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San Antonio is the 3rd geekiest city in America
Heads up gamers, it looks like the Alamo City is more than just a place for the history buffs. A new surprising report has deemed San Antonio one of the geekiest cities in the country, with two other Texas neighbors in the top 10.
San Antonio is home to 14 total stores that host Dungeons and Dragons events, second only to New York, according to the report by Lawn Love. The improv show Monsternomicon is also held once a month in the city for any DnD superfans.
San Antonio also has third highest number of board game and trading card shops, like Heroes and Fantasies (Texas' largest comic book and collectibles store) and Knight Watch Games.
Other factors that helped determine San Antonio's overall rank as the third geekiest American city include the number of cosplay/costume stores, LARPing groups, comic cons, video games stores, and much more.
J. Richard Stevens, the department chair of the College of Media, Communication, and Information at the University of Colorado, Boulder, says the rise in "geeky" community spaces and activities can be attributed to social media obscuring the boundaries "between consumption and commentary about entertainment texts."
"Fan conversation is much more visible in a larger-scaled way than it used to be," Stevens said. "While most fans and audiences still don’t comment on the objects of their passion, those who do are increasingly bundled into tight networks, which amplify their taste politics. Finding virtual fan communities is much easier than it used to be, though there are many more flavors of fan networks for any given fandom, making finding the right one tricky."
Other Texas cities that made it in the top 10 are Austin (No. 6) and Houston (No. 7), both with high scores in the categories for collectibles and costumes.
The top 10 geekiest cities in the United States are:
- No. 1 – New York City
- No. 2 – Los Angeles
- No. 3 – San Antonio
- No. 4 – Chicago
- No. 5 – Las Vegas
- No. 6 – Austin
- No. 7 – Houston
- No. 8 – Atlanta
- No. 9 – Orlando
- No. 10 – Indianapolis
The Holiday Night Markets are a lot like farmers markets in the same location.Photo courtesy of Pearl
The Giving Machines are like vending machines that drop gift cards into a collection bin to show contributions.Photo courtesy of Pearl