The world’s largest tabletop gaming convention, SPIEL Essen, occurred last week, and our team at Zatu had an amazing time exhibiting there! By the looks of it, everyone else did too, with an incredible 220,000 visitors over four completely sold-out days! SPIEL Essen 2025 has surpassed the previous record set in 2019, and this is a massive jump from last year’s 204,000 attendees – the passion for tabletop gaming is truly bigger than ever!
Expanding the Layout
SPIEL Essen was arranged to accommodate a much larger volume of people this year, with organisers expanding into a seventh hall, allowing more space for publishers, gamers, and retailers. Though the crowd was unavoidably massive, the wider aisles and more navigable layout meant the show upheld a smooth flow throughout.
Loads and Loads of Games!
The show was absolutely bustling with life, featuring 948 exhibitors from over 50 countries! There were over 1,700 new releases hitting the crowds, from upcoming indie titles to bigger publishers, SPIEL Essen 2025 was heaven for board and card game fanatics!
Catan’s World Record
Amongst these highlights, Catan, which celebrated its 30th anniversary this year, also set its own record. The beloved classic set a brand-new world record for the largest simultaneous Catan – Connect game ever, with an astonishing 1,170 players taking part at one!
With this level of attendance, SPIEL Essen has proven that tabletop board gaming is more popular than ever, and if 2025 is any indication, the numbers will keep rising next year! If one thing is for sure, SPIEL Essen has solidified itself as the place to go for the ultimate tabletop gaming event!
