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We saw the gate but it was locked up. A literal chain and lock on it and we weren't going to climb over it without knowing where exactly it would lead us. It did not help that the door did not have any signage on it either, it was just a plain white door. I'm not sure if it were a different set of stairs from the ones you are talking about, but it was quite odd. Normally this would be a good tactic but not when so many people are trying to leave at the same time. We were fully planning on going up to get down but the elevators were always completely full. Eventually we split up between

Over the years, I've learned that in order to go down, sometimes you need to get in an elevator going up. Then you just stay in it when it starts going down. Or was that the problem? Too many other people getting on on lower floors, then when it finally reaches your floor it's full of people from other floors doing just that? Hadn't considered it before but I guess anyone near the top of the hotel wouldn't be able to take advantage of that strategy.

This is a big reason my friends and I have been exploring a few other cons outside of Otakon. For a few of us, Otakon was our very first convention (of any type, not just anime) even though we live almost 6 hours away. We've been going almost every year since 2011 and have no plans whatsoever to stop because we really love the trip so much, even though it's been hard the last few years. However, because going to Otakon is such a big expense for us and because it's in a crowded part of the year con-wise, it does limit us on going to other big cons, such as Anime Expo, DragonCon, Anime NYC, etc.

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Find Prettys Womans from your city for night

The average person does not have the disposable income to attend multiple conventions, while having to pay for hotel rooms. Prices don't go down, but wages don't seem to go up either. These big conventions will price themselves out of the market some day. Same with the guests charging for things. They will only get what the market can bear. A local comic convention was held a few weeks ago and I think there were prices up around $80 for a photograph. People will decide the cost/benefit analysis on those is not worth it, but to each their own.

I'll admit I'm biased; I'd vote Otakon (I know, shock on the Otakon forums) but I understand it can be difficult to weigh these choices. I had to weigh Otakon vs. being flown to Germany and drive on the Nurburgring on my 50th birthday. Otakon won out for me . . . without hesitation (and if you know me, that's quite the statement!) You are one of the very few who have been going to Otakon longer than I have; I only date back to Hunt Valley. But I'm not you. I hope you can find the space for both Otakon and any other convention you love. Still, only you can live in your shoes

I agree with your opinion when it comes to date moves. Maybe not as dramatic as a city/venue move (which took Otakon a while to recover it's numbers despised the pandemic earlier). Honestly, I'm in a peculiar situation right now. Supposed if I can only do just one summer anime con a year? Common sense would dictate that I do Anime-NYC because it would be a lot more easier and cheaper to attend compared to Otakon.

Personally, I don't think moving the dates of Otakon to a different time of the year would be a good move - feasible or not. The summer is an easier time for many attendees to make the trip to Otakon based on school being out and/or family vacation time. Moving an event of this size to the winter - while potentially successful - would have to navigate these types of hurdles. There are certainly successful conventions throughout the year; I've attended the Washington Auto Show every year since the winter of '82. But for the size and demographics of something like Otakon, the summer

R.I.P. 😭 Playing the "Sailor Moon Memorial" CD in the background.

They both died at roughly the same age. Makes you wonder how the universe works.

Damn. I loved her performance as B-ko from the Project A-ko series, which was one of the series that made me such a big anime fan. Sadly, we also lost Atsuko Tanaka back on August 20 as well; I'll always think of her as the star of Ghost in the Shell.

https://www-oricon-co-jp.translate.goog/news/2344236/full/?_x_tr_sl=auto&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en-US&_x_tr_pto=wapp https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2024-09-10/sailor-jupiter-voice-actress-emi-shinohara-dies-at-61/.215306 Voice actress Emi Shinohara dies at age 61 while undergoing medical treatment. "Sailor Moon" voice actress Makoto Kino/Sailor Jupiter, etc.

I wonder if there's a possibility in the future for Otakon to move to a different time of the year so that it's not so close to other major cons; either earlier (late spring/early summer) or later (late fall/early winter). I can see moving to an earlier time of year being a major (nearly impossible) move since it would seriously cut down on prep time for the first year with the new date. I wonder how hard it would be to move toward the end of the year (before winter sets in). Then there's also the hurdle of getting it approved with the WEWCC. I guess I'm just curious whether it would be a feas

I think it's too soon to tell right now. But, I did come across reading and hearing complaints about Anime-NYC about lacking certain things because of how close in time between 2 major cons. For example, some companies don't have enough serious wad of money to spend sending people and things to two major cons in a short amount of time.

It's kind of difficult to compare numbers from different cons because every con seems to count them different, and Otakon uses a method that just about comes up with the smallest number possible (They don't count dealers, guests, and others not on a membership badge). And if you want to make sense of turnstile numbers then divide by 3 (A single person will get counted each day). There's probably not that big an impact on the two cons being close to each other. Otakon shares specific numbers with the membership, so you can see who's from where. In 2023 it was: Maryland: 12783

Well, the con came and went. The preliminary numbers of attendees for AnimeNYC did indeed hit 100,000.

Well, the con came and went.

Like Clutch said, but to also add my two cents, it's the very slowness (load time) is what really killing this. I can't get Discord (and any other social media) on my work computer.

Good: -Opening up the wall between the dealers room and artist alley. I usually go thru both one after the other and it just makes more sense this way. -Moving the art auction to a separate room. It was nice that it was given its own area. The other bright side from this was a lot more room in artist alley for more artists, which is always a good thing. -Entrance lines were not a problem at all this year. Only weird thing was when we went to get out 18+ wrist bands Thursday night and they made us go in the reg pick up line instead of in the front. -Loved the 30th annive

I honestly thought the board would be gone by now. With social media around, the good old days of the mid to late 00s when this board was very busy are long over.

It's been more on and off to me for these past couple of days.

Lack of activity will end the board quicker. Just saying.

I have taken the stairs at the Marriott Marquis many times and you went down some levels to one with a gate door. You could go through that gate and continue down stairs. That gate always slammed when you tried to close it. Perhaps this was a different set of stairs than the one I would always take, but I don't know. Haven't been able to get that hotel for the past 2 years, so it is a moot point.

Washington Marriott Marquis In short: It was a lovely stay as always. We have picked this hotel every year since moving to Washington and it has been amazing! With the ease of access to the convention via tunnel, the Atrium view which brings many delights as people hang and put various items in their windows, and the friendly staff, it is hard to go wrong here. We always end up arriving at Thursday and leaving late Sunday night (we book through Monday to allow for this), and we have plenty of downtime in the hotel. Ease of Access There is a tunnel that can be accessed by going d