The Energon Pub

So, for those of you attending and planning out your trip...

For those who make the trip on a regular basis...

For those who are making the trip for the first time...

How is the information provided so far, or rather the lack of information provided so far, working out for you?

Personally, I don't take this stuff in stride any more. It's a very expensive convention, it's a long AND expensive trip, it requires planning on our part and courtesy of the convention holders.

You may or may not know this, but this is actually the closest we've come to having the convention with no brouchure to read on, much less an open registration.

I suppose, in someways, it doesn't matter much. I'll still be going. For me though, I'm going to the convention for the friends I've made and to a lesser extent for the toys. It's no longer just about the convention. There's a lot of frustration, for me at least, around planning and prepping for this thing each year. I'm honestly getting pretty burned out of the aggrivation each year.

I'm considering not going to BotCon next year and just making a vacation out of PAX now that it's on the east coast as well. Eh, time will tell.

Where do you all stand? Am I over reacting? Are you cool with all things Transformers Club, BotCon, and Fun Publications?

(Did you get your Punch/Counterpunch pre-order in?)

We're doing a trip to Disney first and foremost, which happens to intersect with BotCon. We've already got all our meal reservations in, so if BotCon happens to get in the way of that, well, sorry BotCon. I'm going to try to do a customizing class on Wednesday so I can avoid the hassle of package pickup with the masses, but we'll see.

I am a little anal retentive when it comes to traveling and it seem a little close for me. Not having all the information makes it really difficult to get decent priced airfare, and I would have had it booked long ago. I won't book the plane tickets until AFTER I have registered, so the longer it takes the harder it will be.

As this is my first Botcon, I don't want it to be a hassle, because if it ruins it I will be hesitant to try again.

Razorclaw0000 wrote: I'm going to try to do a customizing class on Wednesday so I can avoid the hassle of package pickup with the masses, but we'll see.

I want to do the class too, but am on the fence about it. If I have the option I think I am going to go for it. I already have the room for Wed. night, so I plan on getting checked in early and being there, so why not take the class if I can get in?


Lastly, I just hope there is some kind of information on registering, other than someone who checked on the site randomly and lets everyone know. Maybe a time/date, that would be nice!

--B-- wrote:I am a little anal retentive when it comes to traveling and it seem a little close for me. Not having all the information makes it really difficult to get decent priced airfare, and I would have had it booked long ago. I won't book the plane tickets until AFTER I have registered, so the longer it takes the harder it will be.

As this is my first Botcon, I don't want it to be a hassle, because if it ruins it I will be hesitant to try again.

Razorclaw0000 wrote: I'm going to try to do a customizing class on Wednesday so I can avoid the hassle of package pickup with the masses, but we'll see.

I want to do the class too, but am on the fence about it. If I have the option I think I am going to go for it. I already have the room for Wed. night, so I plan on getting checked in early and being there, so why not take the class if I can get in?


Lastly, I just hope there is some kind of information on registering, other than someone who checked on the site randomly and lets everyone know. Maybe a time/date, that would be nice!

Just be cautious. The Wednesday one runs 9AM-3PM. You may need to do the Thursday version.

Razorclaw0000 wrote:Just be cautious. The Wednesday one runs 9AM-3PM. You may need to do the Thursday version.

Oh, wow, see, I didn't know that, and I would have adjusted my travel plans accordingly. It's hard to be a first timer with ZERO information less than 2 months before the event.

Now I am starting to get annoyed/angry about it, thanks CP

I'm getting frustrated with the lack of details, but then I don't really plan on attending many "events". This will be my first BotCon, but I really only want to see the show floor and check out the vendors and stuff. My girlfriend and I are flying down to Orlando on Thursday and staying at a historic B&B downtown, and then Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night at the Dolphin. In addition to the convention, we'll probably go to Epcot and find other stuff to do nearby.

--B-- wrote:

Razorclaw0000 wrote:Just be cautious. The Wednesday one runs 9AM-3PM. You may need to do the Thursday version.

Oh, wow, see, I didn't know that, and I would have adjusted my travel plans accordingly. It's hard to be a first timer with ZERO information less than 2 months before the event.

Now I am starting to get annoyed/angry about it, thanks CP

I've been angry. That's why, for my first BotCon, I'm glad it's somewhere I can have a "real" vacation at as well. I'll get the toys, hang out with everyone, but still have a full blown vacation bookending the con.

--B-- wrote:

Razorclaw0000 wrote:Just be cautious. The Wednesday one runs 9AM-3PM. You may need to do the Thursday version.

Oh, wow, see, I didn't know that, and I would have adjusted my travel plans accordingly. It's hard to be a first timer with ZERO information less than 2 months before the event.

Now I am starting to get annoyed/angry about it, thanks CP

No problemo.

I think, in all honesty, people need to start actually getting angry over this stuff.

Five years.

They've had FIVE years to get this stuff worked out.

I am pretty frustrated with the whole thing. This was supposed to be my first Botcon, but now I am thinking about bailing.

I made reservations at the Dolphin as soon as I heard about this, but with very little info, I am not about to try to do airline tickets. The longer we wait, the more expensive the plae tickets are going to be.

I might just wait and do my first trip when I is somewhere within driving distance. (I guess I could drive to Fla, but that would take way more time.)

I've been telling the wife for the last year that I wanted to go this year. Guess what...not gonna happen.

With such limited information there was no way for me to request off work and plan the trip to a degree I am comfortable with.

Honestly, I'm not too upset about this. I would like my first Botcon to accompany a set I can actually appreciate. I didn't like G2 the first time around, I don't need a reprise. However, with no aim to derail the thread, that is a rant for a completely different topic.

Gutter Bunny wrote:I've been telling the wife for the last year that I wanted to go this year. Guess what...not gonna happen.

With such limited information there was no way for me to request off work and plan the trip to a degree I am comfortable with.

Honestly, I'm not too upset about this. I would like my first Botcon to accompany a set I can actually appreciate. I didn't like G2 the first time around, I don't need a reprise. However, with no aim to derail the thread, that is a rant for a completely different topic.

I agree with you. I always tell my girlfriend that this is the year I'm going to Botcon and then I never even try to register. I'm not thrilled about this years' set as an idea even, let alone what we've seen about the figures so far, and I have this terrible feeling that Botcon will be a one time only thing for me, for unknown reasons, and I'd prefer it if there was a set I was at least excited about, like the 07 or o8 sets, to accompany it.

I know we're informed of Botcon at some point ahead of its time, but I wish we knew further in advance, or if the unthinkable happened and Botcon was at a regular, reoccuring time each year instead of vaguely in the same monthular region. That might make it much easier to attend.

I'll be day trippin' from Tampa.

It'll be my first, and unless there is another Botcon within a two hour drive, my last.

The vife and I have two little ones arriving in mid June (maybe even earlier), so depending on the timing, I may not go at all.

The real problem is that I don't have much play $$ for myself anymore...dig...so if I can scrap up some extra flow, I might search for a few G1's in my backlog.

Does anyone know how much per day the show will run? Is there a better day to go, i.e. Sat, vs Sun?

DREWCIFER

Last year was my first Botcon... it was a lot of fun. My only regret: Not being able to meet up with the Seibertron gang (the wife & I had dinner plans that same night with my brother who lives down in LA). On topic, the late info & lack of info beforehand did irk me a bit.

This year seems worse in info distribution. I was looking forward to meeting up with everyone for 2010, but since the info for Botcon was released so late (or not at all), I'm not able to get the time off in advance, so I'm pretty bummed. Even if I could, I'd hate to pay last minute expensive plane tix to the East Coast. I wish FunPub would consider keeping it on the same weekend every year & lock-down/announce the location much earlier, so it'd be easier for people to plan around.

Oh well. For everyone who's going this year... have fun!

(At least I got my P/CP preorder in...)

It seems to me like the Club/FunPub need to get their act together. Their exclusive figures are great. Their storylines are well-written, and the art is quite good. However, the magazine is carelessly edited, and the entire process of BotCon announcements and registration (up to and including picking up packages upon arrival at the con) is a mismanaged, poorly communicated, rushed disaster.

I expect better, and I too am losing patience. Not enough to stop me from attending...yet. However, if the online registration system turns into an utter mess with crashed servers and lost registration forms, I will be tempted to take 2011 off.

Being the 1st Botcon I actually plan on attending I am getting frustrated over the " more details to come" line.. With the amount of money that I'm shelling out i would like to have so more concrete details so I know where my money is going. Having to make hotel reservations and not even have the passes to go yet. I'm lucky to have freinds in central florida so the trip won't be a wash but I agree, they should get their stuff together.. Waaaay too much money involved...

Every year it seems to take forever to get info, we all get into a big nerd rage and then forget about it once we've booked our trip.

The nerd rage returns once we wait for 3 hours in line to buy the exclusives and then vanishes by the end of the weekend once more, this time for good (or at least until FunPub does the same thing to us again next year)

A word of caution for anyone wanting to do a lot of Disney/Florida stuff as part of the trip - do it all BEFORE Thursday because once Thursday hits you'll have little time for anything else. There's just soooo much going on at BotCon that it will blow your mind, and there is seemingly more every year.

Also, if you guys want to do the class you need to book it on the FIRST DAY to make sure you get in, otherwise you are taking your chances.

This will be my 4th BotCon. Once all the info becomes public I'll do another BotCon guide as a news article so first timers will know more about what's going on, and what to expect. That brochure is fairly detailed, but there's a lot FunPub won't tell ya.

Delicon wrote:there's a lot FunPub won't tell ya.

Like how once you finally arrive and check into the hotel on Thursday, kill the afternoon, and get in line for Registration Package Pick-up, I hope you're comfortable, cause you're gonna be in that line for 3 hours or so. And once you're finished there, you get to go line up for the Club Store to purchase all the add-on figures. Be prepared to spend another 3-4 hours in that line.

Of course, once the plastic crack is in our hands, the nerd rage dissipates and we are calm and docile once more. lol.

Savage wrote:

Delicon wrote:there's a lot FunPub won't tell ya.

Like how once you finally arrive and check into the hotel on Thursday, kill the afternoon, and get in line for Registration Package Pick-up, I hope you're comfortable, cause you're gonna be in that line for 3 hours or so. And once you're finished there, you get to go line up for the Club Store to purchase all the add-on figures. Be prepared to spend another 3-4 hours in that line.

Of course, once the plastic crack is in our hands, the nerd rage dissipates and we are calm and docile once more. lol.

To be fair, the initial registration line usually isn't 3 hours long. Some of that depends on your last name, it is broken into alphabetical blocks.

Of course, the exclusives line is every bit of that.

It does help if you have friends in line with you, and people generally play with their boxsets while they are in the add-on line.

I can see where a lot of the anger comes from. Sort of. We've had the location and dates for quite awhile now. That's plenty of info to plan your itinerary for travel. The only thing we still need access to is the actual brochure info and registration. Why it's taking so long to get those up I can't say. I do always breathe a sigh of relief once that step is done though. The rest, like figure reveals and such, is just the icing. I hear you guys talking about skipping a year but we all know I'll be shaking your hands again in 2011 and being all around retarded. Business as usual, my friends. Just relax and go fiddle with your newest 3rd party figs or something.

I curse their use of a "brocure". I think that it is lame. They want to print a brocure to hand out somewhere then fine. This is the only convention (that I have attended in the past) that doesn't advertise and post events in a timely manner. As events add up they should be listing them. Who cares about waiting till they work the bugs out of the registration. They play some sort of silly game to the expense of the "real fans". People need more lead time. I am certainly not a fan of Funpub.

I would not recommend this convention to a friend.

Flux Convoy wrote:I can see where a lot of the anger comes from. Sort of. We've had the location and dates for quite awhile now. That's plenty of info to plan your itinerary for travel.

Kind of...

But there are people who plan their time off and flight dates off of the things associated with the convention. People that want the custom class or one of the yearly tours can't even book or take their time off yet because of not registering.

We can say that it's easy enough to plan ahead knowing what we know from previous years, but then again, we should say that FP has had five years to get this right. It's pretty much their job...

Counterpunch wrote:

Flux Convoy wrote:I can see where a lot of the anger comes from. Sort of. We've had the location and dates for quite awhile now. That's plenty of info to plan your itinerary for travel.

Kind of...

But there are people who plan their time off and flight dates off of the things associated with the convention. People that want the custom class or one of the yearly tours can't even book or take their time off yet because of not registering.

We can say that it's easy enough to plan ahead knowing what we know from previous years, but then again, we should say that FP has had five years to get this right. It's pretty much their job...

In the past Funpub has made it very clear that they do not care about individuals. All they care about is the bottom line. The classes and tours will fill up regardless of notification issues. It is the repeat "real fans" as I have termed them that want to go and be able to schedule their time that it is hardest on. I, for one, do not have anger. I have just dismissed Funpub as unprofessional. Like you said, it is their job. Let Hasbro choose another group to run Botcon.

Funpub is not a volunteer outfit, they should do better. Until we start saying NO and they are hurt in their wallets they will continue along the same line in the future.

Energon wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:

Flux Convoy wrote:I can see where a lot of the anger comes from. Sort of. We've had the location and dates for quite awhile now. That's plenty of info to plan your itinerary for travel.

Kind of...

But there are people who plan their time off and flight dates off of the things associated with the convention. People that want the custom class or one of the yearly tours can't even book or take their time off yet because of not registering.

We can say that it's easy enough to plan ahead knowing what we know from previous years, but then again, we should say that FP has had five years to get this right. It's pretty much their job...

In the past Funpub has made it very clear that they do not care about individuals. All they care about is the bottom line. The classes and tours will fill up regardless of notification issues. It is the repeat "real fans" as I have termed them that want to go and be able to schedule their time that it is hardest on. I, for one, do not have anger. I have just dismissed Funpub as unprofessional. Like you said, it is their job. Let Hasbro choose another group to run Botcon.

Funpub is not a volunteer outfit, they should do better. Until we start saying NO and they are hurt in their wallets they will continue along the same line in the future.

This is ridiculously true...But jesus it's hard to pass on this especially since it's in my old hometown...

I agree with CP also..They've been running this convention schawree for how long now?

Counterpunch wrote:
We can say that it's easy enough to plan ahead knowing what we know from previous years, but then again, we should say that FP has had five years to get this right. It's pretty much their job...

I can see your point about having attended previous cons and knowing what to expect. I certainly remember freaking in general for my first Botcon and trying to make all the right choices. True it is their job and they've had time to iron out the online registration by now. However, if that's what the holdup is, I'll wait. Faxing is stone age technology.

Flux Convoy wrote:

Counterpunch wrote:
We can say that it's easy enough to plan ahead knowing what we know from previous years, but then again, we should say that FP has had five years to get this right. It's pretty much their job...

I can see your point about having attended previous cons and knowing what to expect. I certainly remember freaking in general for my first Botcon and trying to make all the right choices. True it is their job and they've had time to iron out the online registration by now. However, if that's what the holdup is, I'll wait. Faxing is stone age technology.

The online registration method had better be amazingly simple and conveient ..The suspense is killin me...I know I for 1 am freaking about my first Botcon..Is it possible to do everything the 1st trip LoL?

Also for the customizing class...I read in last years brocheure that you are given a un-assembled figure..Do we get to know what the figure is? Also is the price for the class included in the registration or is it out of pocket?

btw Thank you big time for all of the info provided by the Botcon vets..IT IS very very appreciated!