''BlizzCon is a celebration of the Warcraft, StarCraft, and Diablo franchises and the communities that surround them. ''

''Tickets to this year's BlizzCon gaming convention, being held on August 21 and 22 in Anaheim, California, will go on sale worldwide on Saturday, May 16 for $125 each''

125 $ ?! .... is that kind-a expensive or is it just me?

Source : http://eu.blizzard.com/blizzcon/

 /shrug. I'd still buy it if I had the money lol

I suppose it's all relative.  It does sadden me somewhat that I live in the hometown of Blizzard but can't actually afford to go to Blizzcon.  Then again, to be entirely honest, I'd rather spend the day doing something else.  The only reason I'd go to Blizzcon would be to possibly score some beta keys, if they were giving them out that year.

So it would be quite hypocritical of me to call them selfish for charging such a fee.

Anyhow, Blizzcon is really a community-building event.  Some of you may hate Blizzard, but one can't deny that they've built up an impressive amount of power with their brand.  I remember when such conventions were commonplace.  Every major player in the MMORPG scene, as well as developers of many other game franchises with a cult following, would have some kind of yearly gathering.  Even some of the popular MUD's held such events.  Most have since cut such events for cost-cutting reasons.  I really have to question the wisdom of those decisions from a business standpoint.  Even if one merely breaks even or runs a minor loss from such events, the message it sends to consumers, even those who don't attend, is rather powerful: if you're willing to come see us, we're willing to come see you.  It's quite potent as a means of building brand loyalty.  Brand loyalty is honestly everything.  Brand loyalty is what enables companies to rebound from bad stretches, key in the boom and bust business of MMORPG's, and it's what allows them to easily grow into new territory.

If I lived close to where Blizzcon is being held I would go in a heartbeat. Yeah $125 is somewhat steep for that but I am sure anyone that has gone or is going will not reget it.

Blizzcon = 120$

Quakecon = Free

Blizzard are good at leeching money thats for sure

hmmm??

Subscribing to wow should warrent a free blizzcon ticket.

That would totally boost Sales, people who arent playing wow would be like, i can drop 70 bucks and buy a copy of wow and subscribe and get it cheaper then paying 115.

Perhaps Its because Ive never attended one. But why would I want to pay $125 for blizzcon. exactly what do I get out of it?

my and my college buddies of 6 is going to attend blizzcon

 you better get the tickets early.....because  IT WILL SELL OUT WITHIN HOURS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Organizing those things costs a lot of money.

They have to pay for the location, pay the people working there, pay to have the booths and stages and whatnot set up, pay for the electricity, pay for the web hosting for the streaming (or contract somebody to do it), and possibly more I'm forgetting.

Your ticket covers the cost of that.

The ticket gets you access into an exciting event. It's like asking a football fan "why pay $xx for a ticket to see a game when you can watch it online/on tv for free or much cheaper?"

It's being there that's interesting. Some people enjoy that. As large as Blizzard's fan base is, they have no trouble selling the tickets anyways.

People pay that much if not a whole lot more to go to some of the other popular yearly event like the superbowl, NBA final, and go know what else.  Why is it so shocking to people that a ticket to blizzcon which have live entertainment, events, preview of up comming games, and a whole lot of other things to do cost just as much if not less than those other social event.

expect tickets to be "sold out" soon...

THE PLAN
1. Buy BlizzCon ticket.
2. Get your goodie bag.
3. Try and get other people's goodie bags.
4. Sell them off on eBay for about $200 each.
5. Profit!

Wait... I think I did something wrong.

 I went to the Blizzard World Wide Invitational last year in Paris and it was awsome, seeing the revelation of Diable 3 and so on. It's all very well organised and definatly worth the 70 Euros I spent for it (140 for both my GF and I). Got to meet the devs, play the beta of WotLK and Starcraft 2, listening to GamesLive concert and Blizz group trying to rock and so on, not to mention funny stuff like dressups and dancing contests over the 2 days spent there. Also seeing the finals of the WoW Arena Season, Starcraft and WC3 really shows how crap a player I am at those :P Some of those players are seriously good and makes you appreciate the work that goes into balancing and mantaining the games. Like everything else, it's was all very well organised and you really get the sense of professionalism that flows through Blizzard, (having said that, get better french translators for next time :P)

Overall I came away with the impression that Blizzard really care about all their games, and not just WoW. They are very passionate and enthusiastic about it all and they look as if they really enjoy working in those games. WWI sold out withing 40 minutes or so of going live and it doesn't surprise me tbh. For those looking to go to Blizzcon or the World Wide Invitationals and are unsure, I would definatly say give it a try, you won't be dissapointed. If you are dissapointed, you could always sell the mini pets you get for 200+ euros online. 

I would rather goto an anime convention like Otakon or Katsucon which is only 50 bucks for 3 days. Plus there on the east coast.

Originally posted by Otakun

I would rather goto an anime convention like Otakon or Katsucon which is only 50 bucks for 3 days. Plus there on the east coast.

But we're not all weeaboo's, so anime conventions are unappealing to alot of people. Where as things like blizzcon might be more appealing to someone else.

You're post was completely irrelevent.

Originally posted by Kodgemmo

Originally posted by Otakun

I would rather goto an anime convention like Otakon or Katsucon which is only 50 bucks for 3 days. Plus there on the east coast.

 

But we're not all weeaboo's, so anime conventions are unappealing to alot of people. Where as things like blizzcon might be more appealing to someone else.

 

You're post was completely irrelevent.

Using a post to state the fact that everyone has separate opinions is pretty irrelevant also. Also, "You're post?" So my are post is completely irrelevant? If you're going to go out of your way to point out peoples faults, at least don't mess up when you do.

 I'm hoping that it isn't just a celebration to shout how awesome they see themselves, but also WoW news like

- Guild Housing.

- The next expansion.

- Details on the Icecrown raid (like a patch date).

- PVP weapons on sale from BG vendors.

And

- Details on the next gen MMO and the other one they are working on too. (like even a name)

Because pointing out a spelling error is a good foundation for 'revenge post'. You're right that my post is irrelevent, but obviously not to me and you as its what we're discussing.I wasn't pointing out your faults, unless of course you considor watching anime a fault in life.

Anyway, we're completely off topic so let's get back on track :) If I didn't live in the UK I would save and go to blizzcon, I can understand why someone might pay such a hefty sum to attend blizzcon, it's full of exciting new things, and chances to play new games before anyone else, you get to meet new people who you share your hobby. I certainly wouldn't mind paying the price.

I would go if I could if I thought there was something about the new next gen mmo but I highly doubt it

Originally posted by Tykero

Organizing those things costs a lot of money.

 

They have to pay for the location, pay the people working there, pay to have the booths and stages and whatnot set up, pay for the electricity, pay for the web hosting for the streaming (or contract somebody to do it), and possibly more I'm forgetting.

 

Your ticket covers the cost of that.

 

The ticket gets you access into an exciting event. It's like asking a football fan "why pay $xx for a ticket to see a game when you can watch it online/on tv for free or much cheaper?"

It's being there that's interesting. Some people enjoy that. As large as Blizzard's fan base is, they have no trouble selling the tickets anyways.

A depeche mode concert has 60 to 100 euro range (= I think blizz has enough money for at least a 50 -60euro tiket ....but 125? c'on! (=
 

Originally posted by spirus7

Originally posted by Tykero

Organizing those things costs a lot of money.

 

They have to pay for the location, pay the people working there, pay to have the booths and stages and whatnot set up, pay for the electricity, pay for the web hosting for the streaming (or contract somebody to do it), and possibly more I'm forgetting.

 

Your ticket covers the cost of that.

 

The ticket gets you access into an exciting event. It's like asking a football fan "why pay $xx for a ticket to see a game when you can watch it online/on tv for free or much cheaper?"

It's being there that's interesting. Some people enjoy that. As large as Blizzard's fan base is, they have no trouble selling the tickets anyways.

A depeche mode concert has 60 to 100 euro range (= I think blizz has enough money for at least a 50 -60euro tiket ....but 125? c'on! (=
 

Music concert is what 4 hours at best, blizzcon is a 2 day event, a total of 24hours of stuff if you decide to be there for every second.

But yes I think $125 is a bit high... blizzcon last year as $100 .. so where does the extra $25 go?

I have been to the last 2 of them, they are pretty fun.  They have area's setup to demo their games, you can meet up with blizzard staff, they have a bunch of different discussion groups for raids, ui development etc.

There is the always awesome goody bag you get when you buy a ticket...they give you so much stuff in there lol. 

you get the in-game item, which this year is the space marine murloc pet, they have a lot of sponser booths, alienware, ATI, etc was there last year.

They have a cosplay type contest.  Ther person that won got a real replica of the frostmourne sword...freaking awesome sword.

they have a concert on the second day, last year it was some orchestra i forget but they were awesome and the band Level 80 Elite Tauren Chieften lmao.   The Concert was awesome.

Hell i can't even remember half the stuff they had it was so much, but this year the Con is gonna be even bigger, with tons more stuff to do so yeah its gonna cost a lil more.

It's cheap by comparison. It's 2 days. One can assume that the event is 10-12 hours a day so anywehre from 20-24 hours of stuff just at Blizzcon.

If you average it out (just ticket price), thats $5-6 an hour. By comparison, a ticket to a 2 hour sporting event can run you several hundred, a good concert $100, movie tickets are now $12-20, etc... and don't get me started on the cost of SuperBowl tickets, Final Four tickets or even regular tickets at this point.

It only seems expensive because people want to make it seem expensive because its Blizzard.

Complaining about ticket prices is OK.. I suppose. However, these events are costly and Blizzard can't sell them at a "reasonable" level. Anime Conventions usually go at lower-class places than the Anaheim place Blizzard goes to. They also knock the socks off anyone who goes to them. I've never been, but I've -never- heard a bad reaction to one. Quit hating Blizzard to hate Blizzard. They have done a lot of good things not only for this genre but gaming in general.

World of Warcraft was a great game for nearly two years.. SC/WC3 are probably the most stable and persistant RTS games ever created.. Diablo II is the longest surviving Hack-n-Slash game ever made. I hate what has happened to WoW, but it's not a surprise considering the amount of people who play the games.. and Blizzard caters to what the populace wants, not what might make the game better.

BlizzCon is a great event, and don't let blind hatred for a gaming company be misplaced and blurr your judgement.
 

 Well i am a die hard Diablo fan and enjoy Starcraft as well, so i really wanted to go to Blizzcon last year. Trouble is, the tickets were sold out within minutes of being made available. Things were so bad, they actually released a few more tickets as part of a lottery system and i couldn't get those either.

So if what happened last year is anything to go by, arguing over whether the tickets are overpriced or not, is irrelevant. The tickets to this years Blizzcon will most likely get sold out in the time it took me to type this post =/