Well for GenCon50, we decided to do something that we haven’t done for many years, and that was to actually go for fun and not get press passes. I do have to say that, without the need to see what is there and setup/do interviews, I didn’t see anything near the whole con. Not just that, but I didn’t even get to see all the vendors in the hall.
So you may ask, what was it that you did do? We walked (of course) and played games (like the battlepods), went to the arcade room, hung out in various places in the vendor hall, and ate some really good food. For the most part though, honestly, there isn’t a lot that I remember.
Well for GenCon50, we decided to do something that we haven’t done for many years, and that was to actually go for fun and not get press passes. I do have to say that, without the need to see what is there and setup/do interviews, I didn’t see anything near the whole con. Not just that, but I didn’t even get to see all the vendors in the hall.
So you may ask, what was it that you did do? We walked (of course) and played games (like the battlepods), went to the arcade room, hung out in various places in the vendor hall, and ate some really good food. For the most part though, honestly, there isn’t a lot that I remember.
The first day I dress up… we ended up calling it my “Fat Pirate Hobbit” costume. However, that whole first day was a wardrobe malfunction. The boots kept falling, the pants didn’t fit quite right, the shirt was sweaty. However, I did get to spend a little time in the auction. That didn’t last long, as I spent $100 in no time, and we didn’t have adequate bags to haul the stuff back to the car (parked half mile away).
For most of the rest of the week, it is kind of a blur. I don’t remember any games that stood out, and I don’t think I bought that much. Even though we did go through our budget for the week (and it was a decent budget), I honestly don’t know what it was spent on.
As for this being the 50th? It was fun, but apparently not that memorable. It could be that the attempted cosplay threw me off, or that I was focused on other stuff, but some of the past shows where I had to get interviews done were more memorable.
We will be back next year, but probably not in an “official” capacity. Old age, and the irritation at the overabundance of media there (doing things that we would have never done, like pushing people out of the way and taking up way more space than the needed in an already crowded building), I don’t think we will do video like that anymore. We will still do stuff on the podcast for the con, and probably do a little bit of other things throughout (if the internet access gets better).
There was a lot of anger online about how different things were handled. Like Starfinder being sold out, the long lines at FFG and them selling out, the commemorative dice being sold out early, and even how the city supposedly handled the homeless situation around the convention hall. But seriously, it was a massive show. It sold out for the first time ever. There are going to be things that get sold out, and just because you waited too long to go get it (or you didn’t want to stand in line) isn’t GenCon’s fault.
But the thing that irritated me was how rude people were. Yes, there was a lot of good people there but a small child we had with us got body checked into a wall. He was fine, and the person never stopped, I don’t even think they noticed. There was a lot of pushing, inconsiderate bag choices, and wagons. I stress over and over, any luggage that you pull behind you (or push in front of you for that matter) is something to be left at the hotel or at home. I got ran over, bumped into, and my knees beaten on, by several little pull behinds. Not only that, they take up room in an already crowded area.
And for the love of god people, don’t stop in the middle of an isle. I preached to my group that if we need to stop, go to a booth or the end of the isle. But that is my complaint every year, and at almost every con.
Any rate, how do I rate GenCon50? It was good, not great, but definitely still one of my favorites. A lot I would change, but mostly is how I approached it this year and not necessarily anything they need to address. Tell us your stories in the comments section on the facebook post or in the GPR public group.