Fan Faire 2012 rebranded as Sony announces new yearly fan event, SOE Live

Sony Online Entertainment has announced the rebranding of its yearly get-together for SOE fans and creatives. The company's previous event, the yearly Fan Faire, has been retired to make way for a new annual celebration titled SOE Live. The event will kick off this year in Las Vegas, held at Bally's from October the 18 to 21^st. Here's a trailer showing some shenanigans from the company's previous get-togethers.

Sony assures repeat attendees that nothing's being ditched from the event's previous incarnations; instead, Fan Faire veterans and SOE Live newcomers alike can expect social events, panel discussions and live events based around SOE properties such as DC Universe Online, EverQuest, and new additions like PlanetSide 2 and Vanguard: Saga of Heroes. The company promises to use SOE Live as a platform for exclusive announcements, beta access, and of course the grab-bags full of branded goodies that fans have been crossing state lines for since time immemorial.

Fans grieving the loss of a perfectly good brand, meanwhile, can rest easy in the knowledge that there still is a Fan Faire, it's just nothing to do with Sony anymore. But hey, it's perfectly reasonable to expect some of you might enjoy Magic: The Gathering – Tactics as well as the complete 1920s output of Aaron Copland, in which case, wow, haven't we just made your afternoon.