By Jai’Michael Anderson

A biannual four-day gaming event, Lanwar, took place in the SAC on MLK weekend from Jan. 16-19. The all-age event has been held at U of L over 70 times since 1998, bringing hundreds of players to campus each year.   

For $60, nearly 300 attendees brought consoles and PCs to enjoy 72 hours of round-the-clock play of their favorite multiplayer video games.  

Several contests took place throughout the event, including a Mario Kart tournament and Duct Tape Wars, a competition where groups race to build a chosen structure out of a roll of duct tape. These were among the most notable for attendees. 

Meals and snacks were available to attendees for purchase, with access to a designated sleep room included — though many relied on Airbnb’s, hotels, and homes of loved ones to rest and bathe.  

Passion-based community 

The Lanwar name pays homage to LAN (local area network) parties in which players meet in a physical location to connect their systems to the same wired network.  

With LAN, players can enjoy each other’s company while interacting virtually and is still widely used for gaming tournaments. However, it has taken the backseat to online gaming for connecting players recreationally. 

Attendees agreed that a major benefit of Lanwar is their ability to connect on a more personal level, building community amongst each other. 

“I see the same faces every single event,” said Chase Schwartz while reflecting on the Lanwar community. 

Chase Schwartz, is the son of the event’s head organizer, Troy Schwartz. He was born months before the first Lanwar and has attended almost every event. 

He described Lanwar as a special place for its regulars.

“You get to be here with a bunch of other people who all are just as passionate about the things that you’re doing as you are,” said Chase Schwartz. 

“They’re not showing up to just be able to play a video game, they can do that at their home, they can do that in their room. They show up because of the atmosphere, because of the environment,” he continued.

Some traveled from as far as Washington and Texas to take part in the gaming spree. 

Jalene Kutzman from southern Kentucky said the only traveling she does with her husband is a yearly trip to Louisville solely to attend Lanwar. Jacob Klein from New York uses the event to visit his friends and family in Louisville twice a year. 

Troy Schwartz recalled that one player, in a previous year, even used his military leave to attend the event. 

“You’re in the military, you’re overseas, and you take your leave and go to Lanwar,” Troy Schwartz said. “Okay. Sure, you do you.” 

He further emphasized the level of love people have for Lanwar, adding that some have proposed at the event in the past.  

Moving forward

Citing past attendance rates of over 1,000 people, Troy Schwartz wants to bring the event back to its former height, partly by drawing in more U of L students. 

Despite a 27-year history of holding events on campus, Troy Schwartz has – admittedly – failed at garnering the attention of U of L students. 

“We are bad at advertising,” Schwartz said.

Additionally, he sees the event’s close ties to the university as a driving force that can attract more students. All three of his children have attended U of L partly because of their familiarity with the campus, and Troy Schwartz hopes this effect can be extended to more of the event goers.

“They’re (gamers) STEM-minded people for the majority,” he said. He stated that the familiarity with the campus his event fosters can lead STEM majors with high GPAs to the Speed school.

The next Lanwar will take place in the SAC from July 24-27. More information can be found on their website.