The Wonders of Gen Con

When my son was in middle school, he had an assignment to write about a significant event in his life. He wrote about the first time he walked into the exhibit hall at Gen Con. What did a 9 year-old boy who loved games see when he walked into a space larger than a football field full of displays set up by companies trying to sell him games? I can only imagine. Or try to find that paper.

My own first Gen Con in 1979 was less impressive. The exhibit hall was the dining area at the student commons at UW Parkside. There were a few small board game publishers and, of course, TSR, the company that had created Dungeons and Dragons and started Gen Con a few years earlier. Still, I had never seen so many fellow gamers gathered in one place, and I immediately knew I’d be back. I’ve been back 31 times.

Our boys' first Gen Con - 1997

Gen Con has gone through some transitions in venue and ownership. It now finds itself the sole responsibility of Gen Con LLC, a sort of spin-off side effect of Hasbro’s purchase of Wizards of the Coast in 1999, which had earlier purchased TSR – getting D&D and Gen Con in the deal. The con is now bigger and better and in a city that truly welcomes its attendees and recognizes its commercial potential. I live in Milwaukee, so the move from the Milwaukee convention center to Indianapolis in 2003 was a shock, but I got over it as soon as I got down there. Milwaukee always seemed ashamed of Gen Con or afraid it would grow too large. Indy hangs welcome banners along all the streets, the restaurants print special menus and close off sections of tables just for gamers, and a local microbrewery makes a special beer just for Gen Con. Indianapolis enlarged their exhibit hall to accommodate the growing Gen Con crowds and encouraged Mariott to build a new hotel to relieve some of the housing pressure.

Gen Con is also a very NICE place to be. I remember the first year in Indy, when they didn’t know what to expect from 30 or 40 thousand gamers, the city had security guards everywhere. But the only problems occurred when the Colts fans came in for the pre-season game on Saturday. I haven’t seen any security guards since, and in ten years I’ve never seen a police car respond to any problems at the convention center. Gamers are nice people. The very first year in Indy, when my youngest son was 13, his wallet dropped out of his pocket the first day while he was playing a game. It had $108 in it that he had saved up all summer. We went to lost and found a few hours later, and they had his wallet, with $108 still in it.

Me and the boys, Gen Con 2012

It may seem like a trivial thing, but my sons and I are geeks at heart. When we gather with geek friends for four dedicated days of playing games, trying new games and buying games, there’s nothing better. And the exhibit hall – now three football fields of booths selling games, dice, weapons, t-shirts, and videos – is one of our favorite places on earth. My sons are grown now and live in other cities, but we all still go to Gen Con together - so do their friends that started going with us back before high school, and some of their parents, and next year maybe a couple of my cousins and their kids. I wouldn’t be surprised if at least 20 of our friends join me and nearly 50 thousand other gamers next year for my 33^rd Gen Con.