Breakout Con continues to grow amidst American-Canadian tensions

During a particularly tumultuous moment in American-Canadian relations, I travelled 13 hours from Brooklyn to Toronto to attend the city’s most notable indie RPG convention: Breakout Con. Compared to other conventions Rascal has covered, Breakout feels less like an industry networking event and more like a celebration of weird little games and the people who make them. 

The intimate scale of the convention stood in stark contrast to Toronto Comic Con happening just a few blocks away from the Sheraton Centre — or even the other convention happening in the same hotel. Riding up the escalator, I was greeted not by hordes of fans looking for the latest announcements from Wizards of the Coast, but small pockets of designers and gamers from across the world. 

I witnessed a higher ratio of Breakout Con attendees protecting themselves and others from airborne pathogens than I have at any other public tabletop event I’ve attended, despite masks only being mandatory in certain sections. Knock on wood, but I have yet to get sick. Still, the convention never felt empty, and the convention hall rooms were overflowing with tables of congoers playing games by small press and indie designers. 

On the first day, I sat down with Breakout Con’s RPG Executive Gary Milakovic for a brief chat about the convention’s past, its current growth, and how the team is planning for an uncertain future behind the scenes.

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.