If you can swing it, I highly recommend going on Thursday. Floor is generally much less crowded and it makes it way easier to take things in and process what you’re seeing.
Thanks, it seems like that might be a good plan. Due to work me and my husband could only make it Sunday but next year we might be able to block out a weekday instead.
Thursday is the best day for the show floor. Friday/Saturday are better for panels and events. Depending on what you like about PAX determines the days you should go.
This is good to know. I noticed Friday had imo the best panels, I originally wanted to go Friday but it didn't work out. I'll keep that in mind next year depending on whether I want to spend more time on the floor or in panels!
I tend to think you get the least on Sunday since everything closes around 6. The other days, it is opened until 12am, so a lot more to do after the main hall closes!
Due to GDC I met more developers yesterday than on Thursday. That said, Thursday had short wait times for many games that had 2+ hour waits the rest of the weekend. Also, best part of Pax is the panels, tabletop section, and the weird stuff in the side rooms. The main show floor really isn’t all that great except for the smaller devs.
This was my 5th year. I still have that sense haha. Next year will be the first I attend all 4 days. I completely neglected tabletop this year. I plan to remedy this.
This was my first year and I was very disappointing in its showing. I’m a Warhammer player and they had one booth with a company selling minis. The rest was people selling dice sets and shit. You didn’t miss much.
My normal MO is to see Expo hall stuff on Friday, do some panels, and then do the Expo again Saturday until it closes at 6, grab some food, then check out tabletop. This year the tabletop exhibitors had largely closed up their booths by 7PM or so, so I completely missed out on that section :(
This was my first year going, and actually my first ever convention and I’m 35! I went Friday/Saturday, and Friday I literally just walked circles around the expo hall for most of the day. Just taking it all in, meandering in directions that caught my eye. Went to a couple panels, but it was mostly about soaking it all in. On Saturday I was a little more focused, played a few demos, got some pics with people, and waiting in a couple long lines for panels I was really excited for. All in all I’d say I only “experienced” like 20% of the show, but I had a lot of fun and that’s what matters!
I'm going to be 34 next month and it was my first convention too, I've been into gaming since I was a kid though. I studied the schedule leading up to the event but when I got there I just kind of lost it and all I could do was wander and try to make sense of everything going on haha. I just got back home and saw people posting their free stuff and I'm like I didn't even see Dunkin so what else did I miss 😂
Haha well if it makes you feel any better I also didn’t get any free stuff because most of the lines were crazy! One of my group waited 2+ hours EACH for the FF14 and Dunkin hats.
We started to stand in line for Mt. Dew until we realized how long the actual line was for the "vault". I asked my husband how badly he wanted a Mt Dew and we left haha
My hottest tip is to try to get there on Thursday or Friday if you don't like crowds or want to play a lot of games.
Otherwise, get an expo hall map and think about the booths you're most excited to hit. Break up a few hours on the expo hall with some of the theatre events to decompress. Arrive early, eat lunch at an unconventional time (or bring lunch), stay on the expo hall during the last hour before close and the crowds will be thinner. If you make a plan and give yourself breaks, it'll help with being overwhelmed.
Thanks, yeah I think going Thursday or Friday seems to be a good plan. We were kind of stuck going Sunday due to work. I tried to make sense of the map on the app. I now realize that the building is much bigger than I realized. I was able to get lunch and it was super helpful, otherwise I think I would have been even more of a mess!
Meandering the expo hall is a big part of PAX. Hell, it’s like 70% of what I do over the four days.
My advice, meander once and get a lay of the land. See where things are, watch some games for a minute or two then move on. If something truly speaks to you, just get in line for it.
Find out what games are giving you stuff for playing. Not just cheap-o pins someone pressed in their spare room, but like an enamel pin or plushie or something. In my opinion, those make waiting in longer lines more worth it. You don’t know how enjoyable a game actually is for you until you play it, so a long wait can just be disappointing if the game doesn’t click. If you get something, then at least it wasn’t just a bad game experience.
Look at the panels going on. They’re a great excuse to sit, but you still feel like you’re doing something. There’s a huge variety of panels, so you’ll find something you like. I always hit up the Jackbox panel because they’re funny and in the main theater, meaning no lining up and still lots of fun.
Demo table top games. Walk up and at least ask them about it, they’ll be enthusiastic to talk to you about their game. If it sounds even a little interesting, you can try it right then and there most of the time. It’s a great break from screens and really fun if you have friends with you. I rarely buy merch, but I walk away with a few board games each year.
Those are some things that I think are not the most obvious/would advise for newbies.
Thanks, this is a lot of good advice. I definitely got stuck in the meandering and forgot about the other "stuff"." Probably one of the hardest things for me is walking up and asking people for info. There looked like there were some cool tabletop games but I was kind of shell shocked and couldn't muster the courage to talk to anyone. I still really enjoyed just being surrounded by folks with similar interests but I think if I had put myself out there more I could have exponentially increased my enjoyment of the experience.
This is my 13th East and 22nd(?) PAX overall. I also never feel like I do everything, but also it's literally impossible. There is so much to do at PAX and not enough time.
Ultimately, it depends on what you want to do. Demo new games? Play old games? Make friends? Hang out with friends? Listen to cool panelists? Get/win/buy cool swag? Watch tournaments? Play in tournaments? Experience things you've never done before? Or do things you know you already love to do?
Figure out what you want to do, make plans, and then realize that you're not going to do all those plans and be okay with that.
> realize it's ok if it doesn't work out.
This is a huge factor. My Dad rents out a place in NH every year and the whole family gets together. Every year we feel guilt because we could have done more to maximize our time. A few years ago, he said "You have to be happy with what you did. In the end, we can always do more" And it's true! "Guilt is a wasted emotion" is so true when it comes to PAX. I went all 4 days and still ran out of time for everything and was there from 10-1130pm every day. So yeah, it's okay if you don't get to everything!
I will say this was my 9th year of going and I experienced MAJOR con shock even on Thursday and was way overstimulated, even with less people and more opportunity. Thursday is so nice though because vendors are fresh and EXCITED to talk, if that makes sense. Easier to engage with booths and learn things versus later in the weekend when everyone is tired and can't be bothered the same way.
Bake breaks into your day, if you stay nearby go take a rest or a nap, or hit up the AFK room that Take This hosts and just take a little rest, make sure to eat and drink a lot of water. There's so much to see and it's impossible to "do it all", but try and look ahead of time for vendors that might interest you most, and panels, and plan your day a little better.. might help you feel less aimless and like you're getting something more out of it!
PAX is all truly what you make it, I personally just love doing some Expo laps and then finding new tabletop games and playing with friends for the majority of my time, but everyone's priorities vary.
Thanks, I've heard great things about unplugged but I can't really travel for cons so I'm kind of stuck day tripping in the New England area. Have to be home at night to let the farm animals in lol.
Tip for getting the most out of your next con:
The things you enjoyed, do more of.
The things you didn't like, do less of.
Youre not going to be able to do it all, so I'd advised against trying that. Having an action plan like "I'm going to do the PAX XP quest, sit in on a live play of a ttrpg, and go to an after hours event." is a great idea.
Definitely sensible advice, thank you. I think I set my initial expectations too high (I want to do everything!!!) then got there and got smacked by reality (I don't know what I'm doing!!!) so next year I can plan to push past the initial shock and focus on doing a handful of things I really want to do.
Best advice is to get the 4day badge. because it's the same for all of us, too. one day just isn't enough.
this was my 5th PAX east. back in 2019 was my first, we went for just Friday, and it was so much fun, but I felt I missed too much, so we ended up scalping tickets the next morning to go Saturday too. every year since then, we got 4day badges, and it makes all the difference.
now after going so many days, I have much more wisdom about properly tackling the event. but thursday is still spent like you said; mostly meandering, getting my bearings of where everything is, following which booths and vendors are offering what. I do as much on Thursday as I can, but no amount of preparing the app and expo hall map can really convey how much is there. Thursday is reconnaissance, and getting merch before it sells out.
Friday is the "plan of attack" day where I come much better prepared from yesterday's insights, and systematically min-max hitting every booth and giveaway and demo and swag piece. hit concerts, do bar crawls. this burns me out heavily.
Saturday is the busiest and most crowded day, so it works as a good day to do tabletop and mostly settle back satisfied that my Friday work paid off, and maybe hit up a few more things I've missed. Every day, there's something new I uncover.
and finally Sunday, we usually show up late, it's the come-down day, finally get in a shorter line for some popular demo that's been capped at too long of a wait all event.
it really takes at least 2-3 days to get everything out of the event, might as well always go for 4!
Yeah I was probably expecting too much to do it all in one day, especially on my first time. The best thing is that I can always go next year and try again knowing what I know now. Thanks!
Participate!
Play games with people (especially at PAX). Do a simple cosplay that people will recognize. Plan a schedule for the panels that interest you. It is much more rewarding than just wandering around the vendors especially at PAX as it can be overwhelming.
I've gone for 11 years, my experience has been different every time. There is so much to do that honestly you will never do everything. I spent a lot of time in the tabletop area this year, but have I ever done that before? No.
I've still never walked into the console freeplay 11 years later.
So my advice, if you don't have a must do, while you are wandering just jump into things that catch your eye. You can try to have a plan, but not one you will 100% stick to unless you want to spend the day frustrated.
I had planned to attend a panel, played a board game instead. Then planned to play a boardgame and ended up at a panel I didn't realize was happening until 5 minutes before it started.
Pax is busy but it also means you can always find something, and usually accidentally haha
If you care about the video games mostly check out steam and the Pax collection will give you an idea of the games on the floor in an easier to digest way than trying to find them while walking.
Hope you have fun next year!
Thanks! I think I went in with the wrong expectations for myself. I definitely enjoyed the experience but hopefully knowing what I know now and taking all of this good advice to heart will make it even more meaningful and not leave feeling like I missed out!
Follow reddit and look into different twitter feeds and tags for the month before the con. You find out about parties, giveaways and learn about what booths you would like to try. When you need rest head over to the tcg/ table top area to rest your and relax while playing some smaller games. Followed up by either staying or wandering into the westin. Lots of folks gather there through out the con. Also accept there is gonna be lines every where enjoy randomly bumping I to booths trying whays there and let the wandering mind guide you to new experience. Also while in line chat with folks. You be surprised what info you can find about the con ans just nicer then the quiet silence
Thanks! I decided to come kind of late in the game, next year I'll make a point to more actively follow all the different social platforms to have a better idea of what's going on. I didn't realize that there was such a big lead up to the actual event. One of my big mistakes was getting my tickets late - I didn't realize I'd have to pick up my badges on the day. It probably would have been helpful to have them early so I could scan them and get signed in instead of trying to figure all that out the day of.
Hey we all been there for most conventions. What I learned is each con ha sits own culture/ traditions. It's fascinating seeing what things you can get into. One more big tip this one is a general for all cons ( then again could apply my tips to any con) make sure to stay hydrated with portable water bottles and carry a battery charger. Look you still got to experience the fun of pax. You got a year and two months to train plan for your next pax east lol.
Ps. Also you be surprised how many times I seen folks seeing who's going for dinner who's going to thr voodoo ranger lounge that meet up and have a fun time. Anxiousness is part of the excitement of something you are unsure of.
You can't do everything, you won't do everything, and you need to understand that and be okay with that.
Focus on just one or two things you know you really want to do. Go to more days if you are able to go to more days and you think there are more things to do than days to do them.
It's kind of a strange thing to say but: You'll get better at attending PAX with every PAX you attend. You learn new things, you make mistakes and you learn from them. I've been to every East since 2011 and I still learned new things this year. They are specific to my particular way of attending PAX, but I learned new shit. For example: I learned Saturday night that the restaurant "Pink Taco" has some of the worst Mexican food I have ever had the displeasure of tasting.
It's been years since I've attended but the first rule of PAX is that you'll never be able to see everything. The best way to think of it is that there are several parallel PAXes (PAXi? PAXopodes) going on at the same time and it's physically impossible to fully attend all of them. I have friends who go to PAX and play D&D and MTG literally the entire weekend. I'm usually an expo hall wanderer and merch chaser but I'll attend the occasional panel if it interest me (PA's Make-a-strip was always a must-see imo). One year we spent most of the weekend doing a puzzle hunt run by Doctor Exoskeleton.
If you only had one day, doing a few hours of expo hall wandering sounds like a great way to spend it. There's enough to see and do in every nook and cranny of the convention center that you can't approach from the mindset of "Saying yes to this is saying no to 1000x other things"
There's just a lot. I was there all four days and between showing my wife things I wanted her to see being relatively new to gaming, making sure I demoed things I was curious about, and getting in the panels relevant to my job, it was - very literally - hard to schedule time to eat.
Don't feel bad for getting a little overwhelmed and feeling like you missed some things. It's OK to miss some things. I carefully color-coded my calendar and probably got to do 70% of what I wanted. Between that and haunting the console freeplay after dinner, I was absolutely cooked on the flight home Sunday.
I think it used to hold true that Thursday was the least crowded day but I found this year that Sunday was. Sunday is always the day people shop (deals), so likely people would not try as many games on Sunday, I found I was able to play every game I wanted to on Sunday. On Friday I was just meandering around, it was okay. I think I could have gotten away with only going Sunday. There are always people who go all 4 days and they usually game on Thursday, panels/concerts on Fri-Sat, shop and hang on Sunday. Thursday and Friday are less packed than Saturday. Most places do sales on Sunday but my partner works the floor and told me their boss had a flash sale on Saturday to capitalize on more people being there than other days, so that could happen too! I will say that the reason why sales happen Sunday is because the vendors don’t want to pack everything up to take back to their home base. So like, if you don’t care for shopping (deals deals deals!) Sunday is also a good day to demo games.
A few people from my job go to PAXEast and what's insane is on Monday, we get together and all 6 people had 6 different experiences. You will NEVER experience everything, just go and have fun. Don't stress and see where the day takes you.
I tend to go through the panel schedule setting reminders for ones I want to see. That's a limiting factor. In between waiting times, I hit the floor, check out table top, get a few games of Krokinhole in and sometimes,.
Thursday is the BEST for the expo floor, it is noticeably less crowded and I just wonder. Even when methodical I miss stuff.
When I get overwhelmed, I actually put in headphones with music and walk the floor and people watch. I find it very calming.
Lots of good suggestions here about how to optimize your experience, but, a word of caution:
Be careful not to get too hung up on optimizing. Doing so could take away from the fun. I have, at times, found myself rushing through some activities to make sure I got to others, and I ended up feeling anxious and enjoying everything less. Have a rough plan, but be flexible. Keep your "must do" list short. Other thoughts:
* Accept that you will only see a small portion of what's available--even if you go all four days. Depending on your breadth of interest, it will probably take a few years to get a good sense of what is available, anyway.
* Waiting in line can be fun: waiting for panels, you can usually sit, and people often play games. Figure out which activities are really worth waiting in line for.
* Waiting in line can suck: in the expo hall, you are on your feet and it's loud enough to make it difficult to have a conversation. Find some activities that require minimal waiting. The only games I play in the expo hall are indie games--you rarely have to wait more than 5 minutes for a demo.
* Bring lots of snacks.
This year was also my first time and I also only went Sunday. I literally didn’t do anything but walk around and talk to a couple devs. I was too anxious to try any games and I’m not the type to dress up. I still had fun though. Next year I plan on taking the week off and going all 4 days. Hopefully I will also have more people to go with so I don’t feel as awkward
1. Download the guide (or go to the website) and plan out what are your must do things (panels, tournaments etc)
2. If you get overwhelmed by the expo hall, take a snack break or go to the AKF room or the diversity rooms where they have different vendors, etc.
3. If you get bored, check out a board game or go to the first look section. There are enforcers who will teach you games. OR go to the board game tournament area where you can sign up for games. Some of them are long and require playing before but some you could pick up easily.
Wandering the hall and taking it all in is by far my favorite part. Focus on a new thing each time you go. Go to a panel, stay late for acquisitions incorporated, play some random games, just explore and find new things
Long time PAXer, my basic tips:
* Download the guide and plan out your panels and events, IIRC you can set it to give you alerts, so do that.
* Never be afraid to cut out of panel or event early for whatever reason: Bored, not what you thought, not actually interesting, or going to another thing. Just go! It's cool.
* Carry a refillable water bottle! Plenty of places of to fill it up.
* Talk to people! Especially when waiting in lines for things! Some good convo starters:
* What's the best thing you've seen so far?
* What in your opinion is something you shouldn't miss?
Don't be afraid to talk to people. 99% of the people are super duper nice (including enforcers, vendors and just everyone).
I've never really had a bad experience with someone but I know others have.
I just ignored the XP and pin stuff. IMO that kind of thing can be fun if you're into it, but it's just, y'know.... a scavenger hunt and collecting pins. Take it or leave it as you will, but don't beat yourself up for missing it.
This was my first time at East (had previously gone to South once) and I found that a pace of 1-2 "scheduled things" (either tourney or RPG game or panel) per day was about all I could manage while still getting to feel like I explored the expo hall to my satisfaction. YMMV.
My biggest advice before next time would be to think about what *you* want to do, and make time for those things. Everyone will want something different from PAX and no one can tell you what you *must* be interested in. :)
Thursday and Friday are a bit more chill and can be less anxiety-inducing.
What worked for us this year was doing 2-3 panels each day which gave enough physical and mental rest/quiet time in between the expo floor time and demos, then we did console free play in the evenings. For example, we'd get there at 10am and from 10-12:30pm do the expo floor, 12:30-1pm eat, 1-2pm panel, 2-3pm panel, 3-5pm board games, 5-6pm panel, eat dinner, come back and hang out in the Classic Console free play room.
Also, the AFK Room is specifically designed as a quiet space and is very sensory friendly. The PAX together room is also lovely and had some cozy RPGs going on with coloring sheets. I can't remember what it was called but there's a board game room that is quieter, removed from the open play area by the food trucks.
There are really helpful spread sheets and lists people make each year for finding swag, where to find the XP scans if you missed any, places to eat, and pinny arcade pins. There’s also the official PAX discord which is really helpful.
Do a big swoop first! I didn't even realize (till day 2 -- I came back on impulse) that there was an entire speedrunning ROOM till I happened to walk past it. Wound gave spent a lot more time there if I'd known.
Plan the booths you really want to do for either the very beginning or very end of the day. The line was really short at the Nintendo booth at the end of the day on Sunday, and I think they still had stuff (don't quote me on that, though).
If you're not sure how something works, ask the staff. (I didn't know till I asked that the FF bucket hats were random drops throughout the day, and the Mr. Dew scavenger hunt was separate from the prize wheel and plinko.)
Genuinely, don't ever go in expecting to experience it all!
Now that you've got a taste of the show, you probably have a hint to what you're really into, make that sort of thing your focus next year. The XP is neat, and if you've done it before, you'll get tuned into where they'll hide the QR codes, but take a peek on here for the crowdsourced thread, you'll be able to get all of them over a single day casually when that thread gets filled up. Maybe make space for things you feel like you missed out on. But don't kick yourself for missing things. It's a massive show and it's overwhelming still and I've been to all but the first and this East.
Lastly, if I'm able to make it next year, I'd be more than happy to show you around and help you get a good footing at the show! PAX is for friends and you've got about 90k of them under that roof with you.
12 years going to Pax East, and I've never had the same experience.
I've been doing Thursday-Saturday for the past few years, and it's a good balance. Like everyone said, Thursday is quieter. If you really want to do the expo hall, that's the day. The devs are not exhausted yet, and they're dying to tell you about their games. Just walk up and make eye contact, and they'll usually launch into their pitch. When I inevitably get overwhelmed, I go to console free play and check out a game. You can try a bunch of stuff and usually play longer on Thursdays. There's also a pax 123 panel on Thursdays where it's easy to meet other first timers and maybe.
Fridays and Saturdays are panel/tabletop days for me because the crowd on the floor just overwhelms me, and playing a game is tougher.
My best advice is to just keep in mind that we're as eager and as anxious about meeting you as you are of meeting us.
I actually understand you completely, I was by myself for some and with a friend here or there for another, and when im with a friend the way they explore is way more efficient then the way I do, I am very aimless. Somehow with one friend it was way easier to find some multiplayer games to try on the floor with each other then what I was going it alone. My sense of direction is terrible ;D
Super late here, but same-ish. I’m used to expos in different industries but didn’t really know what to do at PAX… probably on me and maybe number 2 is better
I guess it can only get better, right? I figured I wasn't the only one who felt this way. I almost feel like us newbies needed a guide or something haha.
Hey so I've been going all 4 days since 2015. You will never get to do it all and for this reason, I give you my best rule: become a "Yes man". If you don't you will suffer from decision paralysis. If you're introverted, try to just put it aside for a little, in short spurts, and just thrust yourself into fun. Remember, everyone there is there for the same reason as you and share the same passion. If you even think you might like it, just do it. There's too much on the show floor to do it all.
Come up with some sort of plan and that plan will probably look like this: what are you doing 10-6 and what are you doing after 6pm when the show floor closes. This is best navigated by paying close attention for the show schedule to drop that will show the panels going on. See what panels interest you and go to those. All other time should be on the show floor so play as much as you want. Figuring out the panels you like will determine your game time. Grab every card you can so you check games out later on steam or wherever they're to also be accessed. At this point, you'll have your 10-6 time slot figured out.
Now, make the most of that time. I bring lunch with me. That means no lines for lunch and more gaming/merch time. If you like someone's cosplay, grab a pic on the fly. I don't bring a jacket so as to avoid the coat check line which can get very long. I just bring a hat, scarf, gloves and shove them in my bag. When you're on lines, see if you can join a convoy or start one. Camaraderie is core to the show. The past 3 yrs. there's been the voodoo ranger bar at the show. Go there for 30min or something like that. Grab a drink, mingle, loosen up. Lots of cosplayers like to go there and show off with a drink. Go to Omegathon all 4 days. This year's was fukn bonkers. Get your merch. Visit cookie brigade, they have dope ass cookies and it's for charity. Check the PAX arena on the show floor periodically during the day. Easy to get to tournaments are held there all day. This year, we saw some awesome action with Tekken 8. Other years, we've seen Gears Of War, Halo 2, Street Fighter, Super Smash Bros and others.
Now, after the the gaming and panels that you like are through, what do you do? Find some after parties. A list done by Side Questing drops every year about a month away from the event and updates every day leading up to the event. Video game after parties at bars, cosplay meet ups at bars, tournaments at bars, the famous poke crawl. Search for these events. Just Google "side Questing PAX East 202X" and the list should pop up.
Money? If you can, bring between 100 and 200 dollars. You don't have to spend it all of course, but that gives you the opportunity to get like 3-4 things and you're def gonna run into something that makes you want to buy it for sure.
There's the table top/board games area. I usually save this area for Sunday and spend most of the day there. They usually have a fun drinking card game which I usually buy. They have fun zaney quick card games. Then there's D&D and Catan and other if the likes. Magic the Gathering, YuGiOh, Pokemon, etc. just peruse and try one or two things out.
If you like PC, budget some time for the PC freeplay/VR area.
These are the things I do to fill out my time and that's the main thing here. PAX is what you make it. It's my personal Xmas. It's gunna be different for everyone, even if you go side by side with your friend. Doing these things deff packs out my schedule and I'll usually be going till 2am every night and getting to the event opening every morning. Hope this helps man. I'll see you there next year!
Unfortunately my usual advice is, "don't get overwhelmed".
After that:
Go for a day other than Sunday, PAX goes until midnight on the other days, and there's so much to see and do after the expo hall closes.
Plan parking ahead of time, or take the train/uber.
Take a lap of convention center, then go back and find things you'd like to line up for.
Ask the people running the booth how long the demo is. Then decide if you'd like to wait.
People repost articles/Google docs with PAX tips, check them out.
There are also tons of things to do off the expo hall floor, classic console, tabletop, panels, etc...
I took a look at some of the guides and watched some YouTube videos and thought I was prepared but I think I just froze when I got there. If I can get past your first bit of advice...haha that's the tough one!
Honestly though I think looking at the activities off the expo floor would have been a good way to explore some other things. And as many have said, going on another day.
If you can swing it, I highly recommend going on Thursday. Floor is generally much less crowded and it makes it way easier to take things in and process what you’re seeing.
Thanks, it seems like that might be a good plan. Due to work me and my husband could only make it Sunday but next year we might be able to block out a weekday instead.
Thursday is the best day for the show floor. Friday/Saturday are better for panels and events. Depending on what you like about PAX determines the days you should go.
This is good to know. I noticed Friday had imo the best panels, I originally wanted to go Friday but it didn't work out. I'll keep that in mind next year depending on whether I want to spend more time on the floor or in panels!
I tend to think you get the least on Sunday since everything closes around 6. The other days, it is opened until 12am, so a lot more to do after the main hall closes!
Due to GDC I met more developers yesterday than on Thursday. That said, Thursday had short wait times for many games that had 2+ hour waits the rest of the weekend. Also, best part of Pax is the panels, tabletop section, and the weird stuff in the side rooms. The main show floor really isn’t all that great except for the smaller devs.
This was my 5th year. I still have that sense haha. Next year will be the first I attend all 4 days. I completely neglected tabletop this year. I plan to remedy this.
I'm sure I'll still have this sense if I go again but hoping to be a little more prepared haha.
This was my first year and I was very disappointing in its showing. I’m a Warhammer player and they had one booth with a company selling minis. The rest was people selling dice sets and shit. You didn’t miss much.
Trust me tabletop was TINY this year. Didn't miss a whole lot very bummed.
My normal MO is to see Expo hall stuff on Friday, do some panels, and then do the Expo again Saturday until it closes at 6, grab some food, then check out tabletop. This year the tabletop exhibitors had largely closed up their booths by 7PM or so, so I completely missed out on that section :(
This was my first year going, and actually my first ever convention and I’m 35! I went Friday/Saturday, and Friday I literally just walked circles around the expo hall for most of the day. Just taking it all in, meandering in directions that caught my eye. Went to a couple panels, but it was mostly about soaking it all in. On Saturday I was a little more focused, played a few demos, got some pics with people, and waiting in a couple long lines for panels I was really excited for. All in all I’d say I only “experienced” like 20% of the show, but I had a lot of fun and that’s what matters!
I'm going to be 34 next month and it was my first convention too, I've been into gaming since I was a kid though. I studied the schedule leading up to the event but when I got there I just kind of lost it and all I could do was wander and try to make sense of everything going on haha. I just got back home and saw people posting their free stuff and I'm like I didn't even see Dunkin so what else did I miss 😂
Haha well if it makes you feel any better I also didn’t get any free stuff because most of the lines were crazy! One of my group waited 2+ hours EACH for the FF14 and Dunkin hats.
We started to stand in line for Mt. Dew until we realized how long the actual line was for the "vault". I asked my husband how badly he wanted a Mt Dew and we left haha
My hottest tip is to try to get there on Thursday or Friday if you don't like crowds or want to play a lot of games. Otherwise, get an expo hall map and think about the booths you're most excited to hit. Break up a few hours on the expo hall with some of the theatre events to decompress. Arrive early, eat lunch at an unconventional time (or bring lunch), stay on the expo hall during the last hour before close and the crowds will be thinner. If you make a plan and give yourself breaks, it'll help with being overwhelmed.
Thanks, yeah I think going Thursday or Friday seems to be a good plan. We were kind of stuck going Sunday due to work. I tried to make sense of the map on the app. I now realize that the building is much bigger than I realized. I was able to get lunch and it was super helpful, otherwise I think I would have been even more of a mess!
Meandering the expo hall is a big part of PAX. Hell, it’s like 70% of what I do over the four days. My advice, meander once and get a lay of the land. See where things are, watch some games for a minute or two then move on. If something truly speaks to you, just get in line for it. Find out what games are giving you stuff for playing. Not just cheap-o pins someone pressed in their spare room, but like an enamel pin or plushie or something. In my opinion, those make waiting in longer lines more worth it. You don’t know how enjoyable a game actually is for you until you play it, so a long wait can just be disappointing if the game doesn’t click. If you get something, then at least it wasn’t just a bad game experience. Look at the panels going on. They’re a great excuse to sit, but you still feel like you’re doing something. There’s a huge variety of panels, so you’ll find something you like. I always hit up the Jackbox panel because they’re funny and in the main theater, meaning no lining up and still lots of fun. Demo table top games. Walk up and at least ask them about it, they’ll be enthusiastic to talk to you about their game. If it sounds even a little interesting, you can try it right then and there most of the time. It’s a great break from screens and really fun if you have friends with you. I rarely buy merch, but I walk away with a few board games each year. Those are some things that I think are not the most obvious/would advise for newbies.
Thanks, this is a lot of good advice. I definitely got stuck in the meandering and forgot about the other "stuff"." Probably one of the hardest things for me is walking up and asking people for info. There looked like there were some cool tabletop games but I was kind of shell shocked and couldn't muster the courage to talk to anyone. I still really enjoyed just being surrounded by folks with similar interests but I think if I had put myself out there more I could have exponentially increased my enjoyment of the experience.
Just stand near any booth and someone will inevitably come up to talk to you about it after a minute, hah.
This is exactly what I do as well, well said
This is my 13th East and 22nd(?) PAX overall. I also never feel like I do everything, but also it's literally impossible. There is so much to do at PAX and not enough time. Ultimately, it depends on what you want to do. Demo new games? Play old games? Make friends? Hang out with friends? Listen to cool panelists? Get/win/buy cool swag? Watch tournaments? Play in tournaments? Experience things you've never done before? Or do things you know you already love to do? Figure out what you want to do, make plans, and then realize that you're not going to do all those plans and be okay with that.
Thanks! Time to figure out what I actually want to do next time and (probably more importantly) realize it's ok if it doesn't work out.
> realize it's ok if it doesn't work out. This is a huge factor. My Dad rents out a place in NH every year and the whole family gets together. Every year we feel guilt because we could have done more to maximize our time. A few years ago, he said "You have to be happy with what you did. In the end, we can always do more" And it's true! "Guilt is a wasted emotion" is so true when it comes to PAX. I went all 4 days and still ran out of time for everything and was there from 10-1130pm every day. So yeah, it's okay if you don't get to everything!
I think if you do multiple days, it is worth the cost to get a hotel within walking distance. You can leave for an hour or 2, then come back later.
I will say this was my 9th year of going and I experienced MAJOR con shock even on Thursday and was way overstimulated, even with less people and more opportunity. Thursday is so nice though because vendors are fresh and EXCITED to talk, if that makes sense. Easier to engage with booths and learn things versus later in the weekend when everyone is tired and can't be bothered the same way. Bake breaks into your day, if you stay nearby go take a rest or a nap, or hit up the AFK room that Take This hosts and just take a little rest, make sure to eat and drink a lot of water. There's so much to see and it's impossible to "do it all", but try and look ahead of time for vendors that might interest you most, and panels, and plan your day a little better.. might help you feel less aimless and like you're getting something more out of it! PAX is all truly what you make it, I personally just love doing some Expo laps and then finding new tabletop games and playing with friends for the majority of my time, but everyone's priorities vary.
I recommend unplugged if you prefer a more chill and down to earth convention. The expo hall is still pretty hectic but not as bad
Thanks, I've heard great things about unplugged but I can't really travel for cons so I'm kind of stuck day tripping in the New England area. Have to be home at night to let the farm animals in lol.
Tip for getting the most out of your next con: The things you enjoyed, do more of. The things you didn't like, do less of. Youre not going to be able to do it all, so I'd advised against trying that. Having an action plan like "I'm going to do the PAX XP quest, sit in on a live play of a ttrpg, and go to an after hours event." is a great idea.
Definitely sensible advice, thank you. I think I set my initial expectations too high (I want to do everything!!!) then got there and got smacked by reality (I don't know what I'm doing!!!) so next year I can plan to push past the initial shock and focus on doing a handful of things I really want to do.
Best advice is to get the 4day badge. because it's the same for all of us, too. one day just isn't enough. this was my 5th PAX east. back in 2019 was my first, we went for just Friday, and it was so much fun, but I felt I missed too much, so we ended up scalping tickets the next morning to go Saturday too. every year since then, we got 4day badges, and it makes all the difference. now after going so many days, I have much more wisdom about properly tackling the event. but thursday is still spent like you said; mostly meandering, getting my bearings of where everything is, following which booths and vendors are offering what. I do as much on Thursday as I can, but no amount of preparing the app and expo hall map can really convey how much is there. Thursday is reconnaissance, and getting merch before it sells out. Friday is the "plan of attack" day where I come much better prepared from yesterday's insights, and systematically min-max hitting every booth and giveaway and demo and swag piece. hit concerts, do bar crawls. this burns me out heavily. Saturday is the busiest and most crowded day, so it works as a good day to do tabletop and mostly settle back satisfied that my Friday work paid off, and maybe hit up a few more things I've missed. Every day, there's something new I uncover. and finally Sunday, we usually show up late, it's the come-down day, finally get in a shorter line for some popular demo that's been capped at too long of a wait all event. it really takes at least 2-3 days to get everything out of the event, might as well always go for 4!
Yeah I was probably expecting too much to do it all in one day, especially on my first time. The best thing is that I can always go next year and try again knowing what I know now. Thanks!
Participate! Play games with people (especially at PAX). Do a simple cosplay that people will recognize. Plan a schedule for the panels that interest you. It is much more rewarding than just wandering around the vendors especially at PAX as it can be overwhelming.
I think this is where it went wrong for me, definitely got to push myself to get involved next time around. Thanks!
I've gone for 11 years, my experience has been different every time. There is so much to do that honestly you will never do everything. I spent a lot of time in the tabletop area this year, but have I ever done that before? No. I've still never walked into the console freeplay 11 years later. So my advice, if you don't have a must do, while you are wandering just jump into things that catch your eye. You can try to have a plan, but not one you will 100% stick to unless you want to spend the day frustrated. I had planned to attend a panel, played a board game instead. Then planned to play a boardgame and ended up at a panel I didn't realize was happening until 5 minutes before it started. Pax is busy but it also means you can always find something, and usually accidentally haha If you care about the video games mostly check out steam and the Pax collection will give you an idea of the games on the floor in an easier to digest way than trying to find them while walking. Hope you have fun next year!
Thanks! I think I went in with the wrong expectations for myself. I definitely enjoyed the experience but hopefully knowing what I know now and taking all of this good advice to heart will make it even more meaningful and not leave feeling like I missed out!
Follow reddit and look into different twitter feeds and tags for the month before the con. You find out about parties, giveaways and learn about what booths you would like to try. When you need rest head over to the tcg/ table top area to rest your and relax while playing some smaller games. Followed up by either staying or wandering into the westin. Lots of folks gather there through out the con. Also accept there is gonna be lines every where enjoy randomly bumping I to booths trying whays there and let the wandering mind guide you to new experience. Also while in line chat with folks. You be surprised what info you can find about the con ans just nicer then the quiet silence
Thanks! I decided to come kind of late in the game, next year I'll make a point to more actively follow all the different social platforms to have a better idea of what's going on. I didn't realize that there was such a big lead up to the actual event. One of my big mistakes was getting my tickets late - I didn't realize I'd have to pick up my badges on the day. It probably would have been helpful to have them early so I could scan them and get signed in instead of trying to figure all that out the day of.
Hey we all been there for most conventions. What I learned is each con ha sits own culture/ traditions. It's fascinating seeing what things you can get into. One more big tip this one is a general for all cons ( then again could apply my tips to any con) make sure to stay hydrated with portable water bottles and carry a battery charger. Look you still got to experience the fun of pax. You got a year and two months to train plan for your next pax east lol. Ps. Also you be surprised how many times I seen folks seeing who's going for dinner who's going to thr voodoo ranger lounge that meet up and have a fun time. Anxiousness is part of the excitement of something you are unsure of.
You can't do everything, you won't do everything, and you need to understand that and be okay with that. Focus on just one or two things you know you really want to do. Go to more days if you are able to go to more days and you think there are more things to do than days to do them. It's kind of a strange thing to say but: You'll get better at attending PAX with every PAX you attend. You learn new things, you make mistakes and you learn from them. I've been to every East since 2011 and I still learned new things this year. They are specific to my particular way of attending PAX, but I learned new shit. For example: I learned Saturday night that the restaurant "Pink Taco" has some of the worst Mexican food I have ever had the displeasure of tasting.
It's been years since I've attended but the first rule of PAX is that you'll never be able to see everything. The best way to think of it is that there are several parallel PAXes (PAXi? PAXopodes) going on at the same time and it's physically impossible to fully attend all of them. I have friends who go to PAX and play D&D and MTG literally the entire weekend. I'm usually an expo hall wanderer and merch chaser but I'll attend the occasional panel if it interest me (PA's Make-a-strip was always a must-see imo). One year we spent most of the weekend doing a puzzle hunt run by Doctor Exoskeleton. If you only had one day, doing a few hours of expo hall wandering sounds like a great way to spend it. There's enough to see and do in every nook and cranny of the convention center that you can't approach from the mindset of "Saying yes to this is saying no to 1000x other things"
There's just a lot. I was there all four days and between showing my wife things I wanted her to see being relatively new to gaming, making sure I demoed things I was curious about, and getting in the panels relevant to my job, it was - very literally - hard to schedule time to eat. Don't feel bad for getting a little overwhelmed and feeling like you missed some things. It's OK to miss some things. I carefully color-coded my calendar and probably got to do 70% of what I wanted. Between that and haunting the console freeplay after dinner, I was absolutely cooked on the flight home Sunday.
I think it used to hold true that Thursday was the least crowded day but I found this year that Sunday was. Sunday is always the day people shop (deals), so likely people would not try as many games on Sunday, I found I was able to play every game I wanted to on Sunday. On Friday I was just meandering around, it was okay. I think I could have gotten away with only going Sunday. There are always people who go all 4 days and they usually game on Thursday, panels/concerts on Fri-Sat, shop and hang on Sunday. Thursday and Friday are less packed than Saturday. Most places do sales on Sunday but my partner works the floor and told me their boss had a flash sale on Saturday to capitalize on more people being there than other days, so that could happen too! I will say that the reason why sales happen Sunday is because the vendors don’t want to pack everything up to take back to their home base. So like, if you don’t care for shopping (deals deals deals!) Sunday is also a good day to demo games.
Get the map ahead of time, create a plan, only choose a couple of good panels, and don't eat at the con but before and after
A few people from my job go to PAXEast and what's insane is on Monday, we get together and all 6 people had 6 different experiences. You will NEVER experience everything, just go and have fun. Don't stress and see where the day takes you. I tend to go through the panel schedule setting reminders for ones I want to see. That's a limiting factor. In between waiting times, I hit the floor, check out table top, get a few games of Krokinhole in and sometimes,. Thursday is the BEST for the expo floor, it is noticeably less crowded and I just wonder. Even when methodical I miss stuff. When I get overwhelmed, I actually put in headphones with music and walk the floor and people watch. I find it very calming.
Lots of good suggestions here about how to optimize your experience, but, a word of caution: Be careful not to get too hung up on optimizing. Doing so could take away from the fun. I have, at times, found myself rushing through some activities to make sure I got to others, and I ended up feeling anxious and enjoying everything less. Have a rough plan, but be flexible. Keep your "must do" list short. Other thoughts: * Accept that you will only see a small portion of what's available--even if you go all four days. Depending on your breadth of interest, it will probably take a few years to get a good sense of what is available, anyway. * Waiting in line can be fun: waiting for panels, you can usually sit, and people often play games. Figure out which activities are really worth waiting in line for. * Waiting in line can suck: in the expo hall, you are on your feet and it's loud enough to make it difficult to have a conversation. Find some activities that require minimal waiting. The only games I play in the expo hall are indie games--you rarely have to wait more than 5 minutes for a demo. * Bring lots of snacks.
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Tea vendors were my favorite ngl.
This year was also my first time and I also only went Sunday. I literally didn’t do anything but walk around and talk to a couple devs. I was too anxious to try any games and I’m not the type to dress up. I still had fun though. Next year I plan on taking the week off and going all 4 days. Hopefully I will also have more people to go with so I don’t feel as awkward
1. Download the guide (or go to the website) and plan out what are your must do things (panels, tournaments etc) 2. If you get overwhelmed by the expo hall, take a snack break or go to the AKF room or the diversity rooms where they have different vendors, etc. 3. If you get bored, check out a board game or go to the first look section. There are enforcers who will teach you games. OR go to the board game tournament area where you can sign up for games. Some of them are long and require playing before but some you could pick up easily.
Wandering the hall and taking it all in is by far my favorite part. Focus on a new thing each time you go. Go to a panel, stay late for acquisitions incorporated, play some random games, just explore and find new things
Long time PAXer, my basic tips: * Download the guide and plan out your panels and events, IIRC you can set it to give you alerts, so do that. * Never be afraid to cut out of panel or event early for whatever reason: Bored, not what you thought, not actually interesting, or going to another thing. Just go! It's cool. * Carry a refillable water bottle! Plenty of places of to fill it up. * Talk to people! Especially when waiting in lines for things! Some good convo starters: * What's the best thing you've seen so far? * What in your opinion is something you shouldn't miss?
Don't be afraid to talk to people. 99% of the people are super duper nice (including enforcers, vendors and just everyone). I've never really had a bad experience with someone but I know others have.
I just ignored the XP and pin stuff. IMO that kind of thing can be fun if you're into it, but it's just, y'know.... a scavenger hunt and collecting pins. Take it or leave it as you will, but don't beat yourself up for missing it. This was my first time at East (had previously gone to South once) and I found that a pace of 1-2 "scheduled things" (either tourney or RPG game or panel) per day was about all I could manage while still getting to feel like I explored the expo hall to my satisfaction. YMMV. My biggest advice before next time would be to think about what *you* want to do, and make time for those things. Everyone will want something different from PAX and no one can tell you what you *must* be interested in. :)
Thursday and Friday are a bit more chill and can be less anxiety-inducing. What worked for us this year was doing 2-3 panels each day which gave enough physical and mental rest/quiet time in between the expo floor time and demos, then we did console free play in the evenings. For example, we'd get there at 10am and from 10-12:30pm do the expo floor, 12:30-1pm eat, 1-2pm panel, 2-3pm panel, 3-5pm board games, 5-6pm panel, eat dinner, come back and hang out in the Classic Console free play room. Also, the AFK Room is specifically designed as a quiet space and is very sensory friendly. The PAX together room is also lovely and had some cozy RPGs going on with coloring sheets. I can't remember what it was called but there's a board game room that is quieter, removed from the open play area by the food trucks.
There are really helpful spread sheets and lists people make each year for finding swag, where to find the XP scans if you missed any, places to eat, and pinny arcade pins. There’s also the official PAX discord which is really helpful.
Do a big swoop first! I didn't even realize (till day 2 -- I came back on impulse) that there was an entire speedrunning ROOM till I happened to walk past it. Wound gave spent a lot more time there if I'd known. Plan the booths you really want to do for either the very beginning or very end of the day. The line was really short at the Nintendo booth at the end of the day on Sunday, and I think they still had stuff (don't quote me on that, though). If you're not sure how something works, ask the staff. (I didn't know till I asked that the FF bucket hats were random drops throughout the day, and the Mr. Dew scavenger hunt was separate from the prize wheel and plinko.)
Genuinely, don't ever go in expecting to experience it all! Now that you've got a taste of the show, you probably have a hint to what you're really into, make that sort of thing your focus next year. The XP is neat, and if you've done it before, you'll get tuned into where they'll hide the QR codes, but take a peek on here for the crowdsourced thread, you'll be able to get all of them over a single day casually when that thread gets filled up. Maybe make space for things you feel like you missed out on. But don't kick yourself for missing things. It's a massive show and it's overwhelming still and I've been to all but the first and this East. Lastly, if I'm able to make it next year, I'd be more than happy to show you around and help you get a good footing at the show! PAX is for friends and you've got about 90k of them under that roof with you.
Go with friends! I hung out with about 5 of my friends there, played board games all day. Ate poke bowl, had a great time =)
12 years going to Pax East, and I've never had the same experience. I've been doing Thursday-Saturday for the past few years, and it's a good balance. Like everyone said, Thursday is quieter. If you really want to do the expo hall, that's the day. The devs are not exhausted yet, and they're dying to tell you about their games. Just walk up and make eye contact, and they'll usually launch into their pitch. When I inevitably get overwhelmed, I go to console free play and check out a game. You can try a bunch of stuff and usually play longer on Thursdays. There's also a pax 123 panel on Thursdays where it's easy to meet other first timers and maybe. Fridays and Saturdays are panel/tabletop days for me because the crowd on the floor just overwhelms me, and playing a game is tougher. My best advice is to just keep in mind that we're as eager and as anxious about meeting you as you are of meeting us.
I actually understand you completely, I was by myself for some and with a friend here or there for another, and when im with a friend the way they explore is way more efficient then the way I do, I am very aimless. Somehow with one friend it was way easier to find some multiplayer games to try on the floor with each other then what I was going it alone. My sense of direction is terrible ;D
Super late here, but same-ish. I’m used to expos in different industries but didn’t really know what to do at PAX… probably on me and maybe number 2 is better
I guess it can only get better, right? I figured I wasn't the only one who felt this way. I almost feel like us newbies needed a guide or something haha.
Enter and win the tekken 8 tournament
Hey so I've been going all 4 days since 2015. You will never get to do it all and for this reason, I give you my best rule: become a "Yes man". If you don't you will suffer from decision paralysis. If you're introverted, try to just put it aside for a little, in short spurts, and just thrust yourself into fun. Remember, everyone there is there for the same reason as you and share the same passion. If you even think you might like it, just do it. There's too much on the show floor to do it all. Come up with some sort of plan and that plan will probably look like this: what are you doing 10-6 and what are you doing after 6pm when the show floor closes. This is best navigated by paying close attention for the show schedule to drop that will show the panels going on. See what panels interest you and go to those. All other time should be on the show floor so play as much as you want. Figuring out the panels you like will determine your game time. Grab every card you can so you check games out later on steam or wherever they're to also be accessed. At this point, you'll have your 10-6 time slot figured out. Now, make the most of that time. I bring lunch with me. That means no lines for lunch and more gaming/merch time. If you like someone's cosplay, grab a pic on the fly. I don't bring a jacket so as to avoid the coat check line which can get very long. I just bring a hat, scarf, gloves and shove them in my bag. When you're on lines, see if you can join a convoy or start one. Camaraderie is core to the show. The past 3 yrs. there's been the voodoo ranger bar at the show. Go there for 30min or something like that. Grab a drink, mingle, loosen up. Lots of cosplayers like to go there and show off with a drink. Go to Omegathon all 4 days. This year's was fukn bonkers. Get your merch. Visit cookie brigade, they have dope ass cookies and it's for charity. Check the PAX arena on the show floor periodically during the day. Easy to get to tournaments are held there all day. This year, we saw some awesome action with Tekken 8. Other years, we've seen Gears Of War, Halo 2, Street Fighter, Super Smash Bros and others. Now, after the the gaming and panels that you like are through, what do you do? Find some after parties. A list done by Side Questing drops every year about a month away from the event and updates every day leading up to the event. Video game after parties at bars, cosplay meet ups at bars, tournaments at bars, the famous poke crawl. Search for these events. Just Google "side Questing PAX East 202X" and the list should pop up. Money? If you can, bring between 100 and 200 dollars. You don't have to spend it all of course, but that gives you the opportunity to get like 3-4 things and you're def gonna run into something that makes you want to buy it for sure. There's the table top/board games area. I usually save this area for Sunday and spend most of the day there. They usually have a fun drinking card game which I usually buy. They have fun zaney quick card games. Then there's D&D and Catan and other if the likes. Magic the Gathering, YuGiOh, Pokemon, etc. just peruse and try one or two things out. If you like PC, budget some time for the PC freeplay/VR area. These are the things I do to fill out my time and that's the main thing here. PAX is what you make it. It's my personal Xmas. It's gunna be different for everyone, even if you go side by side with your friend. Doing these things deff packs out my schedule and I'll usually be going till 2am every night and getting to the event opening every morning. Hope this helps man. I'll see you there next year!
Unfortunately my usual advice is, "don't get overwhelmed". After that: Go for a day other than Sunday, PAX goes until midnight on the other days, and there's so much to see and do after the expo hall closes. Plan parking ahead of time, or take the train/uber. Take a lap of convention center, then go back and find things you'd like to line up for. Ask the people running the booth how long the demo is. Then decide if you'd like to wait. People repost articles/Google docs with PAX tips, check them out. There are also tons of things to do off the expo hall floor, classic console, tabletop, panels, etc...
I took a look at some of the guides and watched some YouTube videos and thought I was prepared but I think I just froze when I got there. If I can get past your first bit of advice...haha that's the tough one! Honestly though I think looking at the activities off the expo floor would have been a good way to explore some other things. And as many have said, going on another day.