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PAX South 2019 Registration
Badges wen't live a handful of minutes ago! Since they were announced, we didn't lock-step the thread here, but here's the link for anyone who needs it!
https://www.showclix.com/event/ml2z850b05/
https://www.showclix.com/event/ml2z850b05/
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Time to grow the beard out - No shave until PAX South 2019
I sincerely hope everyone who attends has a blast. I'll be eagerly looking for trip reports to see if things improve.
Personally, I kinda like the more low key nature of South. I mean, I would love to see more major devs attend of course, and I can't really fault anyone from shying away for lack of content that you would expect at the other PAXes, but at least for me, I like that I can have at least one chill PAX experience in the year without the chaos and people on top of each other that you typically get at East and West.
Agreed. PAX South is kinda like a stoner trip: just kick back, relax, put on some Kansas and game.
"There are pilots and there are pilots; with the good ones, it is inborn." - BG Robin Olds
"Weather today fine but high waves." - ADM Tōgō Heihachirō
But i go to south to get away from Kansas in January.
Then play Queen or somthin', IDC.
"There are pilots and there are pilots; with the good ones, it is inborn." - BG Robin Olds
"Weather today fine but high waves." - ADM Tōgō Heihachirō
Heh. "Low key" is one thing. "Nearly devoid of any major company presence" is another. :P Don't get me wrong. I dug the early vibe of South. I was an attendee and an exhibitor at East and Prime, but I retired and live here so having a local PAX that was more intimate was perfectly fine for me. That's why I was pleased to see the reaction to the early lack of content in the form of more tabletop presence. A lot of us didn't have interesting industry panels to attend or product reveals to catch, so we chilled and gamed with each other in free play. If that had been encouraged, I think it would still be chill but would have a more social, tabletop vibe. Unplugged seemingly took that away. The majority of cool, new stuff for tabletop will appear at Gen Con or Unplugged (or Essen, if we consider world-wide). Having that happen at South would have been awesome, and I don't think it would have resulted in massive crowds or an impersonal crush of content.
I suppose it's different if you are consistently attending all the stateside PAXen each year. Then the variety might be nice. But as someone limited to South these days, I'd like to see at least a few non-indie games or devs (no disrespect to the indies). If I want to meet up with cool folks and play my own tabletop games, I can do that for free a few times a week at several local shops.
I guess I'm just talking out loud. I've had a simply unforgettable PAX ride over the years, so having South come here after my traveling days were over was a real treat. I just hope that it doesn't wither due to lack of content, causing them to rethink the location. If it does stay, I am very interested in watching the identity it finally develops.
No, I get it. I am one of those folks that typically attends at least two PAXen a year. typically West and either South or East, so when I do get back down to South its kinda like a breath of fresh air sometimes. But if I was limited to South, I think I would also be feeling the same way. Like, "Hey, we like content down here too" lol.
Exactly. LOL. Not a lot, but something.
I'm curious, xerzhul, what draws your PAX group to South? Is it because it gives you all a chance to meet up, so the content doesn't matter? If so, I get it. It is accurate to say that South doesn't get as in your face, but at the same time the lines can ironically be much longer because there are only a handful of titles to try out. There's a balance to be found, but ultimately its up to the devs and publishers to see South as a good way to spend their time and money. After four years, South is now a known quantity, so if they wanted to attend I guess they would.
Sorry for any thread derailment. I shocked myself by deciding not to go (a first), saw the registration thread and....
:?
I can totally understand why don't often make to South, though i definitely wouldn't mind if we got to see the likes Firaxis or Bioware again.
South is shaping up to have a really strong indie presence and I almost always come across a game I missed every time u pass through the expo hall. And the great thing is the devs usually have time to have real conversations with you.
Getting to chat up the people actually developing the games is definitely one of the better parts about the strong indie presence at South.
Oh, yeah. Indies and getting the chance to chat with devs (both big and small) are both core elements of my PAX experience. I've managed to do it at every Prime, East, and South I've attended. But I'm an old PR guy, so I have no problem striking up conversations with strangers. I can definitely see how challenging/intimidating that would be at a busy booth for the typical attendee.
Problem is, yet another indie tabletop publisher than I am a fan of just announced they are going to Unplugged. (cue Sad Panda) That could have easily been South, but the comment about lots of con competition is very true. And if they have to pick one, they will choose Unplugged with it's dedicated tabletop theme vs South with it's nebulous, undefined vibe. Even though Unplugged is newer, less predictable, and has lower attendance. (Not a dig against Unplugged, but those kinds of metrics--along with date, and to a lesser extent location--are what usually drive exhibitor decisions.)
Ah, well. The shock of my decision has worn off, and I'm at peace with it. It's still weird not buying a weekend pass the instant they go on sale. :P
A friend just told me South will be his first PAX, which made me return here. I don't want to seem redundant, but the specifics of your question are something I can relate to. It's been a few years, but I've also done West and East. Both great events. I experienced East starting with it's 2nd year, so it, too, was growing. But even in its 2nd year it seemed much more impressive in terms of presence and content than South is, even after several years. (That's just my memory, actual numbers may prove me wrong.) And West has always been the biggest and most impressive by far. Based on your experience, I'm thinking South may disappoint. It's a good starter-con for new folks or folks that have been to a dozen PAXen and just want to chill. But unless something big changes this year, I don't think you'll see what you're hoping for. The biggest event/crowds in prior years was the tabletop free play area. It was packed with hundreds all day every day. I had lots of fun and frequented it often. Now that Unplugged is "the" tabletop PAX, the free play may still be busy, but I expect the scant tabletop company presence to be even smaller as they focus on Unplugged. That's not to say South wasn't fun or well put together. But if I had to be honest, they don't seem to bulk up any particular part of it to make up for the lack of content. It just seems like the entire event is scaled back a bit overall.