Steel City NerdCon returns to Sault Ste. Marie

Retro video gamers, card collectors, and vintage toy enthusiasts descended upon the Canadian Bushplane Heritage Centre in the Sault for Steel City NerdCon. This is the first such event since COVID restrictions were lifted, bringing in large crowds. Some attendees dressed up as their favourite sci-fi, fantasy and comic book characters.

Michael Turcotte, owner of Vintage Games N’ Junque and organizer of Steel City NerdCon, says the size of the crowd is an indicator of how eager locals are to experience something different.

“Sault Ste. Marie always needs good things going on, and I think the people show that by showing up,” said Turcotte. “So, yeah, it tells me that we need more activities and events in Sault Ste. Marie.”

Adding some colour to NerdCon were the cosplay enthusiasts, who turned up at the heritage centre to show off their creativity through costumes. Some dressed up as their favourite comic book heroes, while some took their costume ideas from storybooks, movies and television.

Steel City NerdCon is typically held later in the year, but organizers decided to try something different this year by making it a summer event. Turcotte says while there are no current plans for another event before the end of the year, he is not ruling it out.