Well, we are back to the shop, and recovering from GenCon 06, and what a great show it was. GenCon is one of our best shows of the year, and sales wise it is only second to Origins for us each year.

This year we had a 4% sales growth, and were exceedingly well taken care of by the staff at GenCon, including Meghan, who was in charge of Vendor Services (or, if that is not right, she sure took care of our never need and concern!).

Peter and crew put on a fabulous show, year after year, and I can not say enough cool things about them. Top Notch, all around!

We also got our first look at Dream Blade (or is it Dreamblade?), the new game from powerhouse Wizards of the Coast. I have been very reluctant to order this product - I have thought for some time that if a company (like Wizards of the Coast) has the top two prepainted miniatures games in the market (D&D and Star Wars CMGs) then, don't fracture your base by trying to add a third game. Plus, 'blade is an odd scale, and can't be used to play D&D with or other games. Very skeptical.

And, honestly I still don't "get it". But:

But. The lines for demos of this new game at the WotC booth were long, and the tables were constantly busy. I am unclear myself if it is more of a collectible miniatures game, or a collectible and customizable board game with prepainted figures. I don't know, and I don't get it, either way. But, after having people all weekend ask me if I had any, and coming home to find a long list of people wanting us to carry it, I broke down and bought a couple cases - and sold out in one day.

So, get it or not, I will be getting it for the store, and keeping it in stock. If you have not tried this game, I suggest you do try it.

Part of the fun for me at GenCon is scouring the room for good deals. I found several at this show, including a ton of great stuff in the auction (fabulously ran, by the way), and more in the main hall. Discounters were out in force everywhere you looked - which made for great deals for gamers shopping cheap, and made for frustration for some vendors. Having opted not to bring ANY new games other than a few RPG books, we were happy with our model of discounted, liquidated and collectible games.

The guys at Fanpro had some new Battletech and Shadowrun books, and won - well, I don't know now many awards, but it was like seventeen or something (okay, 3 or 4, but might have been 5, but you get my point, no?). Congrats to those cats, they really had a rocking booth!!

Kilts R Us. Well, not quite, but I did get to buy matching Kilts from UtiliKilt this year for my boy and me. Rock on, UtiliKilt!! Our booth was back to back with them, and they were good folks to be near, they draw a line, and sold a zillion kilts!!

The guys at Privateer were across the aisle from us, and they had a monstrous crowd at their booth all weekend. We are yet to carry their lines, but we are just going to have to now, cause I really loved watching their demo's and like their products. Plus, they are great to be near as they really were a destination in the hall! Those miniatures (I am a miniatures gamer at heart) are awesome! Man, I gotta get me some of that!

It was good to see Mark Simmons - who publishers, among other things, a magazine called Games Quarterly Magazine. They had a cool insert in their magazine this month, with a Settlers of Catan expansion called the "Great River of Catna". Buzz on this product was so hot that I ordered, and got in, 100 copies for my store and online sales!

The GAMA (Game Manufacturers Association) had a booth at GenCon promoting Origins to gamers, and a representative there selling booth space to GTS (the GAMA Trade Show) which, this year (meaning 2007), the upcoming show is in April, in Las Vegas, Nevada.

GTS is a great opportunity for game publishers to meet with retailers. In 06, about 200 exhibitors showed their goods to over 600 retail stores. This rocks, and is the informational clearinghouse for retailers for the year. At GTS there are seminars, and drawings, and freebies, and all sorts of fun. There is also the Exhibitors Hall, and just making it around one time and talking to all the exhibitors takes me two full days. If you own, or WANT to open, your own game store, then you just GOTTA make it to GTS in April. Hmmm, maybe more on that next month, huh?

Attending GENCON is fun too, for me, as a big ol gamer dork, cause I get to meet or see people I kind of idolized as a kid. I met or saw again at GenCon: Dave Arneson, Margaret Weis, Richard Hatch (no, not the guy from Survivor, the guy from both BattleStar Galactica series) and a host of other folks I would consider celebrities.

I also got a bit of a chance to play my new favorite game: Battlestar Galactica CCG by WizKids.

Well, my September column will be more on time than this months has been, but still late a bit. :) I am leaving tomorrow for DragonCon and if you get there, stop by and say hi to me. Kinda hard to miss, I have tattoo's on the back of my head. ;)

Thanks

Marcus King
Titan Games - Owner
637 Capital Ave SW
Battle Creek, MI 49015

A good printable form for mailing in your stuff can be found here want free games? http://www.3FREEgames.com