Nvidia Will Host Its First Full Lan Party In Over A Decade, And You’re Invited

It’s been 13 years since Nvidia hosted its past LAN party, inviting hundreds of group to physically haul their gaming PCs onto a decommissioned trade bearer and jack them successful for networked gaming bliss. Now, nan GeForce LAN is yet coming backmost — and you’re theoretically invited, should you negociate to reserve 1 of nan 400 disposable spaces correct present connected December 16th astatine 6AM PT / 9AM ET.

The GeForce LAN 50 will tally January 4th done January 6th, 2025 successful Las Vegas, Nevada, pinch outer events successful Berlin, Taipei, and Beijing, and it promises to beryllium a “online & in-person 50 hr gaming marathon” pinch contests, tournaments, raffles, and swag.

It’ll footwear disconnected 4:30PM PT connected January 4th, and you’ll petition to proviso a afloat refundable $125 deposit to mobility up. Nvidia tells maine those 400 slots are for mundane gamers, and do not count nan influencers who whitethorn too show up.

If you can’t aliases don’t want to make it, Nvidia says it’ll relationship 1 mini group of rewards online — if you watercourse Diablo IV, The Elder Scrolls Online, Fallout 76, The Finals, or WoW from its GeForce Now unreality gaming activity “continuously for 50 minutes,” there’ll beryllium immoderate benignant of in-game reward. Nvidia will too beryllium offering prizes successful a trading ceremonial it’s calling “GeForce Greats”.

The LAN connection is happening correct earlier Nvidia’s CES 2025 keynote successful Las Vegas, wherever we’re expecting nan institution to denote nan RTX 5090, RTX 5080, and perchance nan RTX 5070 arsenic well, and nan truth that this is nan “GeForce LAN 50” is astir apt a tease for those 50-series cards — nan past LAN that Nvidia hosted was nan “GeForce LAN 6,” not “GeForce LAN 49” aliases point for illustration that.

Starting successful 2004, nan GPU institution began to large awesome LAN parties almost each twelvemonth until it stopped successful 2011. Here’s 1 of my insignificant claims to nerd fame: I helped group a Guinness World Record for nan largest, longest LAN statement astatine 1 successful 2008.

That Nvidia LAN wasn’t held connected an trade carrier, but alternatively nan San Jose Convention Center, arsenic information an arena that Nvidia called “NVISION 08.” The institution ne'er held different NVISION, but it rebooted its arena nan very adjacent year, astatine nan very aforesaid location, arsenic nan GPU Technology Conference (GTC). There was a clip Nvidia would sponsor third-party LANs arsenic well.

Apparently Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has a soft spot for LANs, making a astonishment sojourn to a mini 1 successful Vietnam past year. While gamers personification mostly moved online for multiplayer games, nan LAN connection subculture has been getting a spot of nostalgic attraction arsenic of precocious — there’s moreover a java array book now documenting nan era.