GEN CON ONLINE

Dialing Up the Hype

- Justin Spicer

This is an unprecedented time for all of us. As we search for solace and comfort in our hobbies, the gatherings, groups, and conventions we have leaned on for so many years have been forced to cancel for everyone’s safety.

While we contemplate how to best proceed due to the ever-present Coronavirus, and yet still crave the adrenaline rush and unfettered excitement of convention season, we must push through and try to find the silver linings in an otherwise tough year. It was a similar experience for Gen Con.

Peter Adkinson, owner and CEO of Gen Con, lamented that when conventions were canceling and Gen Con had to follow suit, the future for Gen Con was bleak. But the organization behind North America’s biggest board gaming convention rallied around technology. Much like the players and people who flock to conventions to play the latest and greatest with friends and strangers alike, board gamers turned to the technological substitutes to keep the hobby sociable.

Even though Gen Con did not take place physically in Indianapolis this year, the paired-down online version serves as a reminder that next year can be even bigger and better. While many publishers and designers were hit hard personally and professionally with the ongoing global pandemic, there was still an air of excitement that helped many cope with the disappointment of being unable to descend upon Indiana’s capital for an extended weekend of geekery.