Pros and cons of cons

[cyst13]

What are the attractions and aversions of gaming at conventions?

[Karmakaze]

Attraction - new people
Aversion - little control of who those new people will be

[Michael Hopcroft]

I find playing and GMing at conventions is exhilarating IF it's a decent size group for your game. A con game for which nobody shows up is torture.

[ghost-angel]

Pro - new people, new experiences, new stuff
Cons - Con People.

At The Time Con: A really really bad game you will eventually tell as a funny horror story but at the time want to kill yourself, or them - it's hard to tell.
After the fact Pro: A really realy bad game you can tell as a funny horror story.

[bwdemon]

Pros: meet up with old friends; try out some new or overlooked games; check out the latest goodies yet to hit store shelves

Cons: lots of people; lots of stinky people; lots of strange people; some stinky strange people

[John Desmarais]

Pros: meet up with old friends; try out some new or overlooked games; check out the latest goodies yet to hit store shelves

Cons: lots of people; lots of stinky people; lots of strange people; some stinky strange people

And some strange stinks...

[wylodmayer]

The games I'm in and run tend to at least reference, if not outright include and explore, 'adult themes' - I mean, hey, generally the characters are single adults. They're going to have... interests. We don't have to explore them in lurid detail, but in some company, saying, "Oh, yeah, and then I change into civvies and hit the bars cruising for trim" is a no-no.

This, aside from the fact that I have high standards for players means that I don't really game at cons. I haven't roleplayed at a con in many, many moons, especially since on about half of the times I did, the game was packed with people who knew the GM and were essentially continuing their other games with him through this one. I don't even play board or wargames at cons, either, though. Last time I did, I was playing Car Wars. I caught one of the other players, a guy who knew the ref, red handed changing his armor scores mid game. I nearly beat the crap out of him.

Anyway, I don't game at cons anymore, period. Not worth the effort. I spend all my time in panels, anyway.

[The Monster]

Pro:
--trying new and different games
--playing other games that I don't have resources for (especially miniatures)
--meeting new gamers
--meeting old gamer friends who live out of town
--doing one-shot adventures to test or play out a concept that won't sustain a campaign
--testing ideas for future campaign use (e.g., the Champions fight I did supers-vs-mechs a few years ago gave me good idea on how to better use them in our campaign last month)
--participating in panels & making presentations to help other gamers
--seeing new kewl stuff and the chance to buy a little of it
--news on the gaming hobby

Con:
--(as a GM) no control over who signs up - you can get some really oddball people at you table
--(as a player) crapshoot GM quality - unless you recognize the name, it's easy to get stuck with a dolt or jerk for 4 hours
--adventures can't use long-term plots; stuck to one-shots
--listening to panels where I keep thinking "I know this stuff better than they do!" (yes, that's why I started doing them myself)
--no food! too many cons are in places where there's no food that isn't the (overpriced!$!) hotel restaraunt, and even greasy fast food is too far away to access between game sessions
--huge temptation to overcommit (...gee I'd really like to run a session of Dawgs in Space, but I'm already doing these three other games, and this other one that's a two-parter...I guess I won't be able to just play anything again this time...)
--reminders of aging and mortality (I had to give up midnight sessions several years ago, and more old gamer friends are showing up with canes and wheelchairs)
--too much kewl stuff to possibly afford

Note that a lot of the pros and cons are mirror images of each other (like group selection), and some of the cons are really just whines rather than real con-specific issues (yes, I could pack a weekend picnic basket, but it just never seems to happen the way it should).
All in all, I really enjoy cons - even the ones I overwork myself at (and I'm trying to tone it down before I seriously burn out; I'm starting to feel the signs already).

[Vondy]

I never met a con I didn't dislike. :D

[Matt Frisbee]

Okay -- rampant consumerism here -- but given the general lack of really good game stores in the southeastern quarter of the Hawkeye State:

THE DEALERS

It's like a huge gamer flea market! "I'll take this, and this, and this, and all of those, and...what? How much? That much, huh? You sure? Good thing I brought my plastic..."

Matt "Knocking-over-gumball-machines-for-gas-money-home" Frisbee

[Just Joe]

I have essentially no experience roleplaying at cons, but I would have thought that one of the negatives would have been that the sessions are often too short. This is related to the one-shot vs. campaign distinction, but is not the same thing.

[AliceTheOwl]

Con:
--(as a GM) no control over who signs up - you can get some really oddball people at you table
--(as a player) crapshoot GM quality - unless you recognize the name, it's easy to get stuck with a dolt or jerk for 4 hours
--adventures can't use long-term plots; stuck to one-shots
I haven't really had to deal with this, because Josh and I were running an invitation-only, non-official game. We camped out before the convention even started in one of the open gaming rooms, fully expecting to get kicked out when the convention started. Instead, a staff member showed up and asked us if we needed anything, which was cool.

We played mostly with the group Thag runs for, along with a couple of friends we know mostly online. The quality control was GREAT, and we wound up having a lot of fun. :thumbup:

Also, this being the second year Josh ran this game (I didn't help him last time), he got to do a consistent, overarching plot.

[Derek Hiemforth]

I have essentially no experience roleplaying at cons, but I would have thought that one of the negatives would have been that the sessions are often too short. This is related to the one-shot vs. campaign distinction, but is not the same thing.It's not necessarily a negative... it's just a factor that you have to take into account when preparing games for a con. You need to make sure it has a pretty clear beginning and end, and that the players will be able to get from point A to point B in the allotted time. :)

[BNakagawa]

Interesting people are my principal pro for a convention.

tossing emails around or typing on a board is nice, but there's no substitute for a face to face discussion.

Nothing like a discussion of gaming with Zornwil at 3am...

also, sometimes you can get into a good game or two.

[Narratio]

Many eons ago, before I left the UK, my wargames group used to hit the various cons around South England and play 2 or 3 games at once. Well, there were a dozen of us and we were pretty good. The first was a real wargame demonstrating a rule set like WRG 3rd/4th Ed Ancients or some other rule set and then there were 2 public participation games.

The first was a continual play game, like gladiatoral combat or WW1 fighters or D&D (we're talking 1970 through 1984 time period here). The game started first thing in the morning and we played all day with members of the audience joining in and leaving as they wanted. All rules were stripped down, no real details just a 'big picture' story. It was a way of dragging in people to show them that we were not all closet geeks (a word yet to be coined...) and get them having fun and hope the gaming bug would bite.

Then there was the third game with set start times and set ends, although the ends always over run. That was for gamers who wanted to try something different. It was usually an RPG-Lite using 54mm figures. We did superheroes, WW2 partizan ambushes in France, Medieval tournements, gladiators etc. This was where members of a club met the members of other clubs, thier peers, and saw what else was going on in the world.

I remember those conventions as doing more good for the hobby than anything else. Yeah, you met wierdoes who were an early form of munchkin, kids who'd mime drawing, cocking and shooting the person next to them, sometimes with sound effects. Or renactors from one of the Napoleonic or ancient groups who'd sit down in full uniform/costume and join in something that just caught thier eye. They were fun in thier way and sometimes I miss them.

[Michael Hopcroft]

I have run Slayers games at numerous conventions, using numerous systems. When I have a full party (four to six) it's a blast. I end up doing what Ewen Cluney ruefully described as "RPG Fanfic", placing my players in the roles of the cast of the series and then putting them through usually zany adventures. Adventures that frequently caused whoever ended up playing Lina Inverse to squirm delightfully throughout the entire session.

The first one I ever ran involved a village Lina had never been to before where it seemed like everyone knew her and was anticipating her needs -- in completely the wrong way. Yep, she'd found the town where Copy-Lina (the mirror image version of her with an opposite personailty) had settled. Before the session was over, they'd ended up switching bodies, courtesy of a magic mirror, and I handed the player a note saying "You are now Copy-Lina in Lina's body. Roleplay accordingly." so that nobody else would know what had happened.

My most infamous adventure, "Miracle in Xoana", was compared by one of its players to a Restoration farce. It involved a queen Lina was acquainted with inviting the whole gang to her castle, where she was determined to "set things right" among the group (she was happily married, and thought this was too good a condition not to share). Matters were complicated by the fact that Amelia's lunatic father had come along and Naga had decided to show up, leading to even more misunderstandings and difficulties.

The players actually brought most of the funny to those games. I just set up the situations.

[bigdamnhero]

For me the big pro is getting to see other gamers (both GMs & players) in action, watching what works/doesn't work, and picking up new ideas. Before moving to Denver I'd been playing the same campaign with the same group for 7 years. It was a lot of fun, but frankly we were in a huge rut -- I didn't realize how bad until I started gaming with new (sometimes random) people at cons. I'm a MUCH better GM now as a result.

Learning to master the 4-hour con time slot has also vastly improved my focus & pacing in my home campaign.

[Scifi_Toughguy]

I haven't really had to deal with this, because Josh and I were running an invitation-only, non-official game. We camped out before the convention even started in one of the open gaming rooms, fully expecting to get kicked out when the convention started. Instead, a staff member showed up and asked us if we needed anything, which was cool.

We played mostly with the group Thag runs for, along with a couple of friends we know mostly online. The quality control was GREAT, and we wound up having a lot of fun. :thumbup:

Also, this being the second year Josh ran this game (I didn't help him last time), he got to do a consistent, overarching plot.


Isn't this then outside of the normal boundaries of a Con Game? Sounds more like a temporary relocation of one's regular gaming group.

[AliceTheOwl]

Isn't this then outside of the normal boundaries of a Con Game? Sounds more like a temporary relocation of one's regular gaming group.
Albeit with a different GM and some additions, yeah.

It's certainly outside the normal boundaries, but quite doable, I should think, at any other convention that allows has tables for open gaming.

[zornwil]

Interesting people are my principal pro for a convention.

tossing emails around or typing on a board is nice, but there's no substitute for a face to face discussion.

Nothing like a discussion of gaming with Zornwil at 3am...

also, sometimes you can get into a good game or two.
Wow, thank you. :) I've enjoyed that with you and some others as well, of course.

As to pros, as bnakagawa states, lots of great conversation, you can go more in-depth with people than in these sorts of spaces, and can learn a lot from the varying POVs. There's, in general, a good-to-great caliber of people to play with and be exposed to new styles and ideas, making ofr great games. Of course, as mentioned above, you can come across some painful mismatches, but on the whole I find that's fairly rare.

Re cons on cons, one is just personal, I get too keyed up and find them brutally exhausting afterwards, at least if I'm not careful, which, given plane travel and being exposed to people of all over, can often lead to a cold or flu afterwards.

[BlackSword]

Pros - The opportunity to meet and game with new people. I have gotten several campaign ideas from con games, just expanded the concept out from beyond the four hour time slot. Its fun to play with new people, and the opportunity to meet and play with some great GMs. In addition at large cons, once you get to know some people, its fun to try and schedule games with them at future cons.

Its a weekend away from home and work doing something I enjoy. :)

Its so random. Compared to my normal daily routine, its nice to break away and have an unstructured social setting.

Costumes.

Gencon gives you the chance to meet and talk to authors and artists.

Cons - Well, at any large gathering, the population of the tail ends of the bell curves start to become larger. So you end up with people that even geeks try to shun. The pro to the con is that it makes for great stories. Also at GenCon I have noticed this seems to be less and less an issue. I have only abandoned a single table and most of my games have varied from good to great.

[lemming]

I think people have covered the points quite well.

Now when I get to a con, it's seeing people I haven't seen for the last year. Which is usually a pro...

Reminds me that DDC is open for registration.

[archermoo]

I think people have covered the points quite well.

Now when I get to a con, it's seeing people I haven't seen for the last year. Which is usually a pro...

Reminds me that DDC is open for registration.

And in fact the cheapest pre-reg runs out at the end of the month. :)

I really wish they'd upgrade their registration to allow online registration. :(