When is The Gathering 2012?

The doors open at Wednesday 09.00 April 4th. The net will be turned off at 11, the power will be turned off at 11:30, and you must have vacated the arena by 13:00.

Where is The Gathering 2012?

The Gathering 2012 will be held at the Vikingskipet Olympic Arena in Hamar, Norway.

What is GE?

Short for geekevents.org

How do I buy tickets?

To buy tickets to The Gathering 2012, register at Geekevents.org.
If you have already registered, you may just log in with your username.

Please note the following, important dates.

• December 1st 2011, Creative Ticket, Creative No-seat Ticket and Pro Gamer (NO SEAT) will be available through our ticket service geekevents.org
• December 1st 2011, the queue lottery for ordinary participant tickets and the foreigner tickets will be available at geekevents.org

How do I buy special tickets?

There will be special tickets (Pro gamer, demoscener and foreigner). These will be available via GE.

Pro gamer: Allows you to participate in all game compos. You can't bring a desktop computer, but a notebook is okay. Note that there is NO seat included! The Game Crew will provide computers for use during the tournaments. Questions? game@gathering.org

Creative: Just like the ordinary ticket, but you'll be given a seat in the Creative area. Note that you must be verified by Creativia. Questions? demo@gathering.org

Foreigner: Anyone residing outside Norway can apply for a foreigner ticket. Proof of residence is required.
(If you already have an ordinary ticket and want to convert it, please apply for a foreigner ticket and then refund your ordinary ticket).

Is the ticket refundable?

Yes. Tickets are refundable until one month prior to the event, March 4th at the latest. If you want to refund your ticket please contact Geekevents at support at geekevents dot org.

How do I reserve a seat?

You reserve your seat using Geekevents, further details may be found here.

• March 8th - Seating opens for those with 30+ tickets.
• March 10th - Seating opens for those with 20+ tickets.
• March 11th - Seating opens for those with 10+ tickets.
• March 12th - Seating opens for those with 5+ tickets.
• March 13th - Seating opens for everyone.
• March 21th - Pre check-in starts.

What kind of tickets are available for Gathering 2012 and when?

1 - Creative ticket
If you want to spend this easter pursuing your creative passions, learning new skills and meeting inspiring people, this is the ticket for you! The Creative ticket allows you to be seated in the Creative Lounge - an area in the Vikingskipet dedicated to creative people such as musicians, graphics artists, demo coders, game designers and hardcore programmers from all over the world.

To order this ticket, you will need to write a short application, explaining why you wish to have a Creative ticket. This ticket does not require that you participate in the creative competitions, but your primary motive for attending The Gathering should be for the creative events such as demo shows, seminars and creative competitions. If you are new to the creative scene at The Gathering, but are eager to learn and meet new people, you are also welcome to order this ticket! 
You can attend all competitions with this ticket.

2 - Creative no-seat ticket
This is the ticket for all the Creative participants that do not want to attend the entire party, but would like to attend a competition and/or see exciting lectures, or even see one or more of our shows. This ticket gives you access to all of The Gatherings facilities, except a seat. You will therefore only be able to bring your laptop or other mobile device to the event. As with the Creative ticket, you will need to write a short application, explaining why you wish to have this ticket. You can not attend game competitions with this ticket.

3 - Participant
This is the regular ticket for all other participants that want a seat at The Gathering 2012. This ticket sale will start at a later date. Please follow the information provided from geekevents.org to place an order for your ticket. A KANDU membership is included in the price. 
You can attend all competitions with this ticket.

4 – Foreign Participant
This is the regular ticket for all other foreign participants that want a seat at The Gathering 2012.
This ticket sale will start at a later date. Please follow the information provided from geekevents.org to place an order for your foreign ticket. Proof of residence outside of Norway will be required - a recent letter to your foreign residence will suffice.
You can attend all competitions with this ticket.

5 – Pro gamer ticket
This is a special ticket for all the professional gamers out there.
This ticket is new as of 2011. With this ticket you will have normal access to The Gathering, events, lectures and tournaments. This ticket will NOT give you access to a seat at The Gathering.

Why is this ticket introduced?
Well, because many of you professional gamers will not bring your own computers, and will not need a seat.  All of our game competitions will be held on computers provided by us, so that you don't have to bring your own. If you want to practice with your team for the competitions, you should buy a regular ticket (3). The only requirement when buying this ticket, is that you do not bring your own computer to the event. You will not be able to convert this ticket to an ordinary ticket at a later time. 
You can attend all game competitions with this ticket. The computer hardware specs will be provided at a later time on our website; www.gathering.org

The idea behind this ticket is that many gamers leave the arena straight after the game competitions - and leave an empty seat for another participant. In order to get as many people as possible into
the Vikinghip for the duration of the event, table spaces are reserved for participants that wish to stay for the duration of The Gathering.

Why does this ticket cost the same as the creative ticket?
This is due to the fact that the table space is not the biggest expense at The Gathering. The bulk of the budget is divided between Entertainment, Workshops, Lectures, Prizes, and of course Network infrastructure - all of which a pro gamer visitor will be able to enjoy and benefit from.

6 – Meal ticket

You save about 20% on individually priced meals, excluding the ticket fee. This service is provided by Nordre Sving.

7 – Participant (Without KANDU membership)
This is the same ticket as number 3, the participant ticket, except you will not become a member of KANDU, the organization behind The Gathering.

What is the admission fee for The Gathering 2012?

Ordinary participant ticket: 990 NOK + 47 NOK fee
Foreign participant tickets: 450 NOK ~€55, + 22 NOK fee
Pro gamer ticket: 800 NOK + 38 NOK fee
Creative ticket: 800 NOK + 38 NOK fee
Creative no-Seat ticket: 250 NOK + 12 NOK fee.

The ordinary ticket includes membership in KANDU for 2012. If you wish to participate at The Gathering but not become a member, you can buy the exception ticket. It has a raised price due to the fact that KANDU receives economical support from the Norwegian government for each member. The price for the exception ticket is not yet set.

How old do I have to be to attend The Gathering?

There is not set any age, but you will have to be able to take care of yourself. If you travel with someone in your family or your friends you should be okay, no matter what age, though our general rule is that you must be able to take care of yourself. The police demands that all of you under 16 bring a consent form, from one of your parents.

The consent form can be found at here.

How many tickets can each person buy?

Up to 5 tickets.

What are the chances that I don't get a ticket?

It is impossible to say, but in the past there have been spare tickets left when TG started. This is because they have been returned to us, but we have not had time to resell them.

We are 6 people going together, do we need to buy first 5 tickets and then 1 more?

Yes

We ordered 3 tickets, but now we need 5 because two more wanted to join, can we just change from 3 to 5 tickets before we pay?

You can't change the number of tickets you first ordered. You have to pay for 3 tickets first. Then you have to get back in the queue and order two more.

How do I get my ticket?

The ticket is digital and as such you won't be sent anything before the party starts. Details on how you check in at the event will be posted later.

How much space do I have at my seat?

Your spot on the table will be 80 cm wide and 60 cm deep.

Can I bring a shelf to put up at my place?

Yes, but it must be made in accordance with the construction rules, which will be posted at a later time.

What competitions will there be at The Gathering this year?