iCON board gaming convention coming to Idaho Falls this weekend
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IDAHO FALLS — Attention, board game fans! Bring your gaming skills and your favorite games to downtown Idaho Falls this weekend because iCON, the Idaho Convention for Boardgamers, pulls into town this weekend.
Friday, April 8, and Saturday, April 9, at the Veterans Hall at 485 Constitution Way, board gamers will gather together for a family-friendly weekend of games, food and fun. The goal is to provide a fun memorable experience for veteran gamers and newcomers alike.
“(iCON) allows me to share my passion for board games with people and introduce people to new games,” event organizer Jonathan DeYoung told EastIdahoNews.com.
DeYoung, a long-time gamer, has been coming to iCON for at least a decade and took over running the convention in October 2021. DeYoung was selected by previous organizers to take over the job of running the convention and has set about trying to bring it back in the wake of COVID-19.
“Except for the last two years because of COVID, (iCON) has been happening twice a year for I think it’s been almost twenty years,” DeYoung said. “Since I’ve taken over we’ve been trying to grow it and get the word out to more families and community members to make it a bigger event. We’d like to get it to be something like SaltCON is in Utah.”
DeYoung said while iCON people are encouraged to bring their favorite games and that even if they don’t, there’s bound to be something they can get into.
“We have a game library,” he said. “It mostly has newer games but there are also some older games. People are more than welcome to bring their own games. We have some tournaments that people can play in and win prizes. We also have drawings and giveaways. We’re supported by some of the local game stores, as well.”
DeYoung said specifically that iCON will feature a Magic: The Gathering tournament run by Roundtable Games on Friday night. There’s an additional fee to enter that tournament, while all the other iCON tournaments are included in the price of admission.
Whatever game one chooses to play, DeYoung says there’s a lot of good that can come from playing board games.
“You’re getting around a table, playing games and interacting,” he said. “Some of them can be cooperative, so you’re playing together and you’re sharing ideas to try and complete your mission. Other games are extremely competitive, where you’re having to outthink and outsmart the people you’re playing and adapt to what your opponents are doing. But you still get to socialize and enjoy each other’s company.”
Gamers of all levels of experience are welcome to come out and see what iCON and the world of board games have to offer.
“If you’re not a board gamer or you’ve never been around it, come try it,” DeYoung said. “I think you’ll like it. You’ll meet some new friends and you’ll get to be part of a group that is out there to have fun and play games. Last time, we had people come down from Rexburg and up from Pocatello and a few people even came up from Utah. And the more people who get involved, the more people we can play with.”
iCON is happening this Friday and Saturday, at the Veterans Halls in downtown Idaho Falls. Tickets are available at the door. The cost is $10 for each day and $15 for both days. Click here for more information.
To check out what’s going on in east Idaho games stores, hit these links:
A Street Games
Roundtable Games
Gameopolis
Nerd Church Gaming
Goblin Town Games
Game Pulse
