Tag: ARCHcon

ARCHcon 2019, the annual Anime, Role-playing, Comics and Hobbies Convention held last November 16-17 at J Centre Mall Convention Hall gathered thousands of anime, cosplay, role-playing fans and hobbyists for a weekend of activities.

On this feature, we will be running down the highlights of this year’s event which has the future-looking theme of “ARCHLight.”

Thousands of visitors

In line with this year’s theme, ARCHcon took on a different route in handling their entry process, focusing on lessening the use of paper tickets. They have partnered with Symph to implement a ticketing system that uses facial recognition.

As this is the first time to implement such a process, it took long for the visitors to enter, thus they revised the process the following day to clear up the queue faster. While we don’t have the official count, it is estimated that this year’s audience is around the thousands.

We’re talking about an audience not only from Cebu but also from other parts of Visayas and Mindanao – some from Manila too.

Boiledcurry and Knitemaya

Among the highlights of the event are the appearances of guest cosplayers Boiledcurry (Singapore) and Knitemaya (Australia). They had their meet and greet sessions for their fans.

In one of their meet and greet sessions, both guests stress the importance of putting health first before cosplay. Curry asks cosplayers not to stress themselves with Cosplay, as it was supposed to be fun. Knitemaya, on the other hand, shares his pre-event skin regimen to the active fanbase.

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On Day 2, Curry even performed on stage with pianist Animecio.

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Tabletop and Console Gaming

ARCHcon started as a table-top event at the Sacred Heart School – Ateneo de Cebu, and the tradition lives on with their card game and roleplay competitions gathering an estimated close to a hundred participants onsite.

Console gaming is also well-participated with games such as Super Smash Bros., and Tekken in the spotlight. Not to mention, multi-player games such as League of Legends and Mobile Games are featured as well.

Tamiya 4WD racing

Cebu has a much active Tamiya community. This is my impression after witnessing the 4WD race. Imagine two huge tracks and hundreds of 4WD cars being lined up to see which one gets to the finish line and which will flip mid-air.

Janken Royale

Rumble Royale brings its hyped “Bato Bato Pick! Rumble Royale” game to ARCHcon 2019, giving Cebuanos a taste of janken in steroids, with PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch unit for grabs.

Figure and Plastic Model Exhibits

ARCHcon 2019 also has a great display of Gundam models and other figures all worthy of being captured in its full glory.

Hobby Lobby

Another main highlight of ARCHcon 2019 is its Hobby Lobby where they invite organizations to share their ideas as well as to interact with fellow hobbyists.

I took my time to meet featured cosplayers from Cebu and Manila, get in touch with Cebu Cosplayers Guild, as well as talk to the Young Lawyers Association of Cebu about intellectual property in the fandom context. This proved to be very helpful to the participants. keepsakes. will be releasing the gist of the discussion soon.

“Con with a Cause”

As a “convention with a cause,” ARCHcon 2019 features Gawad Kalinga and One Hour to Be Heroes. A portion of the event’s proceeds will go to these beneficiaries.

Stage Competitions

ARCHcon 2019 won’t be complete without stage competitions – from Anisong to Solo and Group Cosplay, the participants did their best. Specifically, with the cosplay competitions, they went all out and use available resources to express their passion for cosplay.

One notable thing to note in Cebu’s cosplay community is their use of visual effects in most skits, showcasing what Cebu as a creative community is.

The panel of judges includes Boiledcurry, Knitemaya and World Cosplay Summit 2019 Team Philippines and Cebuano pride Team Class S. Team Class S then showed what the World Cosplay Summit is, much to the excitement of the ARCHcon crowd.

The ARCHcon weekend capped off with a fireworks display which was enjoyed by the around a hundred guests who are still present in the venue.

It’s safe to say that ARCHcon Cebu 2019 proved itself yet again to be the go-to event for hobbyists in the VisMin region, with guests and competitors coming in from not just Cebu, but also Dumaguete, Bacolod, Manila and other areas.

Personal Thoughts

To me, the venue is small for the ARCHcon crowd, but it’s the one that is most accessible to the Mactan Cebu airport (which is fine by me). If there’s one thing that really needs improvement, we just need to fix the air conditioning in the venue and we are all good. Anything else can be sorted out, like with what happened to the queueing at entry.

On a much personal note, I had a pleasant experience roaming around some parts of Mandaue City. I carried this feeling along with me as I take a journey into one of the biggest events in Cebu. This is why I am speechless even as I write this piece. Daghang Salamat muli, Cebu!

Videos on Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/keepsakesbyjay/videos/735992000214355/

Much of the content is on Facebook already, including our Facebook Lives with our Cebu partner Gary Montejo:

• Zack Tolosa and Roxanne Kho
• Lia Bear and Maika Yinghua
• Mais Semblante, Akemi Kujo and Ally Wally
• Diane Marie Sabandeja
• Dumaguete cosplayers
• Cosplay Competition (also with Serena of The Lily Cat)

You can also view the photo album on Facebook. Full highlights and more content will be posted this week. Thank you ARCHcon 2019 for having keepsakes. as one of your official media partners.