Techmaniacs, talks to us about Digital 360 and Digital Universe, two huge Gaming & Tech Conventions from the past, as well as about Cosplay and its work!
360 DEGREE TURN IN GAMING !
Digital 360 και Digital Universe! 2 huge Videogames and Technology conventions in Athens, straight from the past! Starting on April 5, 2015, Techmaniacs in cooperation with Gamespace and New York College, hosts the huge videogames and technology convention Digital Universe at New York College in Athens! After 3 events, Digital 360 follows, in collaboration with others, for one and only time, gathering 8.000+ visitors during its 2 day run at Peristeri Convention Center in Athens!
Videogames, eSports, VR, indies, technology, exhibitions, PCs, consoles, youtubers, influencers, artists, stores and generally whatever every gamer desires, was there! Needless to say, our favourite Cosplay being among them, with Digital 360 in Athens gathering 47 Cosplays, in 2017!
Multiple speeches, presentations, workshops, tournaments, shows, escape rooms and much more, created a very extensive program, not giving the public any chance to get bored even for a moment! Among them, the Cosplay Contest and Cosplay Workshops one could watch during the events! Their Cosplay Alley provided the opportunity to check out the work of various cosplayers, while at the same time, Cosplayers//GR was present until its last event either with its own area, providing Cosplay Photo / Video Shoots, Cosplay Photo Galleries & Videos and Cosplayer Luggage Storage or either for the complete coverage of the events!
Some “firsts” related to Cosplay couldn’t be missing of course!
The 1st Cosplay Workshop in a Convention in Athens, at Digital Universe #2!
The 1st Cosplay Alley in Athens and Greece, at Digital Universe #3!
The 1st Cosplay Stand and Photo Exhibition at a Convention by Cosplayers//GR in Athens, at Digital Universe #3!
Let’s talk about everything with Dimitris Abrazis, founder of Techmaniacs, as well as what the future holds for the Digital Universe and Digital 360!
Find Techmaniacs on the following media! Page - Facebook - Youtube - Twitter - Instagram Page - Facebook - Instagram Check out the organizer's profile and events, with all their info and thousands of photos & videos, on our website, HERE!
TECHNOLOGY AND DIGITAL ENTERTAINMENT !
1) Tell us a few words about Techmaniacs What do we need to know about you?
Techmaniacs.gr is a website founded in 2012 that deals with everything that has to do with the world of technology. From 2012 until today it presents a steady increase in its audience and is currently one of the largest, if not the most visited technology page in Greece. Specifically in 2020 it reached 3.500.000 unique users and over 16.000.000 pageviews. Its themes include everything related to technology, from computers and mobile phones, to consoles and digital entertainment systems. In general, we are a page that is constantly evolving and adding new categories, since technology is also evolving and entering new areas every day. Of course we also hosted our events, some of them in the gaming scene too, with the most famous ones being Digital Universe and Digital 360.
Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
2) Tell us a few words about Digital 360, its history and content! How did it start? What themes was it about? Were those themes based on the organizers’ personal interests, and if so, when did you start taking an interest in each of them, before your first event?
Digital 360 came after the end of the collaboration we had for the creation of the Digital Universe. It was an event that, in addition to the gaming aspect, had other subjects, such as computers, smartphones and of course cosplay, on which we placed special emphasis. We’ve been gamers since we can remember and we’ve always loved the scene, so we couldn’t help but create events for people who share the same love for games, anime and the world of digital entertainment in general. We saw that there was a demand for something like this among our audience, so we proceeded to its design and implementation, having of course the experience and resources from the Digital Universe too.
Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
3) What led you to proceed with organizing Digital 360? How long and what exactly did it take until it was possible? How did you move on from Digital Universe to Digital 360? How did Digital 360 differ compared to your previous events? What could one find there and how do you think it differed from other events of similar type or theme?
After the end of Digital Universe, for that point of time, we decided to enter a new collaboration. Of course due to having a slightly different tone, we didn’t want to put it under the banner Digital Universe, since it was something completely new and was still in the testing phase. We wanted to bring the world of escape rooms to visitors at this event, creating the first proper escape room at such an event and not just solving random riddles. So we set up a place with our partners for the public to join groups, experience the story and escape, something that got accepted by the public a lot. This way we had a real life gaming experience, which is very powerful really. But what made stood out for us is the respect towards the younger ages. For some reason, events of this kind turn the younger audience towards behaviors they shouldn’t, while also having low quality content and guests, something we didn’t want to show to the audience, especially young ages. We wanted older gamers to be able to visit with their kids, and enjoy their time at the event, without fear that the content would not be kids friendly. So we didn’t have any profanities, posing and insults towards social groups, simply because they sell to certain people, to gather people from wherever possible.
But the most important thing is that we kept the event free for everyone. We think it’s really crazy to ask for money from children who are still in their school years, when such events’ expenses can be covered in other ways. So we didn’t take the easy solution of getting the children’s pocket money, but we used collaborations we have with companies to cover the costs of the event.
Exhibitors at Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
4) What was the biggest, but also the most difficult Digital Universe and Digital 360? What defined them as such?
An event has 1000 things that need attention. Digital Universe was a collaboration with New York College, so we didn’t have to worry about finding space and infrastructure. Digital 360 was something that was done from scratch. Not only had the location to be decided on, but also the infrastructure had to be built to support the event and make it work. One of the most difficult situations was the network that most places like this one have. But with the help of our partners, we managed to set up a new network at the exhibition area in a week and all championships were hosted without the slightest problem. I don’t think there was another event with a 500 Mbit line before us. So I would say that the 360 was much more difficult and with much bigger responsibilities. As far as I know, it was the only event in the country that had provided safety for its visitors, while it was also the only one that had people from the Red Cross present to provide first aid in case of emergency, since the safety of the public was very important to us. At Digital Universe we didn’t have to deal with that because New York College tokk care of everything.
Video of 35 of 47 Cosplays at Digital 360 – Video by Cosplayers//GR
5) How much effort, time and money did it take to set up Digital 360? What was the preparation plan that was followed?
The Digital 360 cost somewhere between €40.000 and €50.000. We took that into account from the beginning so we set out to find enough sponsors to cover this amount. We already had a plan with the set up and had already contacted suppliers for the structures, so we had very good organising related to costs. Fortunately, Techmaniacs.gr has long standing collaborations with companies that trust it, so the sponsorship aspect wasn’t the most difficult part, but it was the most stressful. It’s very easy to get in the red through such events.
These events need to be organized in every aspect and clear statements. They are no excuses for anything that might go wrong, especially when it comes to public safety.
Cosplay Panel at Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
6) How did you feel during the first Digital Universe and the first Digital 360 and how after their end? Describe this experience to us.
This was one of the best experiences of my life. Hundreds of hours of work had been spent to set it all up. In fact, in the end, when all the adrenaline and stress was gone, I found myself crying with emotion. The feeling of achievement after so much work was incredible. Seeing thousands of people shouting Digital Universe and celebrating was really exhilarating. During Digital 360 we were “veterans” at hosting events, so things were more collected. As things get more serious and you move on to something more serious and difficult, you need to act, not so much with emotion, but more with logic.
Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
7) What’s your opinion, in proportion to Greece’s size, about the size and level of the audience of the scene towards which Digital 360 was addressed?
Greece is relatively behind compared to abroad, but big steps have been taken and more and more people are embracing such events. I would say that in Attica, Greece, there are around 10.000 people interested in these events that follow them and that’s what I’ve seen at the events in the scene. The potential exists for the number of the scene’s fans to double in the coming years, but now due to the pandemic we are going to see a fairly large drop mainly due to fear. It’s not easy to make someone get up from his PC or his couch and visit an event if you don’t have something special to offer and by now there are several events in the country that are more or less one of the same. But people are asking for something more interactive and the costσ are rising a lot in our country. It’s not enough to include 5 booth and have 10 people go on stage, you need something that will make people get involved in the activities and that’s something we rarely see. Why come to the event itself, when someone can just watch it all with one click from his couch and his friends? Once we find solutions related to this aspect, then we are going to see events increasing in size, because until today in real terms, we don’t see more than 10.000 visitors at an event, while the organizers tend to inflate numbers, to the point that they are not justified neither by the scene nor by the visitors.
Tabletop Games at Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
8) Were you satisfied with the people’s response to Digital 360, as well as with the number of Cosplays that attended?
Digital 360’s timing may not have been the best, since it took place between two other events but the response was quite good given the circumstances. Digital 360 managed to gather close to 8.000 people, despite its difficulties, something that satisfied us. Of course we have done better in the past, but it was something different compared to Digital Universe. Cosplay also had a large showing, with a big part of the visitors coming exclusively for it. Besides, we had collaborated with two of the best cosplayers in our country, Marietta Kore ( SilverCore Creations ) who took over the organization and Evangelia Zorba ( Ailiroy ) who took over the presentation of the Cosplay contest. We had a sufficient number of cosplays at the event, although after so many years I forget the exact number, but the contest monopolized a lot of the event’s time.
Video of the Cosplay Contest at Digital 360 – Video by Cosplayers//GR
9) When and why did you decide to include Cosplay in Digital 360’s themes? What more do you think did the presence of Cosplays provide to Digital 360?
How can such an event happen without cosplay? It’s magical to see people coming dressed like their favorite character in the event and as everything indicates the visitors want to see cosplay activities. It’s amazing to see your favorite characters walking around. It looks to me like a small Disneyland, for gamers. Or should we call it Gamersland?
Star War Hellenic Academy at Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
10) What could one find related to Cosplay at Digital Expo? Wee there any specific activities and events related to it?
I don’t think an event that has gaming, fantasy and anime as its themes, to be without cosplay. In addition to the contest, we decided to have booths of famous cosplayers, as well as panels and workshops on how to get into the world of cosplay. Something that got embraced by the community and supported with great passion as it seems, which is why we had a big participation.
Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
11) Was there a long term goal or personal dream you wanted to achieve through Digital Expo?
The scene is full of events of this type by now and Techmaniacs has grown so much that it literally eats 100% of my time. It’s quite difficult to leave everything be for 6 months and set up an event again. But it’s something I love doing and I always have it in the back of my mind. I already have many plans ready for a Digital Universe Reloaded, but time and situations must allow it again.
Digital 360 was a test with a slightly different approach and it achieved its goal. But we won’t be seeing a Digital 360 2 because in Techmaniacs’ heart Digital Universe takes first place. So our long-term goal is to revive Digital Universe, but as something stronger that will make the audience participate actively and not just watch.
Panels at Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
12) Is there any important or funny experience that happened during Digital Universe and Digital 360 that you will never forget?
Now that I think about it, it seems funny to me, but back then we were completely lost. On the day of the finals at Digital Universe #3, due to constructions in the area, the network cables were cut, resulting in the loss of the internet. Fortunately, we found a solution by getting satellite internet to the place and without any delays in the organization of the tournaments in fact. If you were to watch me from a corner panicking, you would definitely have laughed.
Video with with content footage and the Cosplay Panels of Digital 360 – Video by Cosplayers//GR
13) Is there anything last you would like to share with our readers?
Unfortunately we live in a country that hasn’t yet embraced gaming and its culture. This doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t pursue your dreams and do what seems to make you feel good. Who knows, more people might love you than you think. During the first Digital Universe we were a small website with 300,000 readers a month. We hosted the first Digital Universe and were accompanied by 3.500 friends we didn’t know existed. So never give up and do what makes you happy and makes you feel complete.
Digital 360 – Photo by Cosplayers//GR
EVENTS BY TECHMANIACS ! INFO, PHOTOS & VIDEOS !
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