How Relevant is Gencon (or Any Con)?

[Warpiglet-7]

Some of the most fun I ever had was Gen con in Milwaukee!

In ye olde days, it was hard to find AD&D stuff in my are for reasonable prices. 2e had hit and I dunno….

Same with board games. This was before boardgame geek etc

It was my big chance to find and SEE things long out of print and play with groups who were oh so different.

Now? I can buy anything online after looking it over. With the increasing popularity of D&D, the crowds are a bit much for me…harder to find rooms, harder to navigate, harder to play.

It’s still a cool feeling to see weird games in progress but the convention’s importance is less than 50% of what it was for me before…

 

[Hand of Evil]

Some of the most fun I ever had was Gen con in Milwaukee!

I miss the Safe House!

 

[Mannahnin]

I miss the Safe House!

I'm sad that I never got to go. It always sounded so cool when folks talked about it in Dragon magazine AARs for Gen Con.

 

[Warpiglet-7]

I miss the Safe House!

I don’t believe I did that! I was often knee deep in Axis and Allies tournaments and as much D&D with miniatures as I could find!

This is when I first got to see whole armies en masse painted! Or some people made physical dungeons. I was always in total awe like a kid in a…game store.

Very vivid memories. Saw Gygax and had his PHB in hand and social anxiety prevent d me from approaching him! Damn social anxiety!!!!

Older and wiser I would have been like “I am not worth! Dinner and beer on me!” Or if you prefer your autograph, sir sans the hops.

 

[The-Magic-Sword]

Cons are fun, I've only been with groups of friends I stuck with outside of my time GMing for Adenturer's League and then more recently Pathfinder Society, but I should try and meet more people at them.

 

[SteveC]

If you are in the industry or want to make contacts in the industry, it's quite important. This is one of the biggest events where people can network and meet with other people who are a part of gaming. If you have an idea and want to talk about it with other people who are a part of gaming, it's still quite important.

As a person who likes games and wants to learn more about them? Not so much. There was a time when major announcements and revelations about games and gaming were made at Gen Con. Not so much any more.