Milwaukee Journal Sentinel GenCon article

[Liminal Syzygy]

Sorry but I think a lot of the Wisconsonites and local Milwalkee people have a bit of a bias here. A lot of the article linked above was largely whining that it wouldn't be in their home town anymore. Well boo hoo.... It isn't in the home town of 99% of the US population.

I think it would be better if GenCon rotated between large convention towns to give more people a chance to attend locally.

 

[Creamsteak]

Heh, doesn't matter to me. I like road trips. I like flying. I like the movement between the two locations.

It's the staying in one spot and not having any permanent place to stay that bothers me. Hotels suck, period. I can't enjoy staying in a hotel, any hotel.

If the con ever moves to a nice "convention" city, great. Then of course it turns it into more of a vacation than an event to me. I kind of like the long drive, one night in a hotel, and drive back myself.

I'm in the minority though...

 

[Nikchick]

This myth about Wisconsin has become so pervasive that I think it is time for Wizards to speak on the matter directly, and let us know some vague geographically-based sales numbers. I'm betting you have a lot more sales in New York City or Los Angeles than you do in all of the state of Wisconsin.

It's not that there is such a massive concentration of gamers in Wisconsin per se, it's that Wisconsin (and likewise Indianapolis and Columbus) are so relatively close to so much of the population.

And I do think it's true that the Midwest maintains a strong population of gamers, perhaps through tradition, perhaps because the climate promotes a game-paying atmosphere or the area was populated by game-loving cultures. Germans are well known for their love of games, for example, and Wisconsin was settled by quite a lot of German immigrants who brought their Beer-brewing, cheese-making, bratwurst-loving, game-playing culture with them and made it Wisconsin's culture, too.

As a former Minnesota girl, I spent many days and nights playing card games, board games, dice games, you name it, with my grandparents. Roleplaying with my friends later in life is just a natural extension of that, I think.

Nicole

 

[mac1504]

The one thing that I've always had a problem with is that GenCon is ALWAYS at the time the State Fair is. Or at least it has been the last six years, when I started going. I don't know if they didn't want to hold it later, when more kids might be in school, or if there were other reasons not to do it, but when the State Fair is going on, that's going to be eating into the available hotel space too....

Well, yes that is a problem... but I think the major problem is the time of year GenCon is held. Summer in Milwaukee is almost always busy, that's why they call it the City of Festivals. With Summerfest, the ethnic fests, State Fair, Bastille Days, River Splash, etc. there is always going to be a clash for hotel space from all the tourists in town. But moving it to another time of the year means conflicting with those of the younger crowd who are in school, or teachers as well.

I of course am biased since I love Milwaukee (and no, it is not the only city I've ever lived in or have been to), but I hate to see it go. I think Milwaukee, however, has a strong chance of getting GenCon back in the future. The city has been going through a great era of growth- and I believe it will be better equipped in the future to handle GenCon and its own growth.

I hope that the move to Indianapolis will be a good thing for the Con, just in a short time kind of way

For those coming into town for this years GenCon, make sure to check out the new Art Museum expansion- it is truly a beautiful sight by the Lake.

-mac1504

 

[Col_Pladoh]

I of course am biased since I love Milwaukee (and no, it is not the only city I've ever lived in or have been to), but I hate to see it go. I think Milwaukee, however, has a strong chance of getting GenCon back in the future. The city has been going through a great era of growth- and I believe it will be better equipped in the future to handle GenCon and its own growth.

I hope that the move to Indianapolis will be a good thing for the Con, just in a short time kind of way

-mac1504

Although I was born in Chicago, lived there many yars, I too think Milwaukee is the best place for GenCon. Let us hope that in four years' time the con will return.

As for the size of GenCon, is much bigger really better? How large can a gaming convention of its sort become? My opinion is that it is about as big as it's going to get based on the size of the gaming audience. It might grow, but beyond 40,000? I am doubtful. Of course I _hope_ it reaches 50K for Pete's sake

Gary

 

[William Ronald]

Indeed, Gary, 50,000 gamers at Gen Con would be a good thing. (Mind you, if all of them attended the EN World Gathering I would not be able to print up badges for all of them.... )

 

[Shadowdancer]

That story in the Milwaukee paper says GenCon brings $10 million to the city? That figure has to be wrong -- way too low. How many people attend GenCon, 35,000? That's only $286 per person. I know many gamers con on the cheap, but still. Either the reporter made a mistake with the numbers (it's easy to do, I know I've done it before ) or the people who gave out the figures made a mistake, like a typo or moved a decimal place.

 

[Acmite]

I think, really, the only fair compromise is to move the whold damn thing to Toronto.

Who wouldn't love that?

- James

I guess I could live with that.

 

[machine]

Ahh yes, the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy (TM).
Be careful, they might come for your children as well.

Buzzard

Actually I'm fairly middle of the road. And I don't have kids.

I just don't have a high opinion of the Star and since I live in Indiana, I'm aware of the 'slight' conservative slant present in the area I live in.

Just my opinion. Indy will be a fine place for the con and I'm a lot closer to it than Wisconson.