PAX East 2014 Parties

angrymonkeyfight

Time to get this thread going. I will update this first post with parties, events, and bar crawls as they are announced. Please send me a message if there are any events you would like me to add.

Thu 4/10 - Thread Podcast Pub Crawl (SOLD OUT), Pokecrawl (SOLD OUT); "Made in MA" Party (Microsoft NERD, 7pm, $10)
Fri 4/11 - Indies Need Booze (SOLD OUT), 8 Bit Boston (Stadium Bar, $20 ticket price); Harmonix Extravaganza (SOLD OUT); Midnight City & IGN Drink Up ((SOLD OUT)); Tim Schafer-lesque (Davis Sq Theater, 10pm, $15); NVIDIA Party (SOLD OUT); Gamespot/Giant Bomb Meetup (Beer Garden, 8pm, FREE); Joyful Bewilderment: The Party (Central Wharf Co, 8pm, $10); Twitch Party (Underbar, 9pm, ???); Destructoid Karaoke Sing-Off (Elephant & Castle, 9pm, FREE); Swiss Gaming Corner Opening Reception (swissnex, 6:30, FREE); Dirty Donkey Kong (Laugh Boston, midnight)
Sat 4/12 - Wildstar Community Event (Sidebar, 8pm); ASUS | PC Gamer present Republic of Gamers Afterparty (Estate, 10pm, FREE); EVE Online Fan Meetup (JJ Foley's, 7pm, FREE); Disruptor Beam Meetup (Whiskey Priest, 6pm); Sanshee Block Party (Stadium, 7pm, $10); Dirty Nerdy Revue (Davis Sq Theater, 8pm, $15); Bethesda Wolfenstein Party (Royale, 6pm, FREE); Turbine/WB Games Infinite Crisis PAX East Party (Tickets/Details avail at Booth); Grey Goo Meet & Greet (Jillians, 7pm, Tix at Booth); GayGamer.net Meet-up (Club Cafe, 9pm, FREE); Swiss Gaming Party Featuring Mirage (swissnex, 6:30, FREE) ; S2 Cosplay Contest and Masquerade (Click link for details); Dirty Donkey Kong (Laugh Boston, midnight)
Sun 4/13 - Destructoid & Harmonix Fantasia Community Event (Trade, 2pm, FREE); Destructoid Annual Send-off (Atlantic Beer Garden, 7pm, FREE); Magic: The Gathering Show (Laugh Boston, 6pm, $10)

Please note that there is a separate thread for Game Night activities.

warringkingdom

I'm hosting a Warring Kingdom pre-PAX East party Thursday night. All are welcome!

miker525

oh boy oh boy the PAX East after party thread already. Excited to see what pops up this year

aBByNormaL

warringkingdom wrote: »

I'm hosting a Warring Kingdom pre-PAX East party Thursday night. All are welcome!

Details, ie over 21? Family friendly?

miker525

aBByNormaL wrote: »

warringkingdom wrote: »

I'm hosting a Warring Kingdom pre-PAX East party Thursday night. All are welcome!

Details, ie over 21? Family friendly?

Just in general, I'd say the majority of the parties are 21+. That said you will certainly find a few, that are all ages and are still hella fun. I wouldn't plan anything yet and would wait until the complete list is out and you can see what parties are 21+. Some parties require PAX Badges on entry, while most do not. Just so you know the parties are also generally at the same time as the concerts. I believe it's you who is traveling with his daughter...I'm not sure how old she is but if she's into seeing live music you likely will miss some of the parties. Last year I was able to both go to the Wildstar party and still be back to PAX in time for a couple of acts, but it can be a tough choice depending how into PAX you get.

agreatrandom

my favorite thread.

aBByNormaL

miker525 wrote: »

aBByNormaL wrote: »

warringkingdom wrote: »

I'm hosting a Warring Kingdom pre-PAX East party Thursday night. All are welcome!

Details, ie over 21? Family friendly?

Just in general, I'd say the majority of the parties are 21+. That said you will certainly find a few, that are all ages and are still hella fun. I wouldn't plan anything yet and would wait until the complete list is out and you can see what parties are 21+. Some parties require PAX Badges on entry, while most do not. Just so you know the parties are also generally at the same time as the concerts. I believe it's you who is traveling with his daughter...I'm not sure how old she is but if she's into seeing live music you likely will miss some of the parties. Last year I was able to both go to the Wildstar party and still be back to PAX in time for a couple of acts, but it can be a tough choice depending how into PAX you get.

Thx @miker525 ... yeah she's 12 so I expect many of the after-parties will be no-go's ... the notice of events should probably have some bare bones details at least so people can decide if it is something they may want to investigate further. This first party seems linked to a tabletop game on kickstarter so I was curious what form the party might take.

miker525

aBByNormaL wrote: »

miker525 wrote: »

aBByNormaL wrote: »

warringkingdom wrote: »

I'm hosting a Warring Kingdom pre-PAX East party Thursday night. All are welcome!

Details, ie over 21? Family friendly?

Just in general, I'd say the majority of the parties are 21+. That said you will certainly find a few, that are all ages and are still hella fun. I wouldn't plan anything yet and would wait until the complete list is out and you can see what parties are 21+. Some parties require PAX Badges on entry, while most do not. Just so you know the parties are also generally at the same time as the concerts. I believe it's you who is traveling with his daughter...I'm not sure how old she is but if she's into seeing live music you likely will miss some of the parties. Last year I was able to both go to the Wildstar party and still be back to PAX in time for a couple of acts, but it can be a tough choice depending how into PAX you get.

Thx @miker525 ... yeah she's 12 so I expect many of the after-parties will be no-go's ... the notice of events should probably have some bare bones details at least so people can decide if it is something they may want to investigate further. This first party seems linked to a tabletop game on kickstarter so I was curious what form the party might take.

Yeah as it gets closer the full details list will come out. Locations, times age restrictions, etc. I don't know anything about that party, but I assume that they might not have the details fully sorted anyways. Definitely nice to have such early notice that it will be one of the parties though.

Regardless of whether you go to an after party or not I think your daughter will have a great time. PAX is a hell of an experience and is something that anyone of any age will enjoy

warringkingdom

There is no age limit; pizza, soda, and of course, many copies of Warring Kingdom will be provided. We don't have the full details yet, but basically it's a friendly pre-PAX board game get-together. That said, it's likely to go deep into the night, and the game may be a bit heavy for kids too young. Use your best judgment!

upstateny-dan

Getting very excited, before you know it April will be here. Liking forward to attending art least a couple parties, wife and daughter will be at pax too but I should have carte blanche to totally geek out while in Boston since they will be going to bed early :-)

JayDfromMA

Glad to see someone started the thread back up again! I will be going hard again this year!

Krissta

Thanks so much for taking this over this year! I have a little baby girl, born December 10, to keep me VERY occupied, so I never would have been able to devote the time I should to this thread. Not even sure if I'll make it to PAX for more than a day! Oof!

aBByNormaL

Krissta wrote: »

Thanks so much for taking this over this year! I have a little baby girl, born December 10, to keep me VERY occupied, so I never would have been able to devote the time I should to this thread. Not even sure if I'll make it to PAX for more than a day! Oof!

Awesome Christmas gift ... Congrats

JayDfromMA

Keeping my ear low to the ground on this one!

MMMig

Pardon the somewhat self-promotional post, but there's a survey here about a Post Pax party Sunday.
In the years I've been to East, I've never really seen a Sunday evening event so trying to see if maybe something can be set up, even if small.

So yeah, go fill out the survey if interested!

http://forums.penny-arcade.com/discussion/184147/can-has-post-pax-afterparty-sunday/

angrymonkeyfight

I've been notified about The Thread Podcast Pubcrawl and I'm just going to assume the Pokecrawl is happening as well. I've updated the list.

zerzhul

There will be a pokecrawl, yes.

LordBraska1999

As always lol last years poke crawl was awesome and all I remember was karaoke at that bar hong kongs after crazy crazy

Triiipledot

Ive been lurking waiting for that Poke Crawl announcement.

MegaMan001

If anyone's having a party I'd love to provide the booze / shoulder the booze load.

Seanyd781

LOVE this thread! Can't wait to hear details on the next Curse Party [fingers crossed it returns!] as well as any other parties. Bummed out I missed the MADCatz one last year, and with the MBTA in Boston expanding to run until 3 a.m [in the Spring, hoping BEFORE PAX East] - it should be a great, safe time for all.

gaminginpublic

On 4/11 I am hosting Indies Need Booze! Last year was a very first year hosting and we are doing it again. Still plenty free tickets up for grabs plus we are selling a ten dollar Drunken Indie Pass which gets you a free game, swag, and enters you for a chance to win our big prize giveaway. If you like to drink, or play any video games no experience needed. This event though is 21+. It will be at The Asgard in Cambridge. Also we are having our Drunken Indie Showcase giving three unknown developers a chance to show there game to a PAX East crowd!

http://www.eventbrite.com/e/indies-need-booze-paxy-easty-edition-with-explosions-tickets-9594835411

rascrush

how far away is this place from the main pax area.

pelicanflip

rascrush wrote: »

how far away is this place from the main pax area.

About 5-6 miles away, roughly a 10 minute car ride, 20-30 minute by public transportation.
They have the address in the Eventbrite link, just Google Maps it in reference to the BCEC for directions.

Seanyd781 wrote: »

LOVE this thread! Can't wait to hear details on the next Curse Party [fingers crossed it returns!] as well as any other parties. Bummed out I missed the MADCatz one last year, and with the MBTA in Boston expanding to run until 3 a.m [in the Spring, hoping BEFORE PAX East] - it should be a great, safe time for all.

Mad Catz has always been great with their parties. Curse? Not so much, they've consistently just tried to cram as many people as possible into a room. Huge lines to get in, and then huge lines to get a drink.

vttym

Seanyd781 wrote: »

Mad Catz has always been great with their parties. Curse? Not so much, they've consistently just tried to cram as many people as possible into a room. Huge lines to get in, and then huge lines to get a drink.

I will say that the Curse experience depends on when you go. My group was at the Elder Scrolls party until late last year, and rolled into the Curse party around midnight. At that point, there was no line to get in, but the party was going strong. Drink lines were managable.

As a bonus, the wristband I was wearing that supported Children's Miracle Network looked identical to the VIP bracelets they were using (unknown to me at the time), so I was able to get my drink on there. I couldn't figure out why they let me in and not my friends, until I looked around at what everyone else was wearing.

JayDfromMA

Interesting about the Curse party. I went two years ago and had a blast, this past year I went after the Bioshock party (11ish) and it had huge lines so I didn't even bother. I will definitely try to go again, but in my experience it has been very hit and miss.

benthens

Mad Catz party was way better. I went to the Curse and Mad Catz and the Curse just felt boring. Mad Catz however had everything nicely setup. I made contact with Mad Catz to see if they are having a party again but they said "Hello Jacob, unfortunately we do not have the information at this time. Thank you." So there party is still in the air. Also Nvidia has great parties too.

boston_jason

JayDfromMA wrote: »

Interesting about the Curse party. I went two years ago and had a blast, this past year I went after the Bioshock party (11ish) and it had huge lines so I didn't even bother.

After about 11:20, I went from the Seaport Hotel Bar up and walked right in with my +1. I think I will do the same this year.

DemonStacey

pelicanflip wrote: »

rascrush wrote: »

how far away is this place from the main pax area.

About 5-6 miles away, roughly a 10 minute car ride, 20-30 minute by public transportation.
They have the address in the Eventbrite link, just Google Maps it in reference to the BCEC for directions.

Seanyd781 wrote: »

LOVE this thread! Can't wait to hear details on the next Curse Party [fingers crossed it returns!] as well as any other parties. Bummed out I missed the MADCatz one last year, and with the MBTA in Boston expanding to run until 3 a.m [in the Spring, hoping BEFORE PAX East] - it should be a great, safe time for all.

Mad Catz has always been great with their parties. Curse? Not so much, they've consistently just tried to cram as many people as possible into a room. Huge lines to get in, and then huge lines to get a drink.

Last year maybe. The year before was great. As many free drinks as you wanted, took maybe 1min of waiting tops for each one. Just a bunch of people dancing and having a good time.

RidleyDragon

I don't know if they have this at east, but wildstar's party at prime was incredible

pelicanflip

RidleyDragon wrote: »

I don't know if they have this at east, but wildstar's party at prime was incredible

Wildstar's party is/was co-sponsored by Curse. They've had a party at PAX East as well.

Drjuki

To anyone planning any EDM events, I can DJ for that. (Preferably all-age events)

AnarCHris

The Curse party 2 years ago was the business. Unlimited drinks, free food, room to move around. Good times. Last year was too crowded, like 1 free drink, took FOREVER to get into,etc. I had an in for the VIP longue and even that required a 30 minute wait.

Also re:Bioshock/2k/Irrational party: What's the deal with that? I know it's on-site, and supposedly BS cosplayers get in for free or some such? Deets please?

AnnaRoyal

I am not sure of any party. My bf wants to go to some but I am too socially awkward to go to one. I do like this pokecrawl idea. I missed it last time I went to PAX East. If there is alcohol then I shall be ok.

agreatrandom

AnarCHris wrote: »

Also re:Bioshock/2k/Irrational party: What's the deal with that? I know it's on-site, and supposedly BS cosplayers get in for free or some such? Deets please?

Went to this last year. The girlfriend and I cosplayed Booker and Elizabeth and were given bracelets that day from one of the developers while walking the floor. I'm 90% the only way to get in if you're not with Irrational or on their guest list is to cosplay during the weekend and get discovered. It's a great event though, free food, drink and giftpack. Got my Sky Hook signed by pretty much everyone.

agreatrandom

To also comments on other parties from previous years...
Curse last year was a mess. Got there after the Bioshock and everyone was just sweaty and sloppy, people puking the bathrooms. No thanks.
Had a lot of fun at the Sanshee party tho, all the cocktails were video game themed.
Pokecrawl on Thursday is ALWAYS a blast.

boston_jason

agreatrandom wrote: »

everyone was just sweaty and sloppy, people puking the bathrooms.

I didn't see any puking occur, and I wouldn't say is was that sloppy. Might be because I ponied up for the "premium" drinks and there was never a line and I was on the stage-right area of the dance floor but my guest and I had a really good time. Was better than the Fanuel bars at that time, IMO.

pelicanflip

agreatrandom wrote: »

AnarCHris wrote: »

Also re:Bioshock/2k/Irrational party: What's the deal with that? I know it's on-site, and supposedly BS cosplayers get in for free or some such? Deets please?

Went to this last year. The girlfriend and I cosplayed Booker and Elizabeth and were given bracelets that day from one of the developers while walking the floor. I'm 90% the only way to get in if you're not with Irrational or on their guest list is to cosplay during the weekend and get discovered. It's a great event though, free food, drink and giftpack. Got my Sky Hook signed by pretty much everyone.

I remember you two at the party! Awesome cosplays

There were two ways of being invited to the Bioshock party. First way was cosplaying, and being seen by Irrational Games on the show floor and being invited. Apart from being an employee at Irrational or being a personal guest, the only other way I know they had invited some fans was through social media.

It was a fairly small gathering of Bioshock fans, I would say...maybe 50ish people? It wasn't a party like Mad Catz or Curse. It was also great meeting Ken Levine and Cliff Bleszinki in person.

And yes to Sanshee. Great products, awesome party, really cool MA company. Here's hoping they throw another party!

AnarCHris

Thank you Based Booker/Pelican! The wife and I are also doing the whole Booker/Elizabeth thing, and hopefully that will get us in. Levine already posted photos of my wife in Paris as Liz on his twitter/FB, so hopefully that will get us spotted.

As said wife spoke highly of the Sanshee party last year, so mayhaps I'll hit that up this year should BSI stuff fall through.

Cataleptical

AnnaRoyal wrote: »

I am not sure of any party. My bf wants to go to some but I am too socially awkward to go to one. I do like this pokecrawl idea. I missed it last time I went to PAX East. If there is alcohol then I shall be ok.

The parties around PAX East are really fun. My wife and I are totally socially awkward, but we usually keep to ourselves and chat up people at random. One of the easiest ways to break the ice is to find one of the party organizers, ask what role that play in the company/at the party, and inevitably other people will take part in the conversation.

agreatrandom wrote: »

Went to this last year. The girlfriend and I cosplayed Booker and Elizabeth and were given bracelets that day from one of the developers while walking the floor. I'm 90% the only way to get in if you're not with Irrational or on their guest list is to cosplay during the weekend and get discovered. It's a great event though, free food, drink and giftpack. Got my Sky Hook signed by pretty much everyone.

I hope they do another party this year, though I have no idea what costume (if any) we would do. I also have to get around to uploading some pictures I took. I think I have a few of your two.

miker525

The only party I went to last year was the Curse (Wildstar) party. Went right when it opened. Was pretty boring. I went by myself which I suppose could have been part of it but it was just very mild and seemed strange. Ended up leaving after a half hour to head back to the PAX concerts. Got a nice shirt out of it though. Will definately try some parties again this year...hopefully Mad Catz as I'm told they throw the best. Hopefully there will be some fun other parties too though