I'm guessing no but just want to make sure.

Thanks.

They said there might be, but nothing finalised yet. 

Last year they didn't sell out though, even with ~half capacity as a limit. 

Do you know what the limit was last year as well as the actual attendance?

I was apprehensive last year but quite frankly, the lower attendance made for a better con for me.

Wikipedia has 2021 attendance as 35,000+.

That is just the max that could be there, it was smaller, maybe only 30k at best.

You have a little time. We will keep you updated via newsletters on this as usual.

Mike

Also the cap for normal years is in the 65-70k range.  

Possible that the vaccination and mask requirements will keep some people away.

2020  --  WAAA, I'm not going because they cancelled it.
2021  --  WAAA, I'm not going because they changed the date, they require masks, they limited the number of people.
2022  --  WAAA. I'm not going because they require masks and vaccines.
2023  --  WAAA, I'm not going because of some other reasons I'm making up so I can cry.

Based on the policies that GenCon has decided upon (requiring attendees to be vaccinated, boosted and wear masks) they have essentially created a cap on attendance this year even if they don't specifically say they are limiting it. 

After attending last year with limited attendance, mask requirements, paying full price at hotels and restaurants all while having a scaled back convention and limited/poor service at my downtown hotel and most restaurants, I'm not going back this year.  I'm sure there are many that won't be attending this year for many of the same reasons. 

I think GenCon has made some very poor choices with their requirements that may very well lead to financial ruin.  But that's their choice.

Limiting the audience isn't the same thing as a cap. 

The tickets people like you leave behind will still be available.

Events like Gen Con are in a tough spot.  If they follow the recommendations of public health authorities, some people won't go.  If they don't follow those recommendations, other people won't go.  Some people won't go no matter what.

I think it is fairly likely that the CDC will drop the mask recommendation for vaccinated people in the next couple months.  Fauci and others have hinted at it in the past few days.  Community spread was already fairly low last summer, and there is a lot more immunity in the population in 2022.  My hope is for a masks optional Gen Con.

This argument is pointless.  I opted out last year because I didn't like the policy; you can opt out this year.  I think the safe bet is that things will change between now and August - but, hey, the more people agree with YOU the less competition there is for Downtown Hotels! Win!

(I'll leave the running of Gen Con's business to Gen Con - and let them decide what works best for them and their financials)

In all seriousness: you can choose not to participate now when a lot of things are not known, or you can buy a badge, reserve a hotel and then opt out in June when the picture is clearer and it costs you, what, $10 for a badge cancellation?  That's what I did last year and it was fairly painless.

/shrug

For those planning to attend this year be aware that based on the scaled back convention from last year, you can expect limited hours that the convention hall will be open.  You can expect an exhibitors hall that is smaller than normal and will have many empty booths.  You can expect to pay full price for downtown hotels however they won't even clean your room each day while you are there.  You can expect a much smaller selection of games to choose from. 

I don't begrudge anyone of whatever decision they make and hope all are safe, and have fun.

You said it, Burrfoot72.  It is a microcosm of the draw of Gen-Con; who KNOWS what kind of awesome nerdy stuff is going on at 3 A.M. in any of the dozens of occupied rooms?  And if you suddenly find yourself totally unable to sleep, you could go find out!

I am pretty sure you would have to live a hundred simultaneous lives to really get a handle on all the things happening at and around Gen-Con any given year, and I love that.

That was probably #1 on my list of things I missed last year.   Was like 'last event at 11PM.. guess might as well head back to the room' instead of possibly catching the last bits of the auction, going down to the game library or just generally wandering around seeing what was going on.

For those planning to attend this year be aware that based on the scaled back convention from last year, you can expect limited hours that the convention hall will be open.  You can expect an exhibitors hall that is smaller than normal and will have many empty booths.  You can expect to pay full price for downtown hotels however they won't even clean your room each day while you are there.  You can expect a much smaller selection of games to choose from. 

• Most people aren't in the ICC 24 hours a day.  A small fraction of gamers are present after midnight so, for most of us, that's not a loss even if they did close at midnight.  Heck, the vast majority of gamers have moved out into the city by 10PM.  The ICC is still active - the in-ICC crowd is a small fraction of the out-ICC crowd after 10PM.  
  
• From everything I've heard, the 2021 Exhibitor Hall was a great success with lots of people finding new publishers they hadn't heard of had time to visit before - and spending MORE money than usual. As I watched the vendors pull out last year, most were not vendors I spent money at so they weren't a huge loss - frankly, not having Paizo, R. Talsorian, Fantasy Flight, etc. there was a big "meh" in my book. FWIW, I get that there are a LOT of people that equate Gen Con and RPGs with d20 systems - but there are an awful lot of us that don't (I played so much D&D in the 80s and 90s that I'm just done with it and reskins of it. I'm not alone.)  I also always visit Fantasy Flight but there are lots of other publishers and you can see Fantasy Flight's games in their online store.  The absence of big names - and a smaller exhibitor hall - allow for a different kind of Gen Con for sure - one where you can actually move around the hall without bumping into people constantly - but not a bad one.
  
• Regarding Hotel costs..."Full Price" is a bit misleading here.  Attendees paid full *Housing Portal* price (likely) but not full retail price.  Even at full *Housing Portal* price, attendees were already getting a discount.  I've booked rooms out of block before - and those in-block rates are significantly better than out-of-block rates regardless of whether Gen Con is running at full strength. As far as daily housekeeping - my Gen Con experience is normally to just want fresh towels while I'm there.  I don't particularly want housekeeping in my room when I'm not there; and I'm sure there are a lot of others out there who are similar.  I'm sure there are plenty of people who want that; but I'm a grown-ass adult, I know how to keep my own space clean for 4-5 days without a maid.  :)
  

My entire point is that your reasons for being down on Gen Con are not reasons that matter to everyone and, given how popular Gen Con is, I suspect that 10,000 - 15,000 gamers who feel the way YOU do can easily be replaced by 10,000 - 15,000 gamers who feel the way *I* do.  And, frankly, I'd be surprised if 10-15,000 gamers opt out of Gen Con for the reasons you've given - especially with how successful Gen Con was last year.  My suspicion is that there will be MORE gamers present this year and that the con will look a lot more like it did in 2019 than it did in 2021 - even with masks and vaccinations.  We're also further along in the pandemic which means overall risk of infection is going down (not a reason to NOT mask up IMO) which means that there is likely to be more people this year willing to go than last year.  Regardless, it will still be a blast.

In the end, everyone has to make the decision that is right for them.  For *ME*, Gen Con is not just about playing games - it is about the entire experience of being surrounded by Gamers for 4 days, without any other distractions or cares, and being able to just immerse in geek culture.  It's about the time I have with my wife and friends, regardless of the activities in which we engage.  The boardgames and RPGs are just the catalyst for the experience; they are not the point of the experience.

Whatever you choose, timjs21, good luck and game on man!  I hope you're able to have fun gaming with friends whether it is at Gen Con or elsewhere.