Cosplay in North America

Conventions in America often include both cosplay and costume contests.^[8] The cosplay or "masque" (masquerade) is a skit contest done in cosplay costume. The costume contest is often a test of skill, design, and audience reaction. The contestants are judged either before hand or on stage and then walk across said stage while the audience cheers (or not, depending on the etiquette of the venue). The increased popularity of convention costuming has led to the addition of several relatively new cosplay-based events, adding to the traditional masquerade and hall costume contests. Such events include the Anime Dating Game, and Cosplay Human Chess, where participating cosplayers act out their characters' role in the game accordingly