Gen Con

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Gen Con Indy
Gen Con logo.svg
Genre Gaming
Venue Indiana Convention Center
Location Indianapolis, Indiana
Country United States
First held 1968
Organizer Gen Con LLC
Attendance 49,058 in 2013[1]
Official website http://www.gencon.com/
Gen Con LLC
Type Privately held company
Founded May 2002[2]
Headquarters Seattle, Washington[3]
Key people Peter Adkison: owner
Website http://www.gencon.com

Gen Con is the largest tabletop game convention in North America by attendance and events. It features traditional pen-and-paper, board, and card games, including role-playing games, miniatures wargames, board games, live action role-playing games, collectible card games, non-collectible card games, and strategy games. Gen Con also features computer games. Attendees engage in a variety of tournament and interactive game sessions.

Gen Con 2013 received over 49,000 unique attendees,[4] making it one of the largest conventions in North America.

Gen Con was established in 1968 as a wargames convention held by Gary Gygax, who later co-created Dungeons & Dragons, the game that initiated the roleplaying game phenomenon. It was first held in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, but the location for the convention changed between various sites in Wisconsin from 1972 to 1984 before being fixed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1985. Other Gen Con conventions were held sporadically in various locations around the United States. Beginning in 1990, Gen Con conventions were also held in several European locations, as well as in Australia (as Gen Con Oz) from 2008–2010.

Gen Con became the property of TSR, Inc., the gaming company co-founded by Gygax, in 1976. In 1997 TSR (and Gen Con) were acquired by Wizards of the Coast, which was subsequently acquired by Hasbro. Hasbro sold Gen Con to the founder and former CEO of Wizards of the Coast, Peter Adkison, in 2002. In a move that had been planned prior to Adkison's purchase, the convention relocated to its current home in Indianapolis, Indiana one year later.

Gen Con spent a short time under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, due to a lawsuit brought against them by Lucasfilm on February 15, 2008.[5][6] The organization emerged from bankruptcy protection a year later, while still holding its regularly scheduled events.

History[edit]

Early years[edit]

The International Federation of Wargaming (IFW) hosted a number of small regional conventions in the months following its foundation in 1967, including a first annual club convention in Malvern, PA, that August.[7] Some IFW gamers in the greater Chicago area who could not make the journey to Malvern instead attended an informal gathering of wargaming enthusiasts—later termed "Gen Con 0"—that same weekend at the Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, home of Gary Gygax.[8][9] In 1968, Gygax rented Lake Geneva's Horticultural Hall to hold a follow-up IFW convention, the Lake Geneva Wargames Convention, later known as the Gen Con gaming convention.[10][11] The IFW, which Gygax had also co-founded, put up $35 of the $50 Horticultural Hall fee to sponsor this first Gen Con.[12][10] Almost 100 people attended. At the second Gen Con in August 1969, Gygax met Rob Kuntz[13] and Dave Arneson.[14][11][15] The main events in that era were board games and miniature wargames.[10]

Gen Con's name is a derivation of "Geneva Convention", due to the convention's origins in Lake Geneva. As the "Geneva Conventions" are also a set of important international treaties regarding war, the name is also a pun derived from the convention's original focus on wargames.[16] Starting in 1971, Gen Con was co-sponsored by the Lake Geneva Tactical Studies Association.[17]

TSR[edit]

Beginning in 1975, Gen Con was managed and hosted by TSR, Inc., original publisher of the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.[18] Gen Con West was held in California for two years only, in 1976 and 1977.[19]

During the following decade the event grew and was hosted at a variety of southern Wisconsin locations, including an American Legion Hall, George Williams College, and the former Lake Geneva Playboy Resort. In 1978 the convention moved to the University of Wisconsin–Parkside campus in Kenosha.[20]

From 1978 to 1984, an annual Gen Con South was held in Jacksonville, Florida.[19] Gen Con East I was held in 1981 at Cherry Hill Inn, in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, and Gen Con East II was held in 1982 at Widener College, in Chester, Pennsylvania.[19]

MECCA[edit]

Gen Con moved to the Milwaukee Exposition & Convention Center & Arena (known as the MECCA) in Milwaukee in 1985,[20] due to the need for more space.[21] Attendance steadily rose from 5,000 paid admissions in 1985[22] to a peak of 30,000 in 1995,[23] making Gen Con the premier event in the role-playing game industry. In 1992, Gen Con broke all previous attendance records for any U.S. gaming convention, with more than 18,000 people in attendance.[21] Gen Con briefly joined forces with its major competitor, Origins Game Fair,[21] and the two were run as a single convention in 1988. Wizards of the Coast debuted Magic: The Gathering at Gen Con in August 1993; the game proved extremely popular, selling out its supply of 2.5 million cards, which had been scheduled to last until the end of the year.[24] The ensuing collectible card game craze has been credited with generating the extra attendance that produced the 1995 record.[25]

Wizards of the Coast[edit]

Wizards of the Coast purchased TSR in 1997, and Wizards was in turn purchased by Hasbro in 1999. Gen Con moved to the Midwest Express Center (MEC, now the Midwest Airlines Center) in 1998. In November 1999 Wizards announced that Gen Con would leave Milwaukee after the 2002 convention.[20] Peter Adkison, founder of Wizards of the Coast, purchased Gen Con from Hasbro in May 2002.[26] Adkison formed Gen Con LLC in May 2002 to run the convention, and the first show under Adkison's leadership took place that August in Milwaukee.[2]

Indianapolis[edit]

Cosplay at Gen Con Indy 2008

The Midwest U.S. convention moved to Indianapolis in 2003. Peter Adkison attributes the move to the lack of hotel space, a less spread out convention center, 40% more floor space, and frequently broken escalators in Milwaukee's convention center.[26][27]

Gen Con in the United States was split into two different conventions in 2003: Gen Con Indy (in Indianapolis, Indiana) and Gen Con SoCal (in Anaheim, California). Gen Con Indy was the larger of the two, drawing approximately 25,000 attendees per year,[28][29] on par with the Gen Con conventions in Milwaukee during the 1990s and early 2000s. It takes place in the Indiana Convention Center. Wizards of the Coast helped celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Dungeons & Dragons game at Gen Con Indy 2004.[30] In 2005 Gen Con Indy generated the most direct visitor spending of any annual convention in Indianapolis.[31]

Gen Con SoCal was smaller, with approximately 6,300 attendees in 2005.[32] Gen Con SoCal was the third-largest consumer hobby game convention in North America. It was held in the Anaheim Convention Center. One-day badge prices were $30 to $35, while four-day badges were $55 to $65. On January 26, 2007, Gen Con So Cal was canceled.[33]

A game of The Settlers of Catan being played at Gen Con Indy 2003

In the wake of the downsizing of E3 in mid-2006, Gen Con LLC announced it would provide more show space for video game businesses.[34] Gen Con described their intention to "pick up where E3 [left] off."[35] In 2003 Adkison had said that he did not want Gen Con to become a "mini-E3".[26]

Gen Con LLC ran the official Star Wars convention, called Star Wars Celebration, which was held in the banner years of the franchise. On January 10, 2008, Lucasfilm filed a lawsuit against Gen Con LLC, claiming breach of contract, conversion, and unjust enrichment over Celebration IV, held in 2006. The suit also claims Gen Con failed to give the money raised at a charity auction held at the event to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.[36] Soon after, Gen Con filed a counter-suit claiming Lucasfilm had no basis for their claims and owed money to Gen Con.[37]

On February 15, 2008, Gen Con LLC announced that it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, citing "significant unforeseen expenses associated with ... externally licensed events".[5] As a result of the bankruptcy filing, the Lucasfilm lawsuit was delayed until November 19, 2008.[38] Gen Con Indy 2008 was held as planned.

On November 20, 2008, a letter of intent to purchase Gen Con LLC's assets was filed with the bankruptcy court. It announced that a to-be-formed company called Gen Con Acquisition Group would purchase Gen Con LLC., with the purchase price being set equal to Gen Con LLC's outstanding debt.[39][40] Gen Con LLC President Adrian Swartout described the letter as "suspiciously cryptic" and concluded that the offer "is not in the best interest of our creditors."[41] Gen Con rejected the hostile takeover bid, and the bankruptcy court allowed Gen Con to emerge from bankruptcy in January 2009, 11 months after it had entered Chapter 11.[41][42]

International[edit]

Gen Con spread to Europe in the 1990s, with the first annual European Gen Con held in Sussex, England, in 1990, and Gen Con Barcelona in Spain in 1994; both of these Cons were also held in 1995 and 1996.[19] European Gen Con in England was the only 1997 European Gen Con, and Benelux Gen Con, held in Holland, was the only 1998 European Gen Con.[19] In 1999, Gen Con UK was held in England, Gen Con Barcelona returned, and Gen Con Europe was held in Belgium.[19] The only Gen Con in Europe in the year 2000 was Gen Con UK, held at Manchester University.[19] In 2001, Gen Con UK was moved to London, where it was held every year through 2003.[19]

After two unsuccessful years of running Gen Con Europe in the UK, Adkison decided to scale back and focus his efforts on the US shows. In 2004 licenses were issued to groups who would create the franchises for Gen Con Barcelona and Gen Con UK. In early 2006, Gen Con LLC announced that it was going to run a new official Gen Con Europe, to be held in Paris, France. The convention was held on the weekend of April 21–23, and received 4,000 attendees.[43] The convention was held again in Paris in 2007. A Gen Con was held in Brisbane, Australia, in July 2008 and again in September 2009. A third Gen Con Australia was scheduled for 2010, but was canceled.[44]

Events[edit]

The Gen Con Indy 2003 exhibit hall

The convention features a large exhibit hall filled with game publishers, artists, and related businesses. The majority of attendees spend at least $100 in the exhibit hall.[45] Most Gen Con attendees are men between 20 and 39 years of age who earn more than $50,000 per year.[45]

The only game to be on the event schedule every year since Gen Con I is Fight in the Skies,[10][46] (later renamed Dawn Patrol), first introduced by game designer Mike Carr in 1968.

The D&D Championship Series (formerly the D&D Open) is a long-running series of Dungeons & Dragons games at Gen Con. Game sessions are scored based on the team's progress; those groups scoring the most advance to later rounds. This leads to an emphasis on quickly solving challenges and moving through the modules. The D&D Open is run by the RPGA (Role-Playing Game Association). The open began in 1977.[17]

Tom Lommel organizing players for a NASCRAG event at Gen Con Indy 2005

The gaming group NASCRAG has run Dungeons & Dragons events at Gen Con since 1980. NASCRAG events sometimes donate their ticket fees to charity. The games run tend to be humorous.

The RPGA runs large numbers of events at Gen Con, so many that they have been given their own category. The RPGA events are primarily "Living" games where players create characters who persist between events. The RPGA first ran events in 1981.[17]

The Game Base 7 games library from the 2003 Gen Con Indy

In 1987 a games library was added from which attendees could borrow games.[17] The library is currently run by Game Base 7.

MIDI Maze, an early networked first-person shooter video game run by the Milatari Atari computer user group, was a draw to the early video game room of Gen Con. It no longer runs at Gen Con; the original display now appears at the Midwest Gaming Classic.

The Klingon Jail and Bail are a group of people who dress as Klingons from Star Trek. For a donation to charity they will "arrest" and detain another convention attendee for a short period of time. The Jail and Bail first appeared at Gen Con in 1993.[47]

Appearing in 1994 was the first Magic: The Gathering World Championship, won by Zak Dolan, who defeated France's Bertrand Lestrée in the finals.

Cardhalla at Gen Con 2005

Gen Con has featured a number of events that raise money for a variety of charities. These include Cardhalla, in which donated cards are used to build a large city. Attendees are then invited to throw coins at the city to destroy it. The coins are collected for charity. Cardhalla was first run in 1999.

The Gen Con EN World RPG Awards (the ENnies) are an annual awards ceremony devoted to role-playing games. Established in 2001, the ENnies are hosted at Gen Con Indy (since 2002) and are organized and owned by EN World, a D&D/d20 System news website.[48]

True Dungeon is an immersive life-sized dungeon crawl live action role-playing game (LARP) run at Gen Con since 2003. It features a challenging series of puzzles and scenarios designed to recreate a D&D environment and session. It emphasizes team work, creative thinking, and problem solving, and employs a fighting and magic system. Unlike traditional LARPs, it does not require staying in-character throughout the experience.

The Gen Con Costume Contest runs Saturday evening at Gen Con Indy, and features a range of categories such as SciFi, Historical and Fantasy, Talent, Anime, and Children's divisions. This event includes a costume parade around the convention center. The contest generally fills quickly, both for participants and attendees, and features pre-show and intermission entertainment.

Over Gen Con history, a number of games have been announced or released at the convention. Plans to update the D&D game with a third edition were announced by Wizards of the Coast at Gen Con 1999 as the game celebrated its 25th anniversary. The third edition of the D&D game debuted the following year at Gen Con 2000, with the release of the new Player's Handbook,[49] while the fourth edition was announced at Gen Con Indy 2007. White Wolf Game Studio's New World of Darkness game line debuted at a party held during Gen Con 2004. Gen Con 2007 added a Trade Day to the schedule for the first time. This is an additional day of programming for industry insiders and retailers, held the Wednesday before Gen Con opens to the public.

Issues[edit]

In 2008, Christian Children's Fund was reported to have turned down a $17,398 donation from GenCon Live Game Auction, which took place in August at Gen Con.[50] The donation was made in honor of Gary Gygax, who died in 2008, and who was a frequent donor to CCF.[51] Some individuals within the gaming community expressed disappointment about the decision; author and game designer Rich Burlew, for example, called it "insulting,"[52] and the response by gamers led both the CCF and Gen Con to issue official statements explaining what had happened.[53] When questioned, the CCF replied that reasons for the rejection included "the possible misinterpretation of CCF's role in regard to the event." ... "The information presented to us gave the appearance that CCF (the organization) was an endorser or supporter of the event instead of a beneficiary."[54] A later statement issued by a representative of Gen Con explained that Gen Con had contacted CCF before the convention was held in August, and asked permission to use CCF promotional materials, which they believed CCF declined to provide because of Gen Con's association with Dungeons & Dragons; after that, according to the statement, Gen Con chose to support a different charity before becoming clear of the charity's actual position; at which point it was too late to change.[51]

Timeline[edit]

Attendance at Gen Con conventions, based on the numbers given below:

Gen-Con-Attendance.svg

1967–2002: Gen Con[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
"Gen Con 0" August 1967[13] Gary Gygax's Home
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[13]		 12[a]
Gen Con I August 24, 1968[13] Horticultural Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[13]		 96[55][b] First official year of Gen Con
Gen Con II August 23-24, 1969 Horticultural Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[13]		 187[56][c][d] First two-day Gen Con
Gen Con III August 22–23, 1970[13] Horticultural Hall/Guild Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[13]		 250[57]
Gen Con IV August 21–22, 1971[58] American Legion Memorial Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[58]		 300[59]
Gen Con V August 19–20, 1972[58] George Williams College
Williams Bay, Wisconsin[58]		 200[60]
Gen Con VI August 18–19, 1973[58] Horticultural Hall/Guild Hall/Legion Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[58]		 300[61] TSR, Inc. Founded[8]
Gen Con VII August 23–25, 1974[58] Horticultural Hall/Guild Hall/Legion Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[58]		 350[62] Dungeons & Dragons published[8]
Gen Con VIII August 22–24, 1975[63] Horticultural Hall/Guild Hall/Legion Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[63]		 900[18]
Gen Con IX August 20–22, 1976[63] Horticultural Hall/Guild Hall/Legion Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[63]		 1,300[64] TSR takes ownership of con[8]
Gen Con X August 18–21, 1977[63] Playboy Resort/Horticultural Hall/Guild Hall
Lake Geneva, Wisconsin[63]		 2,300[65]
Gen Con XI August 17–20, 1978[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside[66] 2,000[67] Moved to Parkside location
Gen Con XII August 16–19, 1979[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside[66]
Gen Con XIII August 21–24, 1980[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside[66] 4,500[68]
Gen Con XIV August 13–16, 1981[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside[66] 5,000[69]
Gen Con XV August 19–22, 1982[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside[66]
Gen Con XVI August 18–21, 1983[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside[66]
Gen Con 17 Aug. 16–19, 1984[66] University of Wisconsin–Parkside and Gateway Technical College[66] 3,600[17]
Gen Con 18 August 22–25, 1985[70] MECCA (Milwaukee Exposition & Convention Center & Arena), Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] 5,000[22] Moved to MECCA
Gen Con 19 August 14–17, 1986[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] 5,000[17]
Gen Con 20 August 20–23, 1987[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] Gen Con's 20th year
Gen Con 21/Origins August 18–21, 1988[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] Gen Con and Origins were run as a single convention this year[71]
Gen Con '89 August 10–13, 1989[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] >10,000[72]
Gen Con '90 August 9–12, 1990[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] >12,000[73]
Gen Con '91 August 8–11, 1991[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] >15,000[74]
Gen Con/Origins '92 August 20–23, 1992[70] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[70] >18,000[21] Gen Con's 25th year. Gen Con and Origins are run as a single convention this year
Gen Con '93 August 19–22, 1993[75] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[75] 20,000[76]
Gen Con '94 August 18–21, 1994[75] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[75] >25,000[76]
Gen Con '95 August 10–13, 1995[75] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[75] 30,000[23]
Gen Con '96 August 8–11, 1996[75] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[75] 27,000[77]
1997 Gen Con Game Fair August 6–10, 1997[75] MECCA, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[75] 27,000[77] Wizards of the Coast purchases TSR, Inc., gaining control of Gen Con. Gen Con's 30th year
1998 Gen Con Game Fair August 6–9, 1998[78] MEC (Midwest Express Center), Milwaukee, Wisconsin[78] >19,000[79] Moved to MEC
1999 Gen Con Game Fair August 5–8, 1999[78] MEC, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[78] >22,000[80] Wizards of the Coast is purchased by Hasbro after the convention. Hasbro now owns Gen Con.
2000 Gen Con Game Fair August 10–13, 2000[78] MEC, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[78] 21,000 (projected)[81]
2001 Gen Con Game Fair August 2–5, 2001[78] MEC, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[78] >25,000[17]
2002 Gen Con Game Fair August 8–11, 2002[78] MEC, Milwaukee, Wisconsin[78] 23,000[28] Gen Con's last year in Wisconsin, 35th year of the convention. Peter Adkison purchases Gen Con from Hasbro.

1976–1977: Gen Con West[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con West September 4–6, 1976[63] McCabe Hall, San Jose, California[63]
Gen Con West 77 September 3–5, 1977[63] Villa Hotel, San Mateo, California[63]
Gen Con West 78 September 2–4, 1978[66] Villa Hotel, San Mateo, California[66]

1978–1984: Gen Con South[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con South February 9–11, 1978[66] Robert Meyer Hotel, Jacksonville, Florida[66]
Gen Con South February 17–19, 1979[66] JAX Hilton, Jacksonville FL[66]
Gen Con South February 15–17, 1980[66] Ramada Inn, Jacksonville Beach, Florida[66]
Gen Con South February 6–9, 1981[66] Ramada Inn, Jacksonville Beach, Florida[66]
Gen Con South February 5–7, 1982[66] Jacksonville Beach Convention Center, Jacksonville Beach FL[66]
Gen Con South March 11–13, 1983[66] Thunderbird Resort, Jacksonville FL[66]
Gen Con South March 16–18, 1984[66] Thunderbird Resort, Jacksonville FL[66]

1981–1982: Gen Con East[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con East I July 23–26, 1981[66] Cherry Hill Inn, Cherry Hill, New Jersey[66]
Gen Con East II June 17–20, 1982[66] Widener College, Chester, Pennsylvania[66]

1990–2008: European Gen Con[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
European Gen Con November 30 – December 2, 1990[70] Pontin's Holiday Center, Camber Sands, East Sussex, England[70]
European Gen Con 1991 November 15–17, 1991[70] Pontin's Holiday Center, Camber Sands, East Sussex, England[70]
European Gen Con 1992 November 13–15, 1992[70] Pontin's Holiday Center, Camber Sands, East Sussex, England[70]
European Gen Con 1993 November 11–14, 1993[75] Pontin's Holiday Center, Camber Sands, East Sussex, England[75]
European Gen Con 1994 May 12–15, 1994[75] Pontin's Holiday Center, Camber Sands, East Sussex, England[75]
European Gen Con 1995 April 27–30, 1995[75] Pontin's Holiday Center, Camber Sands, East Sussex, England[75]
European Gen Con 1996 September 5–8, 1996[75] Loughborough University, Leicestershire, England[75]
European Gen Con 1997 August 28–31, 1997[75] Loughborough University, Leicestershire, England[75]
Gen Con Europe July 31 – Aug 1 1999 Bouwcentrum, Antwerp, Belgium
Gen Con Paris April 21–23, 2006[48] Paris Est Montreuil, Paris, France[48] 4,000[43]
Gen Con Paris 2007 May 25–27, 2007[48] Paris Est Montreuil, Paris, France[48] 4,200[82]
Gen Con Paris 2008 April 25–27, 2008 Paris, France 9,000[83]

1994–2004: Gen Con Barcelona[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con Barcelona 1994 November 11–13, 1994[75] Drassanes Reials, Barcelona, Spain[75]
Gen Con Barcelona 1995 November 3–5, 1995[75] Drassanes Reials, Barcelona, Spain[75]
Gen Con Barcelona 1996 November 15–17, 1996[75] Mercat del Born, Barcelona, Spain[75]
Gen Con Barcelona 1999 April 9–11, 1999[78] Cotxeres de Sants, Barcelona, Spain[78]
Gen Con Barcelona July 1–4, 2004[48] Palau Sant Jordi, Barcelona, Spain[48] (licensed event)

1998–2008: Gen Con UK[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con UK 1998 September 3–6, 1998 Loughborough University, Leicestershire, England
Gen Con UK 1999 September 2–5, 1999[78] Loughborough University, Leicestershire, England[78]
Gen Con UK 2000 August 31 – September 3, 2000[78]> Manchester Conference Centre, Manchester University, England[78]
Gen Con UK 2001 August 30 – September 2, 2001[78] Olympia 2, London, England[78]
Gen Con UK 2002 August 29 – September 1, 2002[78] Olympia 2, London, England[78]
Gen Con UK 2003 April 18–21, 2003[48] Olympia 2, London, England[48]
Gen Con UK 2004 October 14–17, 2004[48] Minehead Butlins, Somerset, England[48] (licensed event)
Gen Con UK 2005 November 3–6, 2005[48] Bognor Regis, West Sussex, England[48] 1,957[e] (licensed event)
Gen Con UK 2007 August 30 – September 2, 2007 Reading, Berkshire, England 1,746[84] (licensed event)
Gen Con UK 2008 August 28–31, 2008 Reading, Berkshire, England (licensed event)

1998–2000: Gen Con Benelux[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Benelux Gen Con 1998 July 31 – August 2, 1998[78] Motel Tiel, Tiel, Netherlands[78]
Gen Con Benelux 2000 September 23–24, 2000[85] Den Bosch, The Netherlands [85] Last Gen Con in the Benelux.[85]

2003–2006: Gen Con SoCal[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con SoCal 2003 December 11–14, 2003[48] ACC (Anaheim Convention Center), Anaheim, California[48] 4,148[86]
Gen Con SoCal 2004 December 2–5, 2004[48] ACC, Anaheim, California[48] 5,559[86]
Gen Con SoCal 2005 November 18–20, 2005[48] ACC, Anaheim, California[48] 6,326[32][86]
Gen Con SoCal 2006 November 16–19, 2006[48] ACC, Anaheim, California[48] 5,840[86]

2003–present: Gen Con Indy[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con Indy 2003 July 24–27, 2003[48] ICC (Indiana Convention Center), Indianapolis, Indiana[48] 25,000[28]
Gen Con Indy 2004 August 19–22, 2004[48] ICC, Indianapolis, Indiana[48] 21,741[87]
Gen Con Indy 2005 August 18-21, 2005[48] ICC, Indianapolis, Indiana[48] 25,106[29]
Gen Con Indy 2006 August 17–20, 2006[48] ICC, Indianapolis, Indiana[48] 21,250+[88]
Gen Con Indy 2007 August 16–19, 2007[48] ICC, Indianapolis, Indiana[48] 27,000[89] 40th anniversary
Gen Con Indy 2008 August 14–17, 2008[90] Indianapolis, Indiana 28,600+[91]
Gen Con Indy 2009 August 13–16, 2009[92] Indianapolis, Indiana 27,900+[93]
Gen Con Indy 2010 August 5–8, 2010 Indianapolis, Indiana 30,046[94]
Gen Con Indy 2011 August 4–7, 2011 Indianapolis, Indiana 36,733[95]
Gen Con Indy 2012 August 16–19, 2012 Indianapolis, Indiana 41,000+[96] 45th anniversary
Gen Con Indy 2013 August 15–18, 2013[97] Indianapolis, Indiana 49,058[1]

2008–2009: Gen Con Australia[edit]

Event Date Location Approximate
attendance		 Notes
Gen Con Australia July 3–6, 2008 BCEC (Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre), Brisbane, Queensland, Australia >10,000[98]
Gen Con Australia September 18–20, 2009 BCEC, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Scheduled future events[edit]

Event Scheduled date Location Notes
Gen Con Indy 2014 August 14–17, 2014[97] Indianapolis, Indiana
Gen Con Indy 2015 July 30 – August 2, 2015[97] Indianapolis, Indiana
Gen Con Indy 2016 August 4–7, 2016[99] Indianapolis, Indiana
Gen Con Indy 2017 August 17–20, 2017[99] Indianapolis, Indiana 50th anniversary
Gen Con Indy 2018 August 2–5, 2018[99] Indianapolis, Indiana
Gen Con Indy 2019 August 1–4, 2019[99] Indianapolis, Indiana
Gen Con Indy 2020 July 30 – August 2, 2020[99] Indianapolis, Indiana

Footnotes[edit]

  1. ^ "...a weekend gathering of about a dozen aficianados...at the home of future game designer E. Gary Gygax." See Laws 2007, p. 3.
  2. ^ Gary Gygax is quoted as saying, "I rented the Horticultural Hall for a full 50 dollars. ... admission was one dollar. I had enough paid admissions to exactly cover the cost of the hall." "...there were only maybe 60 people..." See Laws 2007, p. 5.
  3. ^ Gary Gygax is quoted as saying, "...150 paid attendees." See Laws 2007, p. 14.
  4. ^ Laws report only one day, see Laws 2007, p. 8
  5. ^ "Perhaps the thing to do is to spread the word so next year there are a lot more of us than this year's attendance figures of 1,957 ..." See Szachnowski 2005.

Citations[edit]

  1. ^ a b Kirby, Stacia. "Gen Con Indy 2013 Continues Record-Breaking Growth". Gen Con LLC. Retrieved 20 August 2013. 
  2. ^ a b "Company Information". Gen Con LLC. Archived from the original on 2007-10-15. 
  3. ^ "Contact Us". Retrieved 2007-08-10. 
  4. ^ http://www.gencon.com/press/postshow2013
  5. ^ a b Gen Con, LLC. (2008-02-15). "Gen Con Files for Chapter 11 (Press release)". Gen Con, LLC. Archived from the original on 2008-02-16. Retrieved 2008-02-16. 
  6. ^ "Lucasfilm Sues Gen Con". February 22, 2008. 
  7. ^ Peterson 2012, p. 10.
  8. ^ a b c d Gen Con Indy 2007 Program Book. Gen Con LLC. pp. 42–43, 132–133, 142–143. 
  9. ^ Laws 2007, p. 3.
  10. ^ a b c d Laws 2007, p. 5.
  11. ^ a b Kushner, David (2008-03-10). "Dungeon Master: The Life and Legacy of Gary Gygax". Wired.com. Retrieved 2008-10-16. 
  12. ^ Peterson 2012, p. 5.
  13. ^ a b c d e f g h Laws 2007, p. 8.
  14. ^ King, Brad; Borland, John (2003). Dungeons & Dreamers: The Rise of Computer Game Culture from Chic to Geek. McGraw-Hill. ISBN 0-07-222888-1. 
  15. ^ La Farge, Paul (September 2006). "Destroy All Monsters". The Believer Magazine. Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. 
  16. ^ Laws 2007, p. 4.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g Porter, Randy. "A little History". Keeper of Ancient GenCon Lore. Archived from the original on 2006-06-16. Retrieved 2006-08-17. 
  18. ^ a b Peterson 2012, p. 530.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h "Gen Con Complete Timeline". Trident, Inc. Archived from the original on 2008-08-25. Retrieved 2008-06-20. 
  20. ^ a b c Miller II, Stanley A. (August 3, 2002). "Gen gone: Next year, gamers will be draggin' their tales to Indiana prairie". Journal Sentinel. Archived from the original on 2007-08-09. Retrieved 2008-12-17. 
  21. ^ a b c d "The History of TSR". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2008-10-04. Retrieved 2005-08-20. 
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Sources[edit]

  • Peterson, Jon (2012). Playing at the World. San Diego CA: Unreason Press. ISBN 978-0615642048. 
  • Szachnowski, Lucya (2005-11-01). "Gen Con UK 2005" (PDF). Flagship (116) (Birmingham, UK). p. 9. Archived from the original on 2008-03-27. Retrieved 2012-01-17. 

External links[edit]

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