PAX South 2015

Since my first visit to PAX Prime several years ago, I have been anxiously awaiting my next chance to attend another PAX convention. When they announced a new location to their schedule here in my home state of Texas I couldn’t contain my excitement! I bought tickets as soon as they became available and counted down the days until the con.

It’s now been a few weeks since my visit to PAX South in San Antonio, but looking through my photos have brought back all the wonderful memories. I went to Prime by myself so I was really happy to go to South with my family. We are all first and foremost gamers. My mom and brother especially! So it was super special to be able and share this convention with them and nerd out over all the games and merchandise.

After the 5 hour trip from Dallas to San Antonio, we checked in to our hotel and walked next door to the convention center. To me that is one of the best things about PAX conventions is how they place the events in large centers around great hotels and fantastic night life. We headed straight in and to the Nintendo booth to try and grab a paper Majora’s mask souvenir. It was already gone for the day, but we did manage to get one the next morning!

Another great thing about PAX is the chance to try out new and upcoming games. My mom and I played the demo for Dungeon Defenders II and loved it! It was really colorful and interactive. I was so proud of my mom for trying out a PC game. She’s usually into console gaming. We were on easy mode but still enjoyed the gameplay and features. Plus we got a code for an early release and also a limited edition pin.

That evening we explored the rest of the convention center and checked out the Magic: The Gathering tournaments as well as some panels. I was excited to see my friend Mia Moore at the Women in Geek Media Panel!

The next morning I woke up really really early to get in line for the Guild Wars 2 panel. They weren’t letting people in the doors until 8am so my dad and I got there around 7:15am. There was already a line outside the building but once we got inside most everyone went a different direction than the main theater where the panel was to be held. So me and my dad and the two guys in front of us went straight to that queue and began our 2 hour wait until the panel started. Lucky for us we were awarded a Corsair Gaming Mouse for being one of the first 5 people there. I also got to meet two of Arena Net’s marketing team members and also cosplayer Sarah Cain who was dressed as a Guild Wars 2 character. The best part was seeing my face on the live Twitch stream. I was seated close to the front and in the center and my white hoodie and pink hair showed up nicely in the sea of black shirts. (See top right photo; I’m above his shoulder.) You can watch the stream here.

We spent the rest of the day collecting street passes on our Nintendo 3DS and then exploring some of San Antonio. My family and I ate at a great Mexican restaurant on the River Walk. Even though it was chilly it was just nice enough to be able to eat outside. Then we walked along the rest of the River Walk and found the The Alamo. I visited this once when I was very little but sadly don’t remember it. (How dare I not remember The Alamo!!) So I was very very excited to make up for it and take in all the history of this monument.

One of the best things about a PAX convention is all the free swag! I came home with SO many goodies! I bought a few of the collectable pins and adorable books they had and also a sticker sheet and patch. But literally everything else was free! I got Magic: The Gathering cards, the Majora’s Mask, lanyards, several coupon codes for online stores, and best of all a Guild Wars 2 Heart of Thorns shirt and pin!

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This was a very memorable trip and one I am happy to have spent with my family. I am looking forward to PAX South growing and becoming bigger and better next year.