Let me tell you that being in line at 5am and walking as fast as enforcers will permit directly to a booth and seeing enforcers with signs stating capped line at 10:02am is bullshit. Things like exhibitor badges capping the lines for things before the general public was allowed in because exhibitors are allowed in early for work purposes. My west was last year and a year in which there were many complaints on too many special badges and access given out. I didnt get the same vibe where you could walk around and discover much because the lines were just beyond obnoxious. Strategy and planning were 100% needed for West.
At almost every turn I was met with capped lines, lines with signs that said capped for the entire day by noon-1pm, and just a sea of humanity the likes of which I've never known. I was successful on day 2 because I guess word hadn't spread about the game I wanted to see (Artifact by Valve) and I still had to wait maybe an hour based on my position in line. The goal here was to go and get to the super hot games and get a chance to play them before the lines were hours long. I'm from the East coast so every morning I would get up super early West coast time and go get in line for the queue hall.
Where my opinion differs is in if thats a good thing or not. Some were generic but some were very specialized in what they offered. This is also on another level completely from South. Not only were Capcom and Sony there, but Microsoft, Nintendo, and many many more big names like Valve, Square, Epic, and so on. South this year had Sony and Capcom as their big booths. South has many fewer booths and games available. I agree what other people have said that what is on offer at South and West are vastly different. I remember when I was much younger and couldn't afford to go, so finally getting to go was really something. The place it started and always the dream to goto. Althought I've been to multiple PAX I wanted to point out that West was always the Mecca PAX. East was my first PAX ever and followed by South, then West. I'll throw my hat in this ring and share my opinion because it is counter to many other people's here. I don't think I recall seeing ThinkGeek at South, but they've a regular spot at West. Some overlap (FanGamer, We Love Fine) and some don't. Especially if you want to stand in any AAA lines.Īs for vendors. But that just leaves you more time for all the games you haven't seen yet. There are concerts every night (except Monday). Panels take place in about 5 hotels in addition to the convention center. There are two floors of expo hall - one of which is LOUD and about 4x as crowded as South expo hall. South feels comforting and I look forward to seeing how games/companies progress each year (even though I doubt they ever remember me.) And there's usually only been a couple booths with multi hour lines. I feel like I really get to know the games I play there, and even if the game doesn't interest me, I often find myself emotionally invested, hoping that it does well. The indie games are all over the expo floor, and the atmosphere has been quiet enough to allow conversation. My experience with South tends to be much more tabletop focused. I try to go to South and West every year, though I did have to miss South this year (still sad about it, esp as South is my preferred PAX.)
Knowing what you liked about South can be helpful for determining if West is worthwhile for you. They are very different, while both being very PAX.