San Jose lands TwitchCom for return to Bay Area

The annual conference unites video game streamers, developers, publishers and fans

After two years down south, TwitchCon has the itch to return to the Bay Area.

Twitch, the Amazon-owned social video service, said Wednesday that its TwitchCon 2018 will be held from Oct. 26 to Oct. 28 at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center. It will be the first time Twitch has held its annual gaming convention in the Bay Area since hosting its original event in 2015 in San Francisco.

Each year, the event has grown. At the 2017 gathering in Long Beach, various reports said 50,000 people were estimated to have dropped by to immerse themselves in all things Twitch, according to OC Weekly. The convention was held in San Diego in 2016.

TwitchCon Director Krystal Herring said that while Twitch doesn’t give specifics on attendance figures, last year, “We did experience a 25 percent growth (year over year) and expect thousands of attendees each day.”

Herring added that there were many factors in San Jose’s favor that led the convention to come to the city.

“We are especially excited to be in San Jose given its proximity to our Bay Area HQ, as well as it being a great venue in a city with a lot of amenities, from restaurants and hotels to public transportation,” Herring said.

Twitch, which Amazon acquired in 2014 for a reported $970 million, has its corporate headquarters in San Francisco.

The convention brings together professional game streamers along with video game developers, publishers and fans. At events like these, creators who have drawn a large following on the service meet their followers in person to sign autographs and take pictures. Meanwhile, aspiring streamers can attend panels to get advice on

how to improve their broadcasts.

“(TwitchCon) is a big deal,” said Michael Pachter, a Wedbush Securities analyst who covers digital entertainment. “It’s more of a conference for ‘casters’ — the guys who broadcast on Twitch — than esports players. However, Twitch is all about esports, so yes, a good indication of that popularity.”

Although Twitch has expanded its offerings over the past few years, the convention is mostly focused on gaming. Activities include charity tournaments

and previews from developers of upcoming video games. In addition to the panels, there’s also a large area where attendees can buy merchandise and check out the latest broadcasting gear.

While the conference is occurring, locals can expect to see a lot of people around San Jose looking like their favorite video game characters, and possibly comic book and movie superheroes, as TwitchCon also happens to be filled with many cosplayers attending the event.