A massive retro gaming festival featuring vintage vendors, gaming tournaments, cosplay contests, and appearances by industry legends.
Classic Game Fest takes over the Palmer Events Center from Friday, July 24, through Sunday, July 26. It's one of the biggest retro gaming events in the country, filling more than 100,000 square feet of the center, which looks out over Lady Bird Lake and the downtown skyline. The whole weekend is built around a massive vendor hall of retro games and collectibles, a Free Play Arcade, and retro gaming tournaments that run all weekend long. There's also an Indie Game Showcase with ten independent developers, cosplay contests, and on-site video game repairs and disc resurfacing. It's one of the largest retro gaming marketplaces in North America, and they'll have live music and food trucks on hand too.
The guest list is a who's who of gaming history. Charles Martinet, the voice of Mario, Luigi, Wario, and Waluigi, will be there, along with James Rolfe, known as the Angry Video Game Nerd. Composer Grant Kirkhope is on the bill, as are Doug Walker and Brad Jones from Channel Awesome. The Atari All-Stars—David Crane, Gary Kitchen, and Dan Kitchen—will also be making appearances.
If you want to do more than just walk the floor, VIP passes add early entry each day, a collectible wristband, exclusive discounts, and a free CGF t-shirt. The venue is within walking distance of plenty of hotels, restaurants, and bike rentals, so it's easy to build a whole weekend around it.
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Hours are 1 PM to 7 PM on Friday, 10 AM to 7 PM on Saturday, and 11 AM to 5 PM on Sunday. You can get three-day wristbands or one-day wristbands for Friday, Saturday, or Sunday only; kids 10 and under get in free if they're with an adult. There's limited paid parking in the venue garage for $12 a day, card only.
