SWAG Adventures: The SXSW 2024 Edition

We’re always on the hunt for great SWAG at every event we attend, whether it’s big like San Diego Comic-Con, D23 Expo, or something more intimate, such as LightBox Expo. We’d like to think we came back with a pretty nifty haul after this year’s South by Southwest (SXSW).

One of the best places for SWAG were the activations. Not only was Fallout an immersive experience, but we picked up a few giveaways as well. It included a bandana (there were three colors to choose from), a pin, and a lollipop that matched the post-apocalyptic desert landscape since it included a scorpion inside. We also didn’t cash in one Nuka Cola bottle cap, the currency of choice in Filly, to keep as a souvenir.

The best bang for the buck, even though it was free, had to be Paramount+’s The Lodge. Since it promoted a variety of programming, you could receive items from a number of properties. There were keychains from A Gentleman in Moscow and Star Trek: Discovery, a badge pin and koozie from Lawmen: Bass Reeves, and sunglasses from Halo. Our favorite is the Nick Kid crewneck sweatshirt.

One surprising activation was from Delta. You could sample elevated dishes and cocktails from the airline. They passed out a reusable canvas bag and a crewneck as well.

An area where SWAG was a little disappointing was at the screenings and panels. Out of all the ones we attended, we only received a replica VR headset from Netflix’s 3 Body Problem. It looked very similar to the one at CES, but came packaged in a drawstring bag instead of a fancy box. 

Finally, we come to the rest of our SXSW SWAG. Stickers were easy to collect from places such as Muck Rack — the sponsor of the press suite — Texas Tourism, and the National Science Foundation (NSF). NSF also passed out glasses to view the upcoming total solar eclipse. Other highlights include a T-shirt for the limited docuseries Queens from National Geographic, and mini prints, stickers, and a card for the upcoming mobile game BTS Cooking On: TinyTAN Restaurant.