As DreamCon lands in Houston for 2025, it brings a powerful reminder: Black folks have always been part of gaming, anime, and fandom—we're just finally getting the space to be seen. From Black women in cosplay to indie game devs telling our stories, DreamCon is more than a convention—it's a cultural reset.
If you’ve never been to DreamCon, imagine this: an anime, gaming, and comic convention that doesn’t just include Black people—but centers us. That celebrates us. That creates space for us to show up in cosplay, culture, and community, without code-switching or second-guessing.
Now picture all that in a city like Houston—vibrant, unapologetic, and rich with Black Southern soul.
That’s what DreamCon 2025 is shaping up to be.
A Culture Shift You Can Feel
Founded by RDCWorld, a group of Black creators who turned their love for anime and gaming into a media empire, DreamCon isn’t just about fandom. It’s about freedom. Freedom to love the things we grew up being teased for. Freedom to nerd out, dress up, speak our slang, and take up space.
Last year’s event in Austin felt like the perfect blend of a family reunion, sneaker convention, live Twitch stream, and underground cosplay fashion show. But this year in Houston? It’s about expansion. More room. More panels. More creators. More space for us.
And let’s talk about who “us” includes. Because as a Black woman, it’s easy to feel like gaming and anime still aren’t made for you—even though we’ve been here. We've been making fan art, building cosplay from scratch, learning 3D animation, streaming our favorite JRPGs, and pulling up to midnight releases since jump. But walking into DreamCon and seeing other Black women—brown skin, box braids, edges laid, Sailor Moon fits and all—was healing in a way I didn’t know I needed.
Black Women in Gaming: We’re Not Just Side Characters
Gaming, like a lot of tech and entertainment, has a visibility problem. We’re not asking for a seat at the table—we built parts of the house and just want to be acknowledged. Black women in gaming aren’t rare—we’re just under-platformed.
DreamCon 2025 promises to make more room for us. Expect panels on creating safe spaces for Black femmes in digital communities, how to launch your own gaming brand, and deeper conversations around representation—both in front of the controller and behind the scenes.
It’s the little things too. Cosplayers of all shades being hyped up, not harassed. Anime merch that actually looks good on brown skin. Booths run by Black-owned gaming startups and indie developers telling stories that sound like our lives.
And for those of us who grew up loving both Yu Yu Hakusho and Living Single, it feels like everything we were told didn’t mix... finally does.
What to Expect at DreamCon 2025
This year’s move to Houston means a bigger venue, more creators, and more reasons to bring your crew. Whether you’re in it for the panels, the cosplay competitions, the gaming tournaments, or the nightlife that follows—DreamCon offers a bit of everything.
Here’s a preview of what you can expect:
And it wouldn’t be DreamCon without the after-hours energy. Whether it’s rooftop parties, gaming lounges, or late-night jam sessions, there’s always something buzzing after the convention floor shuts down.
Why It Matters
DreamCon isn’t just cool—it’s necessary. Because in a world where our stories are often erased, watered down, or misrepresented, this space reminds us that our joy, our weirdness, our passions—they all matter.
For Black women, especially, it’s a reminder that we don’t need permission to show up fully. Whether you're into soft girl aesthetics, horror anime, or strategy games, your presence is enough. And you’re not alone.
So if you’ve been thinking about pulling up—do it. Book the flight, pack your best cosplay, bring the bonnet for the hotel, and get ready to laugh, cry, and maybe scream during a Mario Kart final.
Because DreamCon 2025 isn’t just a convention.
It’s a celebration. Of us.
And we deserve it.
