GaymerX

GaymerX
Status Active
Location(s) San Francisco, CA
Country United States
Inaugurated GaymerX - August 2013
Website
gaymerx.com

GaymerX or GX is a fan-facing, LGBT-oriented gaming and geek culture, or gaymer, convention, with panels primarily focused on LGBT issues and debates in the gaming industry, founded by Matt Conn.

Origin of GaymerX

GaymerX was founded by Matt Conn, a "gay man and lifelong gamer" who felt larger gaming conventions like E3 were, at the time, unwelcoming places for LGBT gamers.[1] The first instance of GaymerX was financed through a crowdfunding campaign on Kickstarter,[2] and occurred on August 3rd and 4th, 2013 in San Francisco, CA.[3] Organizers have said the event is about uniting gay gamers, not creating a division among gamers,[4] as they want to create a "safe place" for LGBT gamers.[5]

The planned convention began with significant news coverage of its initial Kickstarter launch, but the event achieved more widespread attention after the anti-gay Westboro Baptist Church, known widely as a hate group that pickets espousing homophobic statements, announced that they would protest the convention.[6][7]

GaymerX began with a Kickstarter project launched on August 1, 2012, which was covered by sites such as Examiner and GamePolitics.com.[8] The convention raised over $14,000 in its first two days,[4] exceeded its goal of $25,000 as early as August 6,[9][10] and ended with over $90,000.[10] Throughout the fundraising campaign, organizers added new support levels, in addition to existing support levels that include admission to the event and voice acting from Ellen McLain.[11] At a session during the convention, McLain took part as assistant to a marriage proposal to help an attendee propose to his boyfriend by voicing a version of the song Still Alive with reworked lyrics.

GaymerX2 was held at the InterContinental Hotel between July 11–13, 2014 in downtown San Francisco. It featured Darren Young, the first openly gay wrestler in the WWE,[12] who revealed that he would be a playable character in the upcoming WWE 2K15.[13]

GXDev: Everyone Creates

GXDev: Everyone Creates, was a game jam and hackathon that happened over January 9th through 11th in 2015 and featured over 40 developers who produced over 10 games featuring queer content and themes,[14] including one about "dating butts",[15] and one about polyamory.[16]

Award Game Name
Judge's Choice Patchwork
Crowd Choice Fatal[e]
Diplomacy Award Here’s Your Fuckin’ Papers
#suchridiculous Cheek 2 Cheek
The Whole Picture (Most Complete) Cactus Seeking Hug
Best Feminism Fatal[e]
LSD Award Cosmic Endeerment
Tobii EyeX Award Cosmic Endeerment
Firebase Award We Are Here
Volume Award Consensual Chaos
Strangest Game Patchwork
Prismatic Award for Diversity We Are Here
Best Message Shiny Things

Event history

Name Dates Venue Location Atten. Guests of Honor
GaymerX August 3–4, 2013[17] Hotel Kabuki & Hotel Tomo San Francisco, California 1,400 Ellen McLain, Zach Weiner, Matthew Michael Brown, Anna Anthropy, John Patrick Lowrie, Pandora Boxx
GaymerX2 July 11–13, 2014 InterContinental Hotel San Francisco, California 1,900 David Gaider, Mattie Brice, Alexis Ohanian, Gordon Bellamy, Darren Young,[18] Zach Weiner, 2 Mello, Colleen Macklin, Jaime Woo
GXDev: Everyone Creates Jan 9-11, 2015 PubNub San Francisco, California 60 Johnnemann Nordhagen, Anna Kipnis, Kortney Ziegler, Matt Conn
GX3: Everyone Games December 11–13, 2015 San Jose Convention Center San Jose, California 2,429 Jennifer Hale,[19] Zach Weiner, Anita Sarkeesian, Rob Jagnow, Jamin Warren, Natasha Allegri, Trixie Mattel[20]
GX Australia February 27-28, 2016 The Australian Technology Park Sydney, Australia 900 Tim Cain, Manveer Heir, AussieGamerChick, Rae Johnston, Kitty Powers, Luke Miller
GaymerX • Year Four September 30 - October 2, 2016 Santa Clara Convention Center Santa Clara, California 2,100 Dave Fennoy, David Gaider, Tim Cain, Kitty Powers
GaymerX East November 12-13 Microsoft Technology Center New York City, New York TBD TBD

References

  1. ↑ Malcolm Thorndike Nicholson, WE’RE HERE, WE’RE QUEER AND WE LOVE THE LEGEND OF ZELDA
  2. ↑ "GaymerX on Kickstarter". Kickstarter.
  3. ↑ "GaymerCon for LGBT gamers". BoingBoing.
  4. 1 2 "GaymerCon is about uniting gay gamers, not separation". VentureBeat.
  5. ↑ "GaymerCon wants to provide a "safe place" for LGBTQ gamers". ArsTechnica.
  6. ↑ Nate Cook. "Gay Gaming Con To Be Protested By Westboro". Upcoming Cons.
  7. ↑ Nicholas Tan. "GaymerX: Best Weekend Evar". gamerevolution.com. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  8. ↑ "GaymerCon Raises over $14,000 in Two Days". GamePolitics.
  9. ↑ "LGBT convention GaymerCon secures Kickstarter funding". ShackNews.
  10. 1 2 "GaymerCon: Everybody Games". Kickstarter.
  11. ↑ Lana Polansky. "Ellen McLain Summons GLaDOS to Voice Support for GaymerCon". GameRanx.
  12. ↑ Travis Waldron. "WWE's Darren Young Comes Out As First Openly Gay Professional Wrestler". ThinkProgress.
  13. ↑ Hayner, Chris (July 11, 2014). "WWE's Darren Young reveals his 'WWE 2K15' character: Pic". Zap2It.
  14. ↑ "GXdev". Retrieved 2015-01-19.
  15. ↑ Riendeau, Danielle (January 16, 2015). "Inspired by the best character in Bob's Burgers, here's a game about butts". Polygon. Retrieved January 16, 2015.
  16. ↑ "A game about gardening, cute deer and dating multiple people". Retrieved 2015-01-16.
  17. ↑ "GaymerCon 2013". Upcoming Cons.
  18. ↑ "Openly Gay WWE Superstar Darren Young Joins GaymerX2". Upcoming Cons.
  19. ↑ "Gamer idol Jennifer Hale to prove Everyone Games at GX3". CNET.
  20. ↑ "Bosses of Honor|GX3: Everyone Games". Retrieved 2014-12-23.

External links

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