On Saturday February 4th only between 9:00am and 6:30pm, come out and take part in the GottaCon gamers silent auction brought to you by GottaCon Conventions. Convention goers are welcome to bring out their own items for sale as well as bid on the wide variety of items that will be available. We stress patience with convention staff as it takes time to enter all the information of submitted items and when the auction is complete to record all the results. If you would like to fill out a form and bring it with you to the convention please download the form here: http://www.gottacon.com/components/gc2012auctiontemplate.pdf. Also this year we are looking to set up self serve computers where you can fill out your forms and print them for our staff.

What is a silent auction?
In this type of auction, items are put on display. To place a bid, bidders write on a piece of paper located near the item. The bidder will be able to see the bids made already and must bid at least the minimum amount specified higher than the current bid. The minimum increase over the current bid will be $1.00 unless otherwise indicated. Bidding closes after a pre-set period of time. The highest bidder at the end of the auction wins the item and pays the price submitted.

The GottaCon silent auction will run from 9:00am until 6:30pm. At 6:30pm all bidding will stop. Winners may pay for the items they won between 7:30pm and 9:00pm. If you are not able to be present during the time indicated above please make arrangements with the GottaCon staff. If you cannot pick up your items by 9:00pm Saturday night and you have not made arrangements with the GottaCon Conventions staff for an alternate time the item in question will then go to the next highest bidder. Please be patient with our staff at the end of the auction as they have to collect the items and record the winning bids before they can be released to the winners.

Cash is the only form of payment accepted. During the auction all items will be monitored. GottaCon Conventions is not responsible for lost, stolen or damaged items.

Submitting an item for sale
Please bring your item to the GottaCon auction booth in area 17 on the map and be prepared to fill out a quick info sheet on your item. This info sheet will help others identify and understand your sale items as well as allow us to keep track of whose item is whose. All items will be put on display with a bid sheet. We recommend assigning a minimum bid to each item you submit. There is a small non-refundable charge of $1.00 (HST included) for each item submitted for sale. Items for sale may be submitted at the GottaCon auction Booth between 9:00am and 5:30pm Saturday February 4th.

Please check in with the GottaCon auction booth between 7:30pm and 9:00pm Saturday evening to find out if your item(s) sold or not. If your item sold you will be reimbursed the amount it sold for once payment is received. If you are not able to be present during the time indicated above please make arrangements with the GottaCon staff. Please be patient with our staff at the end of the auction as they have to collect the items, cash and record the winning bids before they can pay the owners for their items that sold. If your item does not sell your item will be returned to you. Any items that do not sell and are not collected by 7:00pm Sunday February 5th will become the property of GottaCon Conventions. If you are not able to collect your items during the time indicated above please make arrangements with the GottaCon staff.

Some items that will be up for bid are:
• Board games new and used
• Tradable card games, singles and boosters
• Previously owned video games
• Video game systems
• Collectible/non-collectible miniatures and accessories
• Role-playing games old and new
• Books, comic books and animé
• Movies
• Many other gaming and hobby related items

The GottaCon auction provides a great opportunity to buy and sell all of your gaming and hobby related items at great prices. The previous three years have been hugely successful so make sure you check out the auction on Saturday!!

Please note that GottaCon Conventions reserves the right to refuse any items submitted for sale in the auction. All items must be registered with GottaCon staff at the special events area and a fee of $1.00 per item must be paid.

Quick note that Warhammer 40K is nearly Sold Out!! There are two tickets left and are now only available online through our site. We may open additional seating depending on demand and space once we see how Fantasy and Warmachine sales go over the next week or so. Thanks everyone!!

Today we announce our electronic gaming line-up planned for GottaCon 2012. Below please find our list of game systems, games and tournaments planned for GottaCon 2012, which will be held February 3rd to 5th, 2012 at Pearkes arena in Victoria BC (3100 Tillicum Road).

Public stations are free to use by any GottaCon attendees as long as they are not needed for our premium events. BYOC slots will remain free and available on a first come, first serve basis. We will have 80 LAN seats available. These seats will be able to be reserved on our Warhorn site but only if you purchase your ticket in advance. A new feature in the LAN this year will be a PC check where attendees that BYOC, if they want, can drop off their systems instead of leaving them hooked up or taking them home. This service will be offered free of charge but GottaCon and its partners will not be responsible if the system is damaged or stolen. We will have someone watching the systems 24 hours a day but again this is at the owners own risk and a signed waiver is required.

Also, this year we are doing something a little different. We will have two types of tournaments in additions to our public stations and BYOC seats; premium tournaments and secondary tournaments.

Premium tournaments will require the video game add-on package ($15 taxes included) to be able to participate in. Premium events will be more competitive, have higher prize payouts and will be sponsored by our fantastic video game sponsors.

Secondary tournaments are free to any GottaCon attendees but will have small or no prizes associated to them. These events are meant to be casual, fun and easy to jump in and out of. Examples of these events include private Team Fortress 2, Counter-Strike: Source and Battlefield 3 servers as well as Left 4 Dead 2 Survival and Survivor vs. infected matches, Heroes of Newerth, League of Legends, Starcraft 2 2vs2 and 1vs1 single elimination pickup matches, etc.

This year we are pleased to announce that we have numerous major sponsors for our video games area including: Kingston Technology, Antec, Logitech, SteelSeries, Shaw Communications, Canadian Joystick, GUNNAR Optiks, Patriot Memory, Memory Express, Future Shop – Uptown Mall location, DTI Computers, Island Collateral, Game Deals, Play N Trade (Duncan), Stain Internet Café, LANcouver, CrossXover and BC Gamer. All of these fantastic companies have provided substantial support in the way of prizes and technology. Events sponsored by these companies are noted below.

BYOC Seating
First let’s talk about the Local Area Network (LAN) and how the “bring your own computer” (BYOC) seating will work. There will be approximately 75 BYOC slots available which will be assigned first based on preregistered attendees (this means you must have purchased a ticket to GottaCon 2012 either at a retail location or via our website) then on site in a first come first serve basis. If you have purchased your ticket as described above you must log into our Warhorn site, create an account and once approved by GottaCon staff reserve a seat in the BYOC event located in slot 1.

LAN Check in
If you preregistered for a BYOC seat via our Warhorn site please check in at the LAN where you will be assigned a place. If you are showing up and hoping to get an available spot please check in at the LAN and you will be assigned a seat. Be aware that our LAN was full last year.

The events listed below only include our premium events at this time as our secondary events are still being decided and most will be pickup events or ongoing servers that you can sign up for or join in on at the convention. We will have a number of public play computer systems with games which are provided by Stain Internet Café. These stations will be considered public stations and attendees will be able to use them for casual play at no charge when they are not needed for our premium events. Due to the large number of players expected attendees are encouraged to bring their own systems and hook up to our LAN at no extra cost. Each premium event will have an awards ceremony following the event or the next day if the event runs late. Winning teams will have their photo taken.

On the LAN we will be hosting the following scheduled premium tournaments:

Sponsored by:

Day: Friday
Time: 7:00PM
Price: Requires video game add-on
Maximum number of teams: 16

Please arrive 30 minutes before the start time to be registered for the tournament. teams will be split randomly in to 4 groups of 4 teams and will play round-robin in each of those groups. The top team from each group will advance to the semifinals where once again a round robin will be held. The top two teams after the semifinal round robin will than face off for first and second place. In the event of an odd number of competitors in a group, a dummy player will be added and for each match the real team will be given a bye. If there are 8 or less teams the event will be run as a round robin with the top 4 teams moving to a final round robin to determine the overall finishing positions. If you have questions regarding this event please send them here: info@lancouver.com

Prizes: Approximately $500 in prizes to first place team, $200 in prizes for second place team and other prizes may be awarded based on attendance.

Sponsored by:

Day: Saturday
Time: 11:00AM
Price: Requires video game add-on and your own PC is recommended due to the large number of players
Maximum number of teams: 16

The tournament is not sanctioned by any governing body, but players are expected to play as if they are competing in a sanctioned event. Config files similar to sanctioned tournaments will be used for the server. No cheating will be tolerated, and players’ computers will be randomly checked for cheating throughout the event.

Based on attendance of 16 teams, teams will be divided into groups of four teams and will face off in round robin. The top four teams from each group will move on to the semi finals. The semifinals will be best of 3 round robin to determine the final matches. The top two teams will face off for first and second and the other two teams will face off for third and forth. The finals will be best of 5. In the event of 8 or fewer teams competing, the event will be run round robin to determine the top 4 teams. The top four teams move to the semi finals and finals as explained above.

The format is 15 rounds per half; first team to win 16 rounds wins the match. Starting money $800. Round time 1:45, 15 second freeze. Overtime will be settled by 3 rounds per half, $10,000 starting cash, and the first team to 4 rounds wins the match. Teams will start the first overtime on the same side they were on at the end of the regular round, and switch at the half. All rules will apply the same throughout the entire event. All games will begin with a standard Live-On-Three setup, fade to black will be enabled.

Any and all disputes during the course of the tournament must be reported to the area administrators immediately. Any games that end due to connection problems or server issues will result in a rematch. If it is found that any one player is responsible for disconnections or power interruptions, the entire team will be given an automatic loss and will be restricted from the rest of the tournament. Cheating allegations are taken seriously and will cause a delay in the tournament. Administrators reserve the right to check any player’s computer for scripts, modified config files, or any other forms of cheating. Players may also be kicked out of the tournament for cheating related to screen looking or any other form of intelligence gathering by themselves or persons outside of their teams.

Matches will be randomly casted live or delayed. Final matches will be casted live, but the organizers will ensure that no players can see the casting screen from the LAN area.

Prizes (depending on the number of teams): The winning team will receive $1000 cash prize from Kingston Technology if there are eight or more teams and the prize pool increases at 10 or more teams. If there are less than eight teams they will receive a $500 cash prize. The second place team will each receive Kingston Technology HyperX RAM with cooling fans. There may be additional prizes for additional places based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE. To register your team or if you have questions regarding this event please send them here: info@lancouver.com To view the teams registered go HERE.

Sponsored by:

Day: Saturday
Time: 5:00PM with top 8 on Sunday at 10am
Price: requires video game add-on, and your own PC is recommended due to the large number of players
Maximum number of players: 64

Please arrive 30 minutes before the start time to be registered for the tournament. Any late participants may be excluded or may forfeit their first match. Round 1 will be a round-robin to determine eligibility for Round 2. Players will be split randomly in to 8 groups and will play round-robin in each of those groups. Each group will change maps after each match. The top players from each group will advance to the Sunday morning finals. In the event of an odd number of competitors, a dummy player will be added and for each match the real player will be given a bye.

All brackets will be posted. Preliminary round matches will also be randomly casted live or delayed. Final matches will be casted live, but the organizers will ensure that no players can see the casting screen from the LAN area. If you have questions regarding this event please send them here: info@lancouver.com

Prizes: $200 cash and SteelSeries 5H v2 USB headset for a total of $300 in prizes, $100 cash and SteelSeries 5H v2 USB headset for a total of $200 in prizes for second place. There may be additional prizes for additional places based on attendance.

Sponsored by:

Day: Sunday
Time: Noon
Price: Requires video game add-on
Maximum number of teams: 16

Please arrive 30 minutes before the start time to be registered for the tournament. Find 3 friends and gear up for the battlefield. This tournament will be 4 player teams facing off in a double elimination tournament (teams will not be counted out until their second loss) and stress team tactics and skill. If a player who wants to participate does not have a teammate, they can partner up with random gamers who also don’t have a teammate.

Round one will be squad deathmatch with time limit and either 3 or 4 teams per map. The top two teams walk away with a win. All additional rounds will be squad rush best of three. If match goes to third game a coin flip will determine defenders/attackers. If you have questions regarding this event please send them here: info@lancouver.com

Prizes for the first place team will include custom trophies and an Antec 1200 gaming case for each team member. Second place will each receive an Antec High Current Gamer power supply (750watt) and third place will each receive an Kuhler H2O 620 liquid cooling CPU system. There may be additional prizes for additional places based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE.

On our Xbox 360 LAN we will be hosting the following scheduled premium tournaments:

Sponsored by:

Day: Friday
Time: 7:00PM
Price: Requires video game add-on

Battle it out in futuristic style in Gears of War 3. This is a 2 versus 2 double elimination format tournament and teams will not be counted out until their second loss. Players will be allowed to bring their own gamer profiles. If you do not have one a default profile can be used. Player profiles must be contained on a USB flash drive only. NO recoveries and or HD swaps will be allowed. These matches will be set up via Private match system Link MLG rule sets will be followed for this event and full rules and restrictions will be made available at www.evogames.ca

Prizes for teams will include Prizes and gift certificates to Future Shop. Prizes for second and third place teams based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE.

Sponsored by:

Day: Saturday
Time: 11:00AM
Price: Requires video game add-on
Maximum number of players: 32

This is a Free for all format tournament that does not require a team. Eight players at a time will face off in this free for all event with the bottom four scores in each round receiving a “loss”. This is a double elimination tournament (players will not be counted out until their second loss). Players will be allowed to bring their own gamer profiles. If you do not have one a default profile can be used. Player profiles must be contained on a USB flash drive only. NO recoveries and or HD swaps will be allowed. These matches will be set up via Private match so all weapon and perk unlocks will be available. MLG rule sets will be followed for this event and full rules and restrictions will be made available at www.evogames.ca

Prizes for first place include a custom trophy and product prizes from SteelSeries (SteelSeries Spectrum 7xb) and GUNNAR Optiks (PPK Lime) valued at $260. Prizes for second place from SteelSeries valued at $100. There may be additional prizes for additional places based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE.

Sponsored by:

Day: Saturday
Time: 5:00PM
Price: Requires video game add-on (yes you can bring your own stick)
Player Cap: 64

We will be using the following tournament format and rules http://evo2k.com/player-guide/tournament-format/. Players will be placed in pods of 8 players and face off against opponents in their pod with similar win/loss records in a double elimination qualification round. Top two from each pod move on to the semifinals. Finals will feature the top 8 from the semis. Qanba Q4 Joysticks will be provided by Canadian Joysticks for use in the tournament. Please note there will be no downloadable content available in this event.

Prizes for first place will be $100 cash and a Qanba Q4 3-in-1 Real Arcade Fightstick (Xbox360, PS3, PC Compatible) provided by Canadian Joysticks. Second place will receive $100 cash and there may be additional prizes for additional places based on attendance.

Sponsored by:

Day: Saturday
Time: 6:00PM
Team Size: 2 Players
Price: Requires video game add-on
Maximum number of teams: 16

This event is a 2 Versus 2 format tournament that pits two teams of players against each other in a fierce firefight of Modern Warfare! It is a double elimination format and teams will not be counted out until their second loss. If a player who wants to participate does not have a teammate they can partner up with random gamers who also don’t have a teammate. Players will be allowed to bring their own gamer profiles. If you do not have one a default profile can be used. Player profiles must be contained on a USB flash drive only. NO recoveries and or HD swaps will be allowed. These matches will be set up via Private match so all weapon and perk unlocks will be available. MLG rule sets will be followed for this event and full rules and restrictions will be made available at www.evogames.ca

Prizes for the first place team will include custom trophies, GUNNAR Optiks – MW3 GUNNARS for each team member and $150 in Future Shop gift certificates for a total of over $350 in prizes. Prizes for second and third place teams based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE.

Sponsored by:

Day: Sunday
Time: 10:00AM
Price: Requires video game add-on
Maximum number of players: 32

Get your twitch finger ready and your heart rate up because reaction time is your best weapon in this event. Eight players at a time will face off in this free for all event with the bottom four scores in each round receiving a “loss”. This is a double elimination tournament (players will not be counted out until their second loss). MLG rule sets will be followed for this event and full rules and restrictions will be made available at www.evogames.ca

Prizes for first place include custom trophy, GUNNAR Optiks (PPK Lime) and $50 in Future Shop gift certificates valued at over $130. There may be prizes for second and third based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE.

Sponsored by:

Day: Sunday
Time: Noon
Price: Requires video game add-on (yes you can bring your own stick)
Player Cap: 64

We will be using the following tournament format and rules http://evo2k.com/player-guide/tournament-format/. Players will be placed in pods of 8 players and face off against opponents in their pod with similar win/loss records in a double elimination qualification round. Top two from each pod move on to the semifinals. Finals will feature the top 8 from the semis. Qanba Q4 Joysticks will be provided by Canadian Joysticks for use in the tournament. Please note there will be no downloadable content available in this event.

Prizes for first place will be $100 cash and a Qanba Q4 3-in-1 Real Arcade Fightstick (Xbox360, PS3, PC Compatible) provided by Canadian Joysticks. Second place will receive $100 cash and there may be additional prizes for additional places based on attendance.

Sponsored by:

Day: Sunday
Time: 1:00PM (or following Halo Reach FFA)
Team Size: 2 Players
Price: Requires video game add-on
Maximum number of teams: 16

Find a friend and get ready to face off against fierce competition. This tournament will be 2 player teams facing off in a double elimination tournament (teams will not be counted out until their second loss). If a player who wants to participate does not have a teammate they can partner up with random gamers who also don’t have a teammate. MLG rule sets will be followed for this event and full rules and restrictions will be made available at www.evogames.ca

Prizes for the first place team will include custom trophies, GUNNAR Optiks – MLG PHANTOM Neptune’s for each team member and $150 in Future Shop gift certificates for a total of over $330 in prizes. There may be prizes for second and third place teams based on attendance.

Due to the game rating of “M” for Mature anyone under the age of 17 is recommended to get parental permission to compete. Please find a parental consent form HERE.

Free Play
In addition to the Xbox tournaments mentioned above their will be tons of other titles available for free game play on our casual play systems. There is a one hour limit on a console station (must move to another station), casual gaming stations may be limited during tournament times.

Other tournaments/events will be running all weekend long on both the PC and Console LANs.

If you plan to bring your own computer and hook up to our LAN here is a list of games we recommend you have on your system to maximize your experience:

Battlefield 3 and Battlefield 2, Unreal Tournament GOTY Edition, Call of Duty Black Ops and Modern Warfare 3, Starcraft I and II, Counter-Strike: Source, Team Fortress 2, Left 4 Dead 2, Warcraft III, Heroes of Newerth, Battlefield Bad Company 2, League of Legends, Quake 3