So, there are conventions all over the world devoted to gaming. I've been to a fair number of them over the years but some stand out as better than others. Magfest is one of those events. Situated in National Harbor, Maryland, it is a convention devoted to gamers and gaming music (ie: bands which were inspired by games or create music with gaming tools).

The convention itself isn't huge, but the musicians they attract are all immensely talented and great to see live. There is a vendor space to buy stuff, but the real allure to me is their arcade. This arcade is filled with the classics you'd expect as well as more modern titles. They even get a great deal of import rhythm titles which you aren't likely to see elsewhere.

The issue with Magfest (at least this year) is that it's an absolute chore to prep for attending the con if you don't live nearby. This year all hotels within walking distance sold out in 10 minutes, with most other nearby ones selling out in an hour. There is a quota on tickets as well, but those have not sold out yet. I was fortunate enough to get my ideal hotel and will be going! Are any of you folks going? Have you heard of Magfest before? :P

Maryland is not far from me (I live in Virginia, just south, but I'm on the eastern peninsula so it's still a fair drive) and I have a buddy who goes regularly. I've considered attending in the past, but I've always had other obligations holding me back. This year, it does not appear like I will have those types of obligations so I really want to go. If I were to obtain a ticket, I think it would be awesome to meet up! I think it would be an exciting event to be a part of. I've never cosplayed before, but I've always wanted to. I'm still kind of getting out of my shell with all of that. But I want to go all out, and I think an event like that would really be the push I need to just do it.

How much are tickets by the way?

Nice! I actually didn't go last year because of my own obligations and regretted it a lot because of the fun I had in the year prior to that. Back in my teen years I used to do cosplay and it was a lot of fun! In particular, costumes were great the shy person I was because I could "goof off" or be generally outgoing because it felt liberating somehow. That's just me, of course. Lately cosplay isn't my thing mainly because it can become expensive depending on your goals and I'd rather spend that money on nice meals at the location or goods from the con, haha.

Right now tickets are $65 for the entire event I believe. As they sell out of certain # milestones they increase the price $5. In that sense, it's better to buy sooner than later. With that said, there is no way to refund a ticket once you buy it - but you can easily transfer the ticket over to another person (having them pay you the price or giving it away, whatever works).

If you do end up going then let me know so I can say hi :D.

That would be quite nice. Thanks for the heads up! I really do wanna cosplay though, just do something fun like you said. I'm 25 now, but I'm still young at heart!

I will be sure to give you a wave! Talk shop with me, ya?

It's ringing a bell but I haven't been. That's only a few minutes from me, I live right across the river from National Harbor. Maybe we'll check it out.

It's a pretty cool event and I'll always suggest folks check it out :). The fact that you are close is a great bonus, Delainez.

Here's the official website for anyone curious to know more: http://magfest.org/

The site gets a bit confusing at times because they organize all kinds of events, not just MAGFest. For example there is stuff like MAGFest Labs and MAGQuest which are smaller, different events. The big one is MAGFest and runs from Jan 5-8 this 2017.

They're having a MAGFest Labs event in a few weeks here; we plan to go check it out. If we like it, we'll probably go to Magfest.