AnimeLand Wasabi 2011: Day 1

With Registration out of the way we headed to some events and started checking out the game rooms and the panels. The Cosplayers are out in force already and that’s good to see on a Friday.

Opening ceremonies the usual speeches and of course the pumping up of the crowd. I’m happy to note that Wasabi is paying its respects to Japan, and if you live under a large rock there was a major disaster yesterday March 11 2011. With opening ceremonies out of the way the convention was officially on.

Checking the dealers room this year I was a little disinterested in the selection, partially due to the lack of dealers and small room size. Last year the room setup was a bit better overall the selection was unique and interesting. Just not feeling it this year, but this can be improved next year.

The first panel I visited was Uncle Yo, back again from last year from the east coast. Uncle Yo is a Stand up geek comedian with a witty anime twist. In this panel named “Anime one night stands with Uncle Yo” he had some pictures and slides from various games and anime series and he described the plots of several shows in vivid detail. Surprising if you really break down some stories you will find some interesting stuff inside. I really enjoy Uncle Yo and I hope he makes a return next year as he is a highlight for AnimeLand Wasabi.

After that panel a dance party moved in, we headed down and out to the video game area and checked in with our buddies from Death of the Arcade. They’re a Colorado based company that puts on Rock band full stage setups, DJ hero, and various other interactive group activities. Very excited to have these guys on board as last year this convention just did not have the space for them.

The Colorado CutThroat organization was hosting a series of events from simple combat training to tournaments. I must say the gaming setup at this convention is very impressive and encompasses the old classic systems right next to the latest generation. I must note that one of the highlights here is Dance Central with Kinect, this game is very fun to play with a crowd around.

We headed back upstairs to get into the Battle of the Bands. The event was delayed for over an hour and from my understanding one of the bands was sick and could not play. Never the less I watched two bands play their respective sets to a small but cheerful crowd. The music was okay but I can’t avoid saying that this event was host to some major issues. Honestly if this event is held next year I would recommend finding outside talent that is not all about nerd culture, I would say it was passable this year but I would probably skip this event if it came around next year with little to no changes.

After leaving the Battle of the Bands, we packed it up for the night.

Day one what can I say it was fun, the current hotel is very nice and overall my experience was a good one.  If I could change one thing it would be the battle of the bands and I would say that the staff needs to lock down the Schedule sooner, as it was changed several times on Friday.

Don’t forget to give us a Like on our new Facebook page, we will be posting some cosplay photos from Wasabi so come by and check it out. And if your looking for your photo on our site check out our Gallery on Monday March 14th that is when we will have our gallery for this years Wasabi fully uploaded.