Thanks to all of you who came out for Go Play NW 2013! We had a fantastic time, and you make that happen every year.
Did you take photos during the weekend? We’d love to see them in the Go Play Northwest group on Flickr. Or if you’re posting your photos on Google+, let us know in the Go Play NW community. And we’re on Facebook too, so if you’re posting your photos on Facebook, like our page and tag us in.
Also, we’ve opened two new forums for your comments and feedback. Tell us the tales of your games in the Afterglow: What We Played forum. And tell us how the weekend went for you—what went well, what you’d like to see, what could be better—in the Afterglow: The Good, The Bad & The Awesome forum.

Once again, Sunday at Go Play NW is (unofficial) tie day. Bring your coolest tie!

TIME

Check-in for rooms at Campion Tower/Hall opens at 1 PM on Friday.

The event officially begins at 5 pm on Friday!

See the full Game Slot Schedule for 2013.

LOCATION

The convention is being held at Seattle University’s Campion Tower Residence Hall*, 914 East Jefferson Street, Seattle, WA 98122. For full travel directions, see the following link: Seattle U: Travel Information for Campion Hall Guests

*They’re not very consistent about what they call it. The full name is “Campion Tower Residence Hall”, but it’s referred to variously as Campion Tower OR Campion Hall. Same place.

And here’s a campus map to help you get around.

IMPORTANT NOTE: If the weather is nice, the FRIDAY NIGHT FEAST will be held in the main quad of the unviersity, two blocks north of the residence hall. Maps and directions will be available at the front desk of Campion Hall.

PARKING

Parking is included for all registered attendees at the Cherry Street Garage, located at 11th and E. Cherry Street on the south side of the street. (Note: this is called the Murphy Garage on the campus map, parking area P4.) You can park first, but will need to pick up a permit at the front desk of Campion Tower when you check in.

CHECK-IN
(for all attendees, both commuters and on-campus guests)

Check-in is at the front desk of Campion Tower. You will receive your Go Play NW badge, meal card, parking permit if needed, and your room key if you’re staying on campus.

MEAL PLANS

Registered attendees will receive a meal plan card, pre-paid with enough points for lunch each day you are registered. If you are staying on campus as a guest, you also get breakfast each day. Meals are in the main campus cafeteria in the Student Center.

ACCOMMODATIONS

Just a reminder:
Linens: There will be bed linens, blankets, and towels provided.
Internet Access: Wifi and Ethernet are available free for guests.
Smoking: Smoking is not allowed in any Seattle U buildings.

See also our earlier post More Info about On-Campus Housing.

GAMING

The reason we’re all here! If you missed it, check out our post on Pickup Gaming at Go Play. Can’t wait to see all of you on Friday!

Hi everybody, just a quick reminder that game scheduling will close on Friday! We could use a few more games on the schedule, so if you’re dithering, now is the time to add it!
GM’s, once your game is full or scheduling is closed, you should go into your post and give us a definitive list of attendees so we can make signs for the con.
Also, registration closes on Monday, June 24th at 6pm PST. See you at Go Play!

We always strive to have a mix of casual and organized gaming at the con, so pickup gaming has always been a big part of Go Play NW. If you’ve never been before, you might be wondering how that works. Here’s a quick primer.
Scheduled Pickup Gaming: At Go Play there will be a scheduling wall with games posted. Blank sheets will be available for people to post throughout the weekend. The wall will include the pre-scheduled games that are already going up in the Game Scheduling Forum. If you want to facilitate a game, this is the place to post it and get people to sign up for it.
The Donut: Before each gaming session, we’ll have a quick self-organizing session called “the donut”. The goal of the donut is to help groups of gamers get together and play. Come to the donut with an open mind and/or a game to offer!
The Lottery: Back again this year in the SAT02 slot is the game lottery, a gaming adventure not to be denied! See this forum post for more information.
The most important thing in making Go Play work is to come with a positive attitude. Some people like to schedule most of their games ahead of the con. Some people leave their whole schedule open. A lot of people do a little of both to suit their inclination.
And here’s a great post with more details on the donut and the lottery: Ars Ludi: Lottery and Pickup Donut

In case you missed our posts late last week, here are some important reminders:

• Registrations that include on-campus rooms close on Thursday, June 6. Tony posted some additional information on the on-campus housing yesterday.
• Rooms can be booked for Sunday night; you must send us that fee separately, and you must also book these by Thursday, June 6.
  
• T-shirt orders also close on Thursday, June 6, and you must attend Go Play NW 2013 to pick up your shirt. (And check out the shirt—you know you want one.)
• Also, game scheduling is now open, so go to the forums and start talking up what games you want to run and play. The sign-up period ends on Friday, June 21, and a final list of players is due on Monday, June 24.

Finally, although the on-campus housing registration closes on Thursday, registration for the weekend itself will stay open for another couple weeks. We’ll need to know by Monday June 24 if you’re attending on Friday evening, so that we can give accurate numbers to the caterers for the Friday Night Feast.

Some useful information about staying on campus at Go Play:
Check-in begins at 1pm on Friday. Your badge and information should be available at the front desk of Campion Hall.
Check out time is 10am. The front desk will happily store you luggage for you while you hang out and game on Sunday.
Room amenities include desk and chair, sink, towels, and soap.
Wireless and high-speed internet are available.
Showers and bathrooms are shared.
Lunch and breakfast are included in the room price.
All this and more information is available via the Conference Guests on-Campus Living Guide.

Last year during the event, we had a few people inquiring about staying over an additional night in the dorms so that they could leave on Monday. This year we’ve had some interest in that as well. So we’ve checked with Seattle University, and learned that guests will be able to stay over on Sunday night if they’re booking rooms in advance.
You will need to send us the additional night’s fee—$35 for a shared room, or $47 for a single room—directly through PayPal to business@goplaynw.org, as we’re not adding it as an official registration option this year. And you need to do so by Thursday, June 6, as we have to submit the list of on-campus guests on Friday June 7.
I know this is pretty late notice for many of you who’ve already made your plans, and I apologize for that. Let us know in the comments if you’d be interested in this in the future, and we may be able to work it in as an official registration option next year.

We are getting closer and closer to Go Play NW 2013, and there are some important deadlines right around the corner.
Thursday June 6th is the last day for room rentals and T-shirts! If you do not buy your tickets by this day, you will not be able to rent an on-campus room or order a T-shirt. We are fortunate to be able to offer on-campus housing at an incredibly reasonable rate in the dorms for attendees, right in the same building where Go Play NW is taking place.
Friday June 21st the game sign-up forums close! Go Play NW always has a mix of scheduled, ad-hoc, and pickup gaming. If you want to pre-schedule a game or sign up for one, go check out the game sign up forum now.
Monday June 24th is the day that we need GMS and facilitators to provide a finalized player list. This is so we can print out accurate lists to post at the con. If there are open slots, players may still join the game at Go Play NW.

The game scheduling forums have been opened! Go get your game on!
At Go Play NW, there has always been a mix of prescheduling and pickup gaming, and this year will be no different.
Joining Games: The game scheduling forum is also your place to see what people are running and sign up to play. You don’t have to sign up for games for every slot, or even at all to enjoy the con, but it’s a great way to participate.
Pickup Games and the Donut: There will still be plenty of pickup gaming at Go Play NW. We’ll post a bit more about pickup gaming and the famous donut in the next several days.