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[PRIME] 2012 CONSTRUCTIVE Feedback/Suggestions Thread

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  • MOSFETMOSFET Registered User regular
    This is not a generalization of what absolutely needs to be done, but my own opinion of what could be improved.

    1. I love the indie area of the convention hall. I also love the more open style of play and preview of the Nintendo and Playstation areas. Can we try and emulate this to other devs that prefer the "one giant line" strategy? I feel it builds more community the former way.

    2. This was my second PAX but first BYOC. While I did enjoy the seclusion and security aspect I wish they would have more tourneys or provide better support for some popular games. I know they ran "contests" that were mostly in raffle form, the lack of organized tournaments for other Valve titles (TF2, dota 2, etc) and other popular games (LoL, SC2, etc) was disappointing. These tournaments I think go further to provide ways of BYOC'ers of meeting each other rather than sticking to their own cliches. Additionally, on the server front. While I did appreciate BYOC having TF2 servers, the quality and variety left much to be desired. All the servers were not configured to the standard of most online servers (limits on rates/settings, sourcemod, etc) and the lack of non-vanilla servers left a lot to be desired (prophunt, SOAP DM, MGE mod, pyro dodgeball, etc). My suggestion is to seriously consider when other BYOC'ers may potentially help you in finding all the necessary configuration files and required steps to make these things happen.

    3. While I disagree with the e-sports hate/dislike as I think promotion and fandom of e-sports is a legitimate part of the gaming culture, I do agree with the sentiment that major e-sports events, specifically the LoL event, should consider having a separate venue in the future. I would suggest looking at Valve's model with the International. They had an immensely successful event but in a separate venue. Better yet they invited PAX goers a chance to watch just by having a PAX pass. Separate venue with a consideration of invitation to the PAX goers I think is the way to go in the future.

    4. I do not know what was up with the cookie brigade this year, but I never encountered them :(. Perhaps a wider effort for recruitment of help and volunteers would be good

  • hml151hml151 Registered User regular
    edited September 2012
    Some of us cookie brigadiers didn't get tickets this year. I at least sent my cookies but most my group were unable to get tickets.

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  • EnigmasEnigmas Registered User regular
    MOSFET wrote: »
    This is not a generalization of what absolutely needs to be done, but my own opinion of what could be improved.

    4. I do not know what was up with the cookie brigade this year, but I never encountered them :(. Perhaps a wider effort for recruitment of help and volunteers would be good

    I saw this earlier in the thread and wanted to reiterate what @LexiconGrrl posted: Cookie Brigade is a stealth group and will always be that. See info in CB thread.
    On that note, YOU are our recruitment. Tell your friends to join us for a day of distribution, it only takes as much time as you are willing to give. Tell people in line you're with to keep a watch out for a Brigader (they might not know about it and word-of-mouth is our only advertisement), look around for people with 2-3 bags and ask if they happen to be a member. Some might give you funny looks, some might have cookies.
    I walked around a lot trying to find Buttons and 3DS tags, my badge very prominent on my lanyard, and hardly anyone stopped me all weekend. I stopped at a few lines, but we are a small force and there are many lines.

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  • SecretAgentCowSecretAgentCow Registered User regular
    I was really disappointed I couldn't get my hands on a 3-day pass this year, and from what I've heard, scalpers got most of them. So maybe a limit on the maximum you can buy at once? I think that would at least slow down how fast they go by a little bit.

    I loved the way the swag line was handled the second day (and by that I mean that there almost wasn't one), however I did miss getting the bags in line, looking through the stuff was a really excellent way to pass time. AND ON THAT NOTE what the heck happened to the line games? Having the semi-malicious computer talking to and interacting with the crowd was excellent! and I understand that they make money off the advertisements, but couldn't the ads be interspersed with the games? I just really miss them, it felt like the line was more community-oriented with them there.

    I also really enjoyed having a big game section and an indie game section, especially as different areas. It gives them both their own ways to shine, and I personally really enjoy both areas, I don't see why there's all this animosity towards bigger developers.

    One thing that did really bother me was the emphasis on LoL. It was really nice having something to watch while in line, but I noticed quite a few instances where lines weren't moving because people were too busy paying attention to LoL instead of moving. The airings in the Queue room were also extremely loud, and I found myself putting on my headphones to cancel them out several times. I understand it needs to be loud so that people can hear it, but maybe not that loud.

    P.S. I also really missed the cookie brigade coming through the line this year, their maple and bacon cookies last year made the line not seem so bad.

    P.P.S. It was also really nice having the line moved inside earlier than last year, it gets a bit chilly outside that early.

  • mcdermottmcdermott Registered User regular
    I don't know where you heard scalpers got "most" of them, but I'd not buy into that too much without some evidence. Plenty of my friends bought their 3-day badges without issue, they were just fast on the draw because they knew it would sell out.

    Also, queue room laser tag may be the single best idea in this thread.

  • Steel FireSteel Fire Gunboat Diplomat PAI MarketingRegistered User regular
    phoo wrote: »
    I like the suggestion about having dedicated games for media, so other people could not be booted off after they stood in line for so long. Another approach would be to schedule a particular hour or two (that is posted and announced) that is reserved for media. When not in those times, media will have to wait.

    I understand booths have the power to dole out time however they like, but they really have little incentive to let gamers play and every incentive to let the media play. An added incentive to let gamers play would be if pax "encouraged" them in a tangible way.
    As you and others have said, PAX really can't control how individual booths handle media interactions. My suggestion to everyone would be to provide this feedback to those developers you felt handled it badly and point out how appreciative you are of those who handle it better.

  • SecretAgentCowSecretAgentCow Registered User regular
    I do totally agree that Laser Tag should be implemented.

  • GeekyPrincessGeekyPrincess Registered User regular
    Overall I had a pretty good PAX, ran into a few silly geese but otherwise it was a great weekend.

    I think the seats should be left on the floor in the main theater during the concerts. I noticed Saturday night that the balcony filled up much faster while the floor was pretty open. I heard lots of complaints from people being sent downstairs and them not wanting to stand for the show. Along the same theme, when they are tweeting seats left in the main theater perhaps make it clear that those numbers include space for standing on the floor. The balcony was a mess before the final round of the Omegathon, people trying to hide/sit in the isles, walkways, and stairs. I heard A LOT of complaining about the lack of seats!

    I almost hate saying this, especially as a parent, but no strollers on the expo floor. It's crowded and loud and hard to navigate at times, the last thing you expect is to have your ankles taken out by a stroller. My eight year old got rammed by someone using their stroller as a path clearing device - it sucked and left her crying.

    In the console freeplay area, don't have signs saying take a number if you're not going to use the numbers. More than once I grabbed one only to have someone walk in and go straight to the desk to check in. Either make a line or use the number but it should be clearer either way.

    If you want to see more cookie brigade out there, join, we'd love the help!

    And last but not least, not at all possible, but I'd like to give all the of the green vest/coat employees a big old heaping dose of happy pills. Every con I've been to at WSCC they have been cranky and rude, over them!

    Cookie Brigade Prime 2011 and 2012!
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  • mcdermottmcdermott Registered User regular
    I think the seats should be left on the floor in the main theater during the concerts. I noticed Saturday night that the balcony filled up much faster while the floor was pretty open. I heard lots of complaints from people being sent downstairs and them not wanting to stand for the show. Along the same theme, when they are tweeting seats left in the main theater perhaps make it clear that those numbers include space for standing on the floor. The balcony was a mess before the final round of the Omegathon, people trying to hide/sit in the isles, walkways, and stairs. I heard A LOT of complaining about the lack of seats!

    And IIRC, the ballroom configuration for the Paramount was in response to suggestions to find a place without seats on the floor back when they did Benaroya. A lot of people would prefer an open floor for concerts, at least on the ground level and particularly near the stage. Perhaps leaving some seats on the back half of the floor level would be good?

    Also, was the Omegathon the only panel without seating down there? That is odd, and I'd definitely recommend having seats for that.

  • GeekyPrincessGeekyPrincess Registered User regular
    mcdermott wrote: »

    And IIRC, the ballroom configuration for the Paramount was in response to suggestions to find a place without seats on the floor back when they did Benaroya. A lot of people would prefer an open floor for concerts, at least on the ground level and particularly near the stage. Perhaps leaving some seats on the back half of the floor level would be good?

    Also, was the Omegathon the only panel without seating down there? That is odd, and I'd definitely recommend having seats for that.

    I know that the regular theater seats are removable and from what I heard they had folding seats on the main floor. I'm not sure how to configure it, but I think some open area and some seats would be good. It just seems that there were a lot of people (myself included) that were not about to stand for several more hours after a long day of walking!

    I think I'm in the minority but I miss Benaroya! The seating was awesome and we could line up inside.



    Cookie Brigade Prime 2011 and 2012!
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  • PayneTraynePayneTrayne Canuck Registered User regular
    Also, this is more or less panel specific but please give more room/mics/raised stage space to the Improv Initiative. They were still really good but if they had a proper improv set up there would have been so much laughtears.

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  • sanovahsanovah Nerd of the West San Diego, CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    Since I didn't know I could get one until an enforcer told me on Sunday and I ended up passing it up I do appologize if this has been brough up or is already allowed.

    I'd like to suggest giving and letting those people with medical passes the ability to sit and stay down as the line moves instead of chairs or line hopping.

    I personally damaged me knee in hs when guys thought it would be fun to change my weights tearing my rotator cuff and buckling my knee. While this doesn't affect my ability to walk it has made it very difficult/sometimes impossible to stand straight up for long periods of time. I found out on Sunday this would allowe me to get a medical pass but also found out my only options were a bulky chair or line skip. Neither of which felt right since I can still walk.

    So id like to again suggest allowing someone like myself with a pass in the future the ability to just sit down in line and stay sat down until the line starts actually moving. That way we can rest whatever is ailing us without feeling like we"re cutting in line or taking advantage. The only downside I see to this would be when an enforcer tries to squish a line, but unless there are 100 of us right behind one another I don't see it being that big of a problem.

    Doing this would allow more people to take advantage of something they could use without feeling like they're different or bad for cutting/getting flashy special treatment.

    So again sorry if this has been brought up or allowed. I just know more people like myself would take advantage of solmething usefull if they didn't feel like such outsiders

  • mousekinnmousekinn Registered User regular
    I almost hate saying this, especially as a parent, but no strollers on the expo floor. It's crowded and loud and hard to navigate at times, the last thing you expect is to have your ankles taken out by a stroller. My eight year old got rammed by someone using their stroller as a path clearing device - it sucked and left her crying.

    First, I'm really sorry that happened to your daughter :(

    Second, it's actually a convention center rule that no strollers are allowed on EXPO floor (fire code) - so it sounds like someone(s) snuck them through security, as I know the greencoats were being very vigilant about that. They were allowed to fold up the stroller and zip tie it shut in order to carry it around expo, but no full sized baby buggy bumper cars. It IS on the paxsite that this is a convention center rule, but it seems not many people read it thoroughly.

    My suggestion would be to include the stroller information with passes and PAX info sent to attendees. Some people won't need it, but the more we can emphasize the fact, maybe we'll have less of both the actual sneaky strollers and angry parents who didn't know they couldn't take baby n the expo in stroller.

  • mousekinnmousekinn Registered User regular
    edited September 2012
    GAH double post.

    mousekinn on
  • RavengerRavenger Trolololo Registered User regular
    I enjoyed this PAX very much, probably more than my past PAXes. The only thing that really comes to mind, as far as change is concerned, is possibly having a general volume rule of some sort implemented. I understand that the expo hall is going to be VERY loud, but I felt that at times different exhibitors were trying to have shouting/loud movie competitions. I don't need a lady with her voice cranked up so high that I can hear her throughout the entire expo hall when I am doing something else; hearing her whilst watching her panel works just fine for me.

    TL;DR

    I would like to see some form of volume control in the expo halls

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  • adias.angeladias.angel Tech-Savvy Wife Kalamazoo, MIRegistered User regular
    Thought of one other thing. When things like passes and hotel registration goes live, not have it at 5pm of any time zone when people are heading home from work. I can't remember if it was hotel or passes, but one of them went live at 5pm EST. I got lucky and wasn't driving our carpool that day, otherwise I would have missed it.

    Prime '12, '13, '14, '15, '19 .. East '12
  • zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    Thought of one other thing. When things like passes and hotel registration goes live, not have it at 5pm of any time zone when people are heading home from work. I can't remember if it was hotel or passes, but one of them went live at 5pm EST. I got lucky and wasn't driving our carpool that day, otherwise I would have missed it.

    It's always 5pm somewhere (or close to it)

  • Goblin ScrewdriverGoblin Screwdriver Seattle, WARegistered User regular
    One other thing I've been wondering about is whatever happened to Get in Line Games? They were great in 2009 and 2010, and as cheesy as it sounds, actually made me look forward to waiting in the main queue. I'd love to see them back for next year.

    PAX Prime attendee since 2006

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  • QuintiousQuintious Registered User regular
    joshus wrote: »

    TL;DR; Not-that-old-of-a-guy visits PAX for the first time, feels old and unremarkable in a sea of vigor and creativity, doesn't like loud flashing lights or the mewling of babes who dare question his most esteemed idols.

    I had to cut that post to the TLDR. I just wanted to provide some insight to this: PAX Prime is in Seattle. Most of the attendees are Seattle locals. Seattle is a famously introverted city (we're all techies up here, or so it seems). The reason you didn't find a lot of conversations in lines is because of what we affectionately refer to as the "Seattle Freeze". It's not because the community is just not friendly.

  • phoophoo Registered User regular
    If that were true, this behaviour would not change over the years. Granted, in 2009 groups of people were not interacting with other groups, but they were interacting amongst themselves. This years I saw groups of people that were together but not interacting with each other.

  • bfigginsbfiggins Registered User regular
    edited September 2012
    The big stand-out good thing for me was Guidebook. I usually spend a lot of time before a con gathering maps, planning schedules, and organizing my time down to the minute, and Guidebook let me skip all that. (This is also the first con I've attended with a smartphone). On the other hand, it was annoying that the Kirby bubble-blowing post was stuck on for the latter half of PAX.

    Now, grousing and brainstorming.

    The escalators were a real issue. Nearly half of the escalators were down at any time, wherever I went. I'm not sure what PAX can do about it, except to put pressure on the convention center that it's not cool. I'd rather have stairs than unreliable escalators.

    The last time I was at PAX in 2010, the beanbags and handheld lounge took up a large section. This year, Nintendo and PopCap had taken up that space, with the beanbags stacked up in a little area against a railing. It was symbolic to me of the risks involved in PAX's growth - that each year, it becomes less of a convention for the gamers, and more of a convention for the companies to show off.

    Speaking of PopCap, several times during the con, I encountered their Disco Zombie and his backup dancers laying down a phat beat. Their dancing would shut down a large area where they danced, and then a larger area of people watching them dance. These kinds of antics need a place to show off that's not going to be in the way. It was particularly troublesome when they were dancing right in front of the convention center entrance.

    The tabletop/board gaming expo hall was really in the middle of nowhere, eh? I imagine many attendees missed that entirely.

    Having panels all over the place is troublesome, but unavoidable. Something that would help would be to move the panels from the 6th floor of the convention center to a lower floor, or maybe the annex. It ate up a lot of time going from ground level to the 6th floor, then back to ground level once the panel ended.


    And my biggest concern is that I still don't have a good sense of the downtown area, how to navigate, or what was at the convention. The map was difficult to use and disjointed - in particular, using a top-view for the convention center and a side-view for the annex threw me off several times. What I really needed was just a day to wander around the convention and get my bearings, but because there's always stuff going on and places to be, I never had time to really understand the layout.
    Here's my suggestion: let's render the convention center in 3D. Set it up as a map, and allow players to wander up and down through the convention center. Show a compass so they know what way they're facing, a minimap, popups pointing out interesting features and planned exhibitors, PAX trivia, anything that can help them navigate. Make the Enforcers' jobs easier by prominently displaying emergency doors and fire lanes, and reminding attendees to keep them clear. A series of achievements can incentivize learning the convention - something like "Navigate from Kraken to Pegasus in five minutes!" And if you build it in the right engine, you can drop zombies in it.
    I think you could defray the cost of development by allowing exhibitors to advertise in this interactive map; by default companies are just a gray block labeled "Ubisoft Booth", but Ubisoft can pay a small fee and provide 3D assets in order for their booth to appear in simulated glory.

    bfiggins on
  • ScunosiScunosi WashingtonRegistered User regular
    Ravenger wrote: »
    I enjoyed this PAX very much, probably more than my past PAXes. The only thing that really comes to mind, as far as change is concerned, is possibly having a general volume rule of some sort implemented. I understand that the expo hall is going to be VERY loud, but I felt that at times different exhibitors were trying to have shouting/loud movie competitions. I don't need a lady with her voice cranked up so high that I can hear her throughout the entire expo hall when I am doing something else; hearing her whilst watching her panel works just fine for me.

    TL;DR

    I would like to see some form of volume control in the expo halls
    I gotta agree with this, while loud music and the general din of a crowd is always to be expected, more than one booth would occasionally bring out a megaphone and start yelling to try and attract attention. And usually it was just advertising some swag or other, so you know it just sent nearby people into a craze. If they were at least providing useful information it'd be a little more tolerable, but as it was it was just mostly annoying, especially when they do it all day (like the lady at the AC3 booth or the MadCatz people). People should be able to stop if they want, not because they're roped in by some cheap (but admittedly cool) trinkets.

  • CybitCybit Merch Underling RedmondRegistered User regular
    sanovah wrote: »
    Since I didn't know I could get one until an enforcer told me on Sunday and I ended up passing it up I do appologize if this has been brough up or is already allowed.

    I'd like to suggest giving and letting those people with medical passes the ability to sit and stay down as the line moves instead of chairs or line hopping.

    I personally damaged me knee in hs when guys thought it would be fun to change my weights tearing my rotator cuff and buckling my knee. While this doesn't affect my ability to walk it has made it very difficult/sometimes impossible to stand straight up for long periods of time. I found out on Sunday this would allowe me to get a medical pass but also found out my only options were a bulky chair or line skip. Neither of which felt right since I can still walk.

    So id like to again suggest allowing someone like myself with a pass in the future the ability to just sit down in line and stay sat down until the line starts actually moving. That way we can rest whatever is ailing us without feeling like we"re cutting in line or taking advantage. The only downside I see to this would be when an enforcer tries to squish a line, but unless there are 100 of us right behind one another I don't see it being that big of a problem.

    Doing this would allow more people to take advantage of something they could use without feeling like they're different or bad for cutting/getting flashy special treatment.

    So again sorry if this has been brought up or allowed. I just know more people like myself would take advantage of solmething usefull if they didn't feel like such outsiders

    Normally, if you have a medical badge, Enforcers will grab chairs and let you sit on/in one inside the line (I think, more experienced enforcers can probably give you a better answer); If you need a medical badge, please, ask us for one. We want the con to be awesome for everyone.


  • adias.angeladias.angel Tech-Savvy Wife Kalamazoo, MIRegistered User regular
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Thought of one other thing. When things like passes and hotel registration goes live, not have it at 5pm of any time zone when people are heading home from work. I can't remember if it was hotel or passes, but one of them went live at 5pm EST. I got lucky and wasn't driving our carpool that day, otherwise I would have missed it.

    It's always 5pm somewhere (or close to it)

    4:30 way better than 5:00

    Prime '12, '13, '14, '15, '19 .. East '12
  • alegriaalegria Registered User regular
    bfiggins wrote: »
    Having panels all over the place is troublesome, but unavoidable. Something that would help would be to move the panels from the 6th floor of the convention center to a lower floor, or maybe the annex. It ate up a lot of time going from ground level to the 6th floor, then back to ground level once the panel ended.

    Unfortunately, there are no suitable rooms in the WSCC below the sixth floor. Many years ago, there were theaters on the second floor (Raven and Wolfman come to mind), but their capacity was 200 people or less. Unicorn (largest in the WSCC) had a capacity of 500 this year, I believe, and the other two up there weren't far behind. As for the Annex, the only space that could be reasonable to set up as a separate theater would be the lowest level where WOTC was this year, and figuring out where to line people up for that would be interesting. Again, several years ago there was an "open air" theater in the Annex before it was renovated, and it was a nightmare for the Enforcers to manage as people would just come and stand around behind the chairs, blocking traffic and causing safety issues.
    And my biggest concern is that I still don't have a good sense of the downtown area, how to navigate, or what was at the convention. The map was difficult to use and disjointed - in particular, using a top-view for the convention center and a side-view for the annex threw me off several times. What I really needed was just a day to wander around the convention and get my bearings, but because there's always stuff going on and places to be, I never had time to really understand the layout.
    Here's my suggestion: let's render the convention center in 3D. Set it up as a map, and allow players to wander up and down through the convention center. Show a compass so they know what way they're facing, a minimap, popups pointing out interesting features and planned exhibitors, PAX trivia, anything that can help them navigate. Make the Enforcers' jobs easier by prominently displaying emergency doors and fire lanes, and reminding attendees to keep them clear. A series of achievements can incentivize learning the convention - something like "Navigate from Kraken to Pegasus in five minutes!" And if you build it in the right engine, you can drop zombies in it.
    I think you could defray the cost of development by allowing exhibitors to advertise in this interactive map; by default companies are just a gray block labeled "Ubisoft Booth", but Ubisoft can pay a small fee and provide 3D assets in order for their booth to appear in simulated glory.

    This is pretty brilliant. Even just a 3-D render that is available on the website before PAX would probably help, even if it doesn't have all of the exact theater/booth assignments in it. I've been attending events at the WSCC (not just PAX) for nearly ten years now, so I know all the tricks of how to get around in there, but I agree it's confusing for people who do not have that experience. Several times over the weekend I would end up escorting someone to where they wanted to go. :)

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  • CybitCybit Merch Underling RedmondRegistered User regular
    phoo wrote: »
    If that were true, this behaviour would not change over the years. Granted, in 2009 groups of people were not interacting with other groups, but they were interacting amongst themselves. This years I saw groups of people that were together but not interacting with each other.

    I actually think this has to do more with a) smart phones being far more ubiquitous in modern times, and b) the cell phone network actually staying up this year. A lot of the interaction between random PAX goers in the past was more of out necessity; you were standing in line, and you had no real way to entertain yourself.

  • CodextehFishCodextehFish Vancouver, CanadaRegistered User regular
    Chops wrote: »

    As someone in Line Entertainment I can say that yes! We were there and we were so sorry we couldnt make it to every line! I had a blast playing games and making friends at the lines I was able to be at, but often we had to sacrifice a smaller line to make it to a crazy big line. (I.e. gearbox line, main theater lines, etc.) This was my first PAX and my first time enforcing, so I am by no means an authority on the subject, but this seems to be something we are always working to improve. Thank you for your feedback, I know I will take that into consideration for next year!

    Ah, I didn't mean you guys. The pipe cleaner "art" and questions at the Ubisoft Panel were great, as were the Charades Against Humanity in the Gearbox line. What I saw of the actual panel line entertainment was fantastic, entertaining and kept me occupied.

    I meant specifically inside the Queue hall in the morning. I don't remember specifically what happened in 2010, but there was our robotic overlord that basically tormented us with the Robot Unicorn Attack music as the lines went in. I really enjoyed that and felt that it was a lot more entertaining than the On Live presentation last year and the LoL clips this year. Maybe I'm being picky, but having that interactivity seemed to promote more people chatting together rather than sitting there on their Gameboys/Vitas.

    Attendee:
    Prime: '10, '11, '12, '13, '14, '15
    West: '16, '17
    East: '14, '15, '16, '17
    South: '15, '16, '17, '18
  • DaveRHDaveRH Registered User regular
    edited September 2012
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Thought of one other thing. When things like passes and hotel registration goes live, not have it at 5pm of any time zone when people are heading home from work. I can't remember if it was hotel or passes, but one of them went live at 5pm EST. I got lucky and wasn't driving our carpool that day, otherwise I would have missed it.

    It's always 5pm somewhere (or close to it)

    That's not really a fair statement.

    There is only a 3 hour difference in time zones in North America, where 99% percent of PAX Attendees come from.



    Quintious wrote: »
    joshus wrote: »

    TL;DR; Not-that-old-of-a-guy visits PAX for the first time, feels old and unremarkable in a sea of vigor and creativity, doesn't like loud flashing lights or the mewling of babes who dare question his most esteemed idols.

    I had to cut that post to the TLDR. I just wanted to provide some insight to this: PAX Prime is in Seattle. Most of the attendees are Seattle locals. Seattle is a famously introverted city (we're all techies up here, or so it seems). The reason you didn't find a lot of conversations in lines is because of what we affectionately refer to as the "Seattle Freeze". It's not because the community is just not friendly.

    10th PAX for me this year, and I find the Seattle locals much friendlier / chill than the Bostonites.

    DaveRH on
  • zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    edited September 2012
    DaveRH wrote: »
    zerzhul wrote: »
    Thought of one other thing. When things like passes and hotel registration goes live, not have it at 5pm of any time zone when people are heading home from work. I can't remember if it was hotel or passes, but one of them went live at 5pm EST. I got lucky and wasn't driving our carpool that day, otherwise I would have missed it.

    It's always 5pm somewhere (or close to it)

    That's not really a fair statement.

    There is only a 3 hour difference in time zones in North America, where 99% percent of PAX Attendees come from.

    My point is that any time will upset someone. Also I doubt you have data to back up 99% being from North America.

    Anyhow, yes, being convenient for all the NA timezones would be a good thing, but thinking that it covers everyone by just covering NA is also unfair. Also not everyone in NA works the same schedule or has the same "convenient" time.

    zerzhul on
  • zayloszaylos MontanaRegistered User new member
    Pax was great but was very disappointed that in all the years I have done PAX BYOC has always done a PC Mod competition. My husband and I were able to afford and have the time to do it this year. Got there with our whole setup and Saturday night I asked thinking it should happen soon and was told that "oh the CP (not sure could understand the enforcer when he said it as other people came up at the same time making noise) didn't want to do that this year." I was shocked as it's been done every year and before we invested in to the case mod we checked forms for BYOC and there was no note or notice that they were not doing it this year. So we went along with our plan to only be very disappointed Saturday night. So if BYOC is not going to do competitions that they have done every year then post it so people don't get their hopes up or invest a huge amount of time to compete then get there and find out there is not competition.
    Thank for listening.

  • akjakakjak Thera Spooky GymRegistered User regular
    Zookinator wrote: »
    I liked the idea of having a huge room to form a snake like line in, as opposed to having to cram 1000+ people into a hallway.

    Nope. The hallway is much better. When they had a "snake room," they closed the doors when the line was full... No ventilation, difficult to escape to the bathroom or change your mind about the panel, hot, stinky... Ugh. Both times I lined up for Pegasus stuff, I could at least breathe.

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  • akjakakjak Thera Spooky GymRegistered User regular
    This talk of "hardcore PAX", priority passes, separate passes for different things is all rubbing me the wrong way. Someone brought this up during the first Q&A on Friday, and it angered me then too. The person in question seems to have completely ignored everyone who stood up before her to say that this was their first PAX and how awesome that was.

    Guys. It doesn't matter where PAX goes, how big the venue gets, who you try to exclude (attendees or exhibitors), or who you let buy passes early. The word is out that PAX is the best con going, and no matter what someone isn't going to get to go. Thousands of people aren't going to get passes. Let's try harder not to fall into the "I've been here since the beginning! I loved PAX before you did, so I should get to go!" We're the most inclusive and supportive con community anywhere... Let's try to keep it that way.

    Missing a PAX isn't going to be the end of the world. There will always be East, AUS, the next Prime. There will always be other neat cons to go to also.

    This year was a Perfect Storm of Bad for badge sales. Let's review:

    1) SDCC had huge problems with their ticketing, so lots of people went looking for a different "nerd vacation"

    2) There was no BlizzCon this year. See #1

    3) The PAX folks used a new ticketing provider this year that... Didn't work out. Badge sales were up and down for a week while it got fixed. The link was around, so the "passes sold out in 4 hours!" is wrong. Only Robert Khoo knows how many people were able to get passes while the original site was "down" (I know I was one of them)

    We have no idea what impact the fourth day and PAXAUS is going to have on badge sales next year, so I'm ready to have a "let's wait and see" attitude about it.

    I am fully against breaking the badges up into different events, or "tracks." One of the best things about PAX is the knowledge that your badge will get you in to anything that day. If you break it up, then next year the complaints will be "I didn't know I wanted to do the concerts, and I couldn't get in!"

    Given the additions and lessons already learned from this year, let's just see how it goes next spring, eh?

    I thought PAX this year was far better than last year. Lines were manageable, crowds were less (thanks, anti-counterfeiting!) and every [E] I encountered was awesome.

    My only hopes for next year are:

    Tabletop needs a much better location... Give that 6th floor "LoL Theatre" to TT next year. They'll be quieter and easier to find.

    Khoo for another Khoo & A. (Or maybe Khoo After Hours?) I was pretty disappointed it got moved to a time I couldn't attend, and I know he said he won't do it again, but.. Please? Anyway?

    I second the request for less "standing room" at the concerts.

    Thanks to everyone for another awesome PAX. See you next year (I hope)!

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  • Sleepy KittySleepy Kitty Registered User regular
    sanovah wrote: »
    Since I didn't know I could get one until an enforcer told me on Sunday and I ended up passing it up I do appologize if this has been brough up or is already allowed.

    I'd like to suggest giving and letting those people with medical passes the ability to sit and stay down as the line moves instead of chairs or line hopping.

    I personally damaged me knee in hs when guys thought it would be fun to change my weights tearing my rotator cuff and buckling my knee. While this doesn't affect my ability to walk it has made it very difficult/sometimes impossible to stand straight up for long periods of time. I found out on Sunday this would allowe me to get a medical pass but also found out my only options were a bulky chair or line skip. Neither of which felt right since I can still walk.

    So id like to again suggest allowing someone like myself with a pass in the future the ability to just sit down in line and stay sat down until the line starts actually moving. That way we can rest whatever is ailing us without feeling like we"re cutting in line or taking advantage. The only downside I see to this would be when an enforcer tries to squish a line, but unless there are 100 of us right behind one another I don't see it being that big of a problem.

    Doing this would allow more people to take advantage of something they could use without feeling like they're different or bad for cutting/getting flashy special treatment.

    So again sorry if this has been brought up or allowed. I just know more people like myself would take advantage of solmething usefull if they didn't feel like such outsiders


    This was my 5th Prime and I've done all 3 East's and it was the first time I asked for the Medical Badge due to arthritis in both knees ( and an extremely bad enforcer experience at East 2012 ) and any panel I wanted to attend I showed up at the start of the general wait time ( ie : just as the previous panel is being let in and the panel I want is starting to line up ) and every time an Enforcer would grab a chair ( if there wasn't already 1 handy ) and have me sit off to the side but still near the front of the line so you can interact with other attendee's. They also let you in a minute or 2 before the general line to each panel so you can have a few minutes to get to a seat without being trampled. Every Enforcer I dealt with was great , some would ask about the Med Badge but as soon as they saw it they went right into action making sure I was comfortable.

  • TOGSolidTOGSolid Drunk sailor Seattle, WashingtonRegistered User regular
    Aioua wrote: »
    TOGSolid wrote: »
    Program books were available at every Satellite Theater, Main Theater, the Queue Room, and Info Booth. Where else should we have them (not being snarky, I'm actually asking for suggestions of locations)? We want everyone to be able to get them easily.
    I think this soley might be a communication error. I knew exactly where to go to get one due to prior experience but a new person might not be aware of their usual locations. Maybe some signage near the doors with a quick FAQ for the new guys will help remedy that.

    Or ask your friendly neighborhood Enforcer. Our main job is really to be walking signposts.
    You know that and I know that, but new guys? Not so much.

    wWuzwvJ.png
  • kropotkinkropotkin Forum Badge Creator London UKRegistered User regular
    Sticking to the theme of the thread here, I have one suggestion which may aid the flow of people within the WSCC. As someone who lives in London and uses the Underground aka 'The Tube' a lot, the use of escalators requires people to stand on the right and walk on the left. It's so engrained within me that when ever I approach an escalator I always stand on the right and walk on the left, if I can. I'm probably asking the impossible here but can such a rule be enshrined within the WSCC? It would likely help with the flow of people that use the myriad of escalators throughout the venue.

    ryr7xy0i2ynw.png





  • sdf1999sdf1999 Registered User new member
    Sunday afternoon was pretty empty, it would be great if there were an official way for attendees heading out to "turn in" badges and allow locals who didn't get one to purchase a day pass for the expos. Or maybe just turn on additional day-of Sunday badge sales.

  • mrt144mrt144 King of the Numbernames Registered User regular
    mcdermott wrote: »
    I found it to be hit or miss talking to strangers in lines. But maybe a quarter of the time it actually did work. Just gotta read people...but yeah, a lot of poeple just aren't looking to chat. Especially if they're with somebody else. But find lone strangers without handhelds, and good conversation can still be had.

    It's funny too, because every year there's a suggestion to use the queue room for something that since it is a huge wasted area most of the time...but I can never figure out what it would actually be good for. That wouldn't require a ton of setup and teardown daily.

    Next year I'm bringing Zombie Dice.

  • JurgmanJurgman Tech Director NYC, NJ, LARegistered User regular
    edited September 2012
    BYOC @ the Annex was a GRRREAT location! (thanks LoL)
    Expo and traffic had a lower crowd pressure than 2011. (partly thanks to LoL)
    Classic arcade, again, great place to hangout and get away. Was just the right 'full' level. My friends, who didn't go, got envious.

    Suggestion: Media badge qualifications should be brought up to levels that are equal to E3, -Journalists-, and CHECKED for being 'gamed'. There must have been some that did not have to worry about not being able to buy tickets, because their lame blog lets them get in free. Looking at a group of them this year at annex and you can just tell which ones should be questioned.

    Suggestion: The real life room numbers (that the con center uses) of the locations should be on the map and signage.

    Suggestion: Hold a competition for the best PAX MAP. Allowances given for last minute changes. Ends a few days before PAX starts. Artists, wargamers, and dungeon masters make some of the best maps. The winner gets bragging rights, and like 10 runner ups get their versions available to download and print if ya dont want to use the winners style. Maybe print pax tshirts (front/back) or a cloth map like some games had of the winner?

    Suggestion: A camera on a cable system hanging over the expo floor with a pan tilt zoom controller controlled by PAX attendees?

    And more Gangdam style line entertainment! (nod to prank)

    Jurgman on
  • zerzhulzerzhul Registered User, Moderator mod
    @Jurgman

    There was a cosplay panel at one of the last two PAXen I attended, not sure which one.

  • hml151hml151 Registered User regular
    I know there was a cosplay panel in 2011.

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