For the lucky ones where life and budget permit, the question probably shouldn’t be either or but why not go to both Gen Con AND Origins seeing that they are two great game cons in their own right. However, for many of us who want to attend a large gaming convention, the question comes down to do I go to Gen Con or to Origins? Hopefully, this post will help you in making your decision between Gen Con and Origins.
Whether you attend Gen Con or Origins depends on what you hope to get out of a gaming convention. Gen Con is known for its great spectacle and sheer size. Game players and game publishers flock to this convention. Origins, on the other hand, is less crowded and you are more likely to be able to get in a game demonstration.
How are Gen Con and Origins Game Fair different?
| Gen Con | Origins | |
| When | Usually the first week of August | Usually late June or early July |
| Where | Indiana Convention Center & Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis | Greater Columbus Convention Center in Columbus, Ohio |
| First held in the year | 1968 | 1975 |
| Attendance | 2019: 70,000 2022: 50,000 | $95 ($80 early bird) Children 13 and older will also need a full-price badge |
| Badge Price | $135 Children 11 and older will also need a full price badge | $135 Children 11 and older will also need a full-price badge |
| Number of events | 16,000+ | 5,000+ |
| Vendors | 500+ | 300+ |
| Website | https://www.gencon.com/ | https://www.originsgamefair.com/ |
| Useful website | 2022 Events | 2022 Program Book |
If you love massive vendor halls and over the top spectacle:
Gen Con is a good bet then. One caveat is that you do need to have a fairly high tolerance for crowds since it could get crazy packed in the vendor halls on some days (ie. Saturday). However, with over 500 vendors in the Exhibit Hall and games being played in all of the local hotels, you will never run out of things to do.
However, if this is your first big game con, then Origins is a good one to start with. The crowds are definitely more manageable. But then you still get over 300 vendors and plenty of events scheduled around the convention center.
If you love to try out and buy the newest boardgame releases:
Gen Con is also the one you want to go with here. Many of the big board game companies (like Fantasy Flight, CMON, and Days of Wonder) set up booths at Gen Con with space to try out their games. But it is not just the biggest companies, Gen Con abounds with board games. And you will see people carrying large square bags full of the newest games.
Consaves tip:
Don’t wait to buy something you really want. In the past, vendors would sometimes lower their prices on unsold inventory on the last day of the con. But we really haven’t seen that for quite a while. More often, I am greeted with a sold-out sign if I wait until the last day to go buy that one item I couldn’t make up my mind on. I usually try to make my purchase decisions by Saturday morning at the latest, if I don’t want to risk having it sold out.
Best for meandering and playing games at your leisure:
Origins hands down. Years ago, it was possible to do decent game demos at Gen Con even if sometimes it meant you have to wait for a bit. But, in the past few years, that has become a rare thing. Pre-Covid, it was simply because there were too many people and that makes it difficult to get a seat. In order to get into a game, we had to hover over someone and wait for them to finish. Post-Covid, it seems that a greater number of vendors have chosen to forego game demos and instead provide short little intro speeches.
In contrast, Origins’ vendor hall is great for game demos. You would come out of a demo game feeling like you were given an actual taste of the game and therefore were able to make a purchase decision on it.
Consaves tips:
On the first day at Gen Con as you wander the vendor hall, note down the games you are interested in. Later you can check the catalog and see if there is an event where you can have a full playthrough of it. You could also ask the vendor and see if they donated a copy of the game to the Gen Con library or the BGG hot games room. In those last two options you will have to read the game rules yourself, but you will still get a chance to play it. And sometimes the Exhibit Hall demo will give you a head start on learning the game.
Best for taking your kids with you:
Origins also wins here. Gen Con, in general, has a high-energy vibe. While this is a lot of fun, it is sometimes difficult to not get edgy after being constantly surrounded by crowds or standing in long lines. Origins simply has a much more laid-back vibe and that, of course, is always a good thing when it comes to kids. We played a few full-game demos with our two kids in the vendor hall without feeling rushed…which was not possible at Gen Con.
Both Origins and Gen Con have kids’ rooms (they are not daycare so an adult will need to be there with them) with crafts and age-appropriate board games. Origins used to have Critter Care (2019 is when they had it last) which was actually a daycare where you could leave your kids for a couple of hours. That was the most awesome thing. My then-8-year-old had a blast running around with other kids while we were off playing games that we knew he wouldn’t be interested in. As of now, it doesn’t look like Origins is having Critter Care in 2023 but hopefully, that option will become available again in the future.
For those who want to stay in a hotel close to the game con but have terrible luck with gambling:
Origins wins hands down on this one as well. While downtown Indianapolis has an impressive number of hotels in close proximity to Gen Con, the demand still greatly outpaces the supply. Those hoping to stay close to the convention center will require quite a bit of strategy and luck. In contrast, it is quite easy to get reasonably priced hotels that are within 5-10 minutes walking distance of the convention for Origins.
As of this writing, at 66 days out Origins Game Fair 2023, you can still reserve close hotels (within a 10-minute walk) for around $169-low $200+ with the Origins group rate. You can find this rate by either going through the links they have on the Origins website or contacting the hotel directly. For the really close hotels that have already sold out of their Origins discounted rooms (hotels within 2 minutes walking distance), you can still reserve them directly without the discount. Right now they average in the high $200-$399 per night range. While all those numbers might not normally be impressive sounding for the budget minded, they are downright astounding when compared to Gen Con’s hotel availability.
Comparing this to the availability at Gen Con, as of this writing, at 108 days out, all downtown hotels via the Gen Con housing portal are completely sold out and have been since early February. With the Gen Con group discount through their housing portal, most hotels were around mid $200 to mid $300. If you were unlucky in the house portal registration process and chose to book a downtown hotel on your own, then they run anywhere from high $500 to $1000+ a night. As of this writing, when I went to do a search on a hotel booking site, I found one single hotel about 10 min walking distance away from the convention center that was priced at $519 a night. I was actually surprised to see that hotel room was available since (believe it or not) that’s actually not a bad price especially seeing that the two or three other remaining hotels that fell within the same proximity to the convention were around $900+ a night.
Do we usually go to Gen Con or Origins?
Gen Con is the one we go to every year. We would of course love to go to Origins as well, but due to work schedules and the way our summer usually pans out, Origins Game Fair is often not an option for us. We fall in with the group that loves the massive spectacle of Gen Con, so we prioritize our vacation planning there.
Honestly, I think the best way to determine if Gen Con or Origins is a better fit for you is to experience both. We obviously really liked Origins. And as one who dislikes crowds and gets a bit obsessed with budgets, I would have guessed that I would for sure choose Origins over Gen Con. However, surprisingly that didn’t turn out to be our choice. So go experience both cons and perhaps you will be one of the lucky ones, who doesn’t have to make a choice between the two!
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