I last went to PlayIT at the very beginning, when the event was still at the Millenáris, and the number of visitors was only a fraction of what it is today. For me, the event at Symma was a completely fresh experience, leaving me with mixed feelings.
First of all, PlayIT is not a cosplayer- event, not a con, but a gamer show, where the main role belongs to the exhibitors, game stands, and vendors, and for this reason, it is not a nice thing to measure this event according to the rules of the cons.
Due to the line in front of last fall’s entrance, I was a little skeptical about getting in, but with a normal ticket, I was inside the event in less than ten minutes (though I still don’t understand the fence and the huge detour) where the huge crowd smelled of noise. Because yes, a lot of people, indoors, when it’s warm outside, certainly come together into a mass that can become suffocating – it took me or an hour to get used to this incredible number of people, but after that, you can maneuver between them relatively easily. But what shocked me most was the age of the visitors, even during the Millennium, those who bought tickets to the event bought from their earnings, but nowadays they tend to spend their parents ’money, as they are nowhere near adulthood.
The entire Syma event hall with its three halls stood out for gamers, exhibitors, and cosplayers. Space was packed to capacity, the stages were intertwined, and although they thought of noise diversion, there was a production that was disturbed by speech or music from the other stage. Fortunately, the cosplay competition could not suppress sound or quality this time either, and of course, there was also the most significant audience here, as the event itself was attended by many cosplayers – of course, who could dress up as a game character.
I have to leave, the food and drink prices during the event didn’t go away at all, I ate a very delicious and hearty burger at a fair price, for example – although I could have endured more sauce. Surprisingly, there were toy exhibitions and electronic and technical events, including the latest smartphones, monitors, and computer equipment.
An interesting event is PlayIT, but as a cosplayer, I recommend everyone to come with you because the party is really good. I had a lot of fun, met a lot of friends, met new ones, and it turned out that our cosplayers subculture is a lot more cohesive than I ever thought – and it feels really good!
Thanks to Atismedia for the pictures!
