But thats the thing its inconsistent. Example some demo lines they said portal pass and others they said no.
1 Like
Yeah it’s the Wild West. I asked him about the DMF and he said he couldn’t go because it was too long.
Interesting. I was able to bypass the line by talking to the security guy at the front of arena admission due to PP.
The inconsistency is definitely extreme.
The 2023 portal pass had LESS than what the 2019 portal pass provided and cost $300 more. It was an absolute ripoff.
3 Likes
Does anyone know if we have a process a refund or partial refund? Blizzard missed the mark at delivering on the little they promised with the portal pass.
3 Likes
I would love to know this also. At least a partial refund would be nice.
1 Like
Best thing to do is to relay your feedback wherever you can. Hopefully they see it and make major functional and organizational changes for next time.
I got Portal Pass.
I did not think about it while I was there. I was focused on enjoying my time. And I did. I had a fabulous time almost all around.
But I think I agree, for what I got, Portal Pass was not worth that much money. I appreciate the changes that were made Day 2 to improve our value, but it was not enough.
Yes, post the M&G schedules further in advance please.
Would love to see more impromptu visits like Ion and Morgan showing up unannounced around 4:30pm on Saturday.
If you’re going to limit OC, I have to say that guaranteeing OC to Portal Pass makes sense. Better, honestly, is just give us reserved seats in an area where everyone can watch the OC in person.
I know that free food is a logistical nightmare, but maybe subsidize the food? $15 for the food that was there is basically retail.
Free bottled water at least would have been wonderful.
2 Likes
I agree, I bought two portal pass tickets, and got nothing for it. I feel completely cheated out of 1,000 dollars. I could not even watch opening ceremonies in the portal lounge theater, it was so full there was only standing room. I did not feel like I paid a grand to stand at the back of the theater. We ended up watching in the lounge area on a TV smaller than my home TV.
There was nothing special about the lounge, no snacks, no planning, no communication, nothing. If there were perks they were not delivered well, they were not communicated; heck even the staff did not understand the perks.
The first time I bought a portal pass it was ok, nice. With the price increase I was expecting more, I feel completely robbed.
This was my ninth Blizzcon, and my second Portal pass experience. This one was definitely the worst and the only one where the crowd control was so absent that it felt unsafe.
PS: Anyone else disappointed by a goody-less goody-bag?
2 Likes
I’ll structure this into some easily readable bits with a preface that I’ve been working on multi-stage production events for the last decade and this is my second BlizzCon. Overall, I enjoyed the experience this year but there’s always room for improvement.
What worked:
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- The immersion and ambiance of the halls, particularly the Warcraft and Diablo ones. It felt like you were really stepping into those worlds.
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- The demo area experience. Once past the lines, the staff did a great job of making sure everything worked and everyone had fun.
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- The arena layout. ADA considerations need to be revisited here but the stage/screen layout lent to the epic feel of the announcements.
What didn’t work:
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- Crowd management. By far, this was the biggest issue of the convention. The lines into DMF were unreasonable. DMF clearly needs to be returned to its own floor and not crammed into the Warcraft hall. There were also issues with crowd flow from Overwatch into Diablo and then again in the arena. Those hallways were too crowded. Also, registration directed departing attendees through the nearby parking garage with no clear signage, rather than funneling them somewhere more public.
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- Security and its communication. Whichever team or third party was in charge of this portion needed clearer communication on how to direct lines, stop traffic, etc. In 2019, if a line was capped, a staffer stood at the cap with a sign directing people away. I watched multiple instances of guards with no idea what to do trying to do something and just adding to the chaos.
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- Using just the arena for panels. Aside from its 5k cap and people just camping it all day, there revealed another problem: a lack of other things to see. Without the overlapping panels spread around, everyone funneled into either the demos or the DMF, which exacerbated the first issue I listed. I also missed having other options for the musical closing acts.
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- Schedule communication. There was no BlizzCon app this year (oddly) and a lot of the smaller events (streamers going live, developer meet and greets, the Guild Clash event) fell off the radar unless you carried around a paper program.
Honestly, if we could return to the production footprint that we had in 2019, I think a lot of these issues would be resolved.
3 Likes
Much like others who were left disappointed 5 minutes after the con started and the experience was capped, I’d love to see it come back but in a different format, like a Google Forms booking which can also include the consent form. Then have a lottery system where people who were eligible could get pulled out of the lottery to then book their ink session.
Thoughts?
Now that Blizzcon is over and I had time to process everything; I wanted to provide my feedback. I have been to two Blizzcons before this year and paid for multiple Blizzcon streams. I will say that this was a pretty disappointing Blizzcon overall. From lack of panels, to layout of the halls (causing massive lines/traffic jams), to the lack of things to do. This year I decided to pull the trigger on portal pass tickets for my wife and I. This was a huge mistake, and we feel that we did not get anything extra for the additional $500/per ticket. We could have pocketed that $1000 for the next Blizzcon or another vacation.
TLDR:
- Experience out of the con
- GA 6 out of 10
- Portal Pass 4 out of 10
- Improvements to next Blizzcon
- New Tiers of Tickets
- Blizzcon Experience of 2019
Below is a summary of the overall con.
Organization
I heard it from several different people throughout the Con that Blizzard hired a 3rd party company to help plan/run this year’s Blizzcon. Unsure if this is true or not, but I do know that this year’s Blizzcon was complete chaos when it comes to organization.
- Lack of communication to front line workers at the Con, which lead to long lines, miss information, and frustration happening.
- Portal Pass got sent around the entire convention on Thursday to pick up badges.
- Lack of Signs for directions or people standing with signs for lines that are capped: If we did not get stopped by someone we would have ended up walking right where we needed to go for the portal pass pickup.
- Security (Ones in the suits) were just horrible. We heard multiple stories of them being rude or touching people’s cosplay props without any care for the hard work that went into them. They even took the beach ball away from the crowd on day 1 of the con before the doors opened. - This is something that should 100% be looked at and reconsider a different company
- Lay out of the halls - unsure why Darkmoon Faire was moved into the WoW hall. It was fine over at the Store on the 2nd floor (where the registration was this year.)
- Line organization / standby area - Non existent
- ADA seating (heard from a few) was not ideal inside the Arena especially during the concert
- Why, Blizzard, why did you move the main stage into the Arena (that holds 5000). Move it back to the main hall and add more seating
Portal Pass
Garbage, I repeat, garbage experience this year for the Portal Pass experience. Blizzard increased the price and provided a lesser experience.
- Like mentioned above, portal pass got sent on a long walk to pick up badges - I wasn’t complaining but this is annoying when GA had a direct path
- No early access to Darkmoon Faire or the convention as a whole.
- This is understandable due to the Darkmoon Faire being inside the convention this year rather than its own area
- Day 1 before the Con, Portal pass was supposed to have a dedicated line for early entry yet several portal pass goers got stuck with GA and weren’t allowed to join the correct line
- Portal lounge was a pretty nice layout but really needed more larger screens
- Remove the small TVs completely and add several larger projector screens around the lounge
- Remove the mini viewing hall and just add more seating i.e couches or bean bags. That combined with more larger screens should make it so no matter where you are in the lounge you can watch the panel on the main stage
- The “Demo Area” or lack thereof. 10 developer Xboxs, no PCs and only able to play overwatch. Please do not call it a “Demo Area”
- Developer signings weren’t bad but needed to know Day 1 what the schedule was going to be for which developers would be there at what specific time
- Really annoying to be going to get something signed and there was a developer for a completely different game in the signing line.
- Food was just O.K. and overpriced. Heard from many that had Portal Pass in 2019 that food and drinks were free.
Content
I was definitely missing the additional panels and stages that were at previous Blizzcons. I will say that the theme of the Halls was amazing, especially the Diablo Hall.
- No additional panels outside the main hall.
- Why no engineering, art, music, or voice acting presentations?
- Why no dedicated Q/A?
- Why did you do all the keynotes in the main arena? Again it only holds 5000, so people would just stay in the arena all day.
- No HOTS, Hearthstone Championship, WoW Arena Championship and Starcraft
- I felt bad for anyone that is a fan of starcraft. Apparently Blizzard doesn’t care about Starcraft at all. It clearly showed this year
- No charity event that would show all the items you could bid on. I seriously didn’t even know about the charity auction til I got home and was just browsing blizzard news and ebay.
- Lack of vendors with content for Blizzcon
- I believe there was only 3 or 4 in total in a small little section in one hall
- Where was the Blizzard Arcade from 2019?
- That was so fun in 2019 and would have been amazing to be able to play the classic games again
- Hearthstone Tavern felt smaller than normal, maybe just cause it has been a while since I was at Blizzcon, but previously it felt a lot larger with way more to do.
- This isn’t about the con but the lack of pre-con and after con parties really sucked. I remember in 2019 going to something Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday night.
- The community parties is part of the overall experience of Blizzcon
Layout
- Whomever decided to do the Warcraft/WoW hall that way needs to be fired. Why was the Darkmoon Faire in the same hall as Hearthstone, WoW and Rumble?
- WoW needs its own hall with Hearthstone/the tavern and now Warcraft Rumble being in another hall. Along with all the demo stations.
- Darkmoon Faire needs to be moved back to above the store completely away from the halls to free up space for lines and better flow.
- Pretty sad that the fire marshall had to shutdown the Darkmoon Faire due to horrible layout and overcrowding
- Going between the halls sucked. You would have to go into a little corridor between a few halls that lead to a major bottleneck.
- Why did Overwatch need 2 dedicated Halls?
- Was this due to the arena not being dedicated for contests/tournaments?
Merch
- There was definitely a lack of Blizzcon specific merch
- A Lot of the merch felt meh at best
- Darkmoon Faire sold out very quick
- I felt horrible for the people who waited 4 hours to get in to then be told everything was sold out.
- There was no key art to purchase that was already framed like in 2019. Very few Blizzcon exclusives like shirts, posters, funko, plushies.
Community Night
- Felt short, and why was it on day 2 with the closing ceremony?
- Felt bad for cosplayers who had to get ready two days in a row
- Previous years had some funny host for Community night
- No Dance contest
- Cosplay contest felt smaller than normal.
- Previous years it would take an hour to get through all cosplayers. That could be due to this not having as many in attendance at Blizzcon
Closing Ceremony
- Mentioned above, never again put community and closing ceremony in one night.
- I understand why it happened, you didn’t have a long enough closing ceremony that would cover 2 hours
- Why did the con close so early
- Previous years you had other things going on if you didn’t get into the closing ceremony
- Blizzard Arcade, All the other competitions, etc
- Previous years you had other things going on if you didn’t get into the closing ceremony
Now these are just my thoughts on my overall experience this year vs previous years. It is not to downplay anyone who had a great time or if this was their first Blizzcon. I love Blizzard games and always enjoy going to Blizzcon, including this year. I always have a great time meeting new people and the community is always amazing. I will say this Blizzcon overall was a 6 out of 10 if I went GA. Since I went with the Portal pass for my wife and I, this year was a 4 out of 10.
Now if you are still reading this, I am going to cover some improvements that I would like to see.
Ticket Tiers:
General Admission - Price $199
- Lower the price back to $199 from the $299
- Why does it need to be $300? You do not get much
- Rename to Rare
- Rare cause it is still hard to get these tickets in a normal year
- Blue Wristband
- Included: Blizzard Swag for that Blizzcon, digital goods
- Make the swag be more than a simple bag (especially for WoW 20th anniversary)
Add On: Fast Pass - Price $200
- Skip to the front of the line i.e separate fast pass line for demo stations, Darkmoon Faire, Blizzard Store
- Early access to the Con each day
- Early Thursday access to the Blizzard store
- Limited supply - probably 1/8 of overall GA tickets sold
- Reason for this is to have people who want to pay extra to get through Demo areas and other lines quicker. Cutting down on overall lines, especially if there are more demo stations.
Portal Pass - Price $500
- Lower the price down from $800 to $500 (or whatever it was in 2019)
- Rename to Epic
- Purple Wristband
- Includes Thursday access to the Darkmoon Faire (knowing that the Darkmoon is not on the con floor)
- Includes everything from GA and Fast Pass
- Dedicated Lounge access
- Full Demo stations in the lounge area
- Free food and non alcoholic drink in the Portal Pass lounge
- Meet and Greet of Developers/Streamers
- Have a dedicated time for them based on game
- Additional free swag
- Limited supply
- Dedicated seating to opening and closing ceremonies
Add On: Charity Dinner - $400
- Limited supply - unsure amount
- Does not include any entry into Blizzcon
- Only a ticket to the Thursday night Charity Dinner
- Meet Blizzard Develops and Execs
- Throw in some Xbox developers to sweeten the deal
New Tier: Legendary - Price $1000 - $1100
- Extremely limited number
- Orange Wristband
- Includes every from all previous tiers
- Includes the ticket to the charity dinner - maybe?
- Separate lounge that is dedicated to Legendary ticket holders
- Does not include Epic Lounge access
- Same lounge that Streamers and Developers would hang out in
- Free food and non alcoholic drinks
- Dedicated seating to opening and closing ceremony different from Epic tier
- Dedicated demo stations in the Legendary Lounge
Darkmoon Faire:
- Move away from the Halls and back to the building it was in in 2019 above the Blizzard Store
- Allow specific tiers access to the Darkmoon Faire
- Have a stage inside the Darkmoon Faire for streaming panels and live panels
- Add more experiences to the Darkmoon Faire
- Remove the coin purchasing line and add just coin machines around the Darkmoon faire area
- Add more toy stations to redeem the coins
- Add additional things to win or purchase
Blizzard Arcade:
- Previously available at 2019 Blizzcon
- Demo stations to play old school Blizzard games
- Could include other developers now that Blizzard is owned by Xbox
- Include a stage to watch panels or live panels
- Add some new things into the Blizzard Arcade area
Larger Hearthstone Tavern:
- Make the Hearthstone tavern be larger with more comfortable seating
- Bring drinking back but limit it to 2 or 3 drinks a day
- Easily to do using those wristbands that have to scan when coming into Blizzcon
More seating:
- Bring in more seating around all the Halls for people to enjoy panels and just relax
Food/Drinks:
- Add themed food and drinks including alcoholic drinks
- Limit alcoholic drinks to 2 or 3
- Make them have collectible cups or beer cans
- Limit alcoholic drinks to 2 or 3
Vendors/Xbox Developers:
- Work on getting more vendors at Blizzcon to fill out the overall empty spaces
Overall these are just some suggestions that I thought of and others brought up during Blizzcon. I know Blizzard is listening from the conversations that I had with Blizzard employees. This post is a post out of love for Blizzard. I see the same thing in other posts as well. We want to see Blizzard grow and return to making amazing games. Blizzcon is not about just announcing the next year’s upcoming releases, but it is first and foremost about the community. Without the community there is no Blizzcon. Blizzard needs to bring Blizzcon back to the experiences of 2019 Blizzcon (which was an excellent experience IMO)
It is the 20th Anniversary of WoW next year. IMO, if Blizzard does a Blizzcon they need to make it huge and dedicated to mostly Warcraft.
**Edit 1:
Blizzard should look at doing something similar to PAX conventions where they have volunteers that come to help. Basically you are able to go to Blizzcon but you are helping during the entire con. This gives employees time to just hang out and talk to community.
Volunteers
- Get a free shirt to help identify them as Blizzcon volunteers/helpers.
- Allow them to use the demo areas after the con closes each day
- Allow access to the store and Darkmoon faire before Blizzcon starts on Friday
If Blizzard does not want to hire a dedicated team to plan Blizzcon (this is probably the best solution); they should also shop around for 3rd party convention planners such as Reed Pop or someone else.
3 Likes
tldr; TBD, but optimistically, Yes
If you had asked me at the end of day one if I thought it was worth the extra money, I would have said absolutely not. In fact I would have told you that I felt like we got scammed. What we had seen so far for what we had paid for the ticket wasn’t even close. From the start, it was clear that organization and communication was a HUGE problem in regards to the portal pass. From the opening line and getting in early, to seating in the arena for the Opening Ceremony, to just general knowledgability of the Blizzcon staff, it just felt like no one knew anything about what was going on and what we should be getting. If you looked for comments on the internet about the portal pass after the first day you would have seen nothing but complaints and I’m guessing Blizzard saw them too.
The second day started slightly better than the first day. We were able to get into the building early, but they let everyone in early so it didn’t really feel like we got anything out of it. Heading up to the lounge they did us a little bit of swag in the form of an overwatch keychain. It did feel like they were trying to pivot from the disaster that was the first day (at least from a portal pass holder perspective). We found out that there was supposed to be a separate line for portal pass holders going into the arena, but they apparently didn’t know that was the case down at the arena. We inquired about it at the lounge and were told they would look into it, b/c that should definitely be a thing. We wanted to see the diablo campfire chat and made our way there at that time. Movement into the arena was flowing so we didn’t need to go find a separate line and just went in with everyone else. The chat was good and we enjoyed the presentation and left afterward because we had raffle tickets for the Lilith statue (who didn’t?). Because we were told there was a separate line we didn’t think there would be an issue getting back in for the Community Night if we hurried back right after the raffle number was announced (making the assumption we’d lose), but we were yet again told there was no separate line and we’d have to join everyone else at the back. We were pretty upset about this since the only reason we left the arena after the Diablo panel was because we were assured there should be a separate line. We went straight up to the lounge to ask/complain about it and they told us again that there should be a separate line. This is where things really started to turn around for us and where my faith in Blizzard really started to be renewed. They escalated the issue and were trying to get things figured out and resolved for us. During this time 2 other couples joined us because they had the same issues. Ultimately JD, the chief people officer at Blizzard, came over to talk to us about what happened and told us how things were supposed to have worked out at the arena. At this point it was really too late to fix things as a whole, but what he did do was get the 6 of us seats in the reserved section on the arena floor and had us escorted down there and let in to the show. Along the way we talked about the frustrations we had over the whole event and how it all made us feel. I felt like they genuinely cared and wanted to fix things. We discussed what our general expectations were and our impressions of the things they did both well and poorly. We had a better experience than many did, I’m sure, but I hope this will encourage others for next year.
Ultimately, this is what we got (or were supposed to get) from the portal pass that I had heard of:
Early entry into the building
Separate Security line
Our own line at each activity/arena panel (this was implemented/found out about way too late to really be taken advantage of by us)
A little bit of swag including a plushy and keychain
The Portal Pass Lounge
*This had separate concessions (although a much more limited selection and was often cold)
*Private viewing area (while nice, the seating wasn’t exactly comfortable and chairs were packed in pretty tight)
*Bag Check (this was nice and worked out well for stashing stuff we picked up during the day)
*Separate meet and greet lines for Blizzard staff, including some of the leadership staff
*Xbox stations to try out overwatch on controllers (great for console fans, but didn’t work well for mouse/keyboard players like me)
*A support desk for any issues that came up
There may have been more that I didn’t hear about, but this is what I knew of by the end of the event.
A little bit of feedback/criticism
Send an email out the weekend before Blizzcon to let Portal Pass holders know exactly what they should be expecting. This serves as a way to level set expectations, list out what additional perks are being received and remind people what they paid for.
Communication was a huge issue as far as I could tell when it came to the portal pass. Things seemed to work just fine for general admission, but better communication would have resolved a lot of frustration and issues.
This post isn’t meant to be a rant or complaint about Blizzard or Blizzcon, merely my impressions of how things went. I’ve loved and been playing Blizzard games since they started in the mid 90s and this was our first trip to Blizzcon. My excitement and expectations might have been a little high along with this being their first year back in person, however, next time we go back, we do plan to get the portal passes again due to how things ultimately turned out. I can’t really say that I feel like we got our money’s worth out of this particular event, but had organization and communication been where it needed to be from the start, I feel like it would have been worth it. They redeemed themselves in our eyes and we do look forward to attending again.
Dear Blizzard Entertainment,
I hope this letter finds you well. I’ve been a dedicated fan of Blizzard games since I was 9, back in 1999. Each new release was a significant part of my gaming journey, but attending BlizzCon remained a dream until this year. Financially, it wasn’t easy, but I worked hard, saved up, and was finally able to attend BlizzCon 2023.
I was brimming with excitement, but unfortunately, the event didn’t quite match the incredible hype I’ve held in my mind for years. I’m reaching out not just to express my disappointment but also to provide some constructive feedback. I hope you’ll consider my thoughts seriously, as they come from a place of genuine support for Blizzard Entertainment.
Let me begin by commending the highlights that made the event memorable. The Mountain Dew Scavenger Hunt and Raffle, the Diablo 4 library, the creatively themed photo booths, Demo games, developer signings, and free posters were delightful touches. The Overwatch tournament was a highlight, showcasing the community’s spirit. These elements truly captured the essence of BlizzCon.
However, despite these positives, several organizational aspects significantly detracted from the overall experience. Upon arrival at the Anaheim Convention Center, the lack of clear signage and direction was immediately apparent. Myself, along with several veteran attendees, were misdirected by staff to 4 different incorrect locations when trying to locate the registration area. This not only caused frustration but also resulted in a loss of valuable time surmounting to 1 hour and a half that could have been spent enjoying the event.
Moreover, the utility of the RFID badges was questionable. While they served as a means for entry and exit, their functionality did not extend beyond this. There was no integration of the badges into the event’s activities or sessions. This lack of utilization was compounded by the confusing lanyard system, where different colors seemingly indicated varying levels of access, yet this was not communicated clearly to attendees. Such ambiguity led to unnecessary confusion and a sense of exclusion.
Additionally, the seating arrangements during the opening ceremony and community night were inadequate. Attendees, including myself, who have invested significantly to be a part of BlizzCon, found ourselves without seats, compelled to watch the events on screens. This was a considerable letdown, especially when considering the financial commitment involved in attending the event, not to mention the high expectations after a four-year hiatus.
Continuing from my earlier concerns, the organization of the merchandise fair in Hall A was another aspect that required attention. The purchasing lines for badges, pins, and other items were extraordinarily long, leading to wait times of approximately 4 hours. This extensive delay not only prevented many attendees, including myself, from participating in other scheduled activities but also fostered a sense of entrapment within the token-buying process.
The abrupt closure of the merchandise line at 4 PM on the first day, a full four hours before the event’s conclusion, was particularly disconcerting. It deprived numerous fans of the chance to engage with this beloved aspect of the convention. Additionally, the apparent prioritization of individuals with orange lanyards (Portal Pass holders) over those with black lanyards (general admission) seemed to exacerbate the wait times for many.
Considering the significant investment of time and resources that fans dedicate to attending BlizzCon, it is imperative that the event infrastructure accommodates all attendees efficiently. Extended wait times not only detract from the overall experience but also impede fans from fully enjoying the rich array of activities offered at the convention.
In light of these issues, I propose a few potential improvements for future events:
- Allowing the direct purchase of a random number of capsule badges, circumventing the need for tokens for Gashapon machines.
- Offering individuals the option to use tokens for Gashapon machines if they prefer.
- Implementing a virtual queue system, enabling attendees to select times to use the Gashapon machines without enduring lengthy waits.
- Utilizing automated machines for token dispensation, reducing the need for volunteer counting.
- Increasing the number of booths available for Gashapon machines.
These experiences collectively point towards a disconcerting trend where revenue generation appears to take precedence over attendee satisfaction and engagement. The core values that BlizzCon should embody—community, excitement, and inclusivity—were overshadowed by these logistical failings.
Moreover, the issue with seating extended beyond the opening ceremony. Community Night, another marquee event of BlizzCon, was similarly inaccessible. Despite lining up early on Day 2, we were unable to secure entry as the arena had already reached full capacity. This was deeply disappointing, especially considering the substantial investment made to attend. The ticket cost of $300 carries with it a reasonable expectation of access to key events. While I acknowledge the disclaimers regarding event access, the reality is that many attendees are your most ardent supporters. These are individuals who not only invest financially in attending BlizzCon, but also dedicate their time and passion to your games, often acting as ambassadors of the Blizzard brand.
In closing, I hope that my experiences, along with those of many others, act as a catalyst for positive change. BlizzCon has all the ingredients to be the pinnacle of gaming events, a true celebration of the community and the worlds that Blizzard Entertainment has crafted. With thoughtful planning, improved logistics, and a renewed focus on attendee experience, I am confident that future BlizzCons can not only achieve but surpass that vision.
Moving forward, there are several key improvements I’d like to see implemented at BlizzCon to enhance the guest experience. Firstly, I believe it’s crucial for BlizzCon to showcase the rich tapestry of Blizzard’s gaming history. A dedicated space, akin to a museum, should be established to honor both past and present games, celebrating the journey from Blizzard’s inception to its current status. This would not only pay homage to the classics like Lost Viking, StarCraft, Heroes of the Storm, and older iterations of Diablo and Warcraft but also allow attendees, both new and veteran, to appreciate Blizzard’s evolution.
Additionally, the event’s accessibility needs a thorough overhaul. A pre-selection process for events and announcements could be implemented, ensuring every attendee has the opportunity to engage with at least one significant segment, whether it’s a deep dive or a developer discussion. If space constraints persist, considering a larger venue or better utilizing available space, such as the registration hall and other underutilized areas, could alleviate these issues.
In terms of engagement, BlizzCon could benefit from more interactive elements like scavenger hunts and quests. Utilizing badges as rewards for participating in demos, photo ops, or completing activities would add value to the attendee experience, rather than having them purchase these tokens at a high cost.
Improvements in signage, informed staff, clearer maps, and well-defined timelines are essential. Attendees need to navigate the event smoothly and have up-to-date information at their fingertips. By addressing these areas, BlizzCon can significantly enhance its attendee experience, making it not just a convention, but a memorable and inclusive celebration of Blizzard’s legacy and future.
I believe that attendees would be open to a reasonable increase in ticket pricing if it ensures a significant enhancement of the event experience. This, of course, is predicated on the condition that all the suggested improvements are implemented effectively. By investing in a more robust infrastructure, diverse game representations, and streamlined event access, BlizzCon could offer a truly unparalleled experience. It’s crucial that any rise in costs directly translates into tangible benefits for the attendees, ensuring that the value of their experience far exceeds the financial investment. Only with this commitment to comprehensive enhancement can an increase in price be justified.
Lastly, the recent acquisition of Blizzard Activision by Microsoft was a significant milestone that merited a prominent place in BlizzCon’s programming. The lack of a dedicated session, whether it be an opening ceremony highlight, a deep dive, or a panel discussion with executives, was a missed opportunity to address the community’s curiosity and concerns. Such a momentous change in the company’s trajectory could have been a central theme, offering insights into the future direction of Blizzard Entertainment. Perhaps even considering postponing BlizzCon until after the acquisition’s finalization would have allowed for a more strategic and comprehensive presentation of what this new chapter entails for Blizzard and its loyal community.
I urge Blizzard Entertainment to take this feedback into serious consideration. A reevaluation of organizational strategies, enhanced communication, and a more attendee-centric approach are imperative. By addressing and rectifying the issues highlighted, I remain hopeful for the restoration of BlizzCon to its esteemed status, ensuring that future events reflect the high standards that both Blizzard Entertainment and its community rightfully deserve.
6 Likes
I don’t think everyone should expect to have access to these events. It’d be nice to do that, but they sell way too many tickets to have that expectation.
When I went in 2018 they didn’t even have enough space for folks back then and they used a bigger hall.
I didn’t bother with the DMF because when I tried it in 2018, it was a disaster with way too many people. Saw the line this year and it was the same thing.
Did they even limit tickets this year? Last time I went I couldn’t even get tickets during any of the rounds, had to get the charity tickets. This year you could buy them whenever it seemed.
They had to have a cap; you can’t fit unlimited people even in the Anaheim Convention Center. And the cap was probably lower than the 40k in previous years because they did not rent the whole space for con use.
I suspect it was lower demand. It felt like fewer people than my last attendance, 2018, but I can’t say that’s really a reliable estimate.
Get ready this is going to be a long one. My hope is for people at Blizzard to read this to make a great next Blizzcon if there is one. It is one of my favorite things to do in the year and I was super excited to be able to go after 4 long years.
I will preface this post by saying that while this event was disappointing to me in many ways, I still had fun and there were plenty of good things about the con. For example, I think the content of the opening ceremony was some of the best I’ve seen in all of my 8 Blizzcons. The community and people you meet here are always great. And the scenery and decor of the halls were awesome. Oh man that Diablo hall was sick.
However, I am being weighed down heavily because I had such high hopes for this events and almost all of them were unmet. For starters, the opening ceremony drawings and the line experiences. It was horrid, and everyone I talked to about it agreed. Even the people who were lucky enough to get the drawing we’re saying the same because the people they were coming with didn’t.
I was one of the few people who were lucky enough to get high up in the standby line, I was in the first 100 people and they sent people off in groups of 50. To do this, I had to get at the con at 5:30, which I was completely fine with doing because I am a con veteran and understand you need to get up early to get good seats. We entered the hall at about 8:00 to line up for standby and got in at about 10:30, only to see a COMPLETELY EMPTY ARENA. If I had to guess it was about 30% capacity. I waited for hours for pretty much no reason because my parents who got up at 9 were able to get seats when they entered the hall at 10:45.
The drawing had absolutely no point. I assume this is because a large majority of people who go to Blizzcon go in pairs, and just assumed they wouldn’t be able to get in. In 2019 they got the opening ceremony completely down. Each hall had a live section for their own game, so no matter which hall you went to you weren’t missing out and you still got to see atleast one team in person! Go back to this, this is the way to do it.
Next, where are all the panels? I constantly had to ask myself “What am I supposed to do now”. Never have I had to do this in the past and I attribute a large majority of this to the lack of panels. In the past, there was always something going on in some hall, and I would certainly enjoy one of them. I only went to 2 panels this year, and they both had to do with World of Warcraft. Give attendees something to do at all times, voice actor panels, QnA, etc.
Playing games at Blizzcon first before anyone else was one of my favorite things about Blizzcon. It felt like I was in a secret club. The only way you were able to achieve this was through the Hearthstone Battlegrounds, and maybe the WoW Classic season this year. No new expac playable? The patch that’s playable at blizzcon comes out in literally 5 days? New season of mastery comes out in 30 days anyway? I can play the new OW hero at home? Why on earth would I sit in a line for any of that then? That all left me with the same feeling of “what am I supposed to do?”.
My answer to that question on Day 1 was going to the DMF, which is always one of my favorite parts. I noticed immediately it was smaller because it wasn’t in its own hall (which caused an issue I will talk about later as I’m sure some of you know). The lines were kind of bad for pins, tokens, and plushies/toys so I thought I’ll do something else and come back first thing Day 2. Turns out literally everyone had the same idea and I couldn’t get in to the Darkmoon Fair at all that day. The line went all the way from A hall to the C hall at one point. The fire Marshall even had to come and shut it down at one point. If this was on another hall it would not have been a problem, the line could have been contained to that hall.
Okay are you still with me? Let’s talk about the clear lack of management for this event. As is evident with the DmF, no one was managing the lines, and the people who were had no clue what they were doing. One of employees even asked me in the line what it was for. It all seemed like this was thrown together last minute despite this being announced a while ago. I have heard rumors that the previous people who were managing the event are no longer around and an outside company was managing the event, but I am not sure if this is true. If this is the case, find a new partner or do it yourselves! If not, please take more care. Something that made this worse was everything was so cramped together into 3 halls despite there not being a whole lot do in them, which leads me to my next point.
Another reason I believe a ton of the game lines and the DmF lines were so long, was because of the lack of stuff to do as alluded to previously with the lack of panels. Once you had been around the halls once you’ve seen everything and didn’t really have to go back. In the past their were quests to go to different places and get things to get a prize at the end. Not to mention you would have to go back into the halls three or four times to find something you hadn’t seen before because there was just that much stuff! There were also so many sponsors giving out free things you might make your money’s back on the ticket just from that. There was almost none of that besides the Mtn Dew thing which I thought was really cool because you got to try the new flavor and got a poster at the end.
There was also a lack of information prior to the event. Normally you would see news and tons of stuff on the app/wowhead. Pretty much nothing b besides a schedule and a map before hand. One of the things I enjoyed was the collectibles guide from 2019 released by Blizzard, and it was super helpful. I knew exactly where to get some cool swag and exclusives that couldn’t be gotten anywhere else other than the con.
Turns out, I missed a bunch of free pins that I would have loved to have had in my collection because of the lack of information. I played the new hearthstone mode and didn’t get anything for it, previously they have given out trading cards and patches. So I figured that I didn’t really need to play any of the other games, because they had 2 hour long lines anyways. Well, they had free pins for Overwatch and Wow, and because of the super long lines for reasons I have already touched up on, and my poor assumption. I’m sure there were more than I know of (and I hope this was the case because of the serious lack of freebies), but it is a little sad. Signs, posts, criers, anything would have made it so I didn’t have these regrets because I missed out.
I am sure these were not the only things that I thought could be improved, but it is 1am and I just need to get my thoughts out before I forget. There are hundreds more who have had the same experience as I and hundreds more who had different. I implore you to read them all because I am only one man.
To end this lengthy post out I have a message to three different groups. To the people who enjoyed Blizzcon, I am happy you enjoyed your time, I did too in some ways! To the ones that didn’t, I am sorry and I too understand your pain.
Finally, to the blizzard employees. In the opening ceremony and the few panels I watched. A lot of you mentioned a lot about feedback and how much you loved it and thrive off of it. This hasn’t always been the case, but with what I am seeing now in many of the Blizzard Games, I know that it now is the case. Blizzcon is something many of us including myself care about deeply. The first time I went I was only 11 years old and I have been going with my family and friends ever since. I basically grew up with this event. Please, do what you said and listen to that feedback so you can make the best Blizzcons ever going forward. Thank you.
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