The clouds have cleared, the rain has dried, and another amazing weekend at PAX East is in the rear view mirror. The Expo hall floor was admittedly different this year, competing with GDC for independent game creators’ attention. But, while some of the chatter online was that PAX wasn’t the same, there was more than plenty of what keeps me coming back to the show. PAX communities, incredible panels, and more games than you can ever expect to play even if the show ran for a full week. It was another amazing year at PAX, so, let’s take a look at just a few highlights from 2024.
Titles on the Horizon
Venture to the Vile is my top pick of soon-to-be-released games. Coming to Steam May 7th, this is a delightfully creepy alternate history Victorian England. Everyone wears animal masks, and the vibe hints at some Cthulhuian horror just off camera.
This is a 2D side-scrolling experience built in a 3D world. The upshot of this is you can add levels of depth in your experience. See something in the background you’d like to take a closer look at? There’s probably going to be a crossing point so you can travel to those background platforms, flip that switch, pull that lever, or cross that stream. The combat play was way too fun. Tight platforming experiences are exactly my jam, and Venture to the Vile did not disappoint.
I played through both demos, one for story and one for combat. Both made me want to play more. The devs say to look forward to a Metroidvania experience where you beat the monstrous bosses and gain something of their powers. But there’s something about a human being gaining a piece of a Lovecraftian horror, suggesting you lose a piece of yourself.
During early gameplay you’re a simple boy trying to empty rat traps, incapable of delivering a good punch, and certainly not good at taking one. As gameplay develops you are swinging from point to point with a flick of a tentacle, pulling yourself up to enemies, swiping at them with a bone-claw extension of your arm, double-jumping and dashing your way through monstrous foes.
Coming soon to Steam and Playstation. I’m wishing them luck enough that they can port to Switch!
Add it to your Steam Wishlist, and play the demo here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2153750/Venture_to_the_Vile/
Another attention-catching title is Dustborn. Strong visuals are a draw for me, and I can play a game all day so long as it’s pretty to look at. And Dustborn’s art and design is what caught my attention. Its roots to a graphic novel are apparent. The game is rendered in a 3D environment, but strong lines and shading make it feel more like a well-produced comic. It’s diverse representation of body type and ethnicity also stuck out as strong positives.
Dustborn is a road trip across an alternate-history United States. While details were vague, even with the companion prequel comic, it looks like our protagonists are special-powered humans with the ability to use their words to affect others.
Add it to your Steam Wishlist here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/721180/Dustborn/
Concepts in progress
Sometimes it’s the little things that get my attention. Small game developers come up with grand innovative ideas. Or sometimes they just have the guts to work with mashups that haven’t been done before. And that’s where Forge of the Fae caught my attention.
This is a retro-style JRPG. It obviously took notes from some of the earlier Final Fantasy games, but they’ve provided a fun and creative world for you to play in. This is a heavily Celtic-inspired, steampunk setting with great character design, engaging art style, and all-around fun gameplay. Props to them for working on a turn-based RPG that does not use timed hits. I get why people like pressing a button at the moment of attack for more damage, but I’m feeling kind of done with the mechanic, and the developers of Forge of the Fae feel the same vibe.
This is still very much in development, but I look forward to their progress in the future.
Wishlist on Steam here: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2160070/Forge_of_the_Fae/
Tabletop takeaways
I was delighted to get my hands on Unmatched: Tales to Amaze. If you’ve listened to the podcast at all you know that I’m a sucker for a good Unmatched set. It’s fast-paced, card-based asymmetrical combat that is way too much fun. And now Restoration Games has a cooperative version of their battle game. Since I’m also a sucker for a co-op game, the writing was already on the wall.
The game comes with four new Heroes and two scenarios. You’re either fighting to stop Mothman in his mission to destroy the bridges of the Point Pleasant map or battling the Martian Invaders in McMinnville on the flip side of the map. These main villains come with an array of minions who harass the heroes to prevent them from defeating the main bad guy.
At the top of the board, a threat meter determines how close the main villain is to completing their goals. If the threat meter is ever maxed out, then the enemies complete a goal, the game gets a little tougher for the heroes, and the battle continues. If the bad guys defeat all your fighters, or if they complete their four missions, you lose. If you manage to defeat the main villain before either of those things happen. You win!
The mechanics of Unmatched are simple to understand yet come with enough nuance to keep it interesting. The co-op version is no different. You have a hero (who may or may not have a sidekick) represented by a mini on the map. Each hero has their own unique deck with cards that determine your attacks, defenses, and array of special abilities.
The variety of fighter abilities, plus the chance to work together to strategize every fighter’s individual advantages makes for a wonderful co-op adaptation of this competitive game. I’m really looking forward to using fighters from some of my others sets. Achilles vs. Martian Invaders – historically accurate? No. Mythologically tasteful? Questionable. But I’m doing it.
Cool creators
This time I got a chance to chat Derek Chung of Nomnivore Games. If you’re a long-time listener, you’ve heard me talk about the fun my family had with Nomnivore’s game, Emberwind, and Derek Chung is the mastermind behind it. Emberwind is a GM-less game system with two campaign books published and another one in the works. Like even the best GM-less campaign books, it plays like a hybrid of an RPG and a choose your own adventure book. Your choices matter, your decisions have an impact, but only so far as there are parameters in the book. That’s the trade-off for not having a GM. But there are some fascinating changes coming to the system to add a new layer of depth while interacting with NPCS, helping it feel more like a dynamic roleplaying scenario.
In my conversation with Chung, he teased some new mechanics in their work in progress The Soaring Sea. The new campaign features new ways to make impressions on non-player characters, both positive and negative. Each NPC starts at a baseline disposition toward your character. Every time you choose an action that positively affects the relationship, you “promote” that relationship to a new level, making further interactions easier. But, like real people, NPCs want different things. Sometimes it’s impossible to promote a relationship with one character without alienating another. It allows for an opportunity for fresh gameplay each time you run the scenario and an ability to tell a more compelling story with a more socially complex world.
One fascinating component of these mechanics is that they’re designed with autism accessibility in mind. It allows people a concrete way of measurably seeing how relationships are playing out.
20 Years at Home
A running theme for this 20th anniversary celebration was “20 Years at Home.” And this really felt right. One thing that PAX means to me is not just the spectacle of the expo hall floor, or the incredible panels (which are both fantastic), it’s about the community. We all disperse into our varied mundane lives as EMTs, account managers, academics, educators, clergy and all colors of non-game related obligations. American culture being what it is, sometimes people look askance at you for being passionate about RPGs, video games, or the latest release of your favorite TCG. But not here. When you’re at PAX you’re home. You may have travelled from the other coast (or farther), but you’re with your people. People who get excited about your passions and understand the nuances of these things that bring you joy. I’ve asked con-goers over the years why they keep coming to PAX, and a continual refrain is, “I feel like I found my people.”
PAX really is focused on community. Over these 20 years, people say that things have changed. Naysayers will tell you that their favorite thing from 2011 is no longer part of the show. But PAX has gained so much more along the way. Emma Morris, a cozy gamer and fellow dice dragon from Melborne, Australia says, “The community [members] were so lovely the whole time, from the moment I decided to attend.” A sentiment that is echoed by con-goers and first-time exhibitors alike. These people are supportive.
Part of that supportiveness is in fostering accessibility and diversity. Panels range on how games and game communities can be more welcoming and more accessible to everyone. Everyone. There are continual efforts to provide space for individuals with disabilities, to amplify voices of people from a variety of ethnic and racial backgrounds, and visible reminders that members of the LBGTQ+ community are wanted and needed members of our gaming community. We all love games. That’s what matters most to us in this space. PAX also provides ways for the rest of us to learn and grow as we become a more welcoming and encouraging community.
The people behind PAX also care about us at the most fundamental levels. Emma Moris comments on PAX East again saying, “The accommodations for [medical] pass holders were much clearer and more streamlined than at PAXAus.” The Enforcers know what the pass means and what the accommodations are for Med Pass holders. Also, Enforcers will ask you if you’ve drank enough water. Panels on gaming and mental health are the norm. Suicide awareness and prevention has a presence at the show. And PAX even has an AFK lounge where you can step away from the hubbub and overstimulation into a quiet, relaxed space staffed by mental health professionals if the need arises.
All these factors lend me the feeling that PAX cares about its people. PAX is a community. That, for me, is why it genuinely feels like being welcomed home.
You can find our other PAX East content below:
Episode 49: PAX East, Moon Knight, Galaxy’s Edge, and Nostalgic Media
Episode 29: PAX East, Star Trek: Picard, and Mystery Men
Episode 18: PAX East, Captain Marvel, and Upcoming Book-to-Film Adaptations
Episode 10: PAX East, Ready Player One, and Geeky Hobbies in the Church
Blog Posts:
Guide to Your First PAX East