Any possibility the Fan Faire could be more centrally located in the U.S.? would allow LOTS more people to attend,... to include a certain Burynai I know
It would probably be the last for me because of either health issues or moving, I would not want it to be the last for EQ/EQ2.
Things needed for a Fan Faire event: Community staff (SOE had like 12 Community people at the last SOE Live; maybe 1/3 that now) Events staff $$$ to book the major conference and common areas of a major Las Vegas hotel for a weekend.* $$ to rent buses and hotel rooms to get ~50-75 employees to and from SD. $$ to print Signage, Badges, and other show materials, as well as Merchandise for an on-site Daybreak Store Designers and Artists to create the aforementioned printed materials. A flagship new game to show off At least 30 computers and all the networking equipment and infrastructure to support them. Things Daybreak has: A desire to do an event. I can see them doing a small event for a couple hours at a nearby venue in San Diego, but recreating what Fan Faire used to be? Beyond farfetched. *I tried to nail down some pricing for what it would cost to rent enough meeting and conference rooms in a popular Vegas hotel but had no luck. It varies too much by date and other variables. Still, there were years that Fan Faire had 1,200 guests at $120 a pop. That's $144,000. To my knowledge, ticket prices, merch sales, etc. never even came close to covering the cost of putting on the event, so that should give you an idea.
Realistically, we're talking about a $200 ticket for a barbecue at the office, a quick tour, a costume contest, and an opportunity to buy some EQ2 swag. Why delay it? Because it probably seemed like a good idea at the time it was announced, but now, maybe not....
Gah, it was SOOOO fun though -- literally the first experiences I had meeting online gaming friends "I-R-L" and it was a total blast!!!
why not make use of a local Ren Faire's rented pavilion area? would be WAAAY cheaper then a Vegas motel, also an appropriate environment for EverQuest CosPlay,.... already lots of available parking,... period-specific food nearby,... etc etc etc
Las Vegas, like all big tourist areas, are expensive. There has to be a more central U.S. place that isn't so touristy and might be cheaper. The conventions I go to are $50 for the weekend for the ticket and under $100 per night for a room for up to 4 people. I went to World SF Con in San Francisco, CA early 1990s. Incredibly expensive. I had to borrow money from relatives.
Las Vegas is expensive for attendees, but saves money as far as airfare for employees. Back when there were ~125 employees at SOE Live, airfare to a central US location would have easily topped $50,000. Not to mention the tractor trailer loads of equipment and swag.
I contacted one of the people that I used to organize Memorial Day weekend rooms usually in the neighborhood of 50-75 rooms, Friday, Saturday, Sunday nights. I never went through a planner, I always went directly to each hotel I was interested in myself. I have on strip and off strip contacts, but I contacted one of the off strip contacts, and this particular one is about 1/2 a block off the strip, so its not like anybody would even need a taxi to get to the large casinos. They have two main conference rooms and one that is a bit smaller. The main conference rooms would comfortably hold about 800 people but the wall separating them can be removed so that it becomes one large room that can comfortably and safely hold 1600 people. The smaller one would hold approximately 500 people. All the rooms have full digital access. For a non-holiday weekend, a non-refundable deposit of 40% would be required at least 180 days in advance and payment in full at least 30 days in advance, the rate for the smaller room would be approximately $8700 and the rate for one of the larger rooms would be approximately $11,200. If both larger rooms were requested and a deposit was made for both and it was requested they be made into one Grand Room, the rate would be approximately $17,000. If those renting the conference rooms were to rent hotel rooms for their employees, they can rent them at a special discounted rate for the weekend of $65 per adult, per room, per night. If those hosting the conference encourage the attendees to stay at the hotel, and provide a code they will be given, the guests of the conference will be entitled to a special discounted rate for the weekend of $95 per adult, per room, per night. Now those are the rates that I can get and I haven't planned an event in Vegas for almost 20 years now. And I never worked in any type of marketing or event planning business in my life. I just needed to plan an event every year for Memorial Day weekend and did the old "git er done" and made contacts.
I remember when they would do the developer brunches on the Sunday which was a catered breakfast. I remember we used to complain bitterly about the $55 cost per person. Then someone at SOE pulled me aside and quietly told me that "$55 is what the hotel charges us". I had to pick my jaw up off the floor.
