This year, my experience at Anime NYC was vastly different from previous years.
The Anime NYC 2024 Experience
For reference, I went to this convention the first year it opened up, and the following two, afterward. The pandemic hit – and to be honest I hadn’t even been in the city again since just before the beginning of 2019.
Which is strange to think about, as I went to college out there, had internships, and even held a job I liked very much before quitting in late 2018. I was prepared to build a life in the city nearly 5 years ago, and now I have an ever-growing garden, and desires to move to the countryside.
These feelings of uncertainty tinged with curiosity swelled inside of me as I made my commute that was once routine, but now felt foreign to visit Anime NYC – a convention I enjoyed long ago.
Experiencing the Showroom Floor as Press Personnel
As you can tell by the title of this paragraph header, I actually went to Anime NYC as press this year. This was my first time ever doing such, and honestly the difference between attending as press, and as an average con goer felt like the stark difference between day and night.
However due to the way I decided to enjoy the anime convention, I had a mixture of both worlds that felt like twilight edging unto an early autumn dawn.
Despite gaining a massive influx of people (welcomed or otherwise – ) my town is still relatively “small town” if you catch my drift.
As such, the trains don’t run nearly as often as busier hubs, especially on weekends. Ironically enough, I ended up taking a 7 am train – as the next one wouldn’t be for a couple hours and the convention would have been well on its way if I arrived early noon – and was reminded suddenly of how often I took this same line before the pandemic on weekends to work years ago.
A lot of my favorite haunts closed since the pandemic, but I was able to visit H-Mart in Koreatown for breakfast before heading down to the Javits Center. I wanted to visit Kinokuniya and Sunrise Mart over by Bryant Park as well due to nostalgia, but unfortunately ran out of time during the day to do so before I went home.
After grabbing some light snacks and a canned coffee, I made the fairly straight forward trek towards the water to the Jacob Javits Convention Center.
Around 9th Avenue is when I started seeing the con goer crowd, marked by various cosplays and chibi anime plushies in a clear zipper pouch on their backpacks and shoulder bags.
I reached the convention center and went through my designated entrance, and picked up my badge at the proper kiosk. The people there were very kind, and friendly. That was a theme that thankfully lasted the entire time I was at Anime NYC – everybody was friendly, kind, and wanted to be there.
I arrived around 9:30 am -ish to the convention center, and the showroom floor and exhibition hall opened at 10 am on Saturday.
As I was aimlessly walking around the foyer taking pictures of the indoor crowds and overhead anime banners, I was (politely) directed to the correct location by multiple security personnel unprompted.
This surprised me the most – as in years prior I felt security (and even the bag checks) to be quite daunting and draconian. I arrived at a small line where other press badge holders were standing, before deciding to leave after realizing the bathrooms would most likely be free since the Level 2 Concourse was currently empty, and the bathroom was to the left of the escalator down.
After doing my business I took the escalator back up and outside behind the large glass windows saw the massive crowds of anime fans waiting to get into the convention.
I stopped to take a photo, before heading back to the same spot as earlier and realizing the line of people previously there was gone. I asked security what happened to the line and they ushered me into the exhibition hall where the others, guests, and industry staff were walking around.
I had a list of interesting booths to check out that I created the night before after perusing the Anime NYC subreddit, but didn’t feel the need to rush around and go as I was enamored by watching the major exhibitor booths at the front (Crunchyroll, Viz, Hololive) finish setting up.
I was taking photos of statues, wall displays, and other interesting things before the crowds came, and somehow wandered over to the Bandai Namco booth where I completed a survey and had a lovely conversation with one of the men working the booth of Gundam and collectibles.
Before I knew it, I started hearing noise and noticed the first set of con goers who had been waiting online running onto the showroom floor. I decided to take some pictures of the hall as it began to fill up, and then realized I should start my list.
I wanted this convention to be different from my previous experiences, so I decided to focus on the people – and authentic human experiences, rather than industry panels and exclusive merch drops.
So as I made my way across the entire convention checking off my list, I walked slowly (not in an annoying way) to really take in what was going on around me. I wanted to be present, and fully engulfed in the moment.
I think because that was my intention and I kept a positive mindset, that’s why I met so many wonderful I people, had so many great and insightful conversations with people, and spotted an array of creative and amazing cosplays that I stopped to take pictures of (with the cosplayers consent first, of course!).
I had a charming conversation with the man at the U.S. – Japan Tourism Year 2024 booth regarding our mutual love for Attack on Titan and Sacred Anime Pilgrimages (“Seichi junrei”) in general.
Also, the new Japanese anime 88 spots brochure was available at this table! I’ve been collecting these at various anime conventions over the years in hopes that I can use one whenever I finally get to Japan (and visit Kumamoto on the island of Kyushu for my Natsume Yuujinchou inspired sacred anime pilgrimage).
Maybe before the year is out I’ll finally get to visit Japan. Seeing the fall foliage in Japan would be nice, as well.
I figured out Akiba House‘s secret code (“First Year”) before visiting, and the woman behind the register giggled at me while handing me my prized pin 😊.
There were many talented artists with booths inside and outside of Artist Alley that I spotted while walking around Anime NYC, as well.
On the Hololive line while waiting to recieve a free bag (which I used to carry all of my posters and freebie art so that they didn’t get creased or smashed in my shoulder bag) someone was taking a tally for I guess a waifu named Lamy?
The Emaqi Manga for Life booth was offering free manga, and a spin at winning a prize if you gave them your email. The internet (especially on my phone) was pretty poor at the Javits Center and they allowed me to use a spreadsheet on their display laptop to enter my email to try for a prize.
Also, I wasn’t expecting the nice lady standing behind the booth by the manga to jump into the photo ( I’m not used to people actually wanting their photo taken at conventions until this year) so that’s why my photo captured her mid-pose.
(I won a clear file folder with a design by the way, and they even gave me a bag to hold it in.)
GFUEL was at the convention. For years I saw that advertised by gamers on YouTube and Twitch. I asked about the free sample packets I heard about online and unfortunately they ran out on the first day. They did have samples from a can to try, though. The guy behind the counter was very friendly.
I stopped by the row of study in Japan and learn Japanese language booths at the convention and chatted with a few of them.
Everyone was very excited (and proud) to speak about the programs they offered. It was refreshing to see such displays of authentic enthusiasm and passion on display.
Go! Go! Nihon was very friendly, and had a unique study program that could be catered to the individual’s needs. I’d recommend you check their website out if you’d like to study in Japan on your own terms and with easier accommodations to choose from.
The Marines showed up to Anime NYC this year, and brought their version of a diesel truck itasha!
(I heard that they came last year, as well.)
Artist Alley was dazzling, as always. It was nice just browsing the long rows of booths down the different aisles at a leisurely pace.
@sire2wavey
(I may have caught the young lady off with the trio off guard by asking for their socials to tag the photos, lol)
The War of the Rohirrim is a new animated film in The Lord of the Rings franchise. Their booth was giving away maps of the fantasy kingdom alongside character pins.
People were sitting on the carpet in front of the Hololive booth watching the characters onscreen (or just resting and scrolling through their phones? Lol it seems like it’s 50/50).
Yen Press was offering a spin of the wheel for a prize, and free posters for popular anime series alongside bookmarks and paper headbands. I grabbed a Delicious in Dungeon poster and an Oshi no Ko fan.
(I won a Finding Camellia clear file folder at the booth.)
Destination Cosplay at the River Pavilion
I headed up the escalator to visit the cosplay area in the River Pavilion of the Javits Center. On my way up I saw the most delightful Laios cosplay from anime series Delicious in Dungeon by @willthechamp.
It was pretty packed the first time I went up, and even more my second time around before leaving in the late afternoon.
(This was my experience during the first go around early on into the day, before noon.)
I thought the cosplay sets were superbly done, and the sets enabled cosplayers to get specialized photo shoots done in a matter of minutes from what I could observe while in the area.
There was somebody in a Gengar cosplay and his waddle was so cute that even I wanted a picture with him! Thank you to the kind woman who saw me struggling to take a selfie, and offered to take (multiple) pictures of me on my phone.
That was very kind, and they all came out great! It’s a great photographic memento of my time spent at the con this year.
I thought the Ito En cosplay set was especially nice with the vending machines and Japanese urban street backdrop. Ito En is a sponsor this year at the convention, so that might also be why they went all out with a highly authentic cosplay set.
A bird’s eye view of the convention floor from the River Pavilion.
Play NYC Gaming Hall Experience at Anime NYC
The Play NYC area at Anime NYC wound up becoming a dark horse of sorts for me at the convention. I ended up passing the escalator down to this section of the con while on my way to ask for directions to the press lounge. Before I went to check in with them and say hi, I decided to see what video games and creators were out and about in the gaming hall.
To my surprise, alongside the standard fare of DDR, Japanese taiko drums, and old school racers I found a bunch of small developers and initiatives dedicated to creating fun and engaging games.
Crunchyroll brought one of their infamous crane machines to the gaming hall and people were winning prizes left and right!
It was fully stocked and the Final Fantasy ducks were the most popular item while I was there (and the easiest to win).
Unfortunately, I already have one of those ducks (I won it at either NYCC or AX con years ago) so I went for the more challenging (and somewhat buried) Bojji plushie from Ousama Ranking in the pit.
Obviously, I wasn’t successful…but I did get a bag as a consolation prize from Crunchyroll Staff – so that was nice!
The guys at Turbo were very helpful and eager to explain their new game engine. They wanted to make something anybody could use, even with little to no coding experience required.
I was even stopped while perusing the dev’s displays and literally asked if I “would like a side quest” while at the convention.
The Indie Game Academy tasked me with helping a stranger while at the convention. I didn’t come back to the booth ( the thought of retelling a good deed aloud kind of embarrassed me) but I did have a goal in mind to help people, and be friendly and kind for the remainder of my convention experience.
The Press Lounge
After quite literally walking the entire convention floor twice and venturing to the cosplay and gaming halls, I had finally found the press lounge!
To be fair, it was hidden behind all of the growing lunch crowds, down a relatively nondescript curtained corridor with signage outside stating “do not enter”…so I’m going to be easy with myself on taking so long to find it.
(The press lounge sign was behind the curtain, further into the corridor lol. I’m sure it’s for security reasons.)
I was a little nervous at first entering the room (because I felt like it had an intimidating vibe because everybody was so hard at work) but it turned out everyone I spoke with was incredibly warm and inviting.
I even had the opportunity to sit and participate in an interview about a particular show, which was a great experience. The interview had to end early however, and afterward I rushed back to the exhibition hall and threaded through the now thick and slow-moving crowds to claim my free autograph ticket.
(Ideally, I should have gone earlier for the wristband, but would you believe me if I told you that I couldn’t find the autograph section while in the exhibition hall? – I literally saw it from the cosplay pavilion, but couldn’t find it when I was down there. I even used the map and still couldn’t get it right!)
I was obviously too late due to poor planning on my part but it’s okay – because better experiences were ahead.
One Last Round Before Leaving Anime NYC
I decided to take one last lap around the convention hall before heading back to the train station.
Everywhere was super crowded as the day went on, but it wasn’t uncomfortable and people were still polite if you were accidentally bumped into.
I caught a few more cosplayers attention for photographs, took a few last pictures of the event hall, and then decided to head back home (since I was starting to run on E).
Would I Attend Anime NYC 2025?
Overall, I had a great experience at Anime NYC 2024.
I wanted to just have a chill, but positive day and that is exactly what I got. I prized experiences between human connections rather than objects, freebies hunting, or speed running panels. I felt like I could enjoy the anime convention more than if I put too much pressure on myself to see or do certain things, or get somewhere before an event or seating space “sells out” or caps at capacity.
It was a great convention for my first time being back in the city since 2019, and I love the change of Anime NYC being in the Summertime now rather than the fall. Sure, there are other conventions during the summer, but this one is local to me, and holds a special place in my heart.
So, would I attend Anime NYC 2025? Absolutely – unless by that time next year I had moved to my rural homestead far away from New York State. If that is the case then no, as I’d have to stay home and tend to my crops and farm animals 🙂.
But, tell me your thoughts – did you attend Anime NYC this year? What activities do you enjoy doing at anime conventions? Does distance matter to you, or are you willing to travel a bit for the experience?
Leave your thoughts in the comment section below, I’d love to hear from you! Also be sure to follow us for more Anime Convention coverage!
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