A ConnectiCon First Timer In A Pricey Court
(Ed. Note: As I hinted yesterday, we have one more ConnectiCon gallery to go. At the bottom of this review are shots taken by Jibrii himself, so check ’em out!)
Whenever a friend talked about their experience at ConnectiCon to me it was never in a good light. Since I first heard about it in 2013 I have heard my fair share of complaints. I remember when the con was using cosplayers’ photoshoot photos to market their con with no proper credit given, I remember hearing stories of harassment from con-goers by convention staff, and how infamously strict the security guards were. Needless to say I went into ConnectiCon this year expecting it to be a complete mess of a show. So after attending the convention for the first time how was this year’s ConnectiCon? … meh…
ConnectiCon is an annual convention that takes place in Hartford, Conn., at the Connecticut Convention Center. Founded in 2002, this volunteer-run multi-genre pop culture convention’s “focus is on all things pop culture and does every genre of pop culture in as big a way as possible,” according to its website. Right off the bat I noticed something weird. There were in all three lines — one line to register for the con at the con, one to pick up your badge after registering for it, and a pre-reg line. I found that sort of weird. Why not just have two lines. One for pre-reg and one for at-con registration? That way the area wouldn’t be so crowded and cluttered. Minor inconvenience but easily fixable. At least you didn’t have to wait outside to pick up your badge.
Going into this con I have to say it was bigger than I expected it to be, or it at least seemed that way. I was expecting a much smaller con. But the multilevel Connecticut Convention Center was a surprise to me. Also the very spacious dealers room and gaming area quite surprised me.
The outside area was also an optimal spot for many cosplayers to enjoy the summer weather. There were plenty of areas outside the con center to shoot at, and there were plenty of space for cosplay meetups to take place.
One thing I noticed earlier on was the lack of proper security. All day Friday I didn’t run into any security guards on the con floor. And I have heard so many stories about how strict the security was. In all honesty if you didn’t have a badge you could have traversed the con center pretty easily. At one point I was even able to waltz right into the dealers room without being stopped by anyone due to the door not being guarded, even though I did have a badge. While some may think this is a good thing and makes it easier to sneak around the con, it’s really a double edged sword. What if an incident happened and there was no security present at the time? Just something they should consider for next year’s event.
However Saturday was a whole different story. There was security everywhere. While this was good, this same kind of presence should be felt every day of a con. But I will say a few security guards got very pushy. I noticed a few minor incidents in which a security guard interrupted a photoshoot to check the badges of the con-goers. I even had someone come up to me toward the closing of the con asking me for my badge to check. It kinda defeats the purpose of asking me that toward the end of the con day in my opinion but I digress. Maybe proper checkpoints for badge checking should be implemented that way your con doesn’t become so easy to lobby con it
The dealers room as mentioned before was surprisingly large, and probably rivaled the size of Katsucon’s dealers room. While spacious, it wasn’t very cluttered as many dealers rooms could get. Which is a good thing but this is probably due to the impression I got walking through it of a light number of choices. Nothing really stood out to me. I did like that the guests were all in one area, conveniently lined up so you can find who you’re looking for easily.
On the other side of the dealers room was their game room which was very impressive. From Japanese arcade games to consoles there was quite a diverse selection. Not to mention their very own League of Legends tournament. Speaking of tournaments, the Super Smash Bros Tournament was very enjoyable to watch. I really enjoyed the gaming room and spent most of my Friday in there playing games like Gears Of War: Judgment, Killer Instinct, Super Smash Bros, and Mario Kart.
Overall, ConnectiCon was a very okay experience. While I am happy I went and got to hangout with friends, I could have easily missed it and would have been fine with staying at home. ConnectiCon reminds me a lot of AnimeNEXT — specifically what AnimeNEXT is like when you cannot enjoy the outside area which was ANEXT’s strength.
While there is little to really do at the con itself besides the pretty awesome game room, I found myself just wandering the con floor. You think a con that has been around for more than a decade would have the basics down a little better.
I won’t be returning next year, but that does not mean I hated the con. It was a nice weekend to get away and if you’re in the area I recommend checking it out for at least a day. Because I can’t honestly say the con is that worth it at its price of admission — $75 for a three-day weekend. Maybe at $50 for a three-day, $35 for a Friday, $40 for a Saturday, and maybe $30 for a Sunday badge it’d be more worth it.
With a few minor and easily fixed flaws, ConnectiCon is a good smallish con to go to. If you are a Connecticut local, or you have a free weekend and you want to do a con — and can afford it — this would be the con for you.
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