of PlayStation and Xbox online with my friends and love collaborative gameplay. Other than that, I’m a bit of a sci-fi nerd. I’m actually working on a full sleeve tattoo of all the Star Wars bounty hunters at the moment. That tells you quite a lot about me really. If it’s got Boba Fett on it, I want it.
Q: Thank you for your time with us so far. This is the last question but please: Humour us here. This week, you are our “Super Sensei Guru” and a cosplayer wants to take the next step in making costumes and props, they also want to start working with more complex materials. They’re unsure how to get started and they don’t have much space. How important is it to have your own space and tools to work with more complex materials?
A: Unfortunately, it can often be pretty vital. Wood especially. Take it from someone who set up his first workshop in his spare room: sawdust gets everywhere. If you have a small amount of outdoor space it’s ideal. I tend to do my woodwork in the garden now that the weather is better, and it means the house stays in a much better shape. As for tools, you can get off the ground with pretty inexpensive equipment. I always recommend starting with any old jigsaw and mouse hand sander (about £20 a time) but then the best dremel (official Dremel tools) that you can afford, as that is the most used item in my toolbox by a mile. I use a Dremel 3000 (which are still only about £45) with an extension shaft and it’s amazing for creating smooth curves in wood, finishing foam, trimming clay, cutting metal; just everything that any budding cosplayer and prop maker might need. The good ones come with long warrantees too, which trust me, you’ll be thankful for.
Once you have your tools, get on YouTube. There is such a wealth of information on that site that it’s really easy to find out how to do things. That’s pretty much how I learnt most of what I know now. That plus trial and error. Don’t be afraid to mess something up nine times, as the tenth time you may well nail it. Practice, practice, practice and you’ll get there eventually.
I’d like to extend my thanks to Andy Valentine for taking his time to have this interview with us today.
Getting to that “next stage” is something that not every cosplayer would want to do. For me, I’d like to get to the point where all of my costumes look relatively professional – But not necessarily to the stage where I’d be taken from place to place. I love the interaction between fans – Even the interaction between the people and the costumes. Ultimately, it’s down to what you want to get out of cosplay; be it a chance to mingle or a chance to be seen. It’s always amazing to think that with a costume on, you’re not just a face in the crowd, but instead a distinguishable character.
An interesting point Andy raised in the above interview was the power of YouTube for information. Everything I’ve done has been from watching YouTube, including knowing what kind of materials to get. Then there’s the case of using the correct tools for the job. Thanks to this interview I went out and got myself a “wannabe Dremel” after having looked it all up. Money gets tight, so you never know – Perhaps having a wannabe Dremel (which cost me a mere £20) will then lead to me getting an actual Dremel. I also finally got myself something a bit more than a single surgical knife because it got quite tiresome cutting foam and fabrics with that tiny little thing!
Join us again next week for another awesome Cosplayer Highlight, where we’re rejoined by a lovely member of the Anime League forums.
Alcon 2014
It’s time to discuss the next convention which is on my calendar: Alcon 2014.
I’ve put a post on the Meetup page for anyone involved in the social group, so if anyone wants to join me for Alcon 2014 or at least wants to come say hello to me and go to an anime convention, hey: Now’s your chance! If you want to join me and hang about with me, talk to me on here or via the Meetup and I’ll get in contact with you. We might be able to work with Alconto get a discount of some kind.
Now, let me give you just some of the specifics of Alcon 2014 and why I think this should be a great convention!
Parties
Oh gosh, why is this the first thing I am turning to?
Yes, Alcon is going to be full of parties. 8 of them, in fact! One thing that is always worth paying attention to is the fact that you can have access to all of these parties in the price of the convention. The only problem is going to all of the parties, which I guess shouldn’t be too hard if you plan half of your night for each party on the 4 nights!
Now, I will admit, I will be rushing for the glowstick party!
Four days – not three
My one complaint about both Ayacon (No more Ayacon sadly) and Kitacon is that they ended after 3 days. Just 3 days to go around and see and do as much as you possibly can. That’s no time at all. Alcon is 4 days, however and is considerably cheaper than Kitacon was. An extra day does make all the difference in the world.
Now, don’t get me wrong: With Kitacon, the expensive part was the cost of the room for staying in The Hilton. Was it worth it though? Absolutely! It was 3 nights of exceptional great fun, meeting new people, making new friends and generally having a blast!
However, an extra day cannot be sniffed up! I couldn’t say no to this offer!
Cosplay Blind Date
… Hahahahaha. I cannot resist this one, I’m afraid to say.
Yes, you read that right, Cosplay Blind Date is one of the cosplay events. I have no option in my mind, but to get involved with Cosplay Blind Date. I have to have a Cosplay Blind Date, I mean seriously. But there’s a poll at the end of the page for all of my lovely viewers: Which of my 4 (Yes 4) planned costumes should I take on Cosplay Blind Date!?
Also, my Deku Link costume – I want to enter that one into the Cosplay Masquerade! That’ll be a first entering a masquerade but I have already begun work on it in time for September and as progress is made, I will post pictures and “recipes” for what I’m doing.
Indie games room
So one of the major reasons I would have visted an expo such as Rezzed would be to see all of the upcoming indie games.
I’ll admit, by being a Linux user, I have limited my choice of AAA games to a very few select studios. Alcon is looking to incorporate a whole room for Indie games! If that’s not cool, I don’t know what is! Will we see the next Super Meat Boy or Amnesia? Or will they all be pretty average? Only time will tell!
I’m sold, how much?
The price of this convention is a mere £39. You read that right, £39 for 4 days/nights, up to 8 parties, a masquerade, a ball, “Cosplay Blind date”, video games rooms, RPG rooms, traditional games room, an indie games room and much more. The worst part of all of this is you’ll probably not be able to do all of it! Seriously!
That’s the convention pass price, now what about the price of the accommodation? Now, if you’re like me, you’d love to be on campus or in one of the official accommodations. I had a tough choice, do I go and stay in the party block, or do I go to the quieter block and the answer for me was simple. I decided to sign up for the slightly more expensive option.
The standard block, as I call it the party block, is £31 per night, totalling a mere £124 for 4 nights accommodation. Furthermore, all of the parties that go on until say, 4-5 in the morning are held there. I think I’ll be going to visit this block at some points, anyway! However, for £155, I went for the ensuite accommodation. That’s the difference maker right there – Ensuite bathroom facilities to me are just essential. I always feel cheated by having to share bathroom facilities with other people! So, just across the road from the party block, this is ultimately the better option for me. Splashing out £31 more, so the price of an extra night, I am able to get all the extra comfort and luxury I’m accustomed to.
See? Luxury and fingerprints.
With Kitacon, the room for three nights was over £200… In fact, the price of Kitacon all together for me was £274.39. Now, all things considered, I did throw in an extra £10 for Kitacon to get the official Kitacon t-shirt. But that was for three nights. Assuming the ticket stayed the same price, 4 nights at Kitacon would have cost me £348.19.
For Alcon, I’ve thrown in an extra £15 for (A t-shirt and to be a supporter) and all together it’s costing me £209. I went for the more expensive option and I added on a t-shirt and an extra £5 to support Alcon (and get loads of badges for it…). the lowest price to pay for all four nights of Alcon is £39 for the pass and £124 for the accommodation for a total of £163. There are also options to do individual days for Alcon.
Conclusion
So why am I so excited for Alcon 2014? Two YouTube legends will be there. Yeah, I’m calling them legends.
One of the confirmed guests is LittleKuriboh, who is best known for his awesome parodies of YuGiOh. YuGiOh Abridged has been going for some time and I invite you to see an episode of YGO Abridged below. Please note, it’s NSFW (Not Safe For Work!)
And the other confirmed guest is Brentalfloss, who is a comedian and best known for his “What if (Classic video game) had lyrics?” videos. Again, this one is NSFW.
Yes, both of these YouTubers were mentioned in my YouTube & You article.
These are not the only guests who will be going to Alcon 2014, but these are just the two that are confirmed at the moment! May 1st will be the announcement of a voice acting guest.
I’m definitely going to Alcon 2014. If you are going, let me know by posting on here about it! Why not arrange to meet up with me, “Timlah”? I’d love to meet anyone who’s taken even 1 second of their time to read this little blog.
Finally – Which of my 4 costumes do YOU think should enter the Cosplay Blind Date should I be able to make them all and finish them all?
What do you all think about the events and the range? Is this one of the best priced conventions you’ve seen? (It’s certainly -the- best I’ve seen). Let me know by commenting below and hey, why not tell me all about the other great conventions I should know about!? Before anyone comments, yes, yes – MCM, I will go to one of those someday.
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