For the 5th time in the last six years, I attended FAN Expo Canada. The 2026 edition changed its setup, with more booths, an added hour to walk around and shop, and some new ones.
I walked around the show floor, excited about what I might find at Artist Alley for myself and my young son, and eager to see what gaming had to offer in 2026. For the most part, it was a good time, and there was lots to do and see, but the two things I came for had their ups and downs.
FAN Expo Gaming
As writers who cover the gaming industry, I went searching for gaming spaces at FAN Expo. There are lots of chances to see and meet celebrities, attend panels like A Conversation with Ben Starr and Jennifer English about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, and even play an ongoing arcade.
For a more hands-on or interactive gaming experience, past offerings have been far better. I previously gave Luigi’s Mansion 3 a shot on the show floor at one point and two years ago played a full mission of the Space Marines 2 campaign. There were some chances to do that in 2026, but FAN Expo’s biggest offering was an AMD booth with a couple dozen Marvel Rivals PCs to play. Not the biggest opportunity and definitely not much variety.
Whether it was the AMD booth or the Bell Esports Challenge (an exhibit that has been at the convention for years now), seeing some esports action was still nice. The esports industry hasn’t stuck around in the same way it did even 4-5 years ago. Blizzard backed away from a lot of that investment, but games like Call of Duty were up on the big screen with pro esports teams competing, which is great to see. High-level play of any kind is exciting, and throughout the weekend, Valorant, COD, and Rocket League were all featured, with play broadcast out of the AMD Marvel Rivals booth.
And as someone who loves retro gaming, I had to make my way to those booths. Sadly, if you’ve been around the aftermarket and retro gaming shopping “realm” long enough, it was easy to see that many games and accessory prices were inflated. I did manage to find a couple of small items, but if you’re looking for a great price, the convention floor is not really the place to be. What they do have, however, is a massive stock of games. So if you’re looking for something that isn’t often available, this may be the place to find it.
Some Artists and Attendees Concerned with Overcrowding
Bringing people together is a wonderful thing, no question. FAN Expo has grown in so many ways over the last decade that seeing more and more people come to the city, and more and more love and community around the event is actually great. But how do you manage all this on a fundamental, planning level? It’s not an easy task, and I believe a massive event like this takes hard work and care, though there appear to be some improvements or changes that need to be made.
Nikki White is one of the vendors who has expressed frustration with how the convention was turning out for her and her sales:
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And Nikki is not alone. Responses to the above post alone describe experiences from other vendors and from fans. Some of it is related to overcrowding; some of it is related to personal budgets.
Understandably, an event like FAN Expo cannot account for everyone’s budget or the economy many of us have faced over the last 18-24 months. But maybe some small changes are needed. I don’t have all the answers, but I think starting by listening to vendors and fans is a great place to begin.
I reached out to FAN Expo organizers for a comment about this. I am waiting for their response, and I will update this article when I hear back.
