The Vancouver Retro Gaming Expo returns to New Westminster

Imagine beating your friends at Retro Gaming Jeopardy, hanging out with Mario or Yoshi, or learning all about homebrew gaming development. (Yep, that’s a thing!)

This is just some of what you’ll be able to experience at the Vancouver Retro Gaming Expo, as it returns to New Westminster.

Event details:

• When: Saturday, June 25 from 11 am to 9 pm 

• Where: Anvil Centre

• Cool things to do: check out the vendor hall and artist alley, free-play gaming, musical performances, contests, and guest panels

• Admission: $25 + GST. Buy tickets online to save time. Tickets also available at Gamedeals and at the door. 

Show director Brian Hughes, who also owns Gamedeals, says the Vancouver Retro Gaming Expo will be going in a bit of a different direction this year. The last time the show took place was 2019.

“We really sat down and assessed what it is that people value at the show, what are the core elements, and we’ve reconfigured since then,” says Hughes. And even with some hurdles – for instance, some content providers moving away – he says there’s still so much to look forward to.

“We’ve got the Super Smash Bros Experience setting up an entire room of Super Smash Brothers gaming, there’ll be training and tips and ways to improve your Smash Brothers game. We’re also excited about Happyland Events. They’re coming with mascots, so they’ll be wandering around the show.”

There will also be arcade machines coming in from Capital City, and a number of panels – everything from game collecting to gaming trivia, and even learning how to make chip music. Hughes also expects the vendor hall to be extremely busy.

“Gamedeals runs a liquidation table, where we liquidate a bunch of cheap games – and we’ve been able to build those up for three years,” says Hughes, “and a lot of the local shops are there, plus there are a lot of independent guys that bring in some unique stuff.”

Whether you’re a casual gamer or take it seriously, Hughes says he’s proud of the community feel that this event highlights.

“I’ve met a lot of my good friends through [Gamedeals] and through local events, and I know that they’ve met other people through these events, too. That’s the core vibe of the show, is getting like-minded people together to have fun doing the thing they like,” explains Hughes.

“It’s a one-day show because we want everything to be packed into one fun day so that you can go have a great time, and then sleep in the next day,” Hughes says with a laugh. “Everyone likes fun. The point is for everyone to have fun.”