RECON Reflection

            This past weekend, March 4th through 6th, we (Junyan Li, Ian Larson, Yuxuan Wang) attended RECON, the League of Geek’s annual convention at Armstrong Student Center. The League of Geeks is an organization consisting of 19 individual clubs who mutually promote, collaborate, and support each other. Once a year, all of the clubs in the organization come together to organize a convention called RECON to celebrate all things geeky, setting up booths, consoles, and tables for attendees to stop by anytime and try out an activity while also hosting smaller events such as sessions of roleplaying or board games, arts and crafts, and trivia against various expert ‘geeks’.

            The organization of the event and how attendees were incentivized to try out multiple activities at the event was well thought out. For instance, playing a board game provided by Strategy Gaming Club earned an attendee a token they could use to enter into numerous prize drawings, however, you only got a token the first time you played board games. In addition, there were various trivia competitions- “Beat the Geek” -held by different clubs, such as Harry Potter trivia with the Department of Magical Appreciation or Dungeons & Dragons trivia with the Role-Playing Guild, that you earn at minimum one token for attending and up to three tokens for beating the ‘geek’. These were very clever ways to get attendees to explore the different clubs at the convention. By attending different events with different clubs, an attendee gets more tokens and has a better chance at winning a prize. Thus, this system demonstrates how the League of Geeks works collaboratively together as RECON provides an opportunity for all 19 clubs to advertise themselves to attendees and recruit new members.

Besides exposure to different clubs, RECON provides an opportunity for attendees to meet other people who you may not otherwise have met. Attending a majority of the games of Werewolf Legacy, many of the other returning players became very familiar. Though I (Ian) was already friends with some of them, there were some faces I met for the first time that weekend and I had fun with regardless of just meeting them. We developed inside jokes and even went off and played board games together once Werewolf ended. That really emphasizes the importance of getting outside your comfort zone and meeting new people. Finding just one common interest can be enough to spark a friendship. Applying that thought to leadership, putting yourself out there in the world and trying new things is a wonderful way to meet new allies and potential teammates.

By participating in RECON, I discovered that this is a game arena, and the team’s goal is to win the game. At the same time, for our leadership, we are best at using the rules of the game to attract team members and stimulate the enthusiasm of the team. Just like the board game Aquatica we played, everyone on our team was looking forward to the strategic deployment of each round. Especially for members who want to get more points, it has great temptation. Team management even more so. Only when the team members are self-driven, love their work as much as they love playing games, and turn their work into something they want to do, can they burst out with the greatest enthusiasm.

Our goals should be clear and reasonable, and we should set difficult goals for the team, and many people will only give up halfway. Therefore, it is necessary to disassemble the goals into small goals, put them into the rules of the game, and let the members challenge them in a relaxed and pleasant way. On the way to achieve the goal, it is necessary to provide rule guidance, process control, timely feedback, and appropriate authorization for team members. Lead the team like playing a game and give full play to the team’s greatest enthusiasm; work like playing a game, indulge in it, enjoy the process, and get the maximum benefit. At the same time, for the enterprise, the responsibility of the enterprise is to formulate clear rules of the game. Everyone works in accordance with the rules and strives to achieve their goals. This way, some employees can be prevented from having negative psychology, and work efficiency will be greatly improved. The rules of the game should be attractive, and the company’s performance appraisal and system should not be confused with the game. Only interesting and sufficient material and spiritual rewards can stimulate the maximum combat effectiveness of employees.

            RECON was my first time participating in a game event organized by our school. It was a very exciting experience. Under the leadership and introduction of Ian Larson, I learned that this activity covers the very rich game, such as somatosensory games, competitive games, and board games. This event about gaming was bigger than I could have imagined. First, we entered a very large room, which was divided into different areas. What catches the eye is Beat Saber and a Street Fighter-like game. It made me feel like I was in a Video Arcade. The planning inside is very clear, there are playing areas, queuing areas, and viewing areas. While I was still in shock at the scene, Ian said there was also a room for board games. When we went to another room, I found that there were many people in different groups playing different board games. And on the side of the room were piled up a large number of board games that were put together on several tables. Seeing so many games and so many students taking part in this activity, I began to understand why this activity can occupy an entire weekend, even 24 hours a day.

            I feel that this activity is a great help for the students’ entertainment and relaxation time. First of all, I think it’s a healthy entertainment, social activity for college students, compared to partying and drinking. Secondly, many games in this activity can cultivate students’ logical thinking, strategy, and leadership ability. For instance, we chose Aquatica for the board game, because it’s a brand-new game for all of us, and the graphics inside look interesting, with some kind of scary magical sea creatures. Understanding the rules of the game took a lot of time and effort, especially for Ian. He read all the rules and helped me, and Chris understand them along the way. This is a very complex and systematic game. Each player in this game acts as the king of a sea, and the one who fully explores the new locations wins. This game can be played for a very long time, this game is very mind-blowing if you really want to win. Just like in chess, you need to think carefully to determine the most effective move in each round. Unfortunately, I just found out that this event exists, because I really hope to have the opportunity to invite more friends to participate in this event, I am sure that no one will not love this event.