why do you close everything at 6 p.m. when the site says the event closes at 12 a.m.???
I got my tickets sat Aug 29 I paid some one to get them for me because I work 60 hours a week and I don't have time to look at the site to get them. He told me the event closed at 12 p.m and 6 or 8 would prob be a good time to show up. I give the site quick look and yes it said it closed at 12 A.m. So I show up at 8p.m. with my son after a crazy day thinking 4 hours should be enough time to look at everything and the event was closed when I got their. I could not play games in the games room as the guy at the desk said I needed to bring my own console. and all the activity's where full. on top of that the convention center parking ticket miss scanned and they charged me 50 dollars for 20 mins of parking. If your going to close the event at 6 you should say its closed at 6 clearly on the site not everyone has the time to read everything on this site I just wanted to know when to show up.
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I looked at that too, and my first inclination was along the line of "maybe more than skim the site."
But really, I totally get the confusion between "show hours" and "expo hall hours," and it sucks if you get screwed by it. Not sure how you'd make it clearer to somebody unfamiliar with the con, but can still totally see making the mistake.
You should also have encountered a pile of programs on your way into the WSCC which had schedules and maps showing you everything that happens aftre the expo hall closes.
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For most first-timers the expo floor is the centerpiece. Again, I can totally get the confusion, and disappointment.
As for finding a program, have you ever heard the phrase "you don't know what you don't know?"
However at a certain point the onus is on the person who doesn't know if they aren't finding the info. There was an Enforcer with a microphone stating how to get a program even if you entered from the side where you couldn't just see them on the tables, and that wasn't the only place to get them. There was also an info desk, many signs, and Enforcers everywhere to answer your questions if you needed clarification.
While I understand that the expo hall is a centerpiece, if separate hours listed for it wasn't enough clarification, you had better avenues than posting here to find out about it.
If you don't know that expo hall hours vary from show hours, you likely don't know what an "Enforcer" is. I suppose I'm able to be empathetic to somebody walking in blind that just wanted to see the expo hall, bought a pass off the street thinking they could (and being told they could by the sound), and realized they were wrong.
And after looking at the site, I'm unsure it's entirely clear for the uninitiated. I'm not sure how to make it more clear, though. And I agree, to some extent it's on the con-goer to research. But I just understand how this could easily happen, and it sucks.
As for posting here? Sometimes people need to vent. I get that.
Shifts. Just like any other workplace that's open long hours.
I mean /we/ all know that exhibitors only have so many bodies to staff. And that /obviously/ they can't keep the expo hall open until midnight. But if you've never been? I could see believing it.
Somebody asked if the merch booth was open late. And I honestly wasn't sure. I assume not, but similarly there's no reason it couldn't be other than not being profitable.
It's also right on the back of the badges, stating Expo hours and show hours. The reality is that, yes, someone could misunderstand, however it seems more than clear that the OP just made the leap and bought passes (probably at exorbitant prices) without doing any research into the show at all. They also could have found plenty to do, but were clearly just angry and left without finding out, as indicated by the comment that they were only parked for 20 minutes. Also, if they came and left via the parking garage, they wouldn't have passed the stands with the programs and clearly didn't take the time to really look around for info.
I feel for the OP and I hope they can take everything that's been said in this thread and learn from it for next time.
Oh for sure, I hope next year works out better for them (if they choose to try again).
I can just totally understand making the mistake, and honestly if I came to see the expo floor and found out it was closed, "hey you can still play a tabletop game" is gonna be cold comfort. For a lot of people the expo floor /is/ the "show," so that's not gonna feel great.
I mean taking his as an opportunity for constructive feedback, I'd say that the expo actually is the bulk of the "show" (minus concerts and a handful of panels)...and the expo is the X in PAX after all...so finding another way to word things might be clearer. Because I could see seeing "show hours" and thinking that meant the expo hall (what I think of when I hear "show" in this context). Everything else to me is more "community event" than show. Except concerts, so still technically correct to say the "show" goes until midnight. But ripe for confusion.
Of course some people will always lack attention to detail and screw it up anyway. Totally get that. But I'm just not convinced there is not some room for improvement in clarity here. Like, I /get/ this mistake, and suspect the OP is hardly the only one to make it.
But maybe there really isn't much room to improve, and it's a small enough problem to not be worth the hassle. I can understand that too.
My main thing is I've been going for almost a decade now, and hardly spend any time on the expo floor anymore...which is to say I'm a vet who totally understands the info and activities available....but I can absolutely see how a newbie could make this mistake. Just something to consider, before being dismissive.