GenCon 2024

[Zarathud]

Who is going this year? Event registration is tomorrow.

I'm hoping to get in some Star Trek:Ascendancy, Paranoia, Kobolds Ate My Baby, Car Wars, Vindication, and Vagrantsong. And shopping until my legs hurt.

[Blackhawk]

Sigh. Not this year.

My chances to do the entire show are probably over (the gamer friends I stayed with in Indy now live in Texas.) I hope to do a one day visit when I can, but I can't see it happening this year.

[Fardaza]

Probably not, but will have to see if wife says I'm free!

[hepcat]

I’m going, but I’m going the week after the convention so I don’t have to deal with the crowds.

[YellowKing]

My buddy I've always gone with is going but I had to bow out this year. The cost if just too prohibitive. By the time I factor in hotel, flight, and food I'm usually spending close to $1500 before I even buy a game. $1500 is a lot of money to sit around and play games I can eventually play for free at my house.

That said, I've had an absolute BLAST the three times I've been, and I will go back eventually when the timing and money is right.

[Montag]

In. Living in Indianapolis has its benefits.

[Skinypupy]

Three of us (me, my brother, and another friend) will be doing our first GenCon this year.

I've been absolutely swamped with work and didn't realize until this morning that the event signup had opened. Looks like just about everything is already sold out. Whoops.

[Fardaza]

There is actually a decent chance I may be going after all. I know I'll spend most/all of a whole day in the sales areas. I still have several questions though.
1- When I looked this morning, there were over 4,000 events just for board games. I scrolled through the first page or so and was still on Thursday 9:00am. How do you parse all those options?
2- How many events should I sign up for in a day?
3- I assume there are many large areas for open gaming?
4- Do they have a board game library? Or do I bring my own or rely on others to bring theirs?
5- I didn't see anything about parking. If I stay at a hotel several miles away, where do I park my car? How much?
6- Most importantly - Is there an open area (?) where I can sell my used games? Or purchase used games from other gamers?
Thanks for the advice.

[hepcat]

1- When I looked this morning, there were over 4,000 events just for board games. I scrolled through the first page or so and was still on Thursday 9:00am. How do you parse all those options?
2- How many events should I sign up for in a day?
3- I assume there are many large areas for open gaming?
4- Do they have a board game library? Or do I bring my own or rely on others to bring theirs?
5- I didn't see anything about parking. If I stay at a hotel several miles away, where do I park my car? How much?
6- Most importantly - Is there an open area (?) where I can sell my used games? Or purchase used games from other gamers?
Thanks for the advice.

1 - Filters. There are filters at the top of the page to restrict the view by day, time, type of event, as well as a search box you can type into to find specific games. I usually filter by event (board game/non historical miniatures/non tradeable card games) and then day and time. Then I just work through each day. There are still quite a few options, but it's far better than just trying to sift through everything unfiltered.

2-As many as you want. You don't need to attend if you find you've purchased too many events. There are always people with generic tickets who show up hoping to get into a game, so think of it as doing a public service if you skip a game. For me, it's usually 3 to 4 games a day. I usually skip at least one or two though during the convention as dinner plans, open gaming, etc. get in the way.

3-There's a huge hall that always has some open tables where you can sit. Plus, hotels and other area common areas have spaces too.

4- Yes. I haven't done that in a while, but you can search for game library or something similar and buy tickets for blocks of time. Then you can just check out a game and play.

5-Parking is not fun. I normally use Parkwhiz and have had good luck getting something. This year we're staying downtown again so I'm just going to pony up for hotel parking. I don't want to deal with that crap this year.

6- No, but there is an auction. Here's the gencon info on it and here's the site you actually use to register any games you want to sell.

Zarathud, Seppe and I will be skulking around, so if you're looking for folks to play with, just let us know. We usually hook up with Harkonis too at some point for evening games and, more importantly, beers.

Three of us (me, my brother, and another friend) will be doing our first GenCon this year.

I've been absolutely swamped with work and didn't realize until this morning that the event signup had opened. Looks like just about everything is already sold out. Whoops.

We should all trade info before the convention and have a big ol' dinner with folks.

[Blackhawk]

All the OOers in attendance makes me wish I could have set something up for this year.

[hepcat]

How far are you from Indianapolis? Could you come for even just one day?

[Skinypupy]

1- When I looked this morning, there were over 4,000 events just for board games. I scrolled through the first page or so and was still on Thursday 9:00am. How do you parse all those options?
2- How many events should I sign up for in a day?
3- I assume there are many large areas for open gaming?
4- Do they have a board game library? Or do I bring my own or rely on others to bring theirs?
5- I didn't see anything about parking. If I stay at a hotel several miles away, where do I park my car? How much?
6- Most importantly - Is there an open area (?) where I can sell my used games? Or purchase used games from other gamers?
Thanks for the advice.

1 - Filters. There are filters at the top of the page to restrict the view by day, time, type of event, as well as a search box you can type into to find specific games. I usually filter by event (board game/non historical miniatures/non tradeable card games) and then day and time. Then I just work through each day. There are still quite a few options, but it's far better than just trying to sift through everything unfiltered.

2-As many as you want. You don't need to attend if you find you've purchased too many events. There are always people with generic tickets who show up hoping to get into a game, so think of it as doing a public service if you skip a game. For me, it's usually 3 to 4 games a day. I usually skip at least one or two though during the convention as dinner plans, open gaming, etc. get in the way.

3-There's a huge hall that always has some open tables where you can sit. Plus, hotels and other area common areas have spaces too.

4- Yes. I haven't done that in a while, but you can search for game library or something similar and buy tickets for blocks of time. Then you can just check out a game and play.

5-Parking is not fun. I normally use Parkwhiz and have had good luck getting something. This year we're staying downtown again so I'm just going to pony up for hotel parking. I don't want to deal with that crap this year.

6- No, but there is an auction. Here's the gencon info on it and here's the site you actually use to register any games you want to sell.

Zarathud, Seppe and I will be skulking around, so if you're looking for folks to play with, just let us know. We usually hook up with Harkonis too at some point for evening games and, more importantly, beers.

Thanks Hep, super helpful. This is really my first con of any sort (other than wandering around the vendor hall at Salt Lake ComicCon), so I really have zero idea what to expect.

Three of us (me, my brother, and another friend) will be doing our first GenCon this year.

I've been absolutely swamped with work and didn't realize until this morning that the event signup had opened. Looks like just about everything is already sold out. Whoops.

We should all trade info before the convention and have a big ol' dinner with folks.

For sure. Will shoot you a PM and we can coordinate.

[Blackhawk]

Some tips from my trips:

~Supplement potassium - you're going to be walking a lot.
~Bring extra socks and carry a pair with you that you can change to if needed.
~Bring a pocket-sized hand sanitizer and carry it with you. Bring two.
~Bring a backpack, and bring some sort of a rigid folder (I used an extra-large manilla envelope with a piece of plastic in it.) You'll be getting tons of fliers, promos for games, and other paper/card products, and if you can slide them into a protected folder together, you'll be happier.
~Bring snacks.
~Bring a water bottle and a way to carry it.
~Be ready for hot weather. Indiana in the summer is hot and very humid.
~Leave one day free for the vendor hall.
~If shopping and there isn't limited quantity, pick out what you want first, then go back and pick up the items all at once so that you're not trying to carry multiple board games while still shopping. It's much easier to grab a number of things, make a quick trip to your room/car, then come back and continue.
~Many vendors have free bags you can carry stuff in, and they're usually pretty substantial and large (they want the logo out there for people to see)
~Every year there is a limited edition GenCon dice set. Check into that.
~You'll get a guide book and a coupon book. Go through the latter carefully - there are lots of cool items, promos, and freebies. If you can, grab a second guide book, then cut out the map and carry it in your pocket.
~Also, many people get the coupon book, take out one or two specific coupons, then toss it aside. Grab these if there's something you might want multiples of.
~If there's anything you're interested in, make note of the retail price before you go. Not everything there is actually a deal.
~Bring a notebook and a pen, or an alternate quick note-taking system that you can keep readily at hand.

[hepcat]

Also, if you're in the vendor hall with Zarathud and he tries to take over, pretend to listen to him, and then turn left when he turns right the moment his back is turned.

[Fardaza]

Thanks Hep and BH! Those are all good tips. Now if I can just convince my wife that a $1,000 - $1,500 trip is a good use of funds. She's going to an international scouts camporee from July 31 - August 13. I can't go because of mobility limitations. Perfect timing!!

[YellowKing]

A couple of event tips from my visits:

The game library is great, but it's often crowded and while the game selection is huge it's mostly older titles. After our first visit we preferred to pay the $2 for 2 hour blocks in the BGG Hot Games Room. It's in a conference room at a skywalk connected hotel, is never crowded, and has a nice selection of newer titles. If you just want to sit down in a quiet room and play some newer titles, it's a great option.

We also always enjoyed the "Test a Game in Progress" event (can't remember the exact title). Get there early and you can grab a number, then they'll call everyone up in numerical order to select what type of game you're most interested in (dungeon crawler, co-op, competitive, etc. with high-level blurbs about the theme of the game). Then you go sit down with the others that selected that game and play a beta copy (usually with the designer themselves). I did it all three years I went and always had a great time. At the end of the session you can provide feedback and suggestions.

From a scheduling standpoint, we always tried to leave hour blocks between events because the venue is huge and sometimes you're walking from one end to the other. We always tried to keep our day full of stuff to do, but spread out enough that we were never rushing and had plenty of time allocated for lunch and dinner. Of course as already pointed out, it's not the end of the world if you skip an event. And if you find yourself with a big downtime gap, chances are you can grab some tickets to an event you didn't originally sign up for. We wound up playing some entertaining games last time just sitting in on random learn to play events we didn't originally schedule. Stay flexible and you'll have a great time.

Even though it's pricey if you're not in the area, I think any serious board gamer needs to make the pilgrimage at least once.

My buddy who's going alone this year is going to drive this time to see how that goes. Saving on the airfare may make it a more viable option for future visits (we'd also save on the rental car and shipping games back). It's an 11 hour drive for me, but I've made that drive several times before for roller coaster events so I don't mind it.

[Fardaza]

It's about a 6 hour drive for me. That's right at the edge of my ability to drive for one day. The concern is parking. That will probably add another $200-400 for the full con.

I went to BGG Con in Dallas two Novembers ago. I only made it through 2 1/2 days because I was so exhausted from all the walking. If I go to Indy, I'll certainly consider getting my wheelchair out of the rafters of our shed.

[hepcat]

Check that site I linked earlier. If you don’t mind a half mile walk each morning and end of day, you can get parking for as little as 20 bucks a day or even less.

[GreenGoo]

Yet again this reminds me that Gencon was on my bucket list when I was a teenager (30 effing years ago) and I have yet to attend.

Running out of time.

[Fardaza]

I talked to my wife, and she said I'd already told her about the largest gaming convention in the U.S. I don't remember that conversation at all.

Anyway, she didn't say anything that should discourage me from going! I may well be there after all. I just booked a "reserve now, pay later, free cancellation" room about 7 miles from the convention center. $88 per night. Free parking there, so I need to figure out how to get from and to the CC each day. Or pay to park closer. I can't do the half mile walk that hepcat mentioned above. It will be all I can do just to get around the CC all day.

Hehe!

[hepcat]

If you leave early enough in the day, you can probably get a parking spot at the mall connected to the convention center. I think it's like 25 bucks a day, although that was the price I noticed a few years ago. It might be a bit more.

The aforementioned Park Whiz has a great list of parking near the convention center. One thought: you could get a cheap spot a half mile from the convention center and then take a 10 dollar uber to the festivities. Still might end up cheaper than any other option. There are PLENTY of Uber and Lyft drivers cruising that area during the convention at all hours.

[Fardaza]

I haven't ever had a need to take an Uber/Lyft ride before. How much should it cost to go about 7 or 8 miles?

[hepcat]

That would probably cost at least 25 bucks. Plus, it may be "surge" hours where rates increase drastically during certain peak times.

Looks like you can use this site to get a quote.

[Blackhawk]

If you're not driving, check with the other people going and see if you can 'borrow' a room for storage - somewhere you can go up once or twice a day and drop stuff off, then go collect it all at once when it's time to leave. Even one box can get burdensome when you're hauling it around for six hours (even if it's not Gloomhaven.) When I wasn't staying there, I was usually parked close enough to shuttle back to the car once or twice if I needed to, but I'd absolutely be looking for a temporary cache if I wasn't.

[Zarathud]

Bumped because this is next week.

[Montag]

Circle City Mall parking will be $30 a day. I typically park in the garage near Illinois and Georgia. There is a sky bridge to the convention center. Close to unload your haul. I target parking around 8:30 and would get spots on the 4th floor. I target the southeastern corner. There is a stairwell that exits on Georgia.

[Fardaza]

I'm kicking myself. I goofed around and didn't buy my ticket when I should have. When I looked last week, they were sold out.

[YellowKing]

Decent chance I'll be going next year after a two-year hiatus. The other two members of our gaming group have expressed interest in going, so we might just rent a big car and make it a road trip. Will save on the insanely expensive plane tickets, which have really been the biggest barrier in the past.

[hepcat]

I'm kicking myself. I goofed around and didn't buy my ticket when I should have. When I looked last week, they were sold out.

Yeah, they sold out a few weeks ago. They had sent out emails to everyone on their mailing list to hurry up right before they did. I think they've sold out like this for the last few years too. Attendance has been crazy. I'm not looking forward to spending an hour waiting on a table at every restaurant for 4 days.

[Zarathud]

The secret is to go to the steak place and get the cheaper menu options. It’ll be busy but not packed. Food is so overpriced anyway, it’s not too much worse.

[YellowKing]

We generally skipped sit-down places and lived off food trucks and mall court options. It's not the healthiest lifestyle, but it's fast.

[Montag]

The secret is to go to the steak place and get the cheaper menu options. It’ll be busy but not packed. Food is so overpriced anyway, it’s not too much worse.

Steak 'n Shake - the Very Berry Strawberry shake is very good. There is a Subway in the Hyatt Regency northeast of the convention center. I do hit the food trucks for a good variety of food. They moved them to between the stadium and the convention center instead of Georgia St in the past year or two.

[LordMortis]

We generally skipped sit-down places and lived off food trucks and mall court options. It's not the healthiest lifestyle, but it's fast.

The last time I went (and only time in I've been at the Indy version), I worked for the Mayfair guys at a dice stand. They took my out to me eat and paid for my hotel. I didn't have to worry about cost or waits or nothing ever. Though I ended up working most of the weekend.

People buy a lot of dice at Gen Con. Or they did that year.

[hepcat]

We generally skipped sit-down places and lived off food trucks and mall court options. It's not the healthiest lifestyle, but it's fast.

The prices on food trucks these days at Gencon is about on par with the more upscale restaurants. And the wait lines for them? Forget about it. I personally like taking an Uber to Sun King brewery and getting a flight of beers and a giant pan of nachos. Harkonis introduced me to that last year.

Although obviously I'm not going to eat nachos every day. I'm not a savage. But I'll try to get Skinnypuppy and the others to go with me at least once.

People buy a lot of dice at Gen Con. Or they did that year.

I am continually surprised at how lucrative selling dice can be. I mean, at this point, shouldn't we all have enough dice to last us to armageddon?

The secret is to go to the steak place and get the cheaper menu options. It’ll be busy but not packed. Food is so overpriced anyway, it’s not too much worse.

Steak 'n Shake - the Very Berry Strawberry shake is very good. There is a Subway in the Hyatt Regency northeast of the convention center. I do hit the food trucks for a good variety of food. They moved them to between the stadium and the convention center instead of Georgia St in the past year or two.

The onion rings at Kilroys. That is the be all end all.

[Blackhawk]

I ate dinner at the food court at the mall nearby each day. Even at GenCon 50 it wasn't all that crowded, it was standard food court prices, and it didn't involve any sort of journey (I was there with a friend in a wheelchair, and it was within easy pushing distance without ever going outside in the blech.) Breakfast was on the hotel.

For lunch? I packed snacks - a couple of protein bars, some nuts, etc. I'd just pull up a floor somewhere, stuff it down my throat, and get back to the important things.

[Zarathud]

Harry & Izzys, go for the sandwiches or a lunch steak.

Steak & Shake is a madhouse.

[hepcat]

Ooof, mid to high eighties and thunderstorms predicted through almost the entire convention.

[Isgrimnur]

Keep your chits dry, boys and girls.

[Blackhawk]

Given that we've spent far too many days in the mid-90s with 80%+ humidity, I'd count your blessings - you're getting typical weather for the season.

[Zarathud]

Anyone interested in getting dinner on Saturday after the dealer hall closes, PM me.