Big crowd expected for COD gaming convention

Roughly 400 people are expected to gather this weekend at College of DuPage in Glen Ellyn for CODCON XXII, a gaming convention sponsored by the school's Sci-Fi/Fantasy & Gaming Club since 1996.

Over the course of those 22 years, organizers have honed in on what attendees want: a venue to play new games with old and new friends.

James Allen, an English professor and the club's adviser, said they used to offer panel discussions - which are a staple of large conventions like the San Diego ComicCon - but have moved away from that in recent years.

"We found most people just wanted to sit down and play," Allen said.

And there will be no shortage of games.

"We have a little bit of everything," Allen said.

Rooms will be set up with video game consoles for a variety of popular multiplayer games such as "Super Smash Bros."

This year, representatives from Sony and Nintendo will be on hand to demo their new hardware, including the PS4 and the Nintendo Switch, which was released last month and has been flying off store shelves.

For those who prefer their games to come printed on cardboard rather than digitally painted with pixels, there will be space for a variety of popular board and card games as well.

Allen said after playing a game, attendees can fill out a ballot and enter a contest to get their own copy.

"It's a way to try out a game you never tried before and, if you like it, you might win it," Allen said.

And if you don't win, vendors will be there so you can buy the game and take it home.

There also will be sessions of "Dungeons & Dragons"-style games as well as competitive medieval and fantasy combat sports using padded weapons.

Outside of gaming, there will be a treasure hunt where competitors race around the convention space in search of "time orbs" that have gone missing and must be found before all of time becomes a mess.

Finally, there will be a charity silent auction starting Saturday and ending Sunday featuring donated items.

CODCON XXII will run from 6 to 11 p.m. Friday, 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. Saturday and 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

The events will be in rooms throughout the Student Services building. Go to codcon.com/ for a complete list of events and a map of the locations.

Admission is $5 for one day, $7 for two days and $10 for all weekend.