PAX East & Anime Boston: One Month Away!

There’s only one month left before PAX East comes to Boston (March 26-28). That’s right: one month until Penny Arcade’s author and artist duo Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik cordially invite 60,000 gamers and all the major gaming industry players to the Hynes Convention Center. The following weekend (April 2-4), Anime Boston will reign over the Hynes’ halls. The Great Geek Onslaught is imminent. Prepare yourself!

We admit, there’s little new to share about PAX or AB, aside from the fact that they're only a month away and holy shit that's exciting. If you’ve been checking the PAX forums since early February, you already know about the announced partial list of confirmed concerts and exhibitors. Sony is noticeably absent, but it’s their loss --and they might still change their minds.

We’re psyched for the presentations by game companies, as well as the concerts (Jonathan Coulton! Protomen! Read the forums’ FAQ for advice on how to snag a concert wristband), but there will also be a bevy of gaming get-togethers and tournaments, including table-top and board games. A few slots still remain for PAX’s massive BYOC LAN party, which stands for Bring Your Own Computer ... and do I have to explain what a LAN party is? Didn’t think so.

Since that may be old news for some of you, have some new tidbits. Check out this interview with Holkins and Krahulik about the new Penny Arcade book (no, not a comic book, an autobiographical tale of the comic’s conception and success), as well as a word of advice from Holkins to listen closely at PAX for a special announcement about the status of “Rain-Slick Episode 3.”

Bad news: if you haven’t already bought a pass for PAX, you’ve been boxed out by the thousands of pre-registrations. And there won’t be any badges at the door. The good news? Laser Orgy will try to recreate the experience for you as best we can.

Meanwhile, Anime Boston hasn’t reached its attendance cap yet, and you’ll be able to see similar (but more anime-centric than game-centric) events and activities on display there; for example, the Video Game Orchestra will perform at both cons. Although PAX will have plenty of folks in costume, hardcore cosplayers may find AB to be a better fit with its prestigious costume contests and performative events programming. We could never decide, so expect coverage of both.