Now in its fourth year, Gam3rCon offers an affordable alternative to the \u201cCon,\u201d where people can play their favorite role-playing games, compete in video game tournaments on a 40-foot screen, and even reminisce in the Retrocade, a room dedicated to the classic systems of the past where people can play old-school Atari, Sega, and other games they \u2013 or their parents \u2013 played as kids.<\/p>\n Gam3rCon spokesman Brian Bielawski estimates 5,000 people will attend the four-day convention, which, he admits, is a far cry from the 50,000 expected each day at Comic-Con. However, each year, Gam3rCon has grown exponentially larger.<\/p>\n \u201cWe hope this is the year we finally outgrow the 10th Avenue Theatre,\u201d said Bielawski, who started Gam3rCon back in 2009, in part, to promote the play, \u201cGam3rs,\u201d he\u2019d written with fellow organizer Walter Meyer.<\/p>\n \u201cIt started out to get people to the play,\u201d Bielawski said. \u201cWith so much going on at the Con, we figured people wouldn\u2019t walk that far to go to the play.\u201d<\/p>\n And there was another reason: \u201cSome people think there is not enough gaming at Comic-Con,\u201d Bielawski said.<\/p>\n As part of the festivities, \u201cGAM3RS,\u201d which has been presented all over the country, will have four performances at Gam3rCon, and there is also a new play contest.<\/p>\n \u201cFrom a writing standpoint, gaming offers a lot of possibilities for storytellers,\u201d Bielawski said. \u201cIt\u2019s a long story, between 10 to 50 hours of play are needed to win a game. It\u2019s beyond a mini series. There\u2019s a lot of plot and themes that you can do on a large scale, but then putting the player in the driver\u2019s seat is just mind-blowing.\u201d<\/p>\n There will also be an exhibition of fine art paintings by some of the gaming industry\u2019s top artists, performances by a variety of musical artists whose songs will focus on gaming and\/or the characters featured in the games, and also panels on topics like how to break into doing video game voiceovers or how gaming affects parenting.<\/p>\n Although Gam3rCon takes place during the same days as Comic-Con, it keeps different hours \u2013 between 2 p.m. and 2 a.m. \u2013 and that means there will be rooftop parties in the evenings and other events that will be going on long after the Convention Center has closed its doors.<\/p>\n \u201cWe tell people, \u2018Go to the Con during the day and come to us at night,\u2019\u201d Bielawski said.<\/p>\n![\"Participants](\"https:\/\/sandiegodowntownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/tabletop-2-web-300x199.jpg\")
<\/a>![\"Co-founder](\"https:\/\/sandiegodowntownnews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/07\/Brian-in-GAM3RS-web-300x200.jpg\")
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