35th Annual Gen Con Costume Contest
 It’s almost time for Gen Con’s 35th annual Costume Contest! Whether you want to put together your best cosplay and compete, or just check out all the amazing creativity, the Costume Contest is a must-see event at Gen Con!

You’ll find the Costume Contest on the Main Stage in the 500 Ballroom at 4 pm on Saturday, September, 18. For spectators, the Costume Contest is a free, ticketed event. Attendees without tickets may be seated if space allows, but priority is given to those with tickets, so save your seat by registering for ENT21182503. A Gen Con 2021 badge is required for entry.

The Costume Contest will also be livestreamed on our Twitch channel!

Note: Due to health and safety concerns, there will be no Costume Parade this year.    

CONTESTANTS WANTED
Ready to enter the Costume Contest? The 2021 Entry Form includes the rules, general information, and next steps. In order to register for the contest, you must have a Gen Con 2021 badge, and two generic tickets (cash is not accepted).

You can also pre-register by mailing your form to the address at the top of the form — must be postmarked before September 8.

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Guess without the parade, lots of people figure this is the only way to see tons of cosplay in one place.

Oh. Just saw the notice today; I didn't realize tickets for the event had gone up before then.

Due to health and safety concerns, there will be no Costume Parade this year.  

Really?  What health and safety concern??  Honestly, this is going to be the lamest GenCon ever.

Sadly most of the people who would be excited the Costume Parade was cancelled are the kind of people who stopped attending 10 years ago because it was getting to be "less just about the gaming"

(Most years I get mad about the Costume Parade but solely because it seemingly always happens at the same time as my favorite part of the Auction, T.O.V.A., and limits its attendance; this year I would have actually been happy to watch the parade for once)

Regardless, I still think this is going to be a cannot-miss once-in-a-lifetime Gen-Con and I do not understand anyone thinking anything else.  I mean I understand not attending for safety reasons, but there is no way this atmosphere will ever happen again.

Yes, and with several "regulars" absent (both companies and activities like the Auction, Battletech Pods, presumably arcade games, et cetera) and lots of first-time things popping up to take their place.

Now, surely some of those first-timers will stick around, but next year has a good chance of being back to huge and crowded and largely like 2019, give or take some companies.

Just my opinion, but I don't expect GenCon's numbers to rebound next year.  After the shenanigan's they pulled this year by making masks mandatory literally three days AFTER the refund window.  I'm guessing they pissed off a lot of people, not just me.

Now, they cancel the costume parade and pretend it's for health and safety reasons?!  LOL, give me a break
Notice they didn't cancel or limit attendance to the exhibit hall.  I guess there is no health or safety concern there!

Largest gaming convention in the world. It will recover. Losing a few bad apples won't kill them. 

By the way, I do not wish that GenCon goes belly-up.  I'm just saying that with their poor decisions this year and the timing of those decisions, they reap what they sow.

Spiel is smaller.  It counts turnstile attendance.  Additionally there was no sowing nor will there be reaping