After a few years in which travel and simply getting together was restricted, it’s been wonderful to see conventions of all kinds making a big comeback in 2022. UK video gamers aren’t short of a con or two over the year, but perhaps one of the most exciting for us old school retro gamers is arriving in August: Nerdcon!
What is Nerdcon then?
The brainchild of Brad Burton – leading UK motivational speaker, entrepreneur and ex-Games Master/Games World reviewer and commentator – and his business partner, streamer Paul ‘Middle Aged Gamer’ Spicer, Nerdcon is a proper celebration of 40 years plus of gaming culture.
When and where is Nerdcon being held?
Retro arcades seem to be having a bit of a moment right now too – and Nerdcon will be held at one of the UK’s finest: Bury’s Arcade Club, on the 17th of August 2022. Impressively, Arcade Club has the distinction of being Europe’s biggest arcade! The event will run from 9am to 9pm on the day.
What can I expect from Nerdcon?
As well as over 300 arcade machines, 50 pinball machines and many more retro games, Nerdcon will feature numerous panels and speakers throughout the day. Former VP of Development at beloved UK software house Ocean, Gary Bracey, is scheduled to appear, along with veteran games journalist Paul ‘Chicken’ McNally and even Nerdcon organiser Brad Burton himself, to discuss his time as a TV video games reviewer in the 90s.
That’s not all though: various sessions will be held throughout the day in which attendees can link up with likeminded people and get involved with lively debates on stage – where the big questions will be asked and points argued. Naturally, this being Nerdcon, the biggest topics will focus on classic areas of geekery: Star Wars or Star Trek? C64 or Spectrum? Amiga vs ST? You think we have console wars today? That’s nothing compared to the SNES vs Mega Drive arguments in the playgrounds of the early 90s – so perhaps Nerdcon will be able to settle these debates once and for all!
There’s much more – including a Charity Gauntlet Challenge and a Galaga High Score Challenge; the latter of which even has cash prizes on offer. Plenty of other gaming challenges will be held too – with prizes to be won for those as well.
Is Nerdcon family friendly?
Naturally – with such a rich history of gaming being covered – the games and panels on offer will appeal to old school gamers as well as younger players. Nerdcon is designed to be an all ages affair, as most of those 80s gamers are now old enough to have children of their own (if not quite grandchildren – though I’m sure that’s the case for some of us!).
What will it cost to attend?
Prices start at £25 for tickets to attend Nerdcon in person – but if you can’t make it to Bury, online-only tickets, which cost £10, will allow people to watch all of the events on the main stage (either live or on catch-up later) online.
Each ticket purchase comes with raffle tickets – the earlier you book, the more raffle tickets you get on the day; the lucky winner of the star prize will get to take home a brand new PS5 console! For further information and to purchase tickets, check out www.nerdcon.co.uk.
With less than 400 tickets remaining, it’s well worth securing your place at the con as soon as possible.
There’s more too, with exhibitors to be announced, a cosplay showcase and even new games to try out. Nerdcon is shaping up to be an absolutely unmissable event for gamers of all ages!
Jason – who lives in the UK – has had a lifelong interest in video games, which all started when he discovered Space Invaders in the early 80s. The first game he ever completed was Wonder Boy in Monster Land on the Sega Master System – which remains one of his proudest gaming achievements. Jason is a passionate writer – and has been writing about gaming since the late 90s. He currently runs pop culture blog midlifegamergeek.com, which he updates on a daily basis (and has written more than 700 articles on the blog alone!).
Outside of video games, Jason is a keen tabletop gamer, film buff and comic book fan.
