MagFest, or Music and Gaming Festival 2026 had already sold out by December, 2025. Perhaps this was because the Katsucon hotel lottery wasn’t announced until October, but many people were unable to go. Held at the Gaylord Resort in National Harbor, Maryland January 8-11, 30,000 people attended. This year’s theme was MegaMan and the band Protomen performed daily.
Of course, as every other year there was the Danny DeVito shrine, with donations going to charity.
Next to that, down the narrow hall, next to the prop check counter were memorials for attendees who are no longer with us, but will always be at MagFest through these.
A cool and unique part of MagFest are the music pods located throughout the convention center. People are able to pickup instruments, or bring their own and either jam solo or with each other. MagFest is also 24/7 for 4 days straight, so you could probably do this at 4am. The arcade is open all night and there are concerts all throughout the day and night too.
Your likely to find random or planned DJs setup and people dance too.
If you like video games, MagFest is the convention to find the most video game cosplays, such as this Metal Gear meetup hosted by Matrixvampyre.
