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Why does PAX Prime still refuse to move to a bigger convention center
sanovah
Nerd of the WestSan Diego, CaliforniaRegistered User regular
Nerd of the WestSan Diego, CaliforniaRegistered User regular
(disclaimer: I have and have tended to get tickets more often than not so I'm not whining that I didn't get tickets)
Well with ticket sales over and done with for PAX '15 its time for everyone favorite forum topic.
I know it's been brought up a lot in the last couple years and I even remember people like Khoo coming in to comment, but the last comment i remember seeing was right around '12 or '13 since i dropped off the forums for a bit after '12, but I have to ask again. Why does Penny arcade and PAX still stick with and refuse to leave Seattle in favor of somewhere like LA with such a larger convention center and still centrally located near an international airport?
As an attendee tickets have gotten harder to get year after year and space has gotten smaller and smaller even spreading into much of downtown Seattle but that's still not enough. Take this year for example even after getting rid of the LoL regional competition, selling only single passes so ever pass would theoretically get used instead of being bought in bulk for a discount, it's being held on a non holiday weekend, and tickets went on sale at a weird day and time. After doing all of this tickets still sold out in under an hour of being posted on twitter because there's so much more demand for tickets than the space of the WSCC allows Penny Arcade to sell. So with it selling out faster and faster every year why does Penny Arcade still stick with the WSCC instead of moving somewhere bigger? I know an expansion is being planned for the convention center, but the last news I saw they were still fighting to get rights for all the land needed for the expansion with construction still slated to not being until sometime in 2017 with a completion year of at least 2020. So we're looking at at least 5 more years of the current convention center size if not smaller due to construction. Granted when it's finally finished It'll be one of the larger convention centers in the US and i think the largest in the Pacific Northwest, but until that happens in one of the smallest convention centers on the west coast.
So why does PAX continue to be held at such a small center that will stay this small if not get smaller for at least 5 years instead of moving to somewhere like the LA convention center that's at least twice the size of WSCC and routinely holds conventions like E3, Anime Expo, and is routinely trying to poach SDCC? it just seems that as an attendee LA would be so much better than Seattle. I won't lie and pretend it wouldn't suck to lose PAX in Washington and have it move to California and specifically LA, because without PAX I'd have never come to WA and decided to move up here after seeing the state during my first trip, but there just seem to be so many positives than negatives. LA is a major US city with a large international airport nearby, it's comfortable holding conventions as large or larger than PAX, A lot of studios and developers work out of the area so it would be easier/cheaper for them to appear, and depending on when it's held the weather is pretty nice in LA.
But yeah why does PA still refuse to leave WSCC for somewhere like LA when it's so much larger and an expansion for the WSCC is still at least 5 years away? Are they under some contract that forces them to stay or do Khoo and company just love Seattle so much they wont wanna leave no matter what?
Well with ticket sales over and done with for PAX '15 its time for everyone favorite forum topic.
I know it's been brought up a lot in the last couple years and I even remember people like Khoo coming in to comment, but the last comment i remember seeing was right around '12 or '13 since i dropped off the forums for a bit after '12, but I have to ask again. Why does Penny arcade and PAX still stick with and refuse to leave Seattle in favor of somewhere like LA with such a larger convention center and still centrally located near an international airport?
As an attendee tickets have gotten harder to get year after year and space has gotten smaller and smaller even spreading into much of downtown Seattle but that's still not enough. Take this year for example even after getting rid of the LoL regional competition, selling only single passes so ever pass would theoretically get used instead of being bought in bulk for a discount, it's being held on a non holiday weekend, and tickets went on sale at a weird day and time. After doing all of this tickets still sold out in under an hour of being posted on twitter because there's so much more demand for tickets than the space of the WSCC allows Penny Arcade to sell. So with it selling out faster and faster every year why does Penny Arcade still stick with the WSCC instead of moving somewhere bigger? I know an expansion is being planned for the convention center, but the last news I saw they were still fighting to get rights for all the land needed for the expansion with construction still slated to not being until sometime in 2017 with a completion year of at least 2020. So we're looking at at least 5 more years of the current convention center size if not smaller due to construction. Granted when it's finally finished It'll be one of the larger convention centers in the US and i think the largest in the Pacific Northwest, but until that happens in one of the smallest convention centers on the west coast.
So why does PAX continue to be held at such a small center that will stay this small if not get smaller for at least 5 years instead of moving to somewhere like the LA convention center that's at least twice the size of WSCC and routinely holds conventions like E3, Anime Expo, and is routinely trying to poach SDCC? it just seems that as an attendee LA would be so much better than Seattle. I won't lie and pretend it wouldn't suck to lose PAX in Washington and have it move to California and specifically LA, because without PAX I'd have never come to WA and decided to move up here after seeing the state during my first trip, but there just seem to be so many positives than negatives. LA is a major US city with a large international airport nearby, it's comfortable holding conventions as large or larger than PAX, A lot of studios and developers work out of the area so it would be easier/cheaper for them to appear, and depending on when it's held the weather is pretty nice in LA.
But yeah why does PA still refuse to leave WSCC for somewhere like LA when it's so much larger and an expansion for the WSCC is still at least 5 years away? Are they under some contract that forces them to stay or do Khoo and company just love Seattle so much they wont wanna leave no matter what?
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Someone in another thread also made a good point - more people would mean longer lines all throughout, more waiting, less resources to go around. So MUCH better to have more PAXii than make one bigger.
Right now, Prime 2015 badges only sold out a little bit faster than last year, and Khoo is doing his best to make adjustments for the WSCC to both fit more people and have a more comfortable layout at the same time (ie. the queue room repurposing). Personally, I'm perfectly fine with fighting the queue every year if that means I get to enjoy a PAX that isn't ridiculously overcrowded.
Trade me pins, yo: https://www.pinnypals.com/pals/Lazorz
Reason one being the fact that Prime is the last major gaming convention open to the U.S. public before the holiday season. So it's the last chance to show off new toys or updates and get us excited to buy them. I just can't see them foregoing that opportunity because of travel. As for reason two developers and studios have already shown they're willing to travel to East and potentially Aus and South. All of which are either on a different country, the opposite coast, or way down south crossing multiple states to Texas. So I can't see that if they're willing to go that far they'd scoff at the idea of going somewhere like CA and LA.
To the lines point. I'm from San Diego and have attended at least one day of SDCC every year if not just hang out downtown during the convention. So I've seen the lines every year, how they're managed, and how SDCC makes use of all their space and employees to make everything as smooth as possible. I'll admit if you have to go see and sit in the AAA movie panel for some super popular movie you're gonna spend all day waiting if not longer, but if you just want to look around and catch a panel or two it's actually pretty nice. I'm sure if Prime were to move or even when the expansion finishes and we can fit more people the lines will "worse" but I have little doubt Khoo and company couldn't figure out how to make it work like SDCC does.
Yuck.
I host a podcast about movies.
I like that it is in the NW. We get skipped over for SO many things and it is nice to have something for us, close to us. Plus, I am sure the cost involved for the LA convention center is a lot more, and requires a larger support staff/planning/budget to go along with it. You also have the fact that it is a popular venue and they might not even be able to get the full size of it when they need/want it.
Honestly if you are wanting to complain about the size of venues and their capacity then you should be suggesting something like Las Vegas, as just about EVERY hotel there has a giant convention center and it could be spread out (But still really close and walking distance) plus the Las Vegas convention center is huge! And the airport is literally across the street...
But honestly it would be miserable in either LA or LV because of temperatures. I think it is in the perfect venue and should remain as such.
PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAXXXXXXXXXXX!
You are missing one of the best points about being close to those developers/companies. They often time bring you to their campuses/places of business and you get to see where all the wonderful games/toys come from!!!
PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAXXXXXXXXXXX!
While I'm from Southern CA I now actually live just north of Seattle so if it moved to LA it would actually make my trips longer and more expensive. the only reason I even brought LA up is because being from CA ive been to plenty of covnentions there and have seen how much bigger it is than the WSCC
When did this start happening? Only time i think I've ever seen a studio tour happen was for valve or something a couple years ago and it fell through pretty hard if i remember
PAAAAAAAAAAAAAAXXXXXXXXXXX!
Yes, I am biased because I live there.
PAX is in Seattle because Penny Arcade is in Seattle. That's really it.
That's how it started, that's why it started here and that's why it's stayed that way. And now that most of them have families with kids ... it's even more unlikely to change. There are a lot of great reason why it should move, but the best reason it should stay is exactly why it's here and why it's always been here.... because they are here.
Let's imagine that they double the number of people let in the doors. What are those people going to do? There isn't going to magically be twice as much content. Individual panels, events, booths, they each have a real upper limit to the number of people they can accommodate at a time and across the weekend. Rooster Teeth isnt going to do ten times the number of panels if PAX can handle ten times the number of attendees.
Let's imagine that there is no limit to the number of people that can attend, that everyone that wants to go to this thing called PAX can go to it. They would still need to institute some manner of limiting the number of people who can get into any individual panel. If that happened, then we would be talking about how individual panels need to be moved to bigger rooms, or people would tell of how they got to see a concert, but they were literally 800 yards from the stage, and how that problem needs fixed.
The organizers of PAX are committed to creating the best event possible, and sometimes that means not focusing effort on getting more bodies in the door.
I can absorb the cost of hotel and fuel for the drive from the Beaverton, OR area to Seattle, I can't do the same for LA, which is also why I've never been to East, South, or (pie in the sky) Aus.
Selfish? A bit, yes. Annoying that I have to get up several hours early for some time every year and miss chatting with my friends on IRC who live in different time zones/countries for a while? You bet.
But because of where Prime is located at, I'm able to attend one.
Anyway I got my answer from zer pretty early on in this thread since it was mainly just looking for an answer that had been provided between my leaving and returning to the forum. If a mod could lock or delete this I'd appreciate it since the original goal was achieved
Very good and in depth article. I think the scalper problem is far less of an issue than people make it out to be. At worst it would be 5% of sales but I think it is closer to the 2-3% of total sales.
I thought up the idea of giving those who went to the previous Pax the first chance to buy tickets to next year's Pax at the same venue. But then that makes things very difficult to for newcomers to get in (research rarity of The Masters badges)
And I'd bet anything that those tickets at least equal organized efforts to buy tickets expressly for scalping.
Even if naming badges was easy to implement. That just means scalpers would get their tickets on Friday and people buying scalped badges would have to wait till later to get in. Since most people going to PAX are from the Seattle area, having to go to a scalper in Seattle to get them isn't a real problem, and the risk of being ripped off is much lower since they aren't sending money into the ether and hoping their dealer is legit. Basically, the better they get at IDing and giving out badges, the less that hurts scalping. Until they have active badges that constantly communicate with your RFID driver's license and disintegrate when they lose contact, it doesn't solve much.
TBH I strongly disagree especially with the other stuff I've seen other cons.do. But at this point it's a pointless discussion. Khoo is gonna do thing how he wants regardless of what we think especially since this thread was more concerned about venue not ticket selling method
You came in here with the question "Why does Penny arcade and PAX still stick with and refuse to leave Seattle in favor of somewhere like LA with such a larger convention center and still centrally located near an international airport?" The answer is that they think the convention is more valuable staying in Seattle, even with all the problems that entails, than moving it to somewhere else.
You ask, "So with it selling out faster and faster every year why does Penny Arcade still stick with the WSCC instead of moving somewhere bigger?" The answer is that they think the convention is more valuable staying in Seattle, even with all the problems that entails, than moving it to somewhere else.
You ask, "But yeah why does PA still refuse to leave WSCC for somewhere like LA when it's so much larger and an expansion for the WSCC is still at least 5 years away?" The answer is that they think the convention is more valuable staying in Seattle, even with all the problems that entails, than moving it to somewhere else.
You ask, "Are they under some contract that forces them to stay or do Khoo and company just love Seattle so much they wont wanna leave no matter what?" The answer is that they think the convention is more valuable staying in Seattle, even with all the problems that entails, than moving it to somewhere else.
It seems to me that you aren't really interested about having a discussion and are more interested in being salty and having your own sanova bitchfest thread. Robert Khoo does not owe it to you to give a shit about your opinion.
Geth, close this thread.