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Origins Game Fair

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Origins Game Fair
GenreGaming
VenueGreater Columbus Convention Center
Location(s)Columbus, Ohio
CountryUnited States
Inaugurated1975
Attendance20,642 uniques in 2019
Organized byGame Manufacturers Association
Filing statusNon-profit
Websitehttp://www.originsgamefair.com/

Origins Game Fair is an annual gaming convention that was first held in 1975. Since 1996, it has been held in Columbus, Ohio at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. Origins is run by the Game Manufacturers Association (GAMA). Origins was chartered to serve gaming in general, including wargaming and miniatures gaming.

Registration area of Origins

Origins is the site of the annual Origins Awards ceremony. For many years, the Charles S. Roberts Awards for historical boardgames were presented at Origins, but these are now presented at the World Boardgaming Championships. Board games, trading card games, LARPs and role-playing games are also popular at Origins.

Origins Game Fair was formerly known as the Origins International Game Expo. The name was changed in the summer of 2007.

Origins typically has a theme each year, which affects some of the events and decorations like banners or art, and the Origins mascot will be depicted wearing an outfit related to the theme as well. The theme in 2012 was Time Travel. In 2014 it was Monster. 2014 was also the 40th Origins convention and, keeping with the Monster theme, they introduced the mascot Crit.[1] In 2015 the theme was Space. In 2016 it was Robots. 2017 was Dragons. 2018 was Mystery. 2019 was Mythical. A survey was distributed online to help select the theme for the 2020 show. The options were: Scary Fun, Games Around the World, Adventure, Futuristic, and Top Secret. According to the 2019 Origins Sitebook, the theme for 2020 will be Games Around the World.

History

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Exhibitor's Hall

Origins started in 1975 with a gathering of game players in Baltimore, Maryland. The Interest Group Baltimore, a local wargaming club, worked with the Baltimore-based Avalon Hill game company to put on the first show that year at Johns Hopkins University.

Avalon Hill produced the first commercial war games in 1958. In a nod to Baltimore's position as the home of Avalon Hill and the birthplace of the commercial wargame hobby, Don Greenwood, a game designer with Avalon Hill and founder of the convention, suggested calling the show "Origins". Over the next few years, both Avalon Hill and SPI (another wargame company) ran the show. As the show continued expanding, the Game Manufacturers Association assumed management in 1978. RuneQuest debuted as Chaosium's first RPG at the Origins convention in Ann Arbor, Michigan in July 1978.

In each of 1988 and 1992, Origins and Gen Con joined together to hold a single convention in Milwaukee.[2][3]

In April 2020, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was announced that Origins would be postponed from its usual mid-June date to October 7–11. In its place, an event called Origins Online was to be held that would allow attendees to "demo and buy games and merchandise" and offer "streaming workshops and educational seminars with guest authors, artists and game designers, plus hundreds of games online that attendees can sign up to participate in."[4]

In June, due to a lack of response by GAMA concerning Black Lives Matter and the George Floyd Protests, some members of the community who were intending to run or participate in Origins Online events stepped down, and others joined them in solidarity. Such a large number of people withdrew, it is speculated that Origins Online may not have been able to run without them.[5] Regardless of the reason, Origins Online was cancelled completely, and GAMA offered to "match, dollar for dollar, any exhibitor, sponsor, advertiser, or vendor who donates the amounts they are owed for Origins Online to one of" several different black organizations.[6] Soon after, the regular Origins convention was cancelled for 2020 as well, citing fears of a second wave of COVID-19. This would mark 2020 as the first year without an Origins convention since 1975.

ICv2 reported that Origins had "17,706 attendees" in June 2024 which was "up over 9% from 2023's attendance total, which was 16,082 people, but still down around 14% from the last pre-pandemic show in 2019, where Origins drew 20,642 people".[7] Additionally in 2024, Origins "had 326 exhibitors, up for 2023's count of 305" and event totals went "from 6,135 to 6,528, up about 6%".[7]

Venues

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Year Dates Location
1975[8] July 25–27[8] Baltimore, Maryland
1976 July 23–25[9] Baltimore, Maryland[9]
1977 July 22–24[10] Staten Island, New York[10]
1978[11] July 13–16[11] Ann Arbor, Michigan
1979[12] June 22–24[12] Chester, Pennsylvania
1980[13] June 27–29[13] Chester, Pennsylvania
1981[14] July 3–5[14] San Mateo, California
1982[15] July 23–25[15] Baltimore, Maryland
1983[16] July 14–17[16] Detroit, Michigan
1984[17] July 5–8[17] Dallas, Texas
1985 June 27–30[18] Towson, Maryland[18]
1986 July 3–6 Los Angeles, California
1987 July 2–5 Baltimore, Maryland
1988 August 18–21 Milwaukee, Wisconsin (with Gen Con)
1989 June 29 - July 2 Los Angeles, California
1990 June 28 - July 1 Atlanta, Georgia (with DragonCon)
1991 July 4–7 Baltimore, Maryland
1992 August 20–23 Milwaukee, Wisconsin (with Gen Con)
1993 July 13–16 Fort Worth, Texas
1994 July 7–10 San Jose, California
1995 July 13–16 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Columbus, Ohio

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"Alan Smithee" (the man in the gaudy jacket) consulting with his helpers at the 2007 Smithee Awards at the Origins International Game Expo

Throughout the first twenty years of its life, Origins migrated from city to city, until in 1996, GAMA decided to anchor Origins in a single location. After considering a number of possibilities, GAMA chose Columbus, Ohio.

Year Dates Attendance (Unique)
1996 July 4–7
1997 July 17–20
1998 July 2–5
1999 July 1–4
2000 July 13–16
2001 July 5–8
2002 July 4–7 10,500 (approximate)
2003 June 26–29 12,600[19]
2004 June 24–27 13,980
2005 June 30 - July 3 15,061
2006 June 29 - July 2 11,852
2007 July 5–8 11,104
2008 June 26–29 10,110
2009 June 25–28 10,030[20]
2010 June 24–27 10,669[20]
2011 June 22–26 11,502[20]
2012 May 30 - June 3 11,332[20]
2013 June 12 - June 16 11,573[20]
2014 June 11 - June 15[21] 12,902[22]
2015 June 3 - June 7[21] 15,938[23]
2016 June 15 - June 19 15,480[24]
2017 June 14 - June 18[21] 17,001[25]
2018 June 13 - June 17[26] 18,648[27]
2019 June 12 - June 16[28] 20,642
2020 Cancelled[6]
2021 September 30 - October 3[29] 10,476[30]
2022 June 8 - June 12[29] 11,689[31]
2023 June 21 - June 25[29] 16,082[32]
2024 June 19 - June 23[29] 17,706[33]
2025 June 18 - June 22 (planned)

Controversies

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Several reports of sexual harassment emerged after 2018 Origins Game Fair in Columbus, Ohio.[34][35][36] After multiple first hand accounts were published on social media [37] and Reddit,[38] GAMA, released a public statement[35] regarding the complaints and has since then updated its anti-harassment policies.[39]

References

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  1. ^ "Origins Game Fair 2014 – Time For a Monster of a Weekend!". wormholeriders.org. Retrieved 2019-05-22.
  2. ^ Laws, Robin D. (2007). 40 Years of Gen Con. Atlas Games. p. 72. ISBN 978-1-58978-097-2.
  3. ^ "The History of TSR". Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2008-09-24. Retrieved 2005-08-20.
  4. ^ "Origins Game Fair Postponed to October; Origins Online Scheduled for June". Origins Game Fair. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  5. ^ "Board Gaming's Industry Body Refuses To Say A Word About Black Lives Mattering [Update]". Kotaku. 11 June 2020. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  6. ^ a b "Origins Online". Origins Game Fair. Retrieved 2020-06-17.
  7. ^ a b Dohm-Sanchez, Jeffrey (July 8, 2024). "GAMA Reports Origins Game Fair 2024 Attendance". ICv2. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
  8. ^ a b "1974". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2012-02-10.
  9. ^ a b "1975". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
  10. ^ a b "1976". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-01-30.
  11. ^ a b "1977". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
  12. ^ a b "1978". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
  13. ^ a b "1979". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-11-20.
  14. ^ a b "1980". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2009-01-05.
  15. ^ a b "1981". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-11-20.
  16. ^ a b "1982". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
  17. ^ a b "1983". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2008-08-28.
  18. ^ a b "1984". Charles S. Roberts Awards. Alan Emrich. Archived from the original on 2012-02-10.
  19. ^ "14,000 To attend Origins Game Expo at Greater Columbus Convention Center". Press Releases. Experiencecolumbus.com. 2004-06-22. Archived from the original on 2007-09-27. Retrieved 2013-09-04.
  20. ^ a b c d e "Facebook Post from Convention Management after 2013 event". Facebook. 2013-06-18. Retrieved 2014-06-19.
  21. ^ a b c "Origins Game Fair". Origins Game Fair.
  22. ^ "Facebook Post from Convention Management after 2014 event". Facebook. 2014-06-18. Retrieved 2014-06-19.
  23. ^ Nicole Bunge (June 10, 2015). "Origins Attendance Up Over 23%". ICV2. Retrieved June 10, 2015.
  24. ^ "Origins Attendance Report". Facebook. June 20, 2016. Archived from the original on 2022-02-26. Retrieved June 20, 2016.
  25. ^ Niebling, William. "Origins Attendance Up". ICv2. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  26. ^ "Future Dates". Origins Game Fair. Retrieved June 21, 2017.
  27. ^ "Origins attendance up substantially this year". ICV2. Archived from the original on June 22, 2018. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
  28. ^ "Origins Game Fair Where Gaming Begins". Retrieved August 8, 2018.
  29. ^ a b c d "Future Dates--Origins Game Fair". Retrieved May 31, 2021.
  30. ^ "Origins Game Fair". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 2021-10-09.
  31. ^ "GAMA Reports Origins 2022 Attendance". www.icv2.com. Retrieved 2022-06-22.
  32. ^ "GAMA Reveals Origins 2023 Attendance". www.icv2.com. Retrieved 2022-11-19.
  33. ^ "Instagram". www.instagram.com. Retrieved 2024-06-25.
  34. ^ Hall, Charlie (22 June 2018). "Accusations of sexual harassment rock the board gaming community: First-hand reports from the Origins convention spark outcry". polygon.com. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  35. ^ a b STAFF (22 June 2018). "Multiple reports of sexual harassment emerge from this year's Origins Game Fair". tabletopgaming.co.uk. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  36. ^ Arlette, Kristine (25 June 2018). "Sexual Harassment Accusations at Tabletop Gaming Convention". puls1player.com. Archived from the original on 30 January 2020. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  37. ^ "For anybody that is concerned about the situation that happened the other day. It was me, and I'll be talking to GAMA today". @GeekEnby. 17 June 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2021 – via Twitter.
  38. ^ ""Are you gonna play the victim all life long?" My experience as a woman in board gaming, in brief". u/abigaila. 22 June 2018. Retrieved 28 August 2021 – via Reddit.
  39. ^ "Show Policies/Code of Conduct". GAMA. 2019. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
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