MAGWest is back for its eighth year, continuing the West Coast’s yearly celebration of music and gaming. The sister convention to MAGFest was held from August 14-16 at the San Jose DoubleTree, bringing no shortage of musical guests, games, and panels.
This year, the theme was Undertale/Deltarune, with decorations and merch to match. Day and night, the convention was filled with music, games, and activities, and that’s meant quite literally, as the convention stayed open late into the night and well into the morning hours.
So without further ado, let’s see how MAGWest 2026 went…
Music
The “M” in MAGWest stands for “Music,” so of course that was a core element of the convention. MAGWest featured plenty of musical guests and acts, both planned and impromptu.
MAGWest’s main stage featured performances throughout the weekend by guests including Lotus Juice, Aivi & Surasshu, and singer-songwriter of Sonic the Hedgehog fame, Crush 40’s Johnny Gioeli. The stage saw big acts playing late into the night, providing no shortage of music to the con.
However, that was far from the only stage. Out by the pool, bands performed throughout the weekend, providing gaming tunes to attendees taking a swim. Inside, the Jamspace, Jampods, and Community Orchestra gave musical attendees opportunities to meet up and perform – or they could just find a nice corner to chill in and play some music.
It was impossible to go anywhere in the hotel without hearing some music, whether it was a flutist playing the Pokémon Center theme song, guitarists jamming together, or even just attendees getting into the mood and singing sea shanties.
(Okay, the sea shanties were mostly me, and I apologize for nothing.)
Gaming
Of course, MAGWest wouldn’t be MAGWest without the “G” for “Gaming,” and you’d better believe they had plenty of that too, including video gaming, arcade games, LAN gaming, and tabletop games.
MAGWest featured a large gaming hall, split into a few sections. On one end, attendees could enjoy a variety of arcade games, including dance games, rhythm games, arcade classics, and even pinball. Just beyond that, multiple televisions were set up for a variety of console games, both classic and modern, including multiple tournaments throughout the weekend. Next to that, local developers were demonstrating their indie games, giving them an opportunity to reach new customers and demonstrate their creations.
Outside the gaming hall, a long row of games included classics from gaming history and unique indie games in progress. One such game, for instance, was a co-op where a single player saw the screen and controlled a knight, while a second player served as their squire to provide potions, keys, and other tools as requested; communication and coordination were key to succeeding.
In the LAN room, attendees could play retro PC games with each other. This featured everything from Unreal Tournament to StarCraft to Worms Armageddon, providing plenty of nostalgia and no shortage of entertainment.
But what about gamers who prefer something a little more analog? The tabletop gaming room featured a wide selection of games from an expansive library, along with scheduled tabletop RPGs, a puzzle table, and even several mahjong tables right outside.
For the card gamers, not only could they grab a table in the tabletop gaming room, but there were various Magic: The Gathering drafts and tournaments throughout the weekend.
So yes, there was a lot of gaming.
Guests
MAGWest doesn’t skimp on the musical guests, and every year they bring plenty of fantastic performers. In addition to the ones mentioned earlier, the guest list included the likes of 2 Mello, Frank Klepacki, Isekai Stage, Parabellum Raps, and so much more.
However, in recent years, MAGWest has been expanding its guest selection beyond musical acts. This year, voice actor Ricco Fajardo (voice of Mirio in My Hero Academia, Isagi in Blue Lock, and Pandreo in Fire Emblem: Engage) was among the guests, signing autographs and participating in events. Voice actor Elisa Meléndez, known for voicing Tyreen Calypso in Borderlands 3, was also in attendance, hosting panels and doing meet-and-greets to interact with fans and attendees.
Panels
MAGWest had more entertainment than music alone (although the music is still very good) with multiple panels throughout the convention.
The panels covered a range of topics, including games like “Taboo! Game Show: Gaming Edition” and “Quizmania: Kaimei Riddles DX PLUS” or humorous entertainment panels like “Mazes & Monsters: Satanic Panic D&D Nonsense At Its Finest.” There were discussion panels, educational panels, discussions, and more, creating a good variety of panel programming.
Of course, the Cosplay Wrestling Federation (CWF) made its return for another MAGWest show. In the CWF, cosplaying competitors took to the stage to cut promos and issue challenges to the defending champion, The Shipper, to see who could talk the best smack and (verbally) fight their way into the panels. This year, the Dungeon Master (from the Dungeons & Dragons cartoon) recruited a party of audience volunteers and DMed them to victory against The Shipper, winning the show’s title. (Full disclosure: I’m a member of CWF and the Dungeon Master cosplayer.)
Cosplay
Speaking of cosplay, of course there were plenty of cosplayers at MAGWest. Given the show’s theme, there were plenty of cosplayers from Undertale and Deltarune, but there was a great variety of cosplayers across the con. This included everything from Pokémon to Dispatch to Street Fighter.
Cosplayers who felt exceptionally proud of their cosplays could compete in the cosplay contest, hosted by cosplaying duo onecuppacoffee and judged by a trio of skilled and experienced cosplayers. The contest had prizes for multiple categories, including craftsmanship, performance, theme, and the Charity Stream Choice, so there were several opportunities for competitors to win.
There were, of course, cosplay gatherings, where attendees cosplaying from the same series could meet for photos. There were two sites for the cosplay gatherings, which included series like Undertale/Deltarune (naturally), Splatoon, SquareEnix games, and a general cosplay gathering for anyone and everyone. It’s also worth noting that the gathering areas had premium lighting, good space, and seating for attendees to rest on between groups and photos, so they were well-chosen spots.
And more!
What else? How about a marketplace with a good selection of dealers selling both handcrafted goods and a variety of games or gaming supplies? Or the paint-and-take table outside the tabletop gaming room, where attendees could sit down to paint a free miniature (with guidance from helpful staff should they need it)?
There was a charity stream to raise money for good causes, a Variety Stage with a wide range of performances, Beyblade exhibitions, arts and crafts, and so much more. Even the security room had accommodations for attendees, like sunscreen and glucose tablets.
If nothing else, attendees could always relax in the pool and enjoy the summer weather.
It’s also worth mentioning that the Doubletree Hotel held a wedding there that weekend, so the wedding guests were somewhat surprised to find the venue filled with music, games, and cosplayers. When asked, a wedding guest said it was a surprise, but still very fun.
In short: MAGWest remains a fun, chill convention with fantastic music, plenty of fun games, and great panels. Whether you’re coming by to spend a day or want to enjoy three full days of music and gaming, MAGWest has you covered.
