The organizers of GaymerX, the gaming convention originally aimed at the LGBT community, launched a Kickstarter campaign yesterday, looking to raise $80,000 to bring back the event in late 2015 as GX: Everyone Games.
According to the GX3 Kickstarter page, the convention's organizers decided to shed the "gaymer" term because "not all of our attendees identify with the 'gaymer' label," and because they wanted to indicate that the show welcomes anyone who feels left out of mainstream gaming culture.
The kickoff of the funding drive is the biggest step yet toward making GX3 a reality. The inaugural GaymerX took place in August 2013 and GaymerX2 followed last month, both in San Francisco. Both were also funded partly by Kickstarter: more than $91,000 for GaymerX and more than $24,000 for GaymerX2.
:format(webp):no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/assets/4766638/morning_panel.jpg)
This past April, the event's organizers said that GaymerX2 would be the last GaymerX, citing the high cost of putting on a convention in that city as well as the lack of corporate sponsorship. However, GaymerX CEO Matt Conn told Polygon after GaymerX2 that numerous sponsors came in well after that announcement, and the event was a success: The organizers ended up breaking even with the show.
"We've decided that we want to keep doing what we're doing. We know that this work is important," said Conn in the Kickstarter video. "One thing that we really want to do with this Kickstarter, and through GX3, is to make sure that the event is sustainable." The organizers said they "hit a lot of unexpected roadblocks, expenses and [last-minute] issues" with the first GaymerX, and went with a location for GaymerX2 that was too expensive because they "overestimated attendance."
The Kickstarter campaign's $80,000 goal is just over half of GX3's actual budget of $159,500; Conn hopes that the remainder can be made up through sponsors and additional ticket sales. Last month, a number of indie developers and publishers began to pledge their support in $3,000 chunks for a potential third GaymerX convention. According to the GX3 Kickstarter page, nine indies have each promised $3,000, while Blizzard Entertainment has pledged $10,000. Corporate sponsors for GaymerX2 included 2K Games, Riot Games and Ubisoft.
GX3's organizers are planning to hold the show somewhere in San Francisco in November or December 2015. Interested parties can support the Kickstarter campaign in multiples of $60 to pre-purchase tickets, which will cost $70 plus fees after the funding drive.
