sh4d0w0fw4r wrote: squirecam wrote: sh4d0w0fw4r wrote:
I have been reading this same debate for years now...GenCon should STAY...GenCon should GO...and so on and so on. Every year the complaint is the same that there is not enough housing space. It surprises me however that the hotels are only viewed for their housing and not their impact to the convention itself (ie; event space) when debating whether GenCon should move or not. With Gencon Indy every hotel is teeming with events and open play areas. Hotels not only dedicate their rooms, and meeting areas to the con but many even partner with different publishers to give you a themed room key or re-do their restaurants in a fantasy theme. IMHO I do not believe hotels in towns such as Vegas or hotels that are not centrally located to the convention space itself would be willing to dedicate this much effort to a convention. We all attend GenCon for the games and the experience of being immersed in a world of fellow gamers who are excited about the same ideas, items, and hobbies. Moving to a large area such as Vegas would eliminate this immersion and break what I feel is a latch-key aspect to the convention. It is one thing to have this immersion inside the 4 walls of the convention center but the carry-over, the on the street conversations or the board games being played at the eateries down the street are what really make it an experience.
it's not immersive to me when I have to stay miles away at an airport hotel and can't get transport to the convention easily.There is simply not enough space downtown anymore for convention attendees to stay. Something needs to be done.
I agree that something needs to be done. And i think we can mostly agree there is no simple solution. Indy has current plans under way to construct more downtown hotels (seen in various forums and news articles) but obviously these kinds of things take time. Ultimately though there will be some people that do not get a downtown hotel room and it comes down to deciding if a downtown room is the determining factor for your fun and enjoyment for the con. Over the last 10yrs I have stayed both downtown and outside the Loop (I-465) but no matter where i have stayed once i get downtown it is obvious that the entire "City" is adding to the experience. I am not arguing the housing issue, as it is an issue, but more so that re-location would detract from the overall "feel" or immersion of the con. At the end of the day the decision to move or not move GenCon is outside any of our hands. We know for the next few years it is to remain in Indy and we will all continue to either Win or Lose the housing lottery for these next few years. (Side Note: I do thoroughly enjoy the forums and the fact that there are soo many passionate people in the GenCon Community to debate these types of topics. I have not been to many other conventions (board gaming or otherwise) but i am hard pressed to believe their attendees would talk with such fervor and passion about the event itself.)
I'm toying with the idea of going to NOVACon (I think that's what it's called) which is almost literally in my own backyard (about 5 miles down the road from my house), but it just seems so... dull compared to what I've seen here just in the forums alone. I'll probably try it just for the heck of it, and maybe it'll be a nice appetizer for the main course, since GenCon occurs about three weeks afterward. :)
As to the whole Indy downtown debate, my comment about mixing gambling with D&D was fairly tongue-in-cheek. I love the idea of mixing my two favorite passions (I don't indulge in gambling often, but I do enjoy the hell out of my very occasional forays into that particular sin), but I honestly don't see GenCon and Vegas mixing very well at all. I get the idea of keeping GenCon centrally located, and Vegas is seriously not a family-friendly place. I see opinions varying on this subject, but I'll never be convinced. Especially not when folks are flicking business cards featuring half-naked women at you when you step out on the street. And I can't imagine taking young children into a good number of those casino/hotels, where the waitresses are wearing very... err... provocative clothing, shall we say. Not to mention everything else that goes on in Vegas that gives the place the appropriate nickname of Sin City.
Even beyond that, though. I just don't see Vegas embracing the nerd culture that IS GenCon (or as I imagine it to be at any rate, since this will be my very first visit). Judging by the stories I've seen passed around these forums with regards to the local restaurants and hotels and how they take great pains to make the RPGers, board gamers, LARPers and Cosplayers feel welcomed and at home, I just can't imagine anyplace in Vegas that would do the same. Not necessarily because we just aren't their type of crowd (though in many instances I think that's probably true), but because they have to cater to so many different types of folks on a daily basis, they just wouldn't want to expend the time/energy to do so.