Conventions in a Naive World
In the Time before an Increased Awareness of Personal Impact on Public Health, Networking Seemed Easy
Interview by Michael Haggerty
Everything was fine until the Covid-Nation attacked, probably.
Whether networking at conventions before everything changed in 2020 was great from an ecological, mental health or even industrial health can be an in depth conversation for another time, what is not up for debate is that it made the old ways of industry pollination obsolete. For many this proved to be rather harsh cliff to leap off of and we all got to watch in a sort of confused bemusement as gatherings that were so regular you could build a calendar around them were suddenly thrown into a limbo from which there was no reprieve.
Before 2020, in those heady halcyon days before social distancing and firmly ensconced in what I can only presume is the human right to cough open mouthed into other humans mouths, arranging a professionals entire network around a whose-who of friends and acquaintances found at conventions was the absolute standard. Chance meetings at a mutually interesting booth or talk could easily turn into a rapt dinner or a drunken night on the town that easily transitioned into a lifelong professional relationship that was just as often a true friendship.
The shift into partially or entirely online conventions, webinars and the like was immediate for most. The largest and most institutionalized organizations however, found their processes and bureaucracies far too stiff to adjust with any real speed. Even in the more immediate transition however, there were suddenly huge gaps in a young developers life-cycle. A space normally set aside for networking, industry familiarization was suddenly left like a hole in what had been a well established cycle.
Talking to Fabian Ahmadi, we explore a bit of what conventions meant to him during those days. With the restrictions lifting, we are ready to send him back out there to reset those connections and restart that part of his life!
Michael Haggerty: You have been a pretty avid convention goer for business and pleasure, how long have you been in the convention scene for work?
Fabian Ahmadi: Pleasure? You think this is fun? I’m killing myself out there for this company and you think I’m on vacation??? I’m kidding… games industry conventions are fun and for many of us they are also family reunions… I attended my first event in 2004, when I went to San Francisco for GDC.
MP: Have conventions always been important for you for networking and how did the loss of them effect your ability to work? Were they a large contributor to your success?
FA: I would say so. The games industry is global, and while there certainly are hubs, the industry is very dispersed even within the US. Events like Gamescom bring people together and allow us to connect in person in ways that email, chat and zoom can’t.
MP: What was the last convention you remember going to before 2020 happened?
FA: I remember going to GDC 2019, when I went with our CEO, Tanner Kalstrom. He doesn’t usually travel to conventions, so it was especially fun for us to do it together.
MP: How did you feel whenever the cancellations started pouring in for conventions?
FA: I don’t think I felt any particular way about that… I was mostly busy trying to sort out my kids home schooling situation. It was a logical decision to cancel at that time.
MP: When was the last GamesCom that you went to?
FA: The last time I went to Gamescom was 2018. I only go every other year because it always coincides with my daughter’s birthday. Although I think next year my kids will both be old enough to go as attendees to Gamescom… we’ll see.
MP: Do you have any hesitation about going, what with the continued threat of covid, monkeypox, the wars…its a laundry list and how do you parse that?
FA: I don’t have any hesitation. I’ve been traveling internationally since the end of 2020. My only concern is to possibly test positive just before a flight and having to postpone or cancel. I do wear an N95 mask and I have been boosted twice — I definitely try to minimize my risk while traveling.
MP: What are some of YOUR favorite things about conventions?
FA: It’s actually the ability to re-connect with old industry friends in person, to make new connections, to feel the pulse of the industry in terms of new tech, industry trends, etc.
MP: What is your wildest convention story, even better if you made a lifelong friend out of it!
FA: I’ve been going to conventions for almost 20 years now… and wild things happen all the time when you travel. I really can’t point to any one particular event.
