Enthusiasts and collectors of comics, figures, video games, trading cards and much more will descend upon the Regional Market on Sunday, July 12, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., for Salt City Collect-A-Con. The event will feature vendors and guests from across the upstate area, as well as an array of video game tournaments.
The second annual Collect-a-Con takes place at the market’s F-Shed, 2100 Park St. Events include cosplay contests for both kids and adults, tournaments for retro video games of yesteryear (sponsored by Infinite Lives); tournaments for modern games such as Super Smash Bros. on Wii U, Injustice: Gods Among Us (a fighting game featuring characters from DC Comics) on Playstation 4, and Mortal Kombat X on Xbox One (sponsored by GameStop), and free tabletop gaming (sponsored by Play the Game Read the Story). There will also be a children’s activity area with a coloring contest, and of course, buying, selling and trading of collectibles and memorabilia.
“This year we have triple the space, triple the vendors,“ said T.J. Yeldon, owner of Larger than Life Toys and Comics, and the event’s organizer. Proceeds from a charity raffle will be donated to the Boys and Girls’ Club of Syracuse.
Prizes will consist of items donated by the show’s various vendors; Larger than Life, for instance, will be contributing vintage comics and video games to the raffle. “We have about 40 vendors and it’s a requirement that they donate an item to the raffle table,” Yeldon said. “Hopefully we’ll raise at least a few thousand dollars for them.”
The event will also feature special guests in the form of cosplay groups such as the “Ghostbusters of Rochester,” the film buffs who produce screen-accurate costumes for appearances at charity events. Yeldon also says he hopes to have a presence from the local chapter of the “501st Legion,” a group of Star Wars cosplayers.
Yeldon expects a turnout of approximately 2,000 guests from across the state. “I was at Albany Comic Con and there were guys there who had driven all the way from Rochester to go to a con about the same size as ours.
Advance tickets are $7, with door admission set at $8. VIP packages are available, starting at $10. Advance tickets are available at saltcitycollectacon.com.
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