The 20th anniversary edition of PAX West just wrapped up this past Labor Day and it was a blast. It’s a wonderful celebration of video gaming, where the industry and community come together. As with every PAX, there was a wide array of games to sample. Like any gamer, I have my particular tastes when it comes to games, and I wanted to share with you my favorites from this event.

In this article, I will list five games that left the biggest impression on me. I try to go by how I feel as I play the game. When people ask me what I enjoy most, which games come to mind first for me? That’s my criteria. For full disclosure, I don’t play as many AAA games as your typical gamer would. I typically play on Nintendo Switch and I lean more toward indie titles. I’m picky about what games I try. I’m not into JRPGs or MMORPGs for example. If I don’t include your favorite game on this list, please don’t take it as an indictment on the game, odds are I didn’t play it. At the end of this article, I want to share my thoughts on the PAX experience in general. With all that said, let’s get into that list of games you came here for! We’ll start with a few quick honorable mentions:

HM: Ace Attorney Investigations Collection

Developed and published by Capcom

Available this Friday, September 6 on Switch, PS4, Xbox One, and PC

As a somewhat recent convert to the Ace Attorney series, I’ve been looking forward to the Miles Edgeworth games finally being ported to the Switch. It was nice to get an up-close glimpse of the quality of life enhancement. I’ve held off on continuing to play my copy of Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy until I got a chance to play this one. The game comes out this Friday, so it won’t be much longer to fully dive in.

HM: Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland

Developed by The MIX Games and Wallride

Published by The MIX Games

Available this Tuesday, September 10 on Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and PC

I was able to play this earlier this year at PAX East, and it still held my interest enough to play it again at the Media Indie Exchange (better known as The MIX) for PAX West weekend. I grew up watching Rugrats as a kid so that along with the Super Mario Bros. 2 style gameplay and graphics of this game checked a lot of nostalgic boxes for me. You can play it in 8-bit and HD styles. Personally, I loved holding the NES controller at the booth to play the game.

HM: Earthion

Developed by Ancient

Published by Limited Run Games

Coming soon to Sega Genesis and modern consoles

Short and sweet is the best way to describe the demo, as it is only for one level of about five minutes of gameplay. But it’s enough to get a taste of what Earthion is all about. I love me a good shmup, and this one is worked on by a video gaming legend in Yuzo Koshiro. Limited Run Games will be handling sales for the physical cartridge. There is no official release date yet, but they seem to want to release it at some point this year for the Genesis, with releases on modern consoles like Switch and PlayStation at a later date.

Now for my top 5…

#5

Iron Meat

Developed by Ivan Suvorov and Retroware

Published by Retroware

Available on September 26 on Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and PC

Along with Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland, this game has the distinction of being the only other game listed that I had previously played at PAX East this year. But it goes deeper than that because Iron Meat is also the only game on here that I played as far back as 2020 when it was early in development. I wanted to keep my top 5 to just games I was playing for the first time, but I had so much fun playing Iron Meat that it couldn’t be denied. Every time I’ve played I’ve gone farther in the game and more drawn in. At The MIX I was absolutely locked into this Contra-like action platformer. For this Contra fan, it’s been quite a year indeed! (Also please check out my interview with the Contra team about their newest game Contra: Operation Galuga)

The long-awaited Iron Meat will be released later this month for PC and modern consoles.

#4

Clock Tower: Rewind

Developed by WayForward, Limited Run Games, and Human Entertainment

Published by Limited Run Games

Coming to North America/Europe this fall and to Japan on October 31 to Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, and PC

I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not typically a horror gamer. But I’m willing to give almost any game a try when a game company I trust has its hands in it. This was a popular attraction at the Limited Run Games booth. Clock Tower: Rewind is a chilling 16-bit experience. Originally released in Japan in 1995, this version comes with modern enhancements including the ability to rewind time if you’ve made a mistake. Suffice it to say I used that feature quite a bit as I struggled to fend off the vicious Scissorman. In just the few minutes I spent playing the game I found multiple ways to reach the dreaded “dead end” screen. I can only imagine what it’d be like playing this in the dark!

Won’t be too much longer to find out, as Clock Tower: Rewind is expected to be released sometime this fall in the West.

#3

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom

Developed and published by Nintendo

Available on September 26 on Switch

This was officially the first game I played at PAX West this year. I made it a priority to attend the Nintendo booth upon entry, as I remembered the long lines for Nintendo at PAX West and Nintendo Live last year. There were a handful of Nintendo titles I got to play but this is the one I was most looking forward to. The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom features Zelda herself as the main character and the game is done in the style of Link’s Awakening. In my demo, Zelda was captured by guards and had to break herself free from her prison and sneak around the guards. With a little bit of stealth and patience after “learning” some objects, I was able to make it far enough to get some assistance from Impa. Definitely an amusing sequence!

The game left me just curious enough to want to play more when the full version comes out later this month.

#2

AWAKEN – Astral Blade

Developed by Dark Pigeon Games

Published by ESDigital Games

Coming soon to PlayStation and PC

Despite the title of the game, this one was a deep sleeper and I mean that in a good way! I discovered AWAKEN – Astral Blade at The MIX Seattle event. It’s part of PlayStation’s China Hero Project, an initiative to support China-based developers. The gorgeous visuals are what immediately stood out to me. The animation was fluid and controls were easy to pick up. This Metroidvania-style game is meant to be played through multiple times, as each path you take leads to a different outcome. So rather than one large map that’s meant to be traveled, you can go a number of different routes, with some being blocked off depending on events later in the game. I think that’s great for replay value. I felt a little bit of pride when the representative I was with told me that I advanced the farthest in the demo of anyone at The MIX. It’s a good sign that I was invested.

I was told the game is still in development despite seeing online that there was a Q3 2024 estimated release date. So for now I’ll say that it’s coming soon, so keep an eye out for it. It took me a while to memorize the title of the game (that’s more of a “me” problem than anything), but I always mentioned the game whenever I was asked by other industry people which games at PAX I enjoyed most. Hopefully, soon many more people will learn the name of AWAKEN – Astral Blade.

#1

Yars Rising

Developed by WayForward

Published by Atari

Available this Tuesday, September 10 on Switch, PlayStation, Xbox, PC, and Atari VCS

It’s the familiar comforts of Yars Rising that made this my most anticipated demo and my favorite overall game played at PAX West. It’s not just a WayForward thing for me either. As an ’80s kid, I’m very familiar with the Atari brand, as the Atari 2600 was the first video game system my family owned. I never played the original Yars’ Revenge game, but it was nice to see the 8-bit action from that game make its way to this modern title in the form of mini-games. Yars Rising is a Metroidvania-style game with a super-charged music soundtrack that, in the words of leading developer James Montagna, is the most ambitious soundtrack WayForward has ever had in a game (even more so than Vitamin Connection). That’s saying a lot, given WayForward’s superb track record when it comes to video game soundtracks. The story trailer was just recently released, so definitely check that out as well.

Going back to the gameplay for a moment, I enjoyed the simplicity of the controls as I’ve come to expect from Metroidvania titles. But I have to say those mini-games were a lot of fun considering how simple they seemed on the surface. They get progressively more challenging as you advance through the game. I also enjoyed the comic book-style intro, as that was a nod to the comic book that came with the original Yars’ Revenge game. I also really liked seeing the font in the game that was the same that was used on the boxes of the Atari 2600 games. It’s charming details like that which add to the experience for me. The tunes were catchy as well but I was so caught up between capturing footage, asking questions, and focusing on the game itself that I might not have been able to truly appreciate all of it as much as I could have. Others I spoke with who played the game were quick to mention how they liked the music as well. I believe it to be very important to the gaming experience and I can’t wait to hear it all when the game comes out next week.

I appreciated everything I was able to digest within those 30 or so minutes of playing: the presentation, the gameplay, the animations, the music, those mini-games, all of it. Fun to play and memorable. It checks the right boxes for me, and it left no doubt in my mind of what my #1 game on this list was going to be. Yars Rising… to the moon!

Thanks for reading my list! I want to close out with a reflection on my overall experience at PAX West this year.

It’s always a pleasure covering these events with The Koalition, but it can definitely take a mental toll. Much like many others, I deal with social anxiety, and every convention I attend is a test of my ability to power through. With every event, I get a little better at it. There’s always that fear that comes with the unknown, with talking with people you haven’t met before, or even sometimes with people you have met but are self-conscious of how you’re coming off. But I know I’m not alone, and I want to take a moment to acknowledge everyone else who attends PAX.

I think back to my school days when we had a science fair. How nerve-racking it was to complete the project, get the display ready, and then stand by my project and explain my work to others. For me, it was a relief when it was over, regardless of how my project got graded. That is relatively low stakes compared to the pressure that developers must feel at these events. Their projects that they’ve spent years working on, are all on full display, all subject to the scrutiny of others. As someone with media privileges, it’s fun to dig into the minds of these developers to understand their motivations within their work. To point out the references that I caught and what they call back to. I make it a point to be fair with my feedback, as we’re all human.

For the vast majority of us who attend these conventions, it’s fair to say video games played a big part in our upbringing. It’s nice to indulge and to remember what drives our passions and makes us feel like kids again. It’s one thing to share these experiences over the internet, and it’s another to do it in person. I feel like seeing what was taken away from us during the pandemic made me appreciate video gaming and its community a whole lot more. It’s given me more courage to have these nice encounters with others, to network in person, and to make connections with like-minded people. It’s the idea that we’re a community and we’re all in this together. It’s what keeps me coming back. Plus every once in a while, something magical happens.

So I want to take this opportunity to pay respect to the exhibitors, developers, and industry people who make themselves available to us at every PAX or convention or fair or wherever it may be. People who take pride in what they do and put themselves out there are taking a chance at something they love. I respect the work you do and — perhaps more than that — in taking time to meet with fans and media, to answer questions and share stories and remind each other what makes events like PAX West so great. Also definitely check out The MIX if you ever have a chance to attend (21+ only).

Thank you all! Please let me know which game you liked most, or which ones you’d like to hear more about from us at The Koalition. Thanks for reading and happy gaming!