The World’s Largest LAN Party

So, you had a little party in your basement. Think your little twenty-four-hour hot-pocket electronic voodoo fest in the basement was something to boast about? Or that a couple rounds of Starcraft projected on the pull-down screen in the SLC is enough to get you bragging rights to anything?

… Well, it really isn’t. Not since around 1994.

DreamHack originated as a small gathering of friends in a basement in the early 90s, but in 1994 had moved to a school cafeteria and became known by the monker DreamHack. In 1997, the event had become the largest LAN party in Sweden, and set the World Record for the world’s largest LAN party, with just over 5000 participants. A bar it has superceded many times in the past.

DreamHack Summer 2012 was held from June 16-19 in Jonkoping, Sweden. It lasted 72 hours and was booked solid through with digital arts competitions, live concerts featuring European metal bands, and studio game expos. The primary draw, though, is the massive LAN party and game tournaments, which have a total prize pool of over a million Swedish krona and attract players worldwide.

Paying top price (550 Swedish Krona, or $80 Canadian) for a ticket gets you a desk, a chair, a LAN socket, and a power socket in the main room for the entirety of the event. Because there is so much to do, the most avid participants never leave the festival and sleep in halls close by. There are other schools of thought, though, who pass out in their chairs, catnap, partake in caffeine, or simply refuse to go to sleep.

15000 visitors attended DreamHack 2012, with 12500 unique hosts on the network. Funny thing is, this wasn’t even the largest LAN party ever held. DreamHack is held twice a year, and traditionally the winter sessions have higher attendance than the summer sessions. DreamHack Winter 2011 set a world record of 20984 attendees and 13292 connected devices.