Pinball has earned an extra life, retro gaming is having a moment, and comic shops are seeing sales climb. Columbia already has plenty of places feeding those fandoms, from Transmission Arcade and Bang Back Pinball Lounge to Scratch N’ Spin, Cosmic Rays, and Heroes & Dragons.

Soda City Comic Con brings comic fans, gamers, cosplayers, artists, and celebrity guests together at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center Saturday, Aug. 22-Sunday, Aug. 23. A few things caught our eye:

Sonic hits the flippers | Organizers say the con will be the first event in SC to debut Jersey Jack Pinball’s new “Sonic the Hedgehog” machine.
Celebrity panels | Peter Weller talks “RoboCop,” plus panels feature stars from “Daredevil,” “X-Men ’97,” and “Star Wars Rebels.”
50+ pinball machines | Play for free, or enter a classics tournament presented by Transmission. Bang Back will also host Little Flippers for kids.
Cosplay for the kids | The 11th Annual Children’s Cosplay Contest takes place Sunday for ages 16 and under.
Retro gaming | Play 30+ systems from NES and Sega Genesis to Nintendo Switch.

And the comic-book fun doesn’t end with the con. Irmo artist Steve Epting, who co-created Marvel’s Winter Soldier, will be at Scratch N’ Spin the following Saturday, Aug. 29, signing his new comic, “Hammerfist.”