Gear up, Pembroke Pines. OtakuFest comes to town this weekend. What to know
South Florida’s largest anime, cosplay and gaming festival powers up Pembroke Pines this weekend.
On Saturday, Dec. 13, the Charles F. Dodge City Center at 601 City Center Way will celebrate the holidays with a fandom-filled twist with the OtakuFest Holiday Special from noon to 8 p.m.
According to the event’s website, otaku refers to someone “who has obsessive interests that apply to a wide variety of topics including anime, art, cosplay, collectibles and gaming.”
Fittingly, the event’s Instagram bio describes OtakuFest as South Florida’s largest anime, cosplay and gaming festival.
The one-day pop-up event plans to showcase local vendors, a holiday-inspired costume contest, meet-and-greets with industry guests, gaming tournaments and an ugly holiday sweater contest.
Industry professionals, such as voice actors Patrick Pedraza, Arryn Zech and Kira Buckland, will be at the festival.
Fans will have the opportunity to participate in panel discussions, snag autographs, take photos and play anime trivia, bingo and giveaways.
There will also be gaming tournaments featuring Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8.
General admission tickets start at $27 and can be purchased here.
Self-parking in the east side lots of the center is free. There will also be additional parking at Memorial Park, 10601 SW City Center Blvd, and Renaissance Charter School, 10501 Pines Blvd.
A shuttle bus will be at the charter school location to provide guests with transportation to the Charles F. Dodge City Center.
Kids 6-12 years old require a $10 kid’s ticket that can be purchased with an adult ticket. Kids 5 years old and younger are free.
For more information, email info@otakufest.com.
