Advice for Gencon?

Last year was my first time going to GenCon. I was in your position when I went (my game was on the verge of being published, but still in prototype form), so I can certainly relate.

I looked at it like this: I'm coming in brand new. There's a lot of things I need to learn about this game industry and I knew it. Realistically, there's got to be a level of networking to get your game where it needs to be, but if you're going in blind, you're going to make a lot of mistakes.

As such, I wanted to also understand GenCon. It's a different beast than the conventions I usually go to (Game Developers Conference, Strategicon, E3, Comic Con, Anime Expo, and various other smaller cons), so I wanted to get a feel of GenCon as a convention...as a fan.

Rather than trying to get the game in front of as many people as I could, I focused my "testing" to people that mattered. My goals were very simple: Get to know GenCon, Have Zee or Sam from the Dice Tower play and critique my game, and meet with (and play my game with) a game designer at Fantasy Flight Games (for game crit, not to submit).

With the few goals I had, it allowed me to focus my efforts. I met ALL of those requirements (Sam even mentioned our experience in his Top 10 experiences of 2015 and Zee personally reviewed my game). As this was my first game, I wasn't expecting a Cinderella story. I was expecting to know my industry and see what influential people in this industry have to say about my style of game design. It's slower, but it's solid.

The fact is, many many many would-be designers are trying to get their game looked at by publishers when all they are doing is trying to promote their game. GenCon is a place to make connections, establish personal meetings later (like at another con like BGG Con).

Looking at your list, I'd say focus on #3 and #4. Take some time to know the industry, who the players are, what kinds of personalities they have...then network your way in. Don't come in like, "Hey I'm new, look at my game"...you'll be waiting in line like all the other new designers trying to worm their way in. If a publisher is interested in your game, they'll ask. If you really want to get publishers to look at your game, go to BGG Con. THAT's the place to go with your prototypes.

Much of what I learned I learned being in the video game industry for so long. There's an art to networking.

I don't mean to be facetious as is suffer similar problems. It was gencon or anything that massive but this year I took what for me was a scary baby step. We took some prototypes of our game, as nice looking as we could make it, paid our entry to the game library area, & camped in a corner that was on the external edge of the play area. We put up signs saying players wanted & we'd teach new players, we put up home made signs asking for people to help us test our game. As we were near the edge people wandering around the stalls saw the bright simple colours of the prototypes & wandered over to have a look. After a minute or 2 I managed to ask if they were interested in looking at the rules or if they wanted to play.

The best thing I found was that once we had some people playing some of them (who liked the game) kept playing & teaching new players. They also talked to people watching, explained the rules to them & convinced them to come & try it so it reduced how much I had to do (& also let me see how they & others reacted to various aspects of the game & what they said about it when I wasn't in the conversation).

So, maybe don't go trying to meet publishers etc. instead do it bit by bit & try to set up so people can notice your game without you needing to walk up to them.

It won't get your game published quickly, but it also shows you are serious about trying to make your game better. Occasionally a publisher may walk past & be willing to give feedback as they themselves are free to play the game without having to internally assess whether it is a right fit for them.

It will depend on the Con. I looked at the online programme & emailed the convenors asking if I could set up to test somewhere, clearly stating I had no product to sell. In my case they emailed back saying they'd never been asked before so they went away & then came back to say as long as I used the game library area I was ok. This convention had a small daily charge for everyone to get into the game library, probably to help defray the cost of replacing damaged games afterwards. I just rocked up on the day & paid for a 3-day pass.

My personal view, it never hurts to ask because the worst that can happen is they tell you to go away but the best that can happen is they say yes & probably appreciate you asking first.

My friend play-tested his game at GenCon last year and ran the sessions out of his hotel room. It was very successful. What I learned from him is:

A) Have one clear goal in mind. If you want to test your game then focus on that and that alone. You don't have as much time as you think you do. My friend had at least two other people helping run sessions and organize. He wasn't there to pitch, network, etc., just test. If you are going there to test prototypes then do you really have time for #2-5 on your list?
B) Have promotional materials on hand. My friend had custom beer coasters made, which he distributed to players. He had an easy infrastructure in place for a secondary goal of generating word of mouth, which went hand-in-hand with the playtesting. So, maybe you could manage showing your prototype to publishers and other interested parties by having printed materials inviting them to observe your playtest sessions.
C) Be prepared to deal with at least one rude and/or odoriferous person.

My own personal observances from promoting product at GenCon:

A) Gamers are docile beyond all belief. You can freaking point at someone and tell them to come to your booth, follow you somewhere, and so forth. Eight-out-of-ten gamers will do this. If retailers from some of the other industry trade shows I've worked ever made it to GenCon, they'd clean up. If you can't fill your tables, find a bored looking group of people and flat out tell them to join you for a game.
B) Visit Lou Zocchi's booth, and buy yourself some Game Science Dice, because that man is awesome, and he won't be around forever. Make sure you do at least one loop of the vendors room, which is your chance to drop off those aforementioned invites.
C) Since this is a gaming forum, I'll mention, don't dress like a schmuck. Remember, you are there representing your business, so while cool and casual hipster may match the environment better than business casual, don't be that guy with the neck beard and sixteen ounces of gut hanging out from the bottom of his wrinkled Triforce t-shirt. Overall, be organized, smooth, and professional, because you are selling yourself as much as the game. With publishers remember eye contact, firm handshake, and all of that other stuff your mother taught you in elementary school.