Event report: Game Con 2019

News of the Game Con 2019 event at Northwest State Community College came to me at the last second, but, thankfully, this is the closest a fully-organized gaming event has ever been held to my home. The main focus of the event was a Super Smash Bros. Ultimate tournament as eSports quickly picks up steam as a recognized Ohio school sporting activity, but the turnout may yield bigger Game Cons and other area events in the future.

As I said, eSports is gaining a lot of ground on the high school and college levels, with Ohio’s governing high school sports authority recognizing Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Overwatch, League of Legends and Rocket League as organized competitive games for students. Northwest State Community College even used Game Con as a launching pad to formally announce the school’s first-ever scholarships intended for eSports students. Through social media, I could also see that a few area eSports teams traveled to the event for competition.

The school’s auditorium mainly featured the necessary Smash Bros. setups, but there were also a handful of open play video game systems and a VR setup with Beat Sabre. The outside lobby also featured guest vendors and areas to play board games, card games and tabletop games.

From what I experienced, Game Con 2019 looked to be a great foundation for future events. Being in a smaller area, it didn’t seem to try to do too much right out of the gate, leaving plenty of opportunities for the event to grow and branch out to other competitive avenues. And, as I said, there isn’t much to complain about as it is the first formal video game event I can ever recall being held in the county. It was definitely a unique gaming experience for someone who hasn’t had the opportunity to travel two-plus hours away and could be a big draw for students in the area.

The Smash Bros. tournament was very well received, with nearly 70 participants. The event asked for a small venue fee – pocket change compared to many other events – and the tournament was free-to-enter with $500 in prizes on the line. I think the participants will only balloon from this point if word of mouth gets around.

There isn’t much more to say about the event, as it was a low-key gathering with lots of people in good spirits. If the college can keep momentum going, it should grow into a rather impressive gaming event.