New York State’s largest gaming conference is held in Syracuse, and it’s solely rising

Visiting the Oncenter in downtown Syracuse over the weekend, one may assume they’ve been transported right into a sci-fi or fantasy world, with folks all over the place wearing robes, carrying swords, or donning armor. In actuality, the just about 80 thousand sq. foot area hosted New York’s largest gaming conference, RetroGameCon.

The three-day expo has run yearly for twelve years, partnering with comedian bookstores, retro recreation retailers, and even music venues throughout Central New York.

Event Coordinator Nathan Grant stated the conference was established to attach avid gamers within the area.

“RetroGameCon began as basically a bunch of like-minded, nerdy individuals who wanted to come together and celebrate a hobby they loved,” Grant stated. “And the first year was only about 500-600 people at a little rental space at Driver’s Village and it’s grown into this big convention that it is today.”
RetroGameCon had 10,000 attendees this yr, and visitors stated the conference appears to develop yearly.
While the Syracuse conference expands, different online game conventions like Pittsburgh Comic Con, Idaho’s Fandemonium, and the previous largest gaming conference within the nation, E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo), have shut down. 

Event coordinator Grant credited the con’s smaller scale for its progress.

“We have a nice balance where it’s growing and getting busy enough where you can meet big celebrities who come here, you can buy stuff at our vendor hall, but the lines aren’t overwhelmingly long where you’re probably only going to be able to have time to check out so many things with how long the lines take,” he stated.

Isaiah Escalante is a fight medic and cosplayer from Fort Drum, an hour north of Syracuse. Last yr was his first time attending the expo. He stated he returned for the variety of actions out there.

“RetroGamesCon actually has things to do, like there’s all these games, there’s a lot of competitions, there’s cosplay, speed runs, just a whole lot of free play too, so it’s awesome.” he stated, whereas holding a horned helmet beneath his arm.
Jon St. John, the voice of 1996’s Doom, one of many online game business’s first voice-acted titles, hosted a panel of different actors. It was his second time attending the conference.
“I’m very happy to be a return guest,” he stated. “This is one of the best cons I’ve ever attended.”

Beyond their favourite character’s actors, conference guests had been entertained by an arcade, a retro laptop space, and a tabletop roleplaying room. In one room, armor-clad Live Action Role Players (LARPers) dueled one another with foam weapons.

The conference additionally featured unbiased recreation builders from Syracuse and past. 

Employee of Philadelphia-based indie recreation firm Retroware, Patrick Farrell, an worker of Philadelphia-based indie recreation firm Retroware, stated they journey to Syracuse yearly.

“We like to come out to the community and show off our games, because our games are specifically focused [on] this group,” he stated.

Syracuse is progressively constructing a status as a gaming business starter market. SUNY Polytechnic Institute sponsored RetroGameCon, with the conference highlighting the college’s interactive recreation and media design program. One of final yr’s sponsors, Syracuse University, not too long ago launched a brand new Esports heart and educational packages. Both packages sign to conference goers that the online game business is a possible, even rising, profession path.

During the three-day occasion, coordinators stated RetroGameCon generated an estimated two to 3 million {dollars} in income for town of Syracuse. 

The conference is held each October. For extra info, go to the organization page.