TwitchCon North America 2024 returned to the San Diego Convention Center, marking my third attendance at the event. This venue was far more convenient than last year’s Las Vegas location, where I missed out on numerous Twitch parties and events because I didn’t think to grab some nice insoles and my feet paid the price. The Vegas experience was further complicated by events split between the Strip and Fremont Street, making spontaneous meetups challenging. In contrast, San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter centralized nearly all activities, enhancing the overall experience. The absence of obstacles like F1 construction and pricey Vegas rideshares also contributed to a smoother convention.
TwitchCon Day 0 – Thursday
I got in early and got all settled in around noon. I try to arrive at TwitchCon a day early just so I’m not scrambling to pick up my badge. I hit badge pickup and got my Twitch community gift – a plastic bag, acne cleanse sample, and two joystick covers. It was a little lackluster compared to previous years. All they’d need to do is add a little thing of deodorant, gold bond, and some sunscreen and I bet everyone would be stoked. There were also Twitch Affiliate and Twitch Partner Gifts but to be completely honest I’m never exactly sure where that booth is located. It was a pretty easy day; I mostly just hung around the badge pickup area and linked up with old friends.
TwitchCon Day 1 – Friday
This was my day to walk around the TwitchCon convention floor, check out the booths, and catch a few events. I first attended a Twitch panel called Soulsborne Streamers: A Summoning. This featured some of the most popular Soulsborne streamers talking about everything from challenge runs to alternative controllers to how to handle trolls and backseaters coming into your chat. I followed that up by going to the Elden Ring Community Meetup. I appreciate that they had plenty of space for the community meetups but they’d have two running side by side so it would get a little loud and cramped. Clark Luck™ also hit me hard; as soon as I left for another event I was told I won something in the Elden Ring giveaway – either a press kit or a figurine.
I was planning to attend a pro wrestling panel but Ezikeyal from The Four Directions and StreamerHouse graciously invited me along to their spot at the Capcom booth and I got to check out Monster Hunter Wilds. Now Monster Hunter is one of those titles that my community has told me to check out and it’s been sitting in my backlog for a good minute, so if anyone has recommendations on where to start, let me know in the comments!
The first half of the session was just getting a feel for the game and going through tutorial stuff. I come from playing a lot of Soulsborne games, so it took a little bit to get used to. I was told to check out the Long Sword since that would have me feeling like an anime protagonist. Palico also sold me on this game – having a cute cat companion that’s super competent!? – yeah, I’m all in. Ezekiel carried me through a mission, and we spent the remainder of the session time running around monster hunting. The combat felt fluid and having NPCs jump in to assist added an extra level of epic to the hunt.
I ended the evening with an invite to the Funcom & Fun Pimps TwitchCon Afterparty. They were hyping up the launches for Dune:Awakening and 7 Days Blood Moons and I got a pretty sweet 7 Days Blood Moons swag bag. I saw a few folks walking out with those Dune popcorn buckets and I was massively confused at first because I thought someone was just carrying around a vase or an urn like they’re Paul Bearer. It was a banger party, and I also got to meet a couple of the folks with Goose Goose Duck.
TwitchCon Day 2 – Saturday
This was my busy day! This was my first year getting to do things on the industry side and these companies go all out with some good food and drinks. Twitch tends to have their official parties and then you pretty much have to keep an eye on brands and social media for all of the unofficial Twitch events. I started things off by popping over to the Logitech G Experience. They’re one of my favorite brands for headsets – the Astro line fits great around my giant dome and they’re comfy for when I’m going long with streaming, gaming, or whatever. For my first couple of years of streaming, I used the Logitech C922 and I’ll still suggest that for anyone who’s budget-conscious and just looking to dip their toes.
I also popped over to the Devolver Duck Out Mixer for a little bit. It was held at the Hard Rock Hotel so I took a moment to geek out at all the memorabilia as I made my way up to the room. I thought it was a nice touch that they had a hot tub full of rubber duckies. The vibes were really chill; the demo area was busy so I mostly mingled with people.
My next stop was the Owlchemy Labs Happy Hour and it was legit one of the highlights. The vibes were fantastic, and I haven’t had a chance to really mess around with VR stuff so getting to try out Dimensional Double Shift was awesome. Just watching people seated in a circle trying out the game was hilarious and I’m pretty sure someone kept trying to hi five me while I was in the game trying to reach for stuff. Our demo had four of us working a restaurant shift attempting to fire off 15 tickets. Each station had certain ingredients – I was in charge of the meat, someone else had the veggies, etc. I was impressed at how fluid it was to pass or toss items back and forth between everyone as we were trying to complete tickets. Our team ended up with two sections on fire and one entire person on fire, so I think we did alright all things considered.
I took a rally nap and the next stop was the TwitchCon Block Party. They closed down a decent portion of the Gaslamp Quarter and all the restaurants had buffet-style stations. The shrimp and grits at one joint were killer and another place had some bomb ravioli. My only complaint was that they didn’t clarify all the food was free and that beer, wine, and n/a beverages were also free, so I heard from a lot of folks that they already ate before they pulled up. My hotel was a little pricy, but it came in clutch because it was stumbling distance, and I called it a night shortly after.
TwitchCon Day 3 – Sunday
Sunday was pretty low-key because I definitely went a little too hard at the Block Party. One of my main goals for the convention was to make sure to link up with all the Indigenous relatives, so I spent the day meeting up with some of my teammates from The Four Directions, Indigihorror Squad, and Indigenous Alliance. I was a little disappointed that none of the Indigenous panels were approved this year. I hope that going forward Twitch can give some transparency on the selection process. It was one of the only critiques I had in the feedback form they emailed out after TwitchCon. Throughout the convention, I got to meet up with some of the former and current leaders of the Unity Guilds and it was validating to hear that they’re pushing for us.
Overall though it was the best TwitchCon I’ve been to so far. I could probably fill an entire section with shout-outs to all of the amazing people I met and especially to the folks that helped me make some connections. They immediately announced the dates for 2025 so I’ll be around next year for some more coverage!
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