Back from Gen Con

I have worked something like the last 9 or 10 Gen Cons. Each one had a story, memory, or event that made it special, but this year really set itself apart from previous shows. Never before in all my years of making and selling games have I been able to say that I was a part of THE GAME at Gen Con.

For almost all of the show, I was tucked away in the events hall showing people the ins and outs of Monsterpocalypse, but from what I hear, the line to the Privateer Press booth was something like 300 people long! By 11am on Saturday we had sold out of every single starter set that we brought to Gen Con. For the rest of the show, we had people asking to buy more Monsterpocalypse.

The few times I was able to sneak away from the events hall I saw numerous people squatting on the floor examining, trading, and playing Monsterpocalypse. IT WAS EVERYWHERE! Seeing people enjoy a game that you worked on is always something special. Seeing it take place everywhere you go is freaking fantastic! It makes those late nights playtesting and revising rules all worth it.

A lot of work went into refining this product for publication, and it was rewarding to see our effort appreciated. Numerous people commented on how easy the rules were to understand, and I noticed quite a few expressions of enlightenment as people looked over their figures and discovered their abilities on the reference sheet.

One of my favorite things about running the event room for Monsterpocalypse was watching faces light up when I would explain some of the more in depth strategy of the game. For instance, when I explained to a player how he could slowly bleed his Monster Dice Pool in order to take multiple back-to-back monster activations, I noticed a series of reactions. First a puzzled look came over his face as the new revelation sank in. Then the look turned to joy as he realized there is another level of strategy beyond simply smashing his opponent upside the head with a building. Finally a look I could only describe as PURE EVIL washed over him as he planned for competitive play against his friends back home. It was a scenario that played out over and over again, and it was quite a thing to see.

By the end of the show I turned in over 400 event tickets – more than I have ever turned in before for one game. In addition to the starters, we sold nearly every booster we brought. On top of all those great things, I also met a bunch of great people that I am sure I will see when we run the Monsterpocalypse events next year!

Gen Con ’08 was one of those experiences that made me feel bigger than Gorghadra after “snackin’ down” on a major metropolitan city.

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