Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime?

Started by xBladeDragonx, May 29, 2011, 01:02:22 AM

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DJSaito

Was anyone else slightly disappointed in the panel selection this year, or is it just me not seeing some of the more fun panels?

Also, anyone else a little disappointed in the the game selection they had this year in the gaming hall?

SquallLHeart

#121
Quote from: Sen on May 31, 2011, 05:35:58 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
pre-reg on Thursday.. the lines were capped off at 8pm... which means anyone who came after 8pm.. could not get in line.. of course Registration still needed to be open until much later to finish off everyone else.. and i believe you heard wrong.. the line wasn't cut at 8pm.. and the lines finished at 9:30pm

No. The lines were cut at 8pm. Registration staff informed the Rovers that were present that they had not choice but to cut the lines. The reason the lines finished around 9:30pm was because the line was cut off at 8pm (Reg hours were 5-8pm that day). The decision to cut off the line was made because it the line was never going to end unless they did so. Plus I personally did not want to see Reg staff work themselves into the ground on Day Zero.
sorry.. i should've made myself clear.. with regards to lines.. i used the term "cap" and "cut" as two different definitions in my response.. cutting the line what i meant.. was at 8pm.. they stopped accepting anyone else completely (meaning shutting down registration.. so no one got in after 8pm)... thus when i said capping at 8pm.. it was what you mentioned as what you defined as cut.... and i called it capping off the line.

i was there helping to manage the lines.. so yes.. we turned away people (cut/cap.. however we want to call it) that showed up after 8pm... which then we finished that remaining line at 9:30pm... which i thought i did well enough in expressing if you read through the rest of that paragraph.

the complaint i was addressing was the person thought we were accepting people to get into lines until 9:30pm.. which was entirely incorrect.
yea.. bunch of odd definitions i guess at that point.. but yea.. sorry for the incorrect wording.

i think it's mostly because when most people say "cut".. they think of "cut off"... cutting off a line.. vs. cutting a line.. imo, are two different things.
Trung D. Nguyen
Fanime: Autographs Head '11 | Rovers '01-present | Gopher '99-'00
Anime Expo: AxCon '07-'2009
ComicCon: Vol '04-'05

staff/vol. for misc. conventions all around the nation... ranging from 30.. to 130K+ attendees...

Sen

Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 06:31:40 PM
Quote from: Sen on May 31, 2011, 05:35:58 PM
Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
pre-reg on Thursday.. the lines were capped off at 8pm... which means anyone who came after 8pm.. could not get in line.. of course Registration still needed to be open until much later to finish off everyone else.. and i believe you heard wrong.. the line wasn't cut at 8pm.. and the lines finished at 9:30pm

No. The lines were cut at 8pm. Registration staff informed the Rovers that were present that they had not choice but to cut the lines. The reason the lines finished around 9:30pm was because the line was cut off at 8pm (Reg hours were 5-8pm that day). The decision to cut off the line was made because it the line was never going to end unless they did so. Plus I personally did not want to see Reg staff work themselves into the ground on Day Zero.
sorry.. i should've made myself clear.. with regards to lines.. i used the term "cap" and "cut" as two different definitions in my response.. cutting the line what i meant.. was at 8pm.. they stopped accepting anyone else completely (meaning shutting down registration.. so no one got in after 8pm)... thus when i said capping at 8pm.. it was what you mentioned as what you defined as cut.... and i called it capping off the line.

i was there helping to manage the lines.. so yes.. we turned away people (cut/cap.. however we want to call it) that showed up after 8pm... which then we finished that remaining line at 9:30pm... which i thought i did well enough in expressing if you read through the rest of that paragraph.

the complaint i was addressing was the person thought we were accepting people to get into lines until 9:30pm.. which was entirely incorrect.
yea.. bunch of odd definitions i guess at that point.. but yea.. sorry for the incorrect wording.

No worries.  :)
BTW, I felt Rovers did an excellent job with the line on Day Zero. Shifting such a large number of people around as the line grew out the door while fielding questions is not easy.
Claudia

Chair Radio '15
Fan Services Division メンバーサービス共同本部長
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SquallLHeart

Yup! Rovers did a wonderful job.

I certainly did not expect those lines to be that long for... Day Zero!!.. wait.. day zero!? and the line went outside?!
Trung D. Nguyen
Fanime: Autographs Head '11 | Rovers '01-present | Gopher '99-'00
Anime Expo: AxCon '07-'2009
ComicCon: Vol '04-'05

staff/vol. for misc. conventions all around the nation... ranging from 30.. to 130K+ attendees...

otaku_duckie

I thought the rovers in charge of the autograph signings did an awesome job D: some loli chick and her friend did manage to cut in front of me for the FLOW autographs but i guess that was my fault for not reporting it.
Visit my deviantart!
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someone tell me how to draw feet! >_<

SquallLHeart

oh no!
yes!! please report if you see someone cutting.. we don't have superpowers where we can see everything that happens!

a special shout out to the Rovers that helped me with the lines at autographs.. esp. Bolin Chen (who was the guy in the green button up shirt that helped direct people), Quynh Chen, that was inside helping collecting donations from the Pray for Japan posters.. Also a shout out to a volunteer named David that went far beyond what he needed to.. and with only a crash course in line control.. he did very well.

the only thing that i really felt bad for.. was the FLOW line got so long to where we did have to cap off the line and turn people away.. and even in the end.. had to even have the last section of the line turned away after they had waited the whole time hoping they would still get a signing :'(

it was just... we capped off the line too late. :(

omg.. that line was soooooo long!!!! :o
Trung D. Nguyen
Fanime: Autographs Head '11 | Rovers '01-present | Gopher '99-'00
Anime Expo: AxCon '07-'2009
ComicCon: Vol '04-'05

staff/vol. for misc. conventions all around the nation... ranging from 30.. to 130K+ attendees...

otaku_duckie

Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
Visit my deviantart!
http://i-am-miss-duckie.deviantart.com/
someone tell me how to draw feet! >_<

lonemeditater

The Con itself was awesome. The only thing that let me down that was run by con speed dating. I never received an e-mail afterwards that told me my matches (or that I had no matches), but most other people did, so I was really upset about that... I still kinda am...
I'm me and I exist...

SquallLHeart

Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P
Trung D. Nguyen
Fanime: Autographs Head '11 | Rovers '01-present | Gopher '99-'00
Anime Expo: AxCon '07-'2009
ComicCon: Vol '04-'05

staff/vol. for misc. conventions all around the nation... ranging from 30.. to 130K+ attendees...

otaku_duckie

Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD
Visit my deviantart!
http://i-am-miss-duckie.deviantart.com/
someone tell me how to draw feet! >_<

SquallLHeart

Trung D. Nguyen
Fanime: Autographs Head '11 | Rovers '01-present | Gopher '99-'00
Anime Expo: AxCon '07-'2009
ComicCon: Vol '04-'05

staff/vol. for misc. conventions all around the nation... ranging from 30.. to 130K+ attendees...

MikeTSA

Has eGaming always banned the use of your own console for free play? I can understand the reasoning to an extent - somebody has an explicit game or modified game with explicit content not suitable for all audiences - but I was told only your own controllers could be used, not even your own games. Rules on website only say don't bring your own console, but then it also says "For Free Play times, we will allow some use of personal equipment". That's why I thought I was able to bring some stuff this time, just not the console. I'd gladly sign something in advance to waive liability of damage/theft OR submit all contents in advance for screening if it meant being able to play our own stuff. A few of us wanted to play the custom version of Brawl I spent a lot of time on finalizing for Fanime, and it was all PG-13 or milder content, but when I asked about setting up at the info desk, they said it wasn't allowed. We hoped others would see it and want to join in and have some fun.

My friend also pointed out two people set up their own systems earlier in the day in the free play area (walked up with backpacks and just hooked up and played). The only saving grace is the Marriott actually allowed composite cables to be connected to the HDTVs, so we were at least able to play in our room.

Listen, this didn't ruin my Fanime or any nonsense like this, and this is a really petty issue in the grand scheme of stuff. I did still have a lot of fun at Fanime.

Mango Bunny

Add: I liked that rover guy walking around the masquerade line and yelling us the rules. He was cool, and while obviously tired was still good-humored about it.

jacktchance

The things that bothered me such as rain, mediocre merchandise and high prices for sale in the dealer's hall, the sheer number of attendees, etc are unavoidable and are not the faults of anyone on staff.  I wont complain about them, but just wanted to point that out because of all the complaining going on.  I had no problems with rovers either.  The only time something happened, it only took about less than a minute of explaining before it was all sorted out.

However, please bring back the mini schedules.  I can't count the number of times I went to the help desks because I didn't know when and where certain gatherings and panels were.

Not the greatest Fanime, but I still had a great deal of fun and I appreciate all the hard work that goes into the con.

otaku_duckie

I liked the rover at the concert line who was screaming "WE WONT LET THIS RAIN GET US DOWN!"

there was another rover who i had an issue with, he was smoking while walking up and down the line for the concert. I seriously didnt appreciate that since i do have a medical condition and my doctor says to stay away from smokers.
Visit my deviantart!
http://i-am-miss-duckie.deviantart.com/
someone tell me how to draw feet! >_<

Shi_Musouka

I may have missed this, but my suggestion for future Fanimes regarding schedules is to make a note to attendees on the website that schedules are not guaranteed to be printed out at con so that the people traveling from "far away" will be able to print one from home before heading out, if necessary. If you guys wanted to go green and encourage other people to print them out, it really helps to make a note of it on the website section where the schedules are/will be posted. Overall, not having schedules were frustrating. I liked that there were mobile apps for it and I hope you guys continue to have mobile apps with schedules in the future, though it doesn't change the fact that not everyone has access to a smart phone or mobile internet(Sadly, I won't get my smartphone until after Fanime 2012 ;___;).

Staff-wise, it really helps to avoid con stress. Not only is it unhealthy, but you may end up taking your anger out on people who don't deserve it. Take a breather if you need to. It does you no good to perform your duties with your mental processing center(aka your brain) impaired. You can't stop stress entirely, but I personally think it helps out a lot in the long run if you take steps to minimalize it.

My two cents(this is just my own opinion and does not reflect those of our staff)

eHash

Nice catch Scott:After I posted that comment I thought about it and realized it's actually the con that picks concessions from a concenter approved list of vendors.  at least, that's what i've dealt with doing tradeshows there.

I'm not sure if i mentioned it here or not, but the rovers did a f_cking awesome job!
There just weren't enough...they need more people to volunteer *hint to people to volunteer

actually I think most staff did an awesome job...I think the lack of schedules, the rain, and the lack of staff knowledge about con events that they aren't associated with. 

i know schedules weren't guaranteed, There's no reason to assume an app would be available...I gues for the most part i'm not going to slam print since they put my page right on the centerfold (THANK YOU PRINT!!!), I think it's just a testament to how godly the mini/pocket-schedules were in 2010.  I think people don't really appreciate what they Had until it's gone or missing.

The weather we can't do anything about.

I would suggest that even though we can't do much about volunteer education, a larger portion of the last 2 mandatory meetings needs to be dedicated to presenting what the con is offering (you can't ask someone to sell what they don't know). 


tifachan101

Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:14:46 PM
Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 07:13:39 PM
Quote from: otaku_duckie on May 31, 2011, 07:02:03 PM
Who was the awesome rover in the purple shirt on saturday for the yuya signing? she did an awesome job keeping everyone in check :DD
oh.. i know her! yes.. she's awesome. :P

please tell her i said thank you and that she did an awesome job :DDD

I was wondering was it saturday or do you mean sunday because saturday there was a girl in a dress. was that her?

Rhornez

Quote from: Aelia on May 31, 2011, 04:22:49 PM
I'm not attempting to speak to, or for everything. I'm not attempting to speak for all staff, and these opinions are my own.

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 10:20:02 AM
Something to learn about rovers, crowd control etc. There are always bad and good staff members on the lower level(or any level). If you get a bad staff member, get their name and description and report them. Upper management does care about this stuff. They do not want bad staff members, but they don't know they're bad unless people report them.
This is something I'd like to reiterate. Had a bad experience with a staffer? Well, we can't fix it unless we know who it is. Contact their Department Head ASAP and get it taken care of at con rather than just complaining after the fact.

Quote from: SquallLHeart on May 31, 2011, 01:56:36 PM
Such "rudeness" from the staff that you may have experienced, I would have to say from observation, can be blamed from to the rudeness of the ATTENDEES. As conventions of any sort, or of any genre grow.. you get more and more individuals who are nothing more than belligerent folks who make the job of the staff much more difficult. Each attendee needs to be treated the same way from all the staff.. and as such.. they need to make judgement to do what they need to to keep order. If that requires enforcing rules they were told to enforce in a stern manner.. then why would you be complaining about them just doing their job?! I witnessed behind the scenes of how many intoxicated people they had to deal with. Not to be a killjoy, but it is very much emphasized that Fanime is a DRY CON. I have no sympathy for those that fail to abide that rule.. and you can blame them for ruining your fun.

Now... continuing on with "proper training" of the staff.. I don't know what other departments do.. but with Rovers in particular.. they were given PLENTY of training.. and to the point where they have implemented proficiency tests to filter out people. There's ALWAYS an understaffing issue.. and as the con grows.. and as more and more people who want to join staff increases as well... it makes it more difficult to make the balance between filtering out people vs. making sure we have enough.. I'm sure a few slithered their way in.. having that knowledge.. but perhaps poor application was witnessed. There is absolutely NO WAY you can be trained for that... that only comes from on-hand experience.

To give you an idea, we (Rovers) attempted to help well over 15,000 people with a little over 120 volunteers, many of whom worked well over 48 hours over the course of the convention. Things happened, and people may have been rude, or abrupt. We will be working to address this (as we do every year), but as stated, the best way to "fix" things is to participate. Every department at Fanime could use an extra pair of hands (or fifty) and we are almost always accepting volunteers.

Quote from: ash_chan on May 31, 2011, 03:25:06 PM
Another thing I noticed was attitude by some rovers. I didn't get their names, and I was so tired that I can't really give a description - nor do I really want to, as maybe they were just having a bad day - but I didn't really appreciate being talked to in the manner they did. The first incident was as I was walking down the designated walkway by stage zero. I was quite angrily snapped at to keep moving I was blocking traffic. While I understand that blocking traffic is not a good idea, there was a small child who tripped in front of me. I most certainly was not going to just stomp over this kid, I stopped to give him the space to stand up and brush himself off.

The second incident was as the gaming room was closing on Monday. I was sitting in a back corner, packing up my stuff (the announcement had been made about a minute before) when a rover comes up yelling that we needed to get out NOW. Now, I know you're tired, overworked, and just want to be done with it, I understand. But did you really need to be so mean about it? I was actively packing when you came up, how about worrying about the people putting coins in the games even though the announcement was made instead of the 2 girls who are obviously packing their things? The rovers in both of these cases were indeed doing their job, and I don't hold a grudge against them for the actions themselves, but it was in the way things were said. Attitude can be the difference between "This con was the best one yet!" and "THIS CON SUCKS, I'M NEVER GOING AGAIN." However, all in all, staff are awesome and kind folk who are super helpful. Tons of my friends staff/rove/etc and I hold tons of respect for those who do it.
We will continue attempting to address these issues, because to some degree it is training, and to some degree it is an individual's personality, rather than anything "fixable." 

As far as the shouting as Gaming was closing-- was that shouting at you specifically, or just shouting in general? A lot of the time, we're attempting to make ourselves heard, rather than trying to be mean.
its decided then,I am volunteering next year

Been going to Fanime Since 2008

bebop

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM

You do not have a single legitimate point in anything you posted at all. Every single thing you complained about either, didn't apply, or was you basically stating how you don't like people. "I don't like crossplayers" "I don't like the music they played at the dance"... etc. Seriously? Then you go off on a rant like Fanime is terrible because of things like this? Are you serious?

Why must I even go into specifics or provide hardcore proof that it wasn't good? I'm not here to convince you that Fanime 2011 sucks, I'm here to Re:Anyone else let down by this year's Fanime? Lmao, suck it up. Can't handle handle the way I feel about things or what? I'm sorry but I don't feel like being optimistic about it since last year when it actually started getting bad.

edit: However I did learn one thing, it is not the DJ to entirely blame for, it is the Con Management and their lame restrictions on limiting what people want to actually play.

The music sucks, my friends hated it, random people said they hated it, and other people on the forum said they don't like to dance to "techno" (Lol, it's not even techno). I personally don't hate it, but it just wasn't innovating, captivating, melodic, euphoric, dreamy, hard, or progressive. You think I'm the only one complaining about this? Wow, you'd be surprised bro!

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
But here's the fun one, not because it's my department because it makes absolutely no sense.

Uhuh, ok!

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
Ok... service. What do you mean by service? You don't even explain anything in this, you just complain about the food and say you don't get anything from it. Again, what kind of service did you expect? Do you even know what a maid cafe is? Seriously... first off, it's a cafe... not a restaurant. So if you're going to whine that it's not a 4/4.5 star restaurant you really need to get your head out of your ass. blah blah blah....

No I actually don't know what a Maid Cafe is. You didn't know that I didn't know? I went probably since it started, as I recall it was in its early awakening in 2009-present. (Not sure if it was there 2008-before though.)

I don't need to explain to you. If you don't agree with me then get off my nuts. If I don't like it, I'll say I don't like it. Just because it was good for you horny maid defending otakus in shining armor, doesn't mean that it's gonna be good for everybody. Some people just enjoy mediocrity, and some expect higher.

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
blah blah blah continued.... What I do care about is how you're attacking it totally off base. Just so you know, one of the staff members of the cafe is a cook in a high class restaurant. So please give me legitimate complaints instead of just "It sucked". And this goes for pretty much everything you said.

When I went to the Maid Cafe, they didn't really smile, and the Maids looked rather pissed off and annoyed because of who-knows-why. Maybe it's because otakus like you keep trying to hit on them. I understand because they are in dresses, heels, being stalked/checked out by creeps, and are under pressure and stress from many other responsibilities. But who told the maids they had to be that busy? If they can't pull it off then perhaps they should tone it down.

No smiles, no friendly vibe, and they didn't even check my table after they seated me. I don't want to go more into details, so shut up.

Restaurant and Cafe is nearly the same thing. Actually, it is even easier to do a Cafe than it is to do a restaurant. So really, it shouldn't be that hard at all for them. You still have to have customer service skills, social skills, common sense, friendliness, and lots of patience. How many tables are at the Maid Cafe anyway? How many Maids were even working?

Quote from: PyronIkari on May 31, 2011, 03:15:41 PM
blah blah blah continued.... Just so you know, one of the staff members of the cafe is a cook in a high class restaurant.

LMAO is this guy serious? I'M A COOK IN A HIGH CLASS RESTAURANT, I MAKE FROZEN MEDIOCRE FOOD AND OVERCHARGE BECAUSE I GOT CUTE LITTLE MAIDS WHO WILL MAKE UP FOR MY MEDIOCRITY! THOSE IDIOTS WILL NEVER KNOW!

please, you're a sick joke. get out of here

-----------------------------

Quote from: PicahoeTry wearing high heels for even a few mins without complaining. Add the harassment that they get and how busy it was, put it together, and I think you're 4/4.5 restaurant would turn into a -1.  

Btw, do they even get paid?

Lol, how hard is it to just check up on tables 2-3 times, talk to the customers nicely with a smile, show a passion for the work, walk back and forth and bring frozen sandwiches and cold drinks out of a fridge, ignore annoying creeps that harass, or better yet, take the harassment lightly and just joke around with them casually. I get harassed or hit on by girl customers at work, and I just take it lightly and play along or make jokes with it. It really isn't that hard. Either the maids are shy, or they just don't have those kinds of social skills. What I do notice about the Maid Service at the Cafe is they give me a vibe that they just want to do their work, finish us off, and get us the hell out of here so they could finish. I get a vibe that they just want it to be over with, so they could leave.

If you don't wanna accept feedback, and you like to face the wall of ignorance, then just ignore what I have to say. I wasn't directing toward you anyway in the first place anyway.

But, it's ok, I understand, if I complain and make feedback, it is my fault, not theirs.  ::) ::) ::) Kinda ironic,  ::) because at restaurants/cafes if something is going bad, it is usually the workers that should take the blame. (Even if it wasn't the worker's fault. The customer will feel better that they are not responsible.)

Anyways.... just for the record, I'm an otaku too... kind of, not as much as before, so no need to call me a hypocritical person. (Look at my sig yo!)
Awakening to otaku inside. ^-^