Last year, CONQuest held its first Manila event which became one of the bright spots in the post-pandemic pop culture events scene.
Despite the event happening at the tail-end of COVID-19 restrictions in the country, organizer AcadArena managed to make an impression beyond anyone’s wildest expectations. The event took over almost all of SMX Convention Center Manila’s event halls and function rooms, but it still managed to fill them up with excited attendees from different interests and fandoms.
But if you think that last year’s event was beyond amazing, CONQuest is aiming to reach for the skies this year with the biggest creators in the pop culture scene, amazing number of talents in multiple fields and plenty of exciting activities for everyone, in five locations throughout the weekend!
Just a disclaimer: Because of the immense breadth and depth of this year’s CONQuest lineup, this pre-show will focus on events and activities that will likely be of interest to fans of anime and other related media such as Vtubers. In essence, this is simply the tip of the iceberg for what’s to come at CONQuest 2023.
To see their full lineup of activities, panels and discussions, please visit their website at conquestph.com and their social media platforms.
Jampacked!
If last year’s event already featured a dizzying array of guests from across multiple interests and fandoms, CONQuest is set to outdo itself this year with a guest list the likes of which has not been seen from any local pop-culture convention in recent memory.
Among the headliners is Joey Bizinger, known online as The Anime Man, an Aussie-Japanese streamer and content creator known for his hilarious takes on anime shows and otaku culture, as well as being one-third of the popular podcast Trash Taste.
He will be joined by fellow content creator and real-life partner Akidearest (whose real name is Agnes Yulo Diego), a Filipino-American YouTuber known to delve in various topics about Japan and otaku culture.
Both Joey and Aki will have a panel discussion and several meet-and-greet sessions during the weekend.
CONQuest 2023 is also featuring several American voice actors who have prominent roles in popular anime and video game titles.
Khoi Dao has lent his voice to several anime and video game characters, including Tetsuya Kuroko in Kuroko’s Basketball, Cancer Cell in Cells at Work! and Albedo in Genshin Impact.
Cory Yee‘s voiceover roles include Hermes in the English dub of the Netflix anime series Record of Ragnarok and The Beholder in the sci-fi drama anime To Your Eternity.
Adam McArthur can be heard as the lead character Yuji Itadori of the popular Jujutsu Kaisen anime series and Chifuyu Matsuno in Tokyo Revengers.
Laura Stahl has voiced Ray in the anime series The Promised Neverland and Gin in the Netflix anime series The Way of the Househusband, as well as Barbara Pegg and Xinyan in Genshin Impact, among others.
Sean Chiplock is known for his voice roles as Subaru Natsuki in the Re:ZERO anime franchise and Majima in Lycoris Recoil, as well as Diluc in Genshin Impact and Yuuki Mishima in Persona 5, among others.
Filipino-American voice actors Anne Yatco (Nobara Kugisaki, Jujutsu Kaisen) and Ratana (Leonie, Fire Emblem Warriors) will also make their return to CONQuest 2023.
If you’re in the Rabbit Hole…
Fans of virtual YouTubers and Twitch streamers are in for quite a treat as CONQuest is featuring Shxtou (Shoto) as one of their major headliners.
Shxtou is a Vietnamese-American independent virtual streamer known for his funny antics and gameplay, especially horror games, as well as his collaboration streams with “Guildies” and other well-known Vtubers. He was recently nominated for the Best Vtuber category in The Streamer Awards this year.
He will have a panel discussion, as well as meet-and-greet sessions, on the event’s second day.
After making her first appearance last year, the popular Twitch streamer and singer Bao will also be making her return for CONQuest 2023.
Bao will also bring her “Scamily” back for the second year, this time composed of fellow content creators Atsu, Tuonto, Dish, AntonyChenn, Tsikyo and BTMC, for a panel. She will also be doing a stage panel and meet-and-greet.
If you’re in the broader livestreamer rabbit hole, then CONQuest has a lot more to offer this time around, as they will be bringing well-known streamers and personalities this year.
YouTubers and content creators Valkyrae, Fuslie and Sykkuno, as well as Twitch streamers iGumDrop, AriaSaki and Pokimane will be making their appearance to the event for the very first time.
After being part of the event (and consuming several packs of dried mangoes) last year, popular content creators Michael Reeves and LilyPichu will also be making their return to CONQuest.
Plus More!
For the first time, CONQuest 2023 is bringing musical performances into the mix with “Music Night” scheduled on Friday and Saturday.
Among those performing on Friday is DJ and music producer James Landino, known for his compositions in video games and shows like No Straight Roads, Omega Strikers, RWBY and Cytus II, among others.
Ian Tsuchiura of the EDM group Hyper Potions, known from his remixes of well-known video game titles and collaborations with other music producers, will also be part of the Music Night’s Friday night acts.
Music Night on Saturday will essentially be an event on its own as it be headlined by popular artist, singer and record producer James Reid and the Korean indie-rock band The Rose, plus performances from local artists such as Carousel Casualties, Autotelic, Oh Flamingo!, Timmy Albert and Lesha.
There will also be several cosplayers who will be part of the event, including Hikarin, Hakao, Neokomaru, Kiyo and Yosuke Sora, as well as Jin Joson, Mitsuru Shouta, Yura Nanami and Mira Rae, among others.
Ticketing and Other Information
When we say CONQuest 2023 is reaching for the skies, we definitely mean it. This year’s event is not just happening in one location, or two, or even three. In perhaps what can be considered a first in the Philippine pop-culture convention landscape, it will cover five locations within the Mall of Asia complex: SMX Convention Center Manila, Conrad Manila, SM Mall of Asia Atrium, Seashell Lane and National University MoA.
This innovative event concept is what they are referring to as the “Sky Islands” where several activities will happen in different locations.
Most of CONQuest 2023’s activities will still be held at SMX Manila, such as headline acts, exhibits and community panels, while meet-and-greets, workshops and competitions will be held at other locations. You can also satisfy your food cravings at the Food Street in front of SMX. There is literally something for everybody.
Tickets are (or were) available in three tiers: Day Pass, Three-Day Pass and Premium Pass.
The Day Pass which cost ₱800 per ticket per day grants you access to the event each day, while the Three-Day Pass at ₱2,000 per ticket lets you roam the event venues for the whole weekend.
There are also Premium Passes available at ₱20,000 per ticket which gives you access to the event venues for the whole weekend, Music Night on Saturday, a merchandise package, priority access to all free MeetZone meet-and-greets, complementary access to the Scamily group’s paid meet-and-greet and The Rose’s photo-op session.
If you’re not a Premium Pass holder, you can still purchase a separate add-on for Music Night for ₱5,000, as well as a meet-and-greet add-on for The Rose for ₱750. There will also be add-ons for the Scamily group paid meet-and-greet for ₱5,000, and a meet-and-greet for Vtuber Shxtou for ₱3,000.
Day Passes for Saturday and Sunday have sold out days ago but are now replenished at very limited quantities. If you still haven’t bought yours, then hurry up and get it now at conquestph.com/tickets!
Take note that passes for CONQuest 2023 can only be bought through their online ticketing portal, as there will be no on-site selling of passes during the event.
Everything we’ve mentioned so far about CONQuest 2023 is just the tip of the iceberg, because there are also AcadArena’s annual Alliance Games, Community Panels, Tech and Game Developer Expo, and a whole lot more.
For the detailed event map, please check out conquestph.com/map.
For the full FAQs on the event, ticketing and more, please visit conquestph.com/faqs.
If you’re unable to be part of the event in-person, AcadArena will be streaming select portions of the event on their Twitch and Facebook pages.
This year, CONQuest is definitely setting a higher benchmark for esports, technology and pop-culture events in the country. In our opinion, it’s truly exciting times ahead.
This weekend, see you all in the skies!
CONQuest 2023 is happening on June 2-4, 2023 at the Mall of Asia complex in Pasay City. This event is organized by AcadArena Technologies, Inc.
For more information and latest updates on the event, visit their website at conquestph.com or visit @CONQuestPHL on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and TikTok.
