- July 28-30, 2023
Gaming Hall
Gaming at Otakon is huge! If you thought our Video Gaming Hall in previous years was good, well you’re in for a treat since we have expanded it even more! We're filling an entire hall of the convention center with video games from all eras, classics you remember, current games you love, plenty of games straight from Japan, and games by Indie Developers! Show off your skills and compete against your fellow con goers in casual play or enter one of our tournaments.
Arcade Machines
FOUR groups will be providing arcade cabinets this year! This will be our BIGGEST ARCADE YET!
Arcade List (Subject to Change with MORE to be Added!)
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Attendees are to play ONE final game on an arcade machine when it is less than 15 minutes prior to closing so we are able to close the room on time!
Indie Isles
We will have a dedicated Indie Isles area for independent gaming developers to showcase their latest work! Come by the area, try their games and give them your support! A list of Indie Developers already confirmed at the show include the following:
Virtual Reality (VR) Experience
Powered by UGL, Baz, LLC and Umbral Starcade we will have many VR setups! The stations have the Oculus Quest 2, Valve Index, HTC Vive, & PSVR2s as devices able to use. They have partnered with many companies to showcase their VR experiences here!
INDUSTRY PRESENCE
Bushiroad will be exhibiting in the room, showcasing a preview of their upcoming Macross console game - MACROSS - Shooting Insight!
Nintendo will have a presence in the room on Saturday ONLY with some game demos and giveaways!
MAHJONG FREEPLAY & TOURNAMENTS
The United States Professional Mahjong League (USPML) will be in the room. Based NYC, USPML is dedicated to mahjong outreach in North America, teaching new players and working to grow the competitive scene. They also operate a venue in NYC, Sparrow's Nest Studio, providing a local home for classes, competitions, and all things mahjong. To top it off they've brought an automatic mahjong table with them, so stop by and check it out!
USPML will be running a "rolling tournament" over the course of the convention. A great chance to test out your competitive skills, games will be run every hour and a half, from 6PM-Midnight on Friday and Noon-Midnight on Saturday. Play as much or as little as you want, the winner will be the player with the best 3-game streak result! On Sunday USPML will announce a winner and they will be awarded a prize!
General Rules
Be Polite and please remember:
- No Fighting
- No Abusive Behavior
- Be sure to eat/drink during the convention, but...
- Do not eat/drink near any of the TVs and Consoles
- Be hygienic (shower and deodorant)
- Do not touch the consoles
- Do not exit out of a game or go into the main menu screen
- Do not steal
- Try not to break or mistreat any of the gaming equipment
- Do not leave your personal belongings unattended
- Staff are not responsible for your personal belongings
Additional COVID-19 Precautions and Recommendations
- There will not be a cap in attendance within the Gaming Hall
- Keep masks on at all times unless eating or drinking in designated areas
- Use sanitizer (yours or ones provided) before & after touching equipment
- Respect personal space
If there is a line waiting to play, please limit your play time to the following:
Single Player Game:
- 1 Life Set OR 3 Songs OR 30 minutes (whichever is shortest)
Multiplayer Games:
Fighters
- Winner stays
- All other players MUST give up their controller to the next player in line.
- If there are not enough new players to fill up the empty seats, then the Second (and possibly Third) placed player(s) may remain seated
Rock Band/Just Dance
- A playgroup may only play ONE (1) song. After the song is finished they MUST offer their spot to the next person in line.
- If no one wants to play your particular instrument, you may continue playing.
Any Other Music Game
- A playgroup may play one game, comprised of TWO (2) to THREE (3) songs depending on the game. After the game is finished they MUST offer their spot to the next person in line.
By entering the Otakon Video Game Room you acknowledge the above rules and agree to adhere to them. Breaking any may result in you being asked to leave the Video Game Room or having your badge revoked.
Please talk to a Video Game Room Staffer if:
- A piece of equipment is not working properly so that it can be fixed/replaced with a working one as soon as possible.
- You would like to switch out a game and there is an open set-up. Please be aware that we will generally not allow personal games to be played (evaluated on a case by case basis) and that we can not comply with all requests.
- You notice someone is breaking any of the above rules so that corrective action can be taken.
Video Game Tournaments
NOTE: All console tournaments for 2023 require you to BRING YOUR OWN CONTROLLER
The United Gaming League (UGL) & Umbral Starcade will be collaborating in running console tournaments this year at Otakon!
Below describe the MAJOR prize winning tournaments for the year of 2023, other small tournaments will be posted inside of the game room upon decision between staff members. First place prize will include an Otakon pass for next year. Top finishers (typically top 3) will also receive prizes from our sponsors. We will not be accepting any systems to help run tournaments unless the decision is approved by the head of the Gaming Hall.
Many of these tournaments will take place at our dedicated tournament area that will include seats for spectators.
For ALL console and arcade tournaments, sign up are done through Start.gg here and will begin at their scheduled start times as indicated below. If you have to go to the bathroom and/or have important matters to attend to, please let a staff member who is running the tournament know. If you leave the area and miss your turn, you are disqualified. If it is the first round, we will happily give your spot to someone who wants to play.
As a reminder again, console tournaments this year are BRING YOUR OWN CONTROLLER.
Schedule - Sign up for ALL Tourneys here - https://www.start.gg/tournament/otakon-2023/
| Friday: | Saturday: | |
| 12pm - Street Fighter 6 (PS4) 12pm - Mario Kart 8 - 12 Man FFA 3pm - Windjammers (Steam) 6pm - Mario Party Superstars |
12pm - Tekken 7 (PS4) 12pm - Smash Ultimate Singles 2pm - Guilty Gear Strive (PS4) 3pm - Dance Dance Revolution A20 (Arcade) 3pm - Pump It Up XX (Arcade) 9pm - King of Fighters '98 (Arcade) |
Trading Card Game (TCG) Tournaments
Otakon would like to once again extend its welcome to our TCG tournament partners Pro-Play Games!
Pro-Play Games (PPG)is a premiere tournament organizer for Trading Card Games. They offer various card gaming products and accessories including Yu-Gi-Oh!, Magic: the Gathering, Pokemon, Digimon, Dragonball Super, Final Fantasy, Cardfight Vanguard, Flesh & Blood. Additionally to tournaments Pro-Play Games streams and broadcasts these events to a live audience via Twitch and Youtube. Pro-Play Games prides itself in bringing the big games and big tournaments to the player with various conventions and Webcam events. Pro-Play Games, where the Pro’s come to play!
Pro-Play Games is a brick and mortar presence in Miami, FL – home to over 20,000 subscribers on YouTube, and over 8,000 followers on Facebook. Known heavily as a one stop shop for all TCG related accessories, cards, and games – Pro-Play Games brings the best and most competitive prices to supplement any TCG event.
Schedule - More info here
| Friday | Saturday | On Demand | ||
| 11:00am - Pokemon TCG tournament |
12:00pm - Yugioh TCG Tournament 12:30pm - Digimon TCG Tournament 1:00pm - One Piece Case Tournament 1:00pm - Dragon Ball Super Card Game Tournament |
Magic: the Gathering Drafts & Commander Pods |
Special Thanks
We would like to thank the following companies for providing prize support for our Video Game Tournaments:
Hours of Operation
Location: Hall D
Operational Hours:
| Day | Open | Close | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Friday | 10 AM | 1 AM | |
| Saturday | 10 AM | 1 AM | |
| Sunday | 10 AM | 3 PM |
