ICON CGC has some changes planned for 2019! As you may know from our updated header images, ICON CGC is making the move from our traditional mid-year anniversary to Easter. This isn’t a decision that was made on the spur of the moment – there are a number of factors the ICON Team had to consider before making the decision. Here are the reasons for the decision, and some other FAQs you may have:

a) Our partnership with Emperors Palace: the team at Emperors Palace have been fantastic in getting behind ICON CGC, and have started putting plans in place to help us grow and leverage everything they have to offer, with more information about these coming soon. The Easter holiday is also a very busy time for them, which will mean more people to come and enjoy what ICON is all about – three days of comics, gaming and cosplay fun!

b) A VERY crowded convention calendar: the last few years have seen a number of additional events call Johannesburg home (we’re sure you can think of a couple!). The fact is a crowded schedule later in the year means ICON loses out on in some ways, and we’d like to give everyone the best possible event we can. A move earlier in the year opens up other opportunities for us, including some international partnerships (more on this soon!)

c) But…. what about FanCon : Cape Town Comic Con in Cape Town? Are you guys trying to take them out?

When we were first approached about the notion of a date move, Fan Con were our first consideration. We reached out to the Fan Con team and discussed the idea, and we have received their blessing. In fact, the move actually gives both ICON CGC and Fan Con some opportunties … more on that later.

d) World Cosplay Summit (WCS): it cannot be understated – WCS is a MASSIVE global event, and we’re incredibly honoured to be a part of the WCS family. WCS runs in July/August, and a mid-year ICON event doesn’t leave a lot of time for our national winner to prepare for their trip to Japan to represent South Africa on the world stage. A move earlier in the year means more time for logistics planning for our winners … and there’ll be more information posted shortly on the World Cosplay Summit – Team South Africa page about this!

e) A tentpole event for some new gaming initiatives: the ICON team has been talking with some of our regular event partners about how we can get back to what we’re good at – running organised competitive events. Our new date gives us flexibiilty in how we can make these plans a success – more on this soon!

f) But … it’s Easter. Why would you move it to this weekend?

As you can see, there are a host of benefits to ICON in shifting the date earlier in the year, but we also recognise that this time of year is incredibly important to a number of people. We took the decision to not open on Good Friday, and rather run across the other three days of the weekend. ICON has always tried to leverage holidays, and an Easter event would make it easier for our inter-provincial guests to travel without having to take time away from work or school.

ICON CGC has gone through a number of changes in the last couple of years, all with the intent of providing a better experience for everyone – old fans and new. Our new home has opened a number of doors, and created a host of opportunities that we know will make for an exciting event. We hope you join us all for the ride!

Tickets will be on sale in time for Christmas – including our popular hotel accommodation combos!