Is Gen Con worth the money?

[buzz]

Please help me out; I'm a little skeptical by now. Are four days of pure, unadulterated gaming worth $1000+ dollars to come down, find a hotel, find food, pay to get in, pay for certain events, pay for some merchandise, etc.?

Is Gen Con even accessible to people who don't exactly have money to burn?

Absolutely. GenCon itself doesn't really cost all that much. $60 (prereg) will get you a four-day pass. After that... $0 will get you into a seminar, the dealer hall, the art exhibit, the anime showings, and all the pick-up games; $4 will get you into a gaming event; and $19 will get you into True Dungeon (the most expensive event in the con).

Beyond that, the real expenses are food, lodging, and travel.

There are a fistfull of sites that will give you tips for doing the first two on the cheap.

The bigger hurdle is that last one. If you live far enough away from either Indy or SoCal that you need to fly in, you need to either scavenge the Web for a cheap flight or else think hard on how much gaming is worth to you. If you're within reasonable driving distance (say, 4-6 hours), I'd say it's do-able, especially if you're sharing the ride. (My beloved Honda can get almost to Indy and back on one tank of gas.)

Okay, that said...

I go to GenCon to have fun. Part of my having fun invovles:

a) Having a comfortable hotel room close to the convention center

b) Being able to walk into the dealer hall and buy whatever I want

c) Going out with my buds for sumptuous meals that feature fine wine and spirits.

The simple fact is, I can't do this and pinch pennies at the same time. I don't want to cram myself and five other guys into a tiny room that's a 30-minute walk from the convention center. I don't want to eat at some of the "affordable"* restaurants recommended on some of the otherwise helpful GenCon "how-to" sites I've read. I don't want to walk through gaming-swag ground zero and not be able to buy anything. I don't want to sleep in the 24-hour anime viewing hall.

Ergo, while I certainly think that you can do GenCon on the cheap, and that the primary GenCon experience is worthwhile even when on a budget...

My gut reaction is: if money is an issue for you, don't go. GenCon is WAY more fun when you can fill your hotel room with swag (instead of your smelly gaming buds), walk no more than 5 minutes to get to an event, drink delicious Asian pear cocktails at P.F. Chang's, and treat your friends (and your favorite game deisgners) to beer and appetizers.

So, either start saving now for GenCon '07, or else just wait until you have more disposable income. Unless you don't need the kind of largess I prefer, in which case, go.


* My first GenCon, I mentioned one of these restaurants to my friend who lives in Indy. His reaction? "Dude, you do NOT want to eat there."

 

[tvknight415]

To save on transportation costs, check out the train. You might need some extra time off work, but it is a very nice way to go and leaves you off about two blocks from the convention center.

I have observed a few people sleeping in the halls of the convention center. Don't know how kosher that is with the con staff though.

If you like to run games, volunteer to run some at the con. I do for RPGA and get free admission. I go with a group and we actually want to do stuff together, otherwise I'd volunteer enough to get free admission & hotel.

I agree wholeheartedly on the beverage suggestion. Crystal Light makes little packs that are good for about 20 oz. (I think). Bring some diet bars and a bag of jerky.

Otherwise, I think it's really worth it.

Eric

 

[WhimsyTheFae]

The wife and I probably drop around 2k a year at GenCon (the first 4 were cheaper, but they were in Milwaukee which is a 2-3 hour drive), but to us it is worth it.

GenCon is our vacation away from the kids - it's become our tradition.

Last year, I met a lot of EN Worlders and that added another element of enjoyment. This year I am planning a lot of stuff, so I should have great fun (but it may be too busy). Next year, I hope to find a happy medium.

I would rather go to GenCon than to any other place for vacation (yes, I'm weird like that).

 

[threshel]

Short answer:

Every.Frikkin'.Penny.


Long answer:

The con itself isn't that expensive, especially when compared to other multi-day events like rock festivals. All the other stuff - lodging, food, etc. - are normal vacation expenses, and frankly, vacationing in Indy is a bargain.


J

 

[freebfrost]

Is Gen Con even accessible to people who don't exactly have money to burn?

Yes.

My first GenCon was back in my just out of college days - so I didn't have money to burn. But I drove to Milwaukee with 3 other guys - we split the cost of a room a few miles from downtown, and took food with us. I spent maybe $100 in the dealer's room, played a bunch of games, and had a great time!

Fast forward 15 years to GenCon last year. I'm no longer a poor college kid, and have disposible income to spend. So I can afford to make the Con a mini-vacation and stay in a nice hotel, eat at good restaurants, and spend probably way too much in the dealer's room to be honest. I still play a bunch of games, and still ahve a great time!

Money doesn't change the result.

 

[buzz]

All the other stuff - lodging, food, etc. - are normal vacation expenses, and frankly, vacationing in Indy is a bargain.

QFT, and more succinctly said than my post.

If you can afford to take a vacation, you can afford GenCon. The question is: Is GenCon where you want to spend your vacation?

For me: Yes.

 

[amazingshafeman]

With one friend splitting gas and room, I'm sitting at an estimated $400 on Gen Con. We live in Minnesota, so it's a long drive to boot. Hotel is only 5 miles away from the hall, and so far almost half of my cost is registration and events. Up here, a membership with the public radio gets you a nice membership card that can be temporarily extended to the Indy area, which scores a buy 1 get 1 free dinner at quite a few restaurants in the area. We'll save a lot on food that way. The dealer room budget isn't in there yet, but that'll be on the low end, too.

Moral of the story, grab a friend, that'll make it cheaper. This'll be my first year, though, so I can't say yet if it's worth it.

 

[DM_Jeff]

Deja Vu

>>The wife and I probably drop around 2k a year at GenCon (the first 4 were cheaper, but they were in Milwaukee which is a 2-3 hour drive), but to us it is worth it.
>>GenCon is our vacation away from the kids - it's become our tradition.
>>I would rather go to GenCon than to any other place for vacation (yes, I'm weird like that).

Wow, it's like I already posted under a different name. Quoted for, not just truth, but an uncanny resemblance to what I was just about to write!

-DM Jeff

 

[FATDRAGONGAMES]

Short answer: yes. Go once, you won't be sorry. As mentioned above, there are a lot of ways to save money, especially when it comes to food. Are you going alone or with friends that can split the hotel bill?

 

[Palaner]

Not at the moment, no. I'm not really considering going at this point, when I'm still a sophomore in college. Thing is, my friends are way too busy to even consider doing this. And my parents...less than enthusiastic about blowing what should be for college on something as trivial as this.