LVLUP Feels Like The Ultimate Lan-Party By Design, And That’s What Makes It Fun

LVLUP has been held in the Las Vegas area for over a decade, offering a wide array of esports tournaments, cosplay showcases, and animation panels. This year’s event, once again in the Las Vegas Convention Center, brought together fans from all over the world. Across three days, a crowd of over 100,000 fans shared in the sense of excitement that comes with discovering a new game or the celebration of winning an old favorite.

The passion at the heart of the fandom was on full display throughout the event. Whether it was in the retro free-to-play arcade, at the tabletop gaming tables that littered the floor, or among the dozens of concurrent gaming tournaments taking place, there was a sense of lively enjoyment that felt separate from other cons more focused on actively showcasing talent. ComicBook.com was on hand to cover the event this year and got to see the action up close and personal – and can attest to it being the ultimate LAN party more than a traditional tournament.

Why LVLUP Stands Out From Other Gaming Cons

LVLUP has a distinctly different feeling from other events, leaning more heavily into the sense of communal fun that comes with gaming. While this writer has been to plenty of gaming events and conventions, there’s a natural charge that feels unique to the way LVLUP focuses on fan passion that helps it stand out. Cosplayers were everywhere, walking the floor in everything from lovingly recreated Springtraps that towered over everyone else and faithful recreations of the Hazbin Hotel cast to unique characters and clever pop culture fusions—extra points to the duo who showed up as pretty convincing Kingdom Hearts versions of Mario and Luigi, complete with a giant Nintendo keyboard.

The gaming corners thrived on getting people to share in their excitement, with the open arcades, consoles, indie demos, TCG areas, and table-top spaces all encouraging free play for the sake of it. Panels featuring the stars of Western animation and Japanese anime highlighted the natural diversity at play on the panel floor. The gaming tournaments on the second floor saw crowds gathering to watch intense duals in everything from Smash Ultimate and Street Fighter to Pokémon Puzzle League. There was an underlying feeling that, whether you were a die-hard fan or just curious about the action, you could take a seat and check out an intense duel whenever you went. There was a relative lightness to it all, befitting more of a hang-out with friends than an intense esports competition. Alternatively, you could dive into it yourself in one of the many tournaments going on, which is where the real fun is to be had.

The Spirit Of Competition Can Also Just Be A Lot Of Fun

On the second floor of the LVLUP Expo was a massive number of consoles and PCs set up for players to dive into. Newly released titles sat alongside classic games, giving players plenty of options to dive into. This includes Mario Party Superstars – a game that this writer had just enough confidence in to take a stab at. Dozens of players hovered around the consoles as the tournament brackets were announced. Rather than an overly competitive spirit, however, there was a sense of fun and play at the core of the experience. Pro gamers and amateur players found themselves on equal footing, never letting their respective experience shade the challenge or fun that comes with gaming.

Players would joke with one another after a sudden shift in luck or high-five when someone pulled off something especially exciting. It was the vibe of a hangout with friends, just with a bit of money riding on it. As DK, I was able to make my way to the semifinals, pulling ahead thanks to some very specific minigame wins. Notably, my gameplay wins weren’t scrutinized; they were celebrated. Although I ended up in second place for that round – and subsequently knocked out of the tournament as a result – it was a good chance to joke around with like-minded players. A pro gamer in my round that I managed to beat gave me props as he ran off to support a teammate in another tournament.

All of us, regardless of experience or skill level, found fun messing around and playing together. The finals for the tournament, with $500 and bragging rights on the line, were full of laughs, screams, and celebrations. It was, more than anything, fun. LVLUP Expo has all the makings of an intense esports tournament, but that feeling of camaraderie and fast friendship was core to the experience from head to toe. Whether it be cosplayers from around the world throwing an impromptu dance party on the floor to the hordes of fans squeezing together at panels so they could see the stars of modern hits like KPop Demon Hunters and beloved classics like Naruto. There were booths where fans could try their hand at voice acting or meet indie game developers, getting a taste for something they love and indulging in it with others who share that same passion. The sheer versatility of the mediums was on full display in the tournament stages, in the game showcases, and even just in demos where players tried to escape from compies or tried to pull off deliveries. LVLUP was more like the gaming LAN parties of my youth than any other gaming con I’ve been to, and it was all the better for it.