Great Plains Game Festival 2025 Recap

Great Plains Game Festival, or GPGF, just finished and we had an awesome time! We were really excited for this conventions specifically because because we loved Lincoln when we stayed there last year on the way to Planet Funk Con. The venue was in a really cute hotel in downtown Lincoln, Nebraska which set the tone for a super fun weekend.
Our First Time In Nebraska
Lincoln, Nebraska was a pretty cool city and we have heard in our other travels around the country last year that people here LOVE gaming...which turned out to be true! I never know exactly what to expect when I first visit a new area but as I mentioned before, I really liked the vibe when I stayed there on the way through to Iowa. Coming from Denver, the downtown area was so much easier to navigate since there was a lot less overcrowding which made things very relaxing. What made this trip so great though was just how nice everyone at the event was! I had so many amazing interaction with people at the event and made a lot of new friends which felt great!
Popular Games Being Played
There are always so many games to play at conventions like this, especially with the ROBUST gaming library available but a few games seemed to be played everywhere that I looked. One game that I saw being played everywhere it seemed was SETI, which is a space exploration game where you lead a scientific team to try and find signs of extraterrestrial life. I think one reason I always notice this game is because the board looks so visually appealing and is always a fun one to see being played. I also couldn't make my way through any of the play areas without seeing Finspan or Wingspan being played somewhere. I noticed there were a LOT of families here enjoying games together and Finspan seemed to be a popular choice.
A highlight for me personally though was Command of Nature, which is a game I absolutely adore from Unstable Games. This is the team that created Here to Slay and Command of Nature is such a treat. In this deck builder you pick from one of 4 sages to battle it out by summoning elementals and using powerful commands to best your opponents in battle. I adore the art style of this game and am a sucker for deck builders so I'd definitely recommend checking it out if you haven't already.
Your Favorite Roasts
Following in the footsteps of TokenCon, this weekend Druid reigned supreme. Paladin was a pretty close second and then in third place we had Necromancer. Now while we do generally bring less of our Monk to most events because decaf doesn't get enough love, though it should, Monk was actually our second roast to sell out. At the end of the weekend though, Paladin and Necromancer overtook Monk's popularity.
Onward To Phoenix Heat
With GPGF over, we only got a couple of days back home to roast coffee and get ready for our next convention, GameOn Expo in Phoenix! I wanted to definitely thank everyone who came to see us at our booth and for all the really great experiences and fun games to be had. Now to see if we can survive the harsh temperatures of Arizona in the spring, hopefully my sunglasses wont melt this time like when we were there for Phoenix Fan Fusion last year.