With the rise of the delta variant and the coronavirus pandemic still a thing, few conventions have opened back up to the public in 2021. PAX West was held over Labor Day weekend and by the numbers, it was Seattle’s largest public con since the beginning of the pandemic. The organizers took strict measures regarding the safety of all attendees. They required proof of a completed COVID-19 vaccination series or a negative COVID-19 PCR or antigen test, as well as a valid, government issued ID. Also, face coverings were to be worn at all times.
I felt nervous about attending. Rona cases are still quite high. Not only locally where I live. Where my city and state ACTS like we care about each other, but as the numbers show … we really don’t. So the idea of feeling safe in a convention hall, full of recycled air, picked over merchandise and gaming controllers that have been touched and touched and touched. Well, it didn’t seem that welcoming with everything else to consider.
For those of you not familiar with the Penny Arcade Expo. Founded by the creators of the Penny Arcade comic in 2004, the first show was small but it was a success. It barely filled a floor at a much smaller venue in Bellevue, WA. Many of those involved invested large amounts of personal money to get it off the ground. High risk, High reward. Now, it’s a Goliath that fills the entire Washington State convention center and portions of the show are even held off site at nearby hotels or makeshift parking lot set ups. PAX West is the largest gaming fan event in the United States. Attendance in 2019 was 120,000 over the 4 day convention. PAX is not typically a comicon-like experience. PAX is a place where video game developers and publishers can show off their games to the public. You’re there to go hands-on with games, or see demos of games. PAX is staffed by a small army of Enforcers who have roles like making sure the expo hall aisles are clear, capping lines when there’s no more space for people to wait, and dealing with people who violate the code of conduct.
I went and well, PAX 2021 was weird this year. Not a bad weird just different weird. That being said, What did I expect during a pandemic? Everything else is just as strange. No one was prepared for the situation we are in. There was no playbook for this. We’re all making it up as we go.
I’ve been going to PAX pretty much every year for almost a decade now so I have a fair understanding of what PAX normally looks like. This year none of the big names were there except for Bandai. Other than that it was a handful of indie booths (no Indie Mega-Booth) and LOTS of merchandise booths especially ones selling dice. If I had to put a rough estimate on it I’d say there was maybe 35% of what is normally at PAX West. In past years it would take me and my friends maybe two days, three tops to really walk through and digest the main show floor and sixth floor. This time around, you could bust through it all in a day. The show floor still had plenty of people on it, but it was a lot thinner than a regular PAX West.
Lines were short. You could walk from place to place without having to slowly shuffle through a sea of people. I bought a T-shirt and gaming carts from Pink Gorilla Games, a vendor I knew about but never waited in the Disneyland-long line pre-covids. I played some killer games, took in a few panels, and caught up with friends I haven’t seen in a long time. Also, I covered several devs, conducted interviews (content incoming) and kept safe.
Now, I’ve seen a lot of anger online, and while I don’t agree with you, I understand your disappointment. You aren’t happy with something you paid for. I know what that feels like and I’m not gonna try to tell you you’re wrong for feeling the way that you do. Thankfully, the anger all seems to be online. PAX had a really good vibe this time around. People seemed to be having fun. I know I had a good time. It’s definitely a scaled down version of the norm, but it still felt like PAX to me.
Also, It looks like PAX attendees and organizers were trying pretty hard to win the convention vs. covid game. With any luck we’ll find out that their strategy actually worked. I get the feeling this is a litmus test for how to do in-person conventions, the same as NYCC will be. If ReedPop can pull off PAX and NYCC with few infections traced back to the conventions, then perhaps devs, publishers, artists, creators, etc. will be more willing to go to conventions. This could be the way forward and it is likely for the better.