This was my 2nd Origins and I had a lot of fun. Being a listener of the podcast, it was nice to meet Brant and the rest of the podcast crew. Maybe he was just tired, but Brant seemed surprised to meet a listener. I went to 3 talks, all of which were fun and informative, and played in Kriegsspiel. Unfortunately, my team's commander made some tactical choices that limited my own ability to make interesting choices (a lot of time was spent on rolling for his combat). Nonetheless, it was a worthwhile endeavor and I would like to play again the next time that I go to origins. Thanks to Doug for running the event!
In terms of non ACG, I played full games of Fire in the Lake and Space Corps and demo'd several other games. Both FiTL and SC were fun. I'm not quite sure how I feel about how COIN games incentivise screwing over your historic "ally" (I was US and repeatedly moved ARVN out of towns in order to remove COIN control and lower his score). The only demo worth noting was Gloomhaven. I had never played before and was blown away by just about every aspect of the game. The game has been gushed over in prior podcasts and now I totally get why. Coincidentally, Miniature Market had a flash sale on Gloomhaven which made the purchase all the easier.
In terms of new kit, I concur with prior comments in that there weren't any convention standouts. As I noted in one of the ACG talks, like most, my ability to play games doesn't keep pace with my purchasing habits. Growing every more conscientious of this sad fact, I am trying to only buy games that I think having interesting mechanics, cover a non-traditional historical period (no more WW2!), and/or have a reasonable shot at being played. That being said, the component quality of new releases is absolutely stunning.
Traveling from California makes Origins a bit expensive con-wise so I don't know if I'd be willing to go every year, but I definitely plan to revisit. All in all, I had a great time.