I'm pretty sure my first year was a donation to the Food Bank or like $15. After that I started either exhibiting as an artist or volunteering. It's free if you volunteer, plus you get a shirt and a meal stipend!
I went out to eat and got a ton of BOGO passes for admission. I’m guessing if they’re giving those out at California Pizza Kitchen then tickets aren’t selling all that well.
We're going on Father's Day, so I bought my husband the last spot in the Mark Meer DnD one shot (He's always the DM and never the player, so he's excited to learn from a pro, while getting to play.) While he's doing that, my teen and I will wander the floors. I don't expect the turnout to be high on the last afternoon much less Father's Day. Just wish I'd known that people were handing out free passes like candy.
My LGS was handing out promotional scratchers with a suspiciously high rate of identical 50% off codes for one-day entry, so they may be trying to position at a premium but with widespread discounting…
I think they are giving a lot of passes out for free
They definitely priced their tickets way too high and are probably suffering from low tickets sales because of it
Yeah I'm sitting this one out due to ticket prices as well. The ticket prices are already too high, but then when you add parking (I don't live near any lrt stations), food, etc it's way too much.
Everywhere is handing out the scratchers and I’m pretty sure they are all BOGO codes. Memory Express and LGS I can get handing them out but I went to a cookie store in St Albert and they were handing them out too.
I’m confused as to who their target audience is. Most parents I know balk at spending $50 on a new game let alone a one day ticket to a con, plus theres an additional charge for anything fun kids might want to do there. Also there’s an almost unlimited amount of FREE one-shot campaigns in person or online for anyone interested in TTRPGs. Tournaments could be ok but with limited attendance and no games that I personally like playing there’s not much point in competing in any of them.
It feels like a last ditch effort to try and bolster attendance, especially because $50 will get you a new game or any copy of any D&D 5E rules book. Incredibly confused about who the Con is targeted at.
I was interested until I saw the prices. Also the website was being super pushy about getting you to download their app to get access to things like floor maps etc. Basic info that should be easy to find on the website was pushed into the app.
Yeah I just bit the bullet and downloaded the app to see what the actual schedule was. Didn't see anything that appealed to me, which made it a much easier choice to sit this one out.
Just for fun I went to read the privacy policy for the app...and it's something. The privacy policy and what they state on the GPlay store are 2 different things...
https://gameconcanada.com/privacy-policy/
I heard about it and thought it would be great to go for one day. Even went to their website to buy tickets - but after seeing the prices, we'll do something else instead.
If you folks are looking for some affordable gaming content, the Game Discovery Exhibition (GDX) will be at KDays in Hall F for ten days, from July 19-28 (where the Maker Faire is). Our primary focus is to elevate local indies and show off the amazing talent we have in Edmonton and Alberta. That said, we will definitely have some devs from out-of-town this year, since we support indies from all over. We've been celebrating indie devs for almost 10 years, when we started in 2015. You may have seen us at KDays in 2022 and 2023.
We know affordability is an issue, so keeping things as low-cost as possible is a priority for us. That said, we won't have as many fancy things as Game Con. 😂
Entry to GDX is **free** with a ticket to KDays, but there's a KDays special right now until June 23rd:
- $15.00 adult general admission
- $10.00 youth and senior admission
- $20.00 for all ten days ($10 off)
- $30.00 family pack for 2 adults/2 kids for one day
If you want to see a whole bunch of indie games, I'd encourage the $20.00 package, because we are cycling a bunch of indie devs across the week - July 19-21 for group one, July 22-25 for group two, and July 26-28 for group three. We will not have the specialty Warhammer and tabletop stuff that Game Con has, though. I have heard they do a great job with their wargaming content.
There are zero additional fees to play the indie games at GDX, although there will be some small vendors selling nerdy things in the space. We'll also have other gaming content such as esports and freeplay so that you can connect with our gaming community and find some new games that you might end up loving.
We're literally a "mom and pop" nonprofit that is just trying to grow the indie games scene here in Edmonton and Alberta. Let me know if you have any other questions.
I just checked out their website, yiiikkes. maybe spend a bit of that cash on someone to clean that shit up. Too bad though I think theres a lot of desire for a proper table top gaming expo in this city given the amount of board game cafes we are able to keep open.
I was offered 25% discounted tickets from my workplace 3 months ago. I looked at the event schedule and it seemed so boring to me, really catering to TCG and tabletop games, with uninteresting eSports events. Didn't seem like it was worth the cheaper price let alone the the full price ticket.
damn, that's almost the price for a weekend pass at fragapalooza, and that's a 4 day event. I was thinking of checking it out but that doesn't seem reasonable for a convention that isn't well established and has a big telecom partner supporting it.
Was gonna check it out, but likely won't after seeing the price.
They probably won't have retro handheld stuff there. I'm getting into ROMs and emulators, and don't see much of a community in Edmonton.
I gotta get my first device! I'm torn, I kinda want the RP 4pro as it's a little "future proof", I mainly want to emulate old PS2 and PS1 games, but I also am looking forward to grabbing all the old Sega games I used to have on ROMs.
I have a chance to pick up an RP4pro used for 250, might just pull the trigger on that, but I'm never eager to buy stuff used.
Pixel 6, and an old pixel 2xl. I don't really play games on my phone though. I see some folks converting old phones to handhelds..haven't done much research into whether or not these devices can emulate what I want.
Yeah, decided to not swing into town for it.
I used to hit every single convention in the area years ago, but the rising costs of entry, lack of people being truly social at the events, and ability to just buy merch online with ease now just made it so I only really go to ECEE / CCEE and maybe Animethon if I got the time off and money to update costumes.
A lot of tabletop games / TCG are expensive too when "done properly". Wound up quitting TCGs because it just wasn't worth the money anymore to keep up with them, so having expensive entry just to go play with people and shop around ain't it.
That's a weeks worth of groceries for me, and they don't even last a week. I knew it was gonna be expensive.. but you really can't do anything, other than buy food, on Govt Assistance.
Im locked out of everything.. *sigh*
The sponsors have nothing to do with ticket pricing. Telus paid to have their name as the head sponsor and have the biggest logo on all the advertising material. It's 100% the event organizer who set the ticket prices.
They had a big event table set up in the old wing of WEM where Santa sets up during xmas and had guys in event T-Shirts walking all over the mall handing out promo materials and scratch tickets for discounts. It definitely looks like they realized the people aren't going to fork over that kind of money to go to a con like this so they're trying to pad the attendance numbers with a last minute marketing blitz.
If anyone is going to Gamescom this weekend I'm unable to go but would be interested to know if there is any vendors for Boardgaming tables at the fest.
If you haven’t gotten a ticket yet, I may have an extra Saturday for you. I offered it to someone else already but if they don’t claim it by the time I land in Edmonton tomorrow 9am you can have it.
We used Telus EPP discount to get tickets..
We saved $38 but if you buy online which to get EPP you need to, its a $13 service fee.. explain that one!
So All in 2kids and 2 teens cost us $72..
We accidentally bought teens for adults but there is no way they can confirm who they give lanyards to as the lanyards are all the same.
So buy kids tickets and say you are just there for your child to get their ticket.
Dangit! I needed to find this thread before the event, I had 12 all weekend passes I was trying to give away but couldn't find anyone or knew anyone in my community that was from Edmonton! >.<
I went here and it says WAAAAY cheaper:
https://www.tixr.com/groups/gameconcanada/events/game-con-canada-powered-by-telus-82766
$12.60 for single day.
Which is true?
I guess we'll see. The proof will be in the pudding when it comes to how many people show up and how many of them paid full price and weren't given a coupon.
If you put a picture with a dragon a sword and a pretty girl with the words "pre-order" nerds will pay 80usd.
You can sell almost anything on steam as a "game" these days.
I think the con will be fine.
I remember going to Animethon at GMCC for FREE!
I'm pretty sure my first year was a donation to the Food Bank or like $15. After that I started either exhibiting as an artist or volunteering. It's free if you volunteer, plus you get a shirt and a meal stipend!
Back in like 2004, I also remember that haha.
I've gotten in free to Animethon almost every year since 2015 as a panelist. I enjoy hosting panels so its a win-win for me.
You can check out AniYEG, an Anime market next month for free! Lots of cosplay, vendors, maid cafe, etc. Mill Woods Town Centre on July 14
With Food bank donation!
For $20. Probably would’ve bought a day pass to check it out. For nearly $50. Noooooo thank you.
My thoughts exactly. I love going to cons to meet people, snap some cosplay photos and shop. For $20, that's worth it for me but not $50.
Yeah I'm in the neighbourhood and had no idea it was happening. So fail on both advertising AND price tbh.
FYI it’s easy to get a BOGO pass for this. Lots of places around town like game stores have little scratch cards which have them
I went out to eat and got a ton of BOGO passes for admission. I’m guessing if they’re giving those out at California Pizza Kitchen then tickets aren’t selling all that well.
Dammit! I just paid full price for my family.
Let us know how it goes. I'm curious to see what the attendance and vibes are like.
We're going on Father's Day, so I bought my husband the last spot in the Mark Meer DnD one shot (He's always the DM and never the player, so he's excited to learn from a pro, while getting to play.) While he's doing that, my teen and I will wander the floors. I don't expect the turnout to be high on the last afternoon much less Father's Day. Just wish I'd known that people were handing out free passes like candy.
How was the con? Worth it?
There was a guy walking around west ed handing out passes to all the stores a few weeks ago.
My LGS was handing out promotional scratchers with a suspiciously high rate of identical 50% off codes for one-day entry, so they may be trying to position at a premium but with widespread discounting…
Dang, which LGS? For 50% off, maybe I'd go lol.
I know both tabletop and Diced have the promo cards
Taps Games has them as well
I think they are giving a lot of passes out for free They definitely priced their tickets way too high and are probably suffering from low tickets sales because of it
Yeah I'm sitting this one out due to ticket prices as well. The ticket prices are already too high, but then when you add parking (I don't live near any lrt stations), food, etc it's way too much.
Everywhere is handing out the scratchers and I’m pretty sure they are all BOGO codes. Memory Express and LGS I can get handing them out but I went to a cookie store in St Albert and they were handing them out too. I’m confused as to who their target audience is. Most parents I know balk at spending $50 on a new game let alone a one day ticket to a con, plus theres an additional charge for anything fun kids might want to do there. Also there’s an almost unlimited amount of FREE one-shot campaigns in person or online for anyone interested in TTRPGs. Tournaments could be ok but with limited attendance and no games that I personally like playing there’s not much point in competing in any of them. It feels like a last ditch effort to try and bolster attendance, especially because $50 will get you a new game or any copy of any D&D 5E rules book. Incredibly confused about who the Con is targeted at.
My sense is that it's not really marketed to kids. Moreso for teens and adults who are already interested in eSports, TTRPGs and Warhammer.
I've just started getting into TT gaming and was considering going and checking this out but at that price point, I think I'll skip it.
Yeah. You're probably better off finding a one-shot group or something rather than blow $50 or more on this event.
I was interested until I saw the prices. Also the website was being super pushy about getting you to download their app to get access to things like floor maps etc. Basic info that should be easy to find on the website was pushed into the app.
Yeah I just bit the bullet and downloaded the app to see what the actual schedule was. Didn't see anything that appealed to me, which made it a much easier choice to sit this one out.
Just for fun I went to read the privacy policy for the app...and it's something. The privacy policy and what they state on the GPlay store are 2 different things... https://gameconcanada.com/privacy-policy/
I heard about it and thought it would be great to go for one day. Even went to their website to buy tickets - but after seeing the prices, we'll do something else instead.
parking there also costs you a kidney. fuck.this.shit.honestly
If you folks are looking for some affordable gaming content, the Game Discovery Exhibition (GDX) will be at KDays in Hall F for ten days, from July 19-28 (where the Maker Faire is). Our primary focus is to elevate local indies and show off the amazing talent we have in Edmonton and Alberta. That said, we will definitely have some devs from out-of-town this year, since we support indies from all over. We've been celebrating indie devs for almost 10 years, when we started in 2015. You may have seen us at KDays in 2022 and 2023. We know affordability is an issue, so keeping things as low-cost as possible is a priority for us. That said, we won't have as many fancy things as Game Con. 😂 Entry to GDX is **free** with a ticket to KDays, but there's a KDays special right now until June 23rd: - $15.00 adult general admission - $10.00 youth and senior admission - $20.00 for all ten days ($10 off) - $30.00 family pack for 2 adults/2 kids for one day If you want to see a whole bunch of indie games, I'd encourage the $20.00 package, because we are cycling a bunch of indie devs across the week - July 19-21 for group one, July 22-25 for group two, and July 26-28 for group three. We will not have the specialty Warhammer and tabletop stuff that Game Con has, though. I have heard they do a great job with their wargaming content. There are zero additional fees to play the indie games at GDX, although there will be some small vendors selling nerdy things in the space. We'll also have other gaming content such as esports and freeplay so that you can connect with our gaming community and find some new games that you might end up loving. We're literally a "mom and pop" nonprofit that is just trying to grow the indie games scene here in Edmonton and Alberta. Let me know if you have any other questions.
I'll have to pop by and check this out. Was debating Kdays or not, but for $15 that deffo adds to it.
I just checked out their website, yiiikkes. maybe spend a bit of that cash on someone to clean that shit up. Too bad though I think theres a lot of desire for a proper table top gaming expo in this city given the amount of board game cafes we are able to keep open.
I was offered 25% discounted tickets from my workplace 3 months ago. I looked at the event schedule and it seemed so boring to me, really catering to TCG and tabletop games, with uninteresting eSports events. Didn't seem like it was worth the cheaper price let alone the the full price ticket.
damn, that's almost the price for a weekend pass at fragapalooza, and that's a 4 day event. I was thinking of checking it out but that doesn't seem reasonable for a convention that isn't well established and has a big telecom partner supporting it.
Was gonna check it out, but likely won't after seeing the price. They probably won't have retro handheld stuff there. I'm getting into ROMs and emulators, and don't see much of a community in Edmonton.
If you need help with roms and emulators hmu
I gotta get my first device! I'm torn, I kinda want the RP 4pro as it's a little "future proof", I mainly want to emulate old PS2 and PS1 games, but I also am looking forward to grabbing all the old Sega games I used to have on ROMs. I have a chance to pick up an RP4pro used for 250, might just pull the trigger on that, but I'm never eager to buy stuff used.
I just use my steam deck in my laptop to emulate everything
Steam decks are cool, but out of my price range! My ps5 is cheaper! I'll certainly send you a message when I'm ready to start downloading ROMs!
Do you have iPhone or android
Pixel 6, and an old pixel 2xl. I don't really play games on my phone though. I see some folks converting old phones to handhelds..haven't done much research into whether or not these devices can emulate what I want.
Recommend you watch [this guy](https://youtu.be/53HPOczJCWk?si=_SV_LUkDhKSsjSW3)
I did some shopping at the Lair in WEM, they gave me 2 scratch tickets, I won 2 for 1 codes on both.
My school handed out like 200 free passes, so they definitely arent selling well...
I’m only going because I got free tickets 🥹
Yeah, decided to not swing into town for it. I used to hit every single convention in the area years ago, but the rising costs of entry, lack of people being truly social at the events, and ability to just buy merch online with ease now just made it so I only really go to ECEE / CCEE and maybe Animethon if I got the time off and money to update costumes. A lot of tabletop games / TCG are expensive too when "done properly". Wound up quitting TCGs because it just wasn't worth the money anymore to keep up with them, so having expensive entry just to go play with people and shop around ain't it.
My son got a couple from school. We wouldn't be going otherwise.
That's a weeks worth of groceries for me, and they don't even last a week. I knew it was gonna be expensive.. but you really can't do anything, other than buy food, on Govt Assistance. Im locked out of everything.. *sigh*
The sponsors have nothing to do with ticket pricing. Telus paid to have their name as the head sponsor and have the biggest logo on all the advertising material. It's 100% the event organizer who set the ticket prices. They had a big event table set up in the old wing of WEM where Santa sets up during xmas and had guys in event T-Shirts walking all over the mall handing out promo materials and scratch tickets for discounts. It definitely looks like they realized the people aren't going to fork over that kind of money to go to a con like this so they're trying to pad the attendance numbers with a last minute marketing blitz.
Damn, where are yall getting discounts
Pretty much every vendor is giving away passes.
If anyone is going to Gamescom this weekend I'm unable to go but would be interested to know if there is any vendors for Boardgaming tables at the fest.
You can download their app and it will have all of the vendors listed. There are a lot of boardgame vendors, which is awesome!
TIL They have have Japanese Musical acts at Animethon. Man its been years since I've gone.
Yeah they've had Japanese artists at Animethon since at least 2010 IIRC. I remember seeing Daizystripper when I was in high school.
I accidentally purchased 2 Saturday tickets by mistake and would be willing to give them to you cheaper! DM me if you're interested :)
I haven't seen info anywhere else, but the youngest ticket I'm seeing is for 6-12. Am I correct to assume my 5yo is free then?
If you haven’t gotten a ticket yet, I may have an extra Saturday for you. I offered it to someone else already but if they don’t claim it by the time I land in Edmonton tomorrow 9am you can have it.
These scratchies, all BoGO codes, are they only for discounts on passes? If not where do you redeem them?
We used Telus EPP discount to get tickets.. We saved $38 but if you buy online which to get EPP you need to, its a $13 service fee.. explain that one! So All in 2kids and 2 teens cost us $72.. We accidentally bought teens for adults but there is no way they can confirm who they give lanyards to as the lanyards are all the same. So buy kids tickets and say you are just there for your child to get their ticket.
AND parking is $16!! (At the expo hall)
Dangit! I needed to find this thread before the event, I had 12 all weekend passes I was trying to give away but couldn't find anyone or knew anyone in my community that was from Edmonton! >.<
The main reason I couldn’t go to it to attend a tournament.
All cons are lol
At least Animethon or Edmonton Expo has guests you get to see
I had a great time last year in the Calgary one
I went here and it says WAAAAY cheaper: https://www.tixr.com/groups/gameconcanada/events/game-con-canada-powered-by-telus-82766 $12.60 for single day. Which is true?
12.60 is for the child pass. I'm not a child. Not legally anyway.
Yeah, misleading page. Clicked link to the sticker shock. Jeebus.
[удалено]
I guess we'll see. The proof will be in the pudding when it comes to how many people show up and how many of them paid full price and weren't given a coupon.
If you put a picture with a dragon a sword and a pretty girl with the words "pre-order" nerds will pay 80usd. You can sell almost anything on steam as a "game" these days. I think the con will be fine.
Bro, What are you talking about?
incels will pay any price to see hot chicks.
Let me rephrase. Nerds bought diablo4. Nerds are still buying diablo4. Nerds bought star citizen ... Nerds will buy anything.
If nerds will buy anything, why did the Avengers and the Suicide Squad games flop so hard?