Here is how I do it and yes I know I am very privileged.
Have a DISCORD with everyone who might attend in it.
Pick 3-4 dates at least a month in advanced. Have people list witch dates work for them. Pick the one with the most open spots.
Tell my work building supervisor that I want to use our training room for a LAN party (We have a good history of this and it brings in other coworkers. So like team building stuff).
(Optional but effective and makes it seems like you have a plan) Draw up a tentative schedule with which games you are playing and how long you are going to be playing. Add Chill Time/Extension time in case people want a break between games or want to play more.
I bowed out of a friend's recent LAN bc every time they just play Halo and Age of Mythology and they're all super good at both and I'm terrible at both (and not interested in playing either game tbh).
We actually always just went with coffee, even as teenagers. I guess as early millennials, we weren't yet the energy drink generation.
I 100% agree, though: alcohol beyond a beer or two isn't recommended for a LAN at all. Although I guess I have a "fond" memory of sitting there, playing Left4Dead with friends at a LAN, when one who didn't play himself at that moment piss-drunkenly leaned on my shoulders from behind, slurring directly into my ear: "You have to shoot them! Shoot them! You have to shoooooot them!!"
I mean if anything balls existed back then, marketed specifically for that. I don’t know a ton of people who actually did but I mean, if it was anyone drinking energy drinks back then it was gamers.
I'm so happy seeing so many indie titles that are all about LAN and split-screen play. It's definitely happening! You just won't always see it front-paged and have to keep an eye out. :)
Edit: Plus, GoG brought back stuff like Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory, Medal of Honor: Allied Assault, Unreal Tournament 99 and 2k4, that are still an absolute blast. :D
in college, I was renting a house with 3 roommates who were all gamers. We used to host a LAN party every month or so. Our record was 30 people in the house playing at the same time.
Disposable income is awesome. Don't care for the rum, but: Only the proper name brand snacks and drinks, good pizza, proper blow up mattresses, transportation is easy, people either have cars or can trivially rent some, and our computers are also way better these days.
Lol, that's the reason I wouldn't LAN anymore. One, my computer is massive, and two, it's been in the same place for the last 10 years. I'm pretty sure it's bonded to it's support structure.
I would carry my PC around if all that plugging stuff in and out wasn‘t so annoying. In fact my PC needs a special power brick because it cannot fit a regular PSU inside. My next PC will be likely one with a Fractal Design Ridge case. It‘ll be roughly as large as a PS5 and fit a PSU inside. That alone will make it much less annoying to carry around.
Although my GPD Win Mini is really great too for mobile PC gaming.
Those PCs we had back then weren't necessarily smaller. 😅 I think we just cared less.
That said, Mini-ITX builds are pretty nice and also in fashion right now. And when it comes to beloved old games anyone can just get an old laptop for the price of one Domino's Pizza off of ebay and start playing.
Got one of those here. Some old 15€ junker with Intel HD 2000, but that thing will chug through anything from Unreal Tournament to Quake, Age of Empires, Warcraft, Forsaken, Total Annihilation, Dungeon Keeper, Command & Conquer, NFS…