Five Tips for Gaming Convention Newbies

by Charles J. Cohen

You did it. You cleared your weekend schedule. You found the convention site. You even made it to the opening day, and you have the whole weekend ahead of you to play games. It kinda makes your head spin: you get to play games all – day – long, and nobody, not your spouse, your children, your parents, your boss, nor that annoying voice in your head that is telling your raiding guild needs you this weekend, will stop you. U-Con is your first gaming convention, and dice are going to roll!

And so, you step into the hotel lobby, see a crowd of people milling about, and you panic. What are you supposed to do now? Fear not. U-Con looks big, but it is actually a small gaming convention with many friendly people who are looking for someone just like you – a person who loves to play games. There are many ways to get started, but the best piece of advice I can give is to tell you that …

Tip #1: The U-Con Gaming Convention Book Is Your Friend

Sure, opening it up it looks a bit daunting, but really the book is just two sections: overall information about the convention, and game listings! Lots of game listings. Hundreds of hours of game listings.

Find what type of game you are interested in and go to that section, such as board games, role playing games, collectable card games, whatever you like. When you find one, circle it, and then keep looking. Find and circle all the games you want to play.

Not sure how to play any of the games? You are still in luck. U-Con ranks games by how much experience you need (from 1 meaning no experience to 5 meaning you better have been one of the game designers) to the complexity of the rules (from “A” meaning you just sit down and play to “E” meaning it will take 37 hours and several advanced degrees to get through the introduction). So if you see a board game with an interesting description that is designated 1-A, 2-A, 1-B, or 2-B, then circle that and keep searching.

You now have a list and you can register, once you …

Tip #2: Map Out Your Games

One a single page (use the margins of your convention book if you have no paper) list out the time and place of all the games you liked. Do any conflict? Pick one. Don’t agonize over it, just do it! You want to make sure that you know when and where your games are at a glance so you don’t miss anything.

Are there any open time slots? Also concerned that playing all of those games will cost a lot of money? No problem, because …

Tip #3: Purchase A “Play Games All Weekend” Ribbon

If you are desperate to get into a game, such as that high level Pathfinder session, you’d pay to reserve a seat. Fortunately for you, this is your first time at a gaming convention: it doesn’t really matter what game you play, as long as you play a lot. So go and head over to to Registration and purchase the Play Games ribbon. It costs the same as 10 generic game tickets, which makes it a nice cost effective purchase. And who doesn’t want to wear a ribbon?

Now you get to go to some games, but some of the ones you picked may already be filled when you get there by those non-generic ticket purchasing gamers. Or you have open time slot in your schedule. What do you do then? Easy…

Tip #4: Visit the Ballroom and the Mayfair Game Room.

While games are being played in rooms all over the convention area, the Ballroom is the place that has the highest concentration of games in the largest space. Go there. Walk around. There will be people asking for other players to join their game. Go to their rescue and be a hero. Other tables will only have two or three players. Tell them that although you’ve never played before, do they have room for another player? Most of the gamers will say yes, and if they don’t, there are still dozens of other tables.

Another great place is the Mayfair game area. They have company volunteers who want to teach people how to play their games. Tell them you want to learn and ask them to recommend a game. I’ve never not played a game when I just showed up and said, “Any openings for another player?”

And while you are playing all those games, there is one more thing to remember…

Tip #5: Don’t Forget That You Are Human

You are biological creature. You need water, lots of it. Bring a water bottle and refill it.

You need food. Take the time to eat. U-Con even sells lunch and dinner at the lobby. Or go out and get some food with the people you recently gamed with.

You need sleep. Actually, you are a gamer. You don’t need sleep. You just need to play more games!

Remember 5 – 2 – 1

5 hours of sleep, 2 meals, 1 shower. You will feel better, and so will everyone around you.