PAX Australia: Nintendo Cosplay Report and Photos

The first PAX Aus has officially come and gone, leaving those of us lucky enough to attend with bittersweet memories and great hopes for a bigger and better convention next year.

The Vooks team were in full force over the three days, and it was my job to capture photographic evidence of as much Nintendo-related cosplay as possible.

I was, and still am, enthralled by the genuine excitement received from everyone I asked for a photo. Each and every one of them thanked me for the time, which seems strange as they are the ones worthy of the thanks and gratitude of every gamer who attended. You see, a video game convention without cosplay is like… well, I guess it’s like a video game with no characters in awesome outfits carrying unusual and powerful weapons.

I may have taken my role as cosplay photographer a little too seriously. I actually wrote up a tally of how many of each Nintendo character I photographed. The clear winner was Link, with a total of seven. However, each and every one of the Links I photographed brought their own magic to their cosplay outfit, all meticulously detailed and unique. I feel I may have missed photo opportunities with some of the Links, as I had the feeling of déjà vu each time I saw one, as though I had already bothered them enough.

I must give a special mention to a cosplayer who asked that he be identified as Iron Link, who (almost literally) blew everyone away with his Nintendo/Marvel combo creation.

Another shout out must go to the Midna cosplayer, a true stand out over the course of the weekend. And check out Link playing himself on the 3DS. A perfect Inception moment. By the way, Doctor Strange wasn’t in the below photo when I took it. I swear he appeared later with the help of some uncanny magic.

I missed a chance to photograph a girl in an awe-inspiring Diddy Kong ensemble, as she quickly disappeared into the crowd (probably with the use of her tail) each time I happened to notice her. There’s a good chance you’ll find photos of her and others on the internet, using the #PAXAus hashtag on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Head to the Vooks Facebook page for more of my photos, and if you’re one of the cosplayers in the photo album, please tag yourself so your friends and family can witness the hard work you so obviously put into your costume.

As a huge Metroid fan, I was a little sad to not find any Metroid-related cosplay (Mother Brain, anyone?). Maybe next year I’ll visit PAX Aus as a space pirate. Just maybe.