TOPIC: GenCon 4-day badges are sold out

Harlax wrote:

Steve wrote:

Mike Steele wrote:

Graven wrote:

Mike Steele wrote: I'm very interested to find out what that sell-out number for badges was.

Me too.


I'm also wondering if they'll ever expand it to 5 days. There is just so much to see. Plus is would give us another days worth of TD slots (in theory) .

My group has already expanded to six days.

Yeah .. we show up on Tuesday too .. but there is a lot of Arcanum stuff that goes on Wed.

I'm wondering when Peter will move GC to Chicago. It has outgrown Indy .. it outgrew Indy 2-3 years ago.

So that everyone can have the thrill of not being in a hotel within walking distance.

The IMTS show in Chicago had 155k last year vs GenCon's 65k.. But I don't know what the hotel situation is like for that.

I like it in Indy, but I wouldn't mind Chicago.

Harlax wrote: Que the "GenCon is getting too big discussion" in 3. 2. 1...

Ah hell, lets just do this.

Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much.......

Rebeg wrote:

Harlax wrote: Que the "GenCon is getting too big discussion" in 3. 2. 1...

Ah hell, lets just do this.

Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much.......

Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

jacob717 wrote:

Rebeg wrote:

Harlax wrote: Que the "GenCon is getting too big discussion" in 3. 2. 1...

Ah hell, lets just do this.

Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

No Chicago has no hotels near by, lets move it to Reno

Reno, not kid friendly, lets move it to Austin.

Austin! Too hot, lets move it to New York.

Are you nuts! New York cost too much.......

Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

Having attended two large national conventions at McCormick Place, I can tell you that you will spend a lot of time on a bus getting to and from your hotel.

Steve wrote:

Mike Steele wrote:

Graven wrote:

Mike Steele wrote: I'm very interested to find out what that sell-out number for badges was.

Me too.


I'm also wondering if they'll ever expand it to 5 days. There is just so much to see. Plus is would give us another days worth of TD slots (in theory) .

My group has already expanded to six days.

Yeah .. we show up on Tuesday too .. but there is a lot of Arcanum stuff that goes on Wed.

I'm wondering when Peter will move GC to Chicago. It has outgrown Indy .. it outgrew Indy 2-3 years ago.

Sorry but it hasn't. Indy host much bigger events than Gen Con. Now you can say it has out grown downtown Indy I would agree. But as pointed out there are not a lot of cities (there are some) the have as many rooms within walking distance to a convention center.

Harlax wrote:

jacob717 wrote:

Rebeg wrote:

Harlax wrote: Que the "GenCon is getting too big discussion" in 3. 2. 1...

Are you nuts! New York cost too much.......

Gencon needs to move to Chicago.

Having attended two large national conventions at McCormick Place, I can tell you that you will spend a lot of time on a bus getting to and from your hotel.

I'm in the camp of keeping it in Indy for sure. Besides being Indy being closer to me than any other similarly sized city that could possibly handle gencon I doubt any other cities would embrace the con as much as Indy currently does with all the local restaurants doing themed menus and events.

I say move it to LA.

bpsymington wrote: I say move it to LA.

Anaheim had a chance, it didn't work well.

My $0.02:

For people wanting to draw comparisons to other conventions, keep in mind that your average convention has much shorter days than the days at GenCon. I suspect that is a large part of why people want to stay at hotels nearby (heck, it is why I started getting a hotel for GenCon despite living a little over a half hour from the convention center).

At business conventions I've been to, you see everyone leave as soon as the exhibit hall wraps up. So staying at a hotel that is a ways away doesn't matter so much, you've got plenty of time.

I'd suggest that if you want to say "this city could totally handle GenCon" that you look not just at the size of conventions it hosts, but whether any of them have extreme long days that people spend at the convention itself. I'm sure there are some out there. I'd suspect gaming conventions aren't unique in that aspect, but they might be.

Fiddy wrote: My $0.02:

For people wanting to draw comparisons to other conventions, keep in mind that your average convention has much shorter days than the days at GenCon. I suspect that is a large part of why people want to stay at hotels nearby (heck, it is why I started getting a hotel for GenCon despite living a little over a half hour from the convention center).
.

Fiddy has the gist of it. I have been going to Gencon since 1988. I have been to more cons than I can remember, both personal and professional.

Gencon is different than them all. It is the only con that essentially is 24 hours a day. With constant coming and going. That is why staying close is super important. that adds a dynamic that is difficult to quantify in square feet and number of rooms.

Personally I am ok with staying in Indy. I do not think a unqualified better option exists. imho it is time for Gencon to explore other options. Maybe add some days? Consider a second con (again). Hey its a different geek landscape these days.

Indianapolis is one of a small number of cities with around 1/2 the population of the country within a one day drive.

Chicago is not central enough in that regard - it would knock a huge amount of the east coast out of one day drive radius without adding much new population.

My family is in Wheaton so personally it would be convenient.

Milwaukee!

When the Bucks finish their new arena and the surrounding entertainment district is built out.

Hey, a guy can dream, can't he?