Simply put they are both Lan Parties.

Starting in 2005 in Rolla Missouri, Christcon was traditionally held during the final weekend before Christmas. During the event, a group of friends would gather and play their favorite video games of the day in fast paced local area network goodness. The first event was held in a garage and a combination of a high schoolers level understanding of ethernet networking /power resulted in many breaker trips and networking issues. The event was a blast and was scheduled to be repeated every year.

The traditional drink of the event is Mountain Dew symbolizing the green of the holidays, the caffeine needed to go all night and a nostalgic twinge in the brain every time someone says "Do the dew!"

As the attendee's matured over the years, so did the event. The move to college resulted in a number of non-traditional locations being hosted. This also resulted in the resourceful use on one occasion of make shift tables being constructed from "momentarily unhinged" door frames. As college turned to careers, the event shifted to Saint Louis Missouri where the event has shifted between a couple of different hosts. As people started families, it also made sense to move the event to January, to maximize attendance.

Since only one Lan Party a year is not enough to celebrate friends, Americon was founded in the Summer Months around the 4th of July.

As long as there is a group of friends, wanting to spend their evening together, celebrating friendship and pwning the ever-loving goodness out of each other, there will be a Lan Party.