Phew! I’m back from Gen Con, which means it’s time to unpack the big announcements from the show (and maybe my luggage at some point). There was a lot to see from the giant Indianapolis convention, and I’m going to break down the major reveals.
From Gen Con 2025 and beyond: WotC shows off DnD alt covers for the Forgotten Realms duo, Brennan Lee Mulligan takes over Critical Role for Campaign 4 in a new world, Gen Con attendance sets record high, and a slew of new TTRPGs were released or announced during the convention.
DnD 2025 Forgotten Realms Alt Cover Art Revealed
Wizards of the Coast used a lot of its time at Gen Con 2025 to preview the new Forgotten Realms books: Heroes of Faerun and Adventures in Faerun. Confirmations of all sorts were given, including the amount of new content provided, the reversion of Purple Dragon Knight back into a support-focused Banneret, and the presence of “digital DLC” focused on Astarion and Netheril’s fall. One of the bigger reveals is the official alternate art for the two books’ covers as a shared piece. You can see the art here via Reddit user mdosantos. The books release on November 11.
Critical Role: Brennan Lee Mulligan Is GM For Campaign 4
In a twist that some fans wanted but never imagined would actually happen, Brennan Lee Mulligan will GM a full campaign of Critical Role. Matthew Mercer made the announcement onstage at the Gen Con live show in Indianapolis, saying that he is going to be a full time player this time around. Critical Role Campaign 4 begins airing on October 2. Other details–such as the rest of the cast, campaign setting, and system being played–will be announced at a later date prior to October. One detail that did drop is that the story takes place in a new world, not the classic Critical Role setting of Exandria.
Gen Con 2025 Sets Another Attendance Record
The financial impact of the USA tariffs is being felt by tabletop creators and passed onto consumers, but it has yet to stop Gen Con from thriving. In fact, Gen Con LLC. announced that it set a new attendance record for the 2025 event and sold out all days. Reporting from ICv2 shows that Gen Con hit almost 72,000 attendees which is close to max capacity. However, a new hotel is being constructed by the convention center that could create an opportunity to host even more attendees. Origins Game Fair also showed growth earlier this year.
New TTRPGs Announced At Gen Con
Being the record breaking event that it is, Gen Con is a prime time for new RPG and board game reveals. Even just launching around Gen Con is an opportunity. I collected some of the biggies here in one place for your convenience.
- Free League previewed Twilight Sword, a Zelda Breath of the Wild-inspired TTRPG
- Attack On Titan TTRPG uses Year Zero Engine, developed by Need Games!
- Mutants & Masterminds 4E launched at the show and now has a playtest version
- MCDM’s Draw Steel launched! Learn to play Draw Steel with a StartPlaying GM today
- Magpie revealed a TTRPG for fantasy novel series Temeraire in 2026, as well as Masks Second Edition
- Merryshire Detective Club brings Murder, She Wrote vibes to your cozy halfling village
- Mörkham Asylum, a collection of villains for Mörk Borg based on Batman’s famous prison
A lot to look forward to, and hopefully 2026 can keep up the growth we’ve been seeing this year. Now, time to unbox all my cool Gen Con games and actually start playing them! Thanks for reading, and may your dice be kind.
Sergio Solórzano is the best Dungeon Master in the USA (according to a Wizards of the Coast competition, anyway). He loves minis and terrain but also goes all-in on improv!
