After much anticipation, AFA 2022 is finally back in Singapore at the usual Suntec Convention Center! Needless to say the crowd is a result of pent-up demand after the last physical AFA was held way back in 2019. Three years of waiting and we are finally here!
Queue into the convention is as crazy as 2019. Day 1 and we are seeing a long queue to get ticket and getting into the hall.
This year we have exhibitors like Hakken, Genshin Impact, Bandai, Bushiroad to name a few. The creators hub is also back to show case work of many talented artists. You can support them by buying their artwork.
Cosplay Hub
The Cosplay Hub is where you can find some of the cosplayers whom you have been stalking on social media. Now you get to meet and greet live version of them! Most of them are very friendly so be sure to get a photo with them.
AKIBA stage is where you can take a rest (no seats provided but feel free to sit on the floor) and enjoy some performance by various human and virtual stars.
Pardon my battled brochure.
Of course, AFA is a time for cosplay! Here are some of the awesome cosplayers we have spotted.
Merchandise
No AFA will be completed without being having a haul of merchandise from your favorite anime, comic and game. Be sure to come prepared to empty your wallet (or paynow account).
Into the AFAverse
One of the cool thing of this year AFA is the inclusion of AFAverse. Essentially your wristband into the event hall has a RFID tag. At various station scattered throughout the hall, you can play games and gain coins. Coins allow you to take picture with celebrities cosplayers, play AFA catch and enjoy discounts! More information here.
Be sure to come!
AFA 2022 is happening now from 25th-27th (Fri to Sun) Nov 2022 at Suntec Convention center.
With much anticipation, AFA 2022 is finally back in physical form at Suntec Convention after 3 years of hiatus (last held in 2019). While we still enjoy the online AFA Station TV show nothing beats jostling in a crowd full of enthusiastic Anime, Comics and Games (ACG) fans looking for merchandise to add to your collection. Here are some details on the upcoming event happening from 25th Nov to 27 Nov 2022.
Competition
J-Dance competition
There will be a brand-new J-Dance Asia competition, with the Finals taking place on November 26 at the festival grounds’ Akiba Stage.
In front of the audience, groups of 2 to 10 people will have the chance to showcase their choreography set to a Japanese music track.
Reputable dancers from Singapore and Japan will serve as judges and perform in a unique dance display.
The J-Dance Asia contestants have a chance to earn cash prizes worth up to S$1,000.
On 11 November 2022, registration will open at https://bit.ly/AFASG22JDance.
Cosplay Competition
At AFASG22, the Cosplay Singles showcase competition will return.
Cosplayers can use this opportunity to display their outfits on a local stage and compete for prizes.
Exhibitors
Some key highlights of exhibitors include Anime Metaverse,Bandai, Bushiroad, Conan, Genshin Impact, Good Smile Company, Hakken!, Kotobukiya, Nissin, Valiant Force and more. There will be exclusive merchandise available for purchase.
Over at Creator Hub, you will get to see and buy work by some of the talented artists including:
Self-taught illustrator Rachta Lin, whose travels and experiences influences her creations;
Sarah Thursday, who creates illustrations inspired by dark alternative subcultures with a deeply personal twist; and
Digital artist Raiko, who paints characters from games and anime usually in a semi-realistic style.
Meet and Greet
While you can’t meet you anime waifu or husbando in real life, you can definitely meet a cosplayer counterpart! Sessions will be available with celebrity cosplayers Hakken, Charess and Ely.
AFA-verse – Gamified AFA
Visitors will for the first time get a game-like experience as soon as they enter the festival grounds.
In order to open virtual easter eggs and gain AFA Hero XP and AFA Coins, visitors will receive a specially made NFC-capable band.
Additionally, they can create their own Seika AFA-tar, get exclusive skins from AFA-Pitstops, or use AFA-Coins to buy limited-edition accessories.
Fans will be able to purchase all ticket tiers, from General Admission 1-Day Exhibition to 1 Day VIP tickets online from today. Tickets start from S$21 / Day for Exhibition.
1st – 4th September 2022 at Suntec Convention Center Level 4
It has been close to 3 years since we had a physical electronic show in Singapore. Before COVID, there were usually 4 of such shows held annually at locations such as Suntec and Expo. We used to complain that there are too many similar IT shows in Singapore. But after 3 years, going for one really felt refreshing! It’s like a long lost friend that you finally meet!
Comex 2022 is an event that you can attend without face mask (legally)!. Beyond the laptops and electronics, here are somethings that have caught our eyes.
GG PlayFest
A section of the show is dedicated to gaming. GG PlayFest brings you E-Sports and Gaming gears all in one place. And if you are a fan of Rurusama, catch a glimpse of her at her booth right at the end of the hall.
WEB3SG
Blockchain, NFT, POS, staking. If all these terms sound foreign to you, you might want to read up on them and get up to date with Web 3. Step into this zone to learn more about Web 3 and speak to some of the companies working on this forefront technology.
Buy now pay later model for NFTs
Cute Keyboards
Might not be super practical for work or school but definitely fun to look at.
BYD Electric Car
Not exactly a car show but I guess electric car can be considered as an electronic? Albeit one that you will need to cough up SGD 100k COE first in order to buy one. Do check out this booth if you are interested in BYD electric car. Besides driving it, you can get to feel the vehicle for yourself before deciding to buy one.
Funky chairs
After learning that the co-founder of Secretlab, makers of the famous gaming chairs, had bought a good class bungalow for $36 million, the boss of Osim probably thinks it is a good idea to go into this space as well. Osim’s booth features a Transformer theme uThrone with hand and back massage capabilities. Perfect for a pit stop if you are tired.
There are more …
We don’t have time to cover everything in the show. If you miss a good old physical “IT Show”, head down to Suntec from 1st to 4th Sep 2022 and relive the days before COVID 19!
It’s been a long while since we have gone to any convention in Singapore, no thanks to COVID 19. So we are very thankful for a new Brick Con (Lego brick convention) happening now at Suntec North Atrium. To get there, walk along level 2 of Suntec. Once you see Owndays, take the escalator down to the main Atrium. Did we mention it is free admission? Perfect event for school holidays!
All Aboard!VTL anyone?Under ConstructionTwo-headed Snake
A new indoor drone racing arena is here in Singapore! This pop-up store is now located at Sin Ming Lane Midview City. For the uninitiated, this form of drone racing is known as FPV (First-Person View) and Tiny Whoop is the small form of a quadcopter that has an inbuilt camera.
Image courtesy of Whoop Arena
So how do you fly this thing? Unlike traditional drone flying, the pilot takes the view of the drone via the onboard camera. See those colorful hoops at Whoop Arena? It is for you to fly your drone through it. Whoop arena also have different mode beyond just pure flying for added entertainment. For example you can shoot the drone with Nerf gun!
Image courtesy of Whoop Arena
Whoop arena also provide STEM & coding workshop and FPV flying experience for beginner. Be sure to check them out as the pop-up store will end towards the end of April 2021.
Details
Whoop Arena
Address: 18 Sin Ming Lane, #06-03, Singapore 573960
In case you are wondering, we are not talking about a Gaming Den where shuffling of Mahjong tiles and punter shouting ‘Blackjack!” can be heard constantly. We are talking about one where you can take your gaming experience to a whole new level beyond your keyboard, mouse or controller.
NXND Computer (NXND) has started this Gaming Lounge which is figuratively a game centre that provides an immersive gaming experience through motion platforms or Virtual Reality which is largely centred on “combat” flying and racing simulation games.
Inspiration for Gaming Lounge
NXND has jokingly shared that the inspiration came from COVID19. One of the cofounder of NXND, Guan Tdee discovered a gaming community in Singapore consisting of individuals who are interested in virtual flying simulation. While its fun and engaging to meet in the virtual skies, there is lack of actual social interactions between such groups in Singapore.
I thought if I need to gather like-minded gamers together to share fun and knowledge and chill out, there must be a lounge or café that is enticing enough to make them “get out of their seat”.
-Guan Tdee (NXND Computer)
It was later expanded to include other game genre beyond just flight simulation.
What’s available at the Gaming Lounge?
There are various programmes to choose from. You are try out their immersive motion simulation with a choice of driving or flying on their motion platform.
Then there is a choice of a static panoramic screen, or VR. Team gaming (i.e. DOTA,CS,ArmA 3 and more) of up to 4 players are also available. More details are available on their site.
Booking and Opening Hours
Booking: Booking is needed to get a slot for the Gaming Lounge on their website at https://www.nxndcomputers.sg/book-online. Alternatively, you can whatsapp them at +65 9825-7608.
Opening Hours: Mon – Fri: 9am – 6pm and on appointment Sat: 9am – 2pm and on appointment Sun: On appointment
Address: 2022 Bukit Batok Industrial Park A Street 23 #01-138 Mezzanine, Singapore
With events cancelled or going online like the the latest edition of Anime Festival Asia, there is little place to go to satisfy your craving for all-things Japanese. Of course flying to Japan is impossible too at the moment.
Enter the new Rilakkuma themed Cafe by Kumoya Cafe. This pop-up cafe will be open for 6 months starting on 29 August 2020. Do note that this is a new Kumoya branch at Orchard Central. Their first cafe, Kumoya Singapore @ 8 Jalan Klapa, is still open but features not Rilakkuma but Bad-Barth-Maru and Gudetama.
For the uninitiated, Rilakkuma is a popular San-X character from Japan which translate loosely to “relaxing bear”. It has struck a chord with the generally hardworking Japanese simply with the idea of “let’s just relax” that is the epitome of the character.
Getting to the Cafe
Located at Orchard Central level 4, finding the place is not difficult at all. At the time of writing, the cafe does not allow reservation and only walk-in is allowed. So be prepared to queue for a period of time to get in.
We queued for about 50 minutes at around 1:30pm on a Thursday afternoon (we are there not as a media invite). Given it is still consider lunch hours when we are there, expect a shorter time during off peak hours like 3-5pm. And be prepared for a longer queue on weekends.
Customers are entitled to a maximum of 1 hour and 30 minutes in the restaurant. And with safe distancing, there are limited seating capacity. On the positive side, the experience overall is better with less people in the cafe. After all this is Rilakkuma – The Relax Cafe isn’t it?
The Food
Food-wise the selections are quite complete. From pasta to rice, desserts and drinks, you will be spoilt for choices. However, do not expect the price to be easy on the wallet. Each main is about $25-29. This is the typical pricing of such theme cafe.
We ordered the Chill-out Rilakkuma Yuzu Carbonara ($23.90), Chirpy Kiroiitori Beef Stew Rice ($23.90), Rilakuma Sweet Honey Pancake ($25.90) and a Lycee Momo Iced Tea with Chocolate ($13.90). Each dish is beautifully decorated ready for an Instagram moment. Taste-wise, while it is not something I will keep coming back for, it is fairly decent compared to other theme cafe we have been to.
The Merchandise
Beside the cashier counter, there is a corner full of kawaii Rilakkuma merchandise. Be sure to visit it while you are there. If you are a plushies lover, you will be glad to find some rare Rilakkuma plushies on sale there.
Overall
With the COVID-19 situation, visiting the cafe is one of the only way to get closer to a holiday experience. We would recommend a visit to the cafe if you are a fan of Rilakkuma.
One of the casualty of the COVID 19. The highly anticipated gaming events of the year gamescom Asia 2020 which is scheduled for October will be postpone to Oct 2021 instead. Hopefully the situation will get better by then and we can get back to attending conventions. Full press release below:
gamescom asia, originally planned for debut in Singapore this October, will move its inaugural edition to 2021.
Singapore, 10 June 2020 – The first edition of gamescom asia has been postponed to 14 – 17 October 2021. Up until the COVID-19 pandemic started, response for the event had been overwhelming. With strong interest and bookings from AAA game publishers, developers and country pavilions, preparation for gamescom asia was on track to deliver a world class event.
“As much as we would have loved to bring the event to life this October, the current global crisis has forced us to recalibrate our wants for gamescom asia. The health and safety of our visitors, exhibitors and staff is paramount. Moreover, for an inaugural event, we felt it was important to give the regional gaming community and fans the full experience of what an international event of this scale would be like, and not anything less. Today, we confirmed our decision to postpone the live event to 2021 instead,” expressed Mathias Kuepper, Managing Director of Koelnmesse Singapore, the organiser of gamescom asia.
He added, “The team has been in conversation extensively with all stakeholders, partners and the Singapore government over the last few weeks to decide on the best course of action for the safety of all our participants. While the common sentiment was hopefulness for large-scale events to go back to normalcy, we agreed that the world is not situationally ready for this to happen. With that, we will have to adapt and refocus our efforts on 2021, and offer digital engagements leading up to that date in support of the Asian games industry.”
gamescom asia is the first satellite event of the world’s largest event for computer and video games: gamescom. The premier event aims to showcase the diversity of gaming within the world’s fastest growing games market – Southeast Asia, while covering the global spectrum of the games industry, gaming culture, esports, regional and international releases and more.
“We welcome Koelnmesse’s continued support in these challenging times, and are committed to partner with Koelnmesse to deliver a successful gamescom asia in 2021. The inaugural event will be a highlight in Singapore’s events calendar and provide new business opportunities for local and regional companies. We look forward to welcoming delegates to the event next year,” said Mr Andrew Phua, Executive Director, Exhibitions and Conferences, Singapore Tourism Board.
gamescom asia 2021 will be held from 14 – 17 October 2021 in Singapore at the Suntec Convention & Exhibition Centre. For more information on the event, visit www.gamescom.asia or follow gamescom asia on major social media platforms.
– end –
About gamescom asia
gamescom asia aims to serve as the premier platform for Asian game developers to explore partnerships globally, and act as a hub for international publishers who are looking for the next big thing in games. New releases and gaming related offerings will also be showcased. With the business area, the entertainment area and the industry gaming conference, gamescom asia covers the entire diversity of the games culture. gamescom asia is organised by Koelnmesse Singapore and supported by game – the German Games Industry Association.
About gamescom
gamescom is the world’s largest event for computer and video games and Europe’s largest business platform for the games industry. Due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, gamescom 2020 will be held exclusively in digital format from Thursday, August 27, 2020 to Sunday, August 30, 2020. On-site events in Cologne will not take place this year given the current situation. gamescom is jointly organised by Koelnmesse and game – the German Games Industry Association.
Koelnmesse – Global Competence in Digital Media, Entertainment and Mobility:
Koelnmesse is an international leader in organising trade fairs in the Digital Media, Entertainment and Mobility segments. Trade fairs like photokina, DMEXCO, gamescom, gamescom asia, INTERMOT and THE TIRE COLOGNE are established as leading international trade fairs. Koelnmesse not only organises trade fairs in these areas in Cologne, but also in other growth markets like, for example, China, Singapore and Thailand, which have different areas of focus and content. These global activities offer customers of Koelnmesse tailor-made events in different markets, which guarantee sustainable and international business.
The next events: gamescom, Cologne, Germany, 27.-30.08.2020DMEXCO, Cologne, Germany, 23.-24.09.2020photokina, Cologne, Germany, 18.-21.05.2022
This is a busy end of the year in Singapore. After the Anime Festival Asia 2019 last week at Suntec, we now have the Singapore Comic Con at Marina Bays Sands Convention from 7-8 Dec 2019! Two days of fun and we are there to cover the event.
Singapore Pro Wrestling
In case you don’t know SPW stands for Singapore Pro Wrestling. Similar to your western counterpart WWE, SPW is about wrestling with a local twist.
Right at the entrance of SGCC, you will be greeted with a full wrestling ring with high adrenaline as audience watch local wrestler battle it out at a wrestling ring right before you eyes.
Fan-tastic Community Zone
Dedicated for all the hardcore pop culture fans, this area feature multiple fan clubs in Singapore. A good number of them are dedicated to the Star Wars franchise. You will see Mandalorain, Storm trooper and baby Yoda coexists together.
Artist Alley
Looking for things to buy? Support budding artists by buying their wonderful merchandise. This has to be the most crowded area in the entire show.
Main Floor
The SGTOY Display Booth has a fantastic collection of toy ranging from Disney Characters to Star Wars for you to admire. Toys are not for sale but the display cabinets are!
Let it go! Or should I say, into the unknown.
Various Toy companies such as Tamashi Nations and Mighty Jaxx are there to show off their wares. Some are not for purchase. But a look at them is totally free!
Star Wars X SamuraiAn intricate model of the Bat cave
This year’s LEGO booth is totally awesome! The centerpiece of the booth is the huge Jurassic Park LEGO model. Kids can also try their hands on using an iPad to control LEGO monster ticks and cranes.
Of course Tokidoki is there for the fans. Expect to queue up to get in.
Mighty Jaxx with the popular ‘X-ray’ toys
Good Game Experience (GGXP)
A dedicated area just for gaming, this year SGCC has team up with PVP Esports to bring your esports from Mobile Legend to DOTA2.
Once you crossover to the area with many tables , you know you are in the GGXP area. Tabletop games are now a staple of the show.
You cannot miss the PVP Esports area.
A nice place to play and relax Hearthstone battle ground
Mr Kiasu X Spongebob. Two wacky duo meeting together in same universe.
Cosplayers
What’s a Comic Con without cosplayers? Here are some of the awesome cosplayers we spotted.
Guardian of the Galaxy Ironwoman! First time seeing!Bumblebee. Fan made not from USS Predator spotted! Spidey and his poster.
Until next year…
It has been a full pack two days. Time to save up for the next SGCC!
