Gen Con 2026: Tornadoes, Cyberpunks and Great Games

As tornado warnings blared through the speakers of Gen Con, most participants in the gaming hall tuned them out to plan their next move. They were inside a windowless central part of the building, and there was little else they could do about the weather. However, some games were interrupted when the ceiling started leaking where a pair of I-beams met. Players just watched as the rain poured inside the convention center.

While there were these unfortunate firsts, there was plenty of good news from Gen Con 2026. Over 74,000 people attended the sold-out event, the highest number ever. Over 800 vendors showed off their wears and the convention brought in an estimated $83.5 million for local Indianapolis businesses.

I attended the conference (and yes, ignored the weather announcements while playing Axis & Allies: 1941), and here are my thoughts and observations from the best four days in gaming.

Double your Cyberpunk fun

Not one, but two different Cyberpunk card games made their debut at Gen Con. First up in my schedule was Cyberpunk Legends. Based on the tabletop role-playing game, Cyberpunk Legends is a cooperative endeavor where players use cards from their hand to try and meet conditions and beat enemies. Examples include making a straight or matching the card’s non-traditional suits. Each card will have a text box that can add damage to an enemy or add additional conditions to the group’s hand. Once the enemy card is defeated, your crew advances. 

Cyberpunk Legends is a story-based game, with the narrative written on the enemy cards. The group running the game said the creators are planning expansions. These will add more stories, and also include “side quests,” which will help players create stronger decks for their characters. 

The second of the debuts was Cyberpunk Trading Card Game (TCG). TCG is based on the Cyberpunk 2077 video game and is made in collaboration with CD Projekt Red. It is a collectable card game, similar to Magic: The Gathering or Pokemon. Players will have a starter set, and be able to purchase card packs that will make their decks more powerful. This is a 1v1 game where individuals roll a variety of dice types to determine street cred as they battle each other for control of these dice. 

Players build a hand of cards containing gear, characters and events. They also start with three characters that are face down. These can be used as a resource or flipped for a price. Certain items can be laid out in front of a player to bring other cards into play. The first to claim seven dice wins. Our game used starter decks and was extremely competitive. The representative I talked to for the game says they hope to have contests at conventions once the game is officially released. 

Both games were a lot of fun, and are already extremely popular, based on their Kickstarters. Cyberpunk Legends brought in $1.26 million on theirs, while TCG raised a whopping $28 million. You’ll be seeing a lot more of both of them soon, as they are scheduled to release later this year.

Bigger is not always better

I played a few big, crunchy games with multiple moving parts that are usually my thing, but two of them were a bit disappointing. First up was Galactic Cruise, which won the 2026 Dice Tower game of the year. In the game, players build spaceships to take passengers on a trip through the solar system. While the components and design were exquisite, it didn’t grab me like I thought it would. It might just be a case of too much hype, and I’d be willing to try it again. 

The second game was Orloj: The Prague Astronomical Clock. This was the game I was most excited about at Gen Con, and I almost bought it on day one. Instead, I decided to wait a few days until after I played it. I made the right call. The game is enjoyable, but the balance is poor, making it extremely easy for one player to run up the score. All three of the demos that were happening in our time slot had one player way out ahead of everyone else, and it sounded like it was a common problem for this title.

Other notes

• Tabletop RPGs are having a moment at Gen Con. The vendor hall had more booths for both the books and dice than I had seen previously at the convention. This is probably in part due to the upcoming Dungeon Crawler Carl TTRPG. Speaking of which…  
• Dungeon Crawler Carl was everywhere. The novel series is being made into a card game as well as a role-playing title. Game publisher Renegade turned their game room into a Carl experience, complete with a pinball machine featuring the protagonist. Also, you could not walk through the hall without seeing someone dressed as the title character. On Saturday alone, I counted 21 different people wearing the distinctive heart shorts. 
• Expansion continues. After hitting a new record for most attendees, it looks like Gen Con will continue to grow. Expansions to the convention center and a new 800 room hotel should be finished before the convention’s 60th anniversary next year.

My favorite games of Gen Con 2026

I played only an extremely small percentage of the games available at Gen Con, so this is in no way a definitive list. But here are the five games I enjoyed the most. 

5. Horrified: Dungeons & Dragons Ravenloft. I sat in on a demo of the latest Horrified game. I had never played one before, but the D&D aspect intrigued me. Quick and easy to learn, I enjoyed my short time with the game, and look forward to playing more.

4. Cat Earth. A game about being a giant cat pushing houses off a flat earth is as fun as it sounds. We played the “zoomies” mode, which doubles the amount of movement cards you take and play each turn, and it feels like the best way to play this one.

3. Mercenaries Wanted. Set in the Gloomhaven universe, you play as a human resources representative trying to hire mercenaries for an upcoming battle. But like any good HR rep, you need to give them a try in the field to see how they will do. This was a preview event, with the full game coming out later this year. 

2. DC Brave & Bold. A DC comics superhero game where players build a bag of tokens that they pick from randomly to try and pull what they need to inflict damage on their opponent. We played the game as Superman and Lex Luthor, but there are other combinations available. I’m interested to see how well these other variations play with each other.

1. Timelancers. A 2025 release, Timelancers is a game where players take on the role of freelance time travelers who either change past events or keep them the same. But beware, changing an event in the past will have a ripple effect on the future. A unique and fun game.