[EN/FIL] rown2k4 goes to All Aboard EXPO 2025 sa QC

by Ron J

:d6-1:original date of Facebook post: 2025-Jun-03
:d6-2:This is a post about a massive local boardgame convention in the Philippines called All Aboard EXPO 2025. It was held on May 29-Jun 01, 2025.
:d6-3:Some sections of this post are written in Filipino.


Last week, I participated in the All Aboard EXPO 2025 for four days. I went in on Thursday as a regular convention attendee and player. I played good games, competed in the Terraforming Mars tournament, met new awesome gamers, and saw old friends. On Sunday night, I went out of the Quezon City M.I.C.E. Center tired but elated. Gaming Library did an exemplary effort in putting up an epic convention experience in partnership with the QC Local Government. They deserve all the kudos that they’re getting online and offline.

I consider board gaming as my happy hobby and a creative outlet. However, there’s a side of me that couldn’t help but observe and assume some of the logistics and planning decisions behind this event. I will offer my perspective as an attendee with an eye for some of these aspects.


The Venue
When Gaming Library announced the All Aboard EXPO for this year, the QC M.I.C.E. was a venue that I’d never heard of before. It sparked interest since a venue that’s inside the City Hall can be more accessible due to possible subsidies provided by the LGU. And it reflected on the event’s regular registration fees, which ranged from 0 to 50Php (~0.90USD).


As for the Center itself, it’s comparable to a world-class venue like the Bayanihan Center in Pasig City. Aside from a brief 10-minute period around 5:00 PM on Friday when I felt that it was getting a bit warm, the venue was able to accommodate thousands of people shuffling through booths.

The Center’s main hall was adequate for the event. Masikip na walking lanes were typical for a convention. But once you’re seated and playing, I didn’t experience bumping into someone at my side or the back. I commend Gaming Library for consistently planning their event venue layout. I’m always amazed at the 3D render that they show via their channels weeks before the event.

I have a couple of nitpicks. First, the Asmodee booth could have been bigger since it housed 3-4 games in the Journey Pass (Harmonies, Monkey Palace, Dixit, Ticket to Ride). Dixit and Ticket to Ride go up to 5 or 6 players. Some adjustments could have been made for that extra player. Second, the main play area in the middle of the hall could have been chopped into quadrants for smoother traffic.

I didn’t find the overhead banners useful for labeling the areas in the main hall. I thought they were too short and hardly noticeable unless you look for them. They could have been longer lengthwise. Their color scheme didn’t help either.


The QC LGU delivered security, emergency medical personnel, water stations, and traffic management. They were all polite to the attendees. Another kudos to the organizers for their rapid response to the influx of people. They made some zones available for play and set up new tables and areas to play in. They even opened the 3rd floor of the Center for trading card game events on Saturday and Sunday. The QC LGU also moved the food concessionaires (small businesses under the POP QC program) from an open area to the entrance after two days of torrential rain. The closing of the event was also extended by an hour.

The receiving area of the second floor housed other activities, partners, and the open gaming area. It also served as the main base of the Blood on the Clocktower games. The open area was comfortable and smaller in scale, but didn’t feel cut off from the event.




The Journey
The Journey Pass is an activity sheet that attendees were encouraged to complete by trying featured games to win prizes. Gaming Library also had this at the previous All Aboard event. This year had a great implementation that featured good and great games.



The weakest steps in this Journey were the Level 5 games. The L5/Heavy Gamer titles were Nucleum, Power Grid, and SETI. The salient term in this sheet was “finish a game.” These L5 titles usually have a 30-45min teach and 2.5-4hrs of play time. Aside from ingesting complex rule sets, finishing these games was daunting for a regular person.

I get it naman that the subtext of the Journey Pass is to try or demo a game. The bottom line of a demo is to give a taste of the game to the attendee and sell it to them. Ok lang yung games with a 20-45min play time. But trapping people in a 3-hr game is a big ask for 1/35th of an achievement. That’s 3 hours of a person not going to the gift shop to buy games or enjoying more of the event. No one wants to waste that amount of time on a convention.

This sentiment led to some loopholes being figured out. Using SETI as an example, sinabi ko on a group chat that we can sit down and pass 5 times. Technically, that’s how SETI ends. Someone chimed in about the “integrity” of finishing the activity. In a convention demo setup, I value turnover more than integrity. When placing a carrot on a stick, a horse would rush to that carrot as soon as possible. And speaking of “integrity,” a raffle winner from the pool of completed Journey Passes was a child who needed to be accompanied by a guardian to the stage. You will not convince me that that child retained the rules and actually played a game of SETI.

Hindi lang rin naman L5 games yung sakop nito. Players can “speed run” other games without taking out the main mechanics and retaining player agency. Some examples are passing on buying buildings during Rounds 3 and 4 of Minecart Town and starting at a later round for The Vale of Eternity. Compressing games also minimizes the time for groups that take the session seriously or take too long.

One of my suggestions is to have a pre-determined game setup after the teach. Attendees only need a taste of a game at an event. This minimizes the feeling of being lost on the first turn. Asking a non-experienced player after SETI’s 45-minute teach to choose 1 of 7 main actions with three other players waiting can induce anxiety. Having a mid-game set-up gives them a nudge on what to do and has a feel-good effect since they already have stuff on their side of the table. My second suggestion is to incentivize other attendees to teach games. I got my SETI stamp by teaching the game to four players. Make this an official option next time.

The Journey Pass also posed some questions for a queueing system. It was non-existent except on Sunday, and only for the unexpected hit of the event - Kushi Express. It was a good response pero sana universal yung queueing system. I think the staff/organizers realized during the weekend that demos are more efficient at a full player count. And that needs a queue.

For this year, queueing wasn’t a problem since attendees could play the featured games in any order. But if an attendee is down to their last 1-2 activities, they would demand one. A waiting area with seats takes up precious space. But for games that require a queue, it’s a better solution than a verbal agreement between an attendee and a coach.


The Bad
All Aboard EXPO 2025 was a great event, but not everything is perfect. First, there was a big oversight during the Unmatched tournament on Saturday. I heard pairings being announced over the hall. If the event has registered more than 16 players, it’s always in your best interest to prepare tournament materials. If pairings are generated on a website, bring a laptop and a printer. Especially if your game doesn’t have a dedicated app like Companion (Magic: the Gathering) or Omnidex (Grand Archive). Announcing pairings over the mic or sending pairings over a group chat on a venue that has weak cellular data increases turnaround time for each round, and that delay adds up over 6+ rounds.



Second, I observed staff/volunteer wellness issues over the weekend.

I want to preface this section that I’m not privy to any arrangement between the organizers and the volunteers. I haven’t interviewed anyone regarding their tasks and compensation. I also want to say that all floor coaches presented well. They knew what they were teaching. Need lang ng konting upskill by watching “How to Teach Boardgames” from SUSD and Meeple University (start from the theme, how to win, what’s the endgame, etc.). And konting customer service wisdom lang rin like NOT saying “I don’t know” to an attendee. Also, I know nothing about the organizational structure of the coaches. It wasn’t clear to me if they were all under Gaming Library or if the coaches under the different publishers were contracted by the publisher.

1. An all-day shift is brutal. Volunteer call time is at 9AM and the event ends at 8PM. That’s an 11-hour shift. In this era, each team member on the floor should only work a maximum of 8 hours. An early/late shift system should have been implemented for the volunteers. This also makes the extra hour extension bearable for the late shift person. Shifting also gives coaches some time to enjoy the event.

2. No coordinated lunch breaks/small breaks. My friend K overheard in the Unmatched demo area on Saturday of someone asking their colleague for a lunch break at 5PM. This is criminal. A SETI coach related to me that they implemented a 2-round only rule for the game para makapag-lunch na siya on Saturday. I saw the relief on coaches when I outright declared that I know this game and/or am willing to teach it to the table (which I did for SETI, The Vale of Eternity, and Dixit).

Please have at least a person in charge of breaks (emphasis on plural) and rotations for staff every set period. I know na ang term is “volunteers” pero you must take care of people. Thank yous and good jobs are heartwarming pero compensation and rest are reasonable requirements for this undertaking. I don’t want to go to “unpaid intern” vibes. For future volunteers, taking care of yourselves is a priority. Hydrate and ask for breaks. Sa totoo lang, na-tilt ako when an announcer asked for the volunteers to cheer on Friday night. Wala ng boses yung staff mo dahil sa 2 days of verbal teaching, please wag mo na sila pasigawin. It’s the last thing on their minds.


The Future
These are some suggestions that do not fit the points that I raised above.
1. My friend K talked about international conventions having flags that indicate “Teacher/s Wanted” or “Player/s Wanted” at a table. (Think of Mang Inasal sticks with numbers on them). The “Teacher/s Wanted” flag should be standard fare since learning a game is the biggest hurdle in board gaming. Attendees teaching games also help lessen the burden on staff while showcasing a sense of community to new gamers. The “Player/s Wanted” flag can be used as a queueing system too.

2. VVIP perks. Express Pass holders were the default VIP registration of this event. But aside from a different set of prizes for their efforts, there were no VIP perks. Some ideas I will throw-in is a lounge for VVIPs to sit on, charging stations, and a dedicated water station (yung dispenser na may hot/cold). Other perks could be priority queueing or exclusive tables for the L5 games.


The Conclusion
All Aboard EXPO 2025 sa QC was a world-class event. Gaming Library and their contact in the QC LGU were hands-on during the event. I saw a true partnership between the co-organizers. All developments throughout the weekend were positive: additional tables for play, opening the 3rd floor, running out of Journey Passes for adults, and games selling out throughout the weekend.

The view of people seated on a table, interacting face-to-face over game pieces multiplied over a massive area is a sight I’m accustomed to in TCG events. It’s great that we also had that in board gaming last weekend. Hundreds of people playing board games in one venue is a great image boost for the hobby and community. The community showed up rin providing newbies a view of the great games and people that the hobby has.

I overheard someone say on Sunday night while playing: “Sana di pa Monday bukas.” I think this sentiment sums it all up for All Aboard EXPO 2025. Congratulations to Gaming Library and QC LGU!

I’ll be there in 2026.

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