I seem to recall a lot of horror stories about overbooked hotels last year, but since the 2023 forums are archived, I can't go back and look to see which hotels had the issues, and I would like to avoid those particular hotels this year if at all possible.

Were any of you directly affected by this and, if so, which hotel was it and did they resolve the issue for you to your satisfaction?

As far as I understand it the only hotel that overbooked in a memorably awful way was Hotel Indy, and only its status as a Marriott brand hotel really helped cause the kerfuffle because they were cancelling people's rooms across the board including a lot of high-hotel-status people who (appropriately) threw a fit to the corporate level as a result.

But yes there were a handful of other stories of people booking at other hotels getting their reservations cancelled, but I THINK (please correct me) those people all booked through like Hotels.com or Expedia, and Hotel Indy was the only case of direct bookings being cancelled

You can still get to the 2023 forum. 

https://www.gencon.com/forums/100-general-info-2023

Now not all will, but as a general rule, many hotels will overbook.

This is because hotels experience on average 5 - 15 percent vacancy rate of no show guest. And not wanting an empty room, they overbook.

There are ways to avoid this, and that is to arrive as early as you can. Don't wait till late in the day to head to the hotel to check in. It's primarily first come first booked in.

But should you find your self without a room due to overbooking, you do have some rights and power to your favor.

First, you have the right to ether a full refund if you demand one, or the hotel has that is acceptable to you should be found. You can define what makes a location convenient. With-in reason, only if there are rooms available. 

If an alternative hotel is found, you have the right to a refund if the alternative hotel is cheaper, or if the rate is higher, the first hotel should pay the difference in rate.

The booting hotel should also ether shuttle you to the new hotel, or pay a taxi to take you. 

You should get 1 free long distance phone call if needed to let friends/family know of the hotel switch.

Don't be afraid to demand hotel points toward a free night. A free meal at the hotel.

Lastly, Don’t get upset at the front desk person.  It is not their personal fault, and you’d rather have them onside so you get the most out of a bad situation.

Last year also included a unique challenge that appeared to be 'overbooking', but was not.
When time came to run deposits, some deposits didn't go through.  People were supposedly notified of that, but somehow that email went to spam for most--unnoticed.  So, upon arrival, many (like my group) learned that their room had been given away (correctly from the hotel's perspective) because they didn't get a deposit.
I'm hoping that was just an anomaly.

Also, if your flight gets delayed it can be worth contacting the hotel to let them know you still intend to arrive. I didn't get in to Indy until 3am Thursday morning but I was able to message the Marriott via their app to let them know I would definitely be there eventually. .

In fact, I recommend getting the app for the hotel groyp you're staying at as it's an easy way to check your reservation, email is just not reliable sometimes. 

I understand your concern about avoiding overbooked hotels this year. I remember seeing quite a few discussions about this issue in the 2023 forums as well. Personally, I experienced overbooking at the Grand Hotel. They did eventually find us alternative accommodations, but it was quite stressful and not the resolution we hoped for. <<link removed>> I recommend checking recent reviews on travel sites and forums to see if these hotels have improved their booking practices. It might also be helpful to call the hotels directly to inquire about their current policies regarding overbooking. Hopefully, others can share their experiences too, so we can all avoid any unpleasant surprises this year.