SoCal Gaming Expo 2023 Review
(Before writing this, I reached out to two different email address attempting to discuss the show with either the owner or someone involved with the event. As of this writing, no one has responded. Please keep in mind that this article is opinion based and I am giving you my honest interpretation of the show based off the experience that I personally had. This article will look at both the positives and negatives, but also included potential solutions to the issues I had with the show.)
Until this year, I have only been to this expo once before, back in 2019 and I believe it was still called So Cal Retro Gaming Expo at the time. When 2020 hit I purchased my tickets to go immediately and eagerly anticipated the event. Unfortunately the event was plan shortly after the pandemic really kicked off in the America. So Cal Gaming Expo 2020 was first delayed and then eventually canceled completely.
Though I am not totally informed on exactly what happened, the expo exchanged hands and new people were brought in to carry on. Last year, in 2022 the expo was back, moving from the Pasadena Convention Center to the Ontario Convention Center in southern California. I was unable to attend this event as my daughter was born shortly before the weekend began. Now that you have some context and background that I have with this event, let's look at how this years event went.
When I first entered the show floor, it became apparent that this venue was significantly smaller than the last expo I attended in Pasadena. This was surprising to me because in 2019, I felt that the Pasadena Convention Center was packed (at least where the vendor booths were located.) I can certainly understand the owners being cautious about paying for a larger space in a post-pandemic world, but at the same time I would argue that most people would feel far more comfortable if there was more space to navigate the floor. If you attended the SoCal Gaming Expo 2023 on either day and you were present during peak traffic times, I am sure that you would agree. A larger space should seriously be considered moving forward in my opinion, but before I get into more of the opportunities I think the show has, let's look at what was done right.
The event started out on the right foot for me. I got there about 30 minutes before the doors opened, got my badge and hopped in line. While in line, I interacted with all the people around me. Shout out to Evan over at JumpTV https://www.youtube.com/@jumptv6902. The people continued to be highlight of the show for me. I ran into a buddy I have not seen in years that is a fellow game collector. I even spoke with Pat Contri (Pat the NES Punk) and Jirard the Completionist briefly, both of whom were very friendly and engaging. I also attended their panel's which were essentially just Q&A's, but frankly that is all they needed to be to become a highlight of the show.
As far as the games go, it was a mixed bag. We released a video after day one, showing off the show floor which can be found here: https://youtu.be/ZelSZ97-4Lw. In this video we received many comments from people stating that overall, the prices were too high at vendor booths. Let's look at this from both sides for a moment. Apparently, vendors had to pay a high fee for a booth/table at this event. Those attending should also keep in mind that this is not a flea market or garage sale. The vendors know what they have and they know how much the stuff they are selling is currently going for. The vendors came here to make money, just like you would want to if you were selling your games.
With that being said, I would say that the prices were mostly set at the going rate of price charting. I specifically use the app GAMEYE to keep track of my collection. (If you do not have this free app, please go download it immediately.) Since this app shows current prices for games, I used this to compare what the sticker price was before buying anything. In most cases, the going rate was what the vendor was asking for.
In these cases, I would briefly and politely talk to the vendor and see if they were willing to negotiate on the price. Every single vendor that I interacted with was willing to negotiate on the prices. This is likely why the vendors also start out at the going online rate for their products. Sunday was clearly the better day to get a deal, as many vendors were calling out promotions or their willingness to haggle to make a deal. Another advantage you have here versus online is you can check the game's condition and ensure it is up to your standards. Personally, I would rather pay slightly more for a clean copy of a game, then save a buck with a lesser version.
At the end of the day, all the games I bought were in good or great condition and below the current going prices you would see online.
(The Nintendo handhelds were everywhere! Also this is not what I purcahsed.)
What was the big takeaway from the show? HANDHELDS ARE HOT! Nearly every vendor had GBA, DS and 3DS games front and center at their booths. Vita and to a lesser extent PSP also was capturing peoples attention. The N64 games were still garnering an audience, but appear to be on a slight decline, while GameCube is still extremely popular currently. PS2 games were all over the place, though I am not sure how well they were selling. Personally, I tired to focus on systems that got a lot less attention this year like NES, Sega Genesis and basically anything Xbox.
I did target a specific handheld, Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia and found it at two vendors on the first day. I attempted to be strategic and waited until day two to try and negotiate with these vendors, but unfortunately only found it at a third vendor on day two who's starting price was around $40.00 higher then the average price online. These are the types of vendors that I do not even attempt to negotiate with and simply move on. Unfortunately, I had to let this Castlevania game go for now. Like my missed opportunity with Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia, the show itself had various missed opportunities that I feel it should work on fixing in the future.
Here are five improvements I would like to see them make next year:
1. Planning: Nearly everything about the event felt rushed. There were issues with people entering the building on day one. The line was very slow moving if you happened to have arrived as the show was starting on Saturday.
2. More Planning: Special guests within the gaming sphere are very important to the show. Increasing the amount of voice actors or artists doing signings or photos should increase. Many of the big YouTubers/Content Creators you would expect to see, mostly were not present. It seemed like many of these creators already had prior plans or engagements which again shows a lack of planning ahead. Most of the creators that did attend held panels which felt thrown together at the last minutes as the schedule was released just days before the show.
3. Increased attention on the "arcade" area: If you are only going to have five arcade machines, you should just scrap that section entirely. I typically love these areas at gaming conventions and usually spend a decent amount of time there as long as they have some interesting arcade and pinball machines. When executed in advance with the proper dedicated space, these can be a highlight for many attendees of the convention. Having only five machines feels like one or two problems existed. There was not enough time to secure a proper partner for this or the space allocated for this area was simply too small.
4. Displays of items from video game history or mini museum: Outside of having some old video game systems hooked up to play, there was no real historical section to go to in the show that displays really unique, weird or interesting stuff from the history of video games. Showing off these uncommon or rare items are important to people within the community. The people going to shows like this are the people that will actually care about this stuff.
5. Larger event space: In the beginning of this article I had mentioned the space issue. Vendors booths were jam packed during peak hours. I felt the arcade area could not be fully realized. There would be little space to add a historical section. If gaming continues to increase in popularity and attendance continues to rise, this will be a serious issue that is better to fix sooner than later. I know that larger setting will be more costly, but it feels like a necessary step if you want to keep the attendees happy and sustain growth. When content creators see more of their friends going, they will want to go. The same can be said for voice actors, artists, game devs, authors etc.
So will I be going to SoCal Gaming Expo 2024.... probably. The truth is, where I live there are no retro game stores close by. Due to this, the event calls out to me despite it's flaws. However, I feel they do need some competition in Southern California to really raise their game. Perhaps they will be able to take the constructive criticism and really improve this event by listening to the community that wants to love it.
To see s video of my adventure check this out below:
Cheers!
- Matt Marozzi
Gaming Content Creator for Nerdthusiast
Please also check out my gaming audio podcast monthly at:
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