Claire's Top 10 Games of PAX West 2023
PAX West 2023 ended nearly two weeks ago, and I still can't stop thinking about all of the amazing games I played. From genre-defying text-based adventures and metroidvanias to stunning booths and displays, the talent and creativity of developer teams and publishers alike were on full display in Seattle over Labor Day weekend. I was fortunate enough to play hands-on demos of 34 games this PAX, and I was able to observe several more as well. A handful of these games really stood out on the show floor, and are definitely worth keeping an eye on as they progress through development. Whether they are still expanding beyond the demos playable at PAX or have already released—or everything in between—these games are definitely worth checking out. Here, in no particular order, are my ten favorite games of PAX West 2023.
1. [I] Doesn't Exist - A Modern Text Adventure
Developed by LUAL Games KIG and published by DreadXP, [I] Doesn't Exist is a text-based adventure game that brings a subversive existentialism to the genre. This was one of my favorite demos of PAX West. I could have played all day if there hadn't been a line starting to form behind me after my time was up. As is typical for the genre, the player types commands into the computer in order to do actions and solve puzzles. The game's artificial intelligence processes your typed commands in a seamless and intuitive way, which makes the experience more approachable and immersive than older text-based adventure titles.
The two puzzles I completed were multifaceted enough to be engaging without being frustrating or overly convoluted, and the world initially feels cozy, if not somewhat unsettling. I was drawn into the mystery of trying to figure out who the player character is and how they relate to their surroundings. I was already sold on this game from the gameplay loop of interacting with objects and solving the puzzles. But the twist that came at the end of the second puzzle was what really made [I] Doesn't Exist stand out.
[I] Doesn't Exist explores themes of identity and mental health while leading the player to question their relationship with video games and their characters. The ideas of control and isolation are brought to the forefront as the game world undergoes a dramatic shift, both in terms of the visuals and the gameplay itself. The game's use of typed commands and dialogue in this section of the demo became deeper and more complex. It was unlike anything I have ever experienced in a game.
[I] Doesn't Exist's genre-bending commentary on the nature of control within video games and artificial intelligence feels so relevant in our current age of rapidly-developing AI systems. Between its exploration of these deep themes, the cohesiveness and satisfaction of its gameplay loop, and its beautiful pixel-art style, [I] Doesn't Exist offers a truly unique experience. I can't wait to play the game in full when it releases sometime soon. In the meantime, [I] Doesn't Exist has a demo available to play on Steam right now.
Another demo that had me raving to our friends and excited for more was Beastieball, developed by Wishes Unlimited—the studio behind Chicory: A Colorful Tale—and published by Klei Publishing. Beastieball is a turn-based volleyball RPG in which you coach a team of delightful creatures called Beasties to become the best volleyball players around. Described by developer Greg Lobanov as being like Pokémon but without the violence, Beastieball features friendship mechanics, research objectives, and beautifully hand-drawn creatures that are equal parts adorable, cool, and full of personality. I can't wait to discover and recruit them to my own team!
The main focus of the game is the turn-based volleyball matches. Your team of Beasties face off against others to beat other coaches or complete research objectives. Each Beastie has its own personality and class. These classes—mind, body, and spirit—impact the moves that they can use within the volleyball matches. The Beasties also develop relationships with one another as they complete matches as a team, leading to unique combos. In the demo I played, my two Beasties became Besties and unlocked a combo that was as powerful as it was cute. Each Beastie also has emoji-like reactions to the maneuvers in the match, which adds another layer of personality to the game. This is one of the many things that makes Beastieball feel so chock-full of personality. You can check out the demo available now on Steam, and the full game is set to release in 2024.
Clam Man 2: Headliner is a dialogue-based, combatless RPG with a focus on stand-up comedy. Developed and published by Sideby Interactive—a solo developer named Martin Hanses—this sequel to point-and-click adventure game Clam Man is full of branching dialogue, quests, and jokes. The demo spoke directly to my sense of humor, and I had a blast playing through the various quests and conversations. The characters are quirky yet relatable, the quests are zany and unpredictable, and the dialogue is fun to read. On top of all of that, the absurdity of the aquatic setting and marine life-based character designs contrasts with the mundanity of working in an office in a hilarious and refreshing way.
Clam Man 2 begins with you choosing your archetype, which determines your base stats, perks, and starting money. These will influence your success in completing certain actions and dialogue options. When completing actions or choosing certain dialogue paths, there is a dice mechanic, and your stats and perks influence your likelihood of achieving certain results at these critical points. Luke and I played this demo side-by-side, and got different outcomes from several of our quests as a result of choosing different dialogue and being able to complete certain actions successfully. But both outcomes were funny and felt natural within the world.
While I wasn't able to play for long enough to experience the full loop of completing quests in order to collect jokes and then performing a stand-up show using that material, I believe that this gameplay loop will be fun and engaging based on the quests and dialogue I did get to see. I can't wait to explore the full world of Clam Man 2: Headliner when it releases for PC sometime soon. Luckily, I don't have to wait to play more Clam Man, and neither do you, because the free prologue to Headliner, Open Mic, is now available on Steam, and was recently updated with new content!
If you're craving a medieval-inspired fantasy RPG with life-sim elements, look no further than Mirthwood, developed Bad Ridge Games and published by V Publishing. This sandbox game allows the player to choose their own approach to the gameplay. Whether you prefer to battle bandits and go on daring quests or settle your homestead and sell your farm's goods in the market, Mirthwood allows you to craft your own experience.
Described as Stardew Valley meets Fable, Mirthwood has a morality system, character relationship and romance options, witty dialogue, and plenty of clever and whimsical ways you can interact with the world. I particularly enjoyed the conversation mechanics in the demo. Each NPC has their own likes and dislikes, and you have to use your knowledge of them to choose conversation topics they will engage with, and respond correctly to their prompts in order to gain friendship. I ended up having a conversation about philosophy with a cowardly man in the main area of town, right after he got in an argument with another NPC. You can also romance characters and marry them later in the full game, allowing them to become your companion. Each companion's character traits will influence the ways in which they can help you—some will be better at completing farm chores, those who are cowardly won't be helpful in combat, and so on. Your morality stat also influences perks like being able to buy items for lower prices or which characters you can interact with.
While the character relationships and dialogue options stood out to me the most, I was also impressed with the farming sim elements, apparent home customization options that may be available with the full release of the game, foraging and looting, and the combat (though I would prefer to use a controller as the combat keys didn't feel natural to me while using mouse and keyboard). I can't wait to see what the full game will have to offer beyond what I saw in the demo, including the added biomes of plains and spooky forests beyond the main forest. Mirthwood is set to release in mid-2024 on PC, with a planned release on Nintendo Switch to follow.
Another sports-based game that caught me by surprise was Button City Soccer Days, developed and published by Subliminal. A spinoff of the narrative adventure game Button City, Button City Soccer Days follows Fennel the fox and his friends as they build up their soccer team and get ready for a tournament. The gameplay consists of the soccer games themselves, as well as story portions where the decisions you make affect your team.
Wholesome and cozy vibes abound in this adorable soccer adventure. Between the low-poly art style, animal characters, and uplifting character interactions, Button City Soccer Days just feels good to play. The gameplay of the soccer matches themselves also feel rewarding while matching the tone of the game. When we spoke with the game's programmer, Ryan Woodward, he described it as deliberately not imitating FIFA gameplay. The ball is not magnetic to the player's feet, and the character's movement is what influences the direction of the ball, similar to Rocket League. You can also jump between players on your team seamlessly during a match, enabling more strategy. The gameplay mechanics of the soccer matches felt right in line with the game's story—a soccer game between groups of friends playing for fun should feel different than a game about professionals.
Button City Soccer Days also includes a co-op versus mode that can be played locally, so friends and family can play together. The demo we played only consisted of this mode, but I also watched another pair play some of the story demo. The character interactions are just another source of positivity in this game. The game itself also has a wholesome backstory. Button City Soccer Days is inspired by real life local soccer players and teams, as well as the developer's own journey in starting a local soccer team.
Button City Soccer Days does not currently have a planned release date, but if you just can't wait to check out the adorable characters and the positive atmosphere of the game, Button City is out now on PC and consoles.
Another game that just feels good to play is Pepper Grinder, developed by Ahr Ech and published by Devolver Digital. This was the first demo I played at PAX West this year, and it remained my favorite for a long time. The gameplay feels so satisfying, especially thanks to the controller vibrations that accompany your use of the drill.
Pepper Grinder is a 2D adventure platformer in which you play as Pepper, a shipwrecked pirate trying to reclaim her treasure. Pepper is armed with a huge drill, called Grinder, that you use to traverse through the ground and dive, leap, and boost your way through the world. Timing is key, and you have to think and react quickly in order to successfully pull off certain jumps or attacks on enemies.
The platforming was the perfect balance of challenging and approachable to keep me engaged, and the colorful pixel art and sounds of your drill breaking open rocks and collecting treasure made the gameplay feel even more rewarding. Pepper Grinder also has a cool aesthetic and character design. It is set to release in 2024 on Steam and Switch, though I would definitely recommend playing it with a controller that has vibration capabilities, because this adds so much to the tactile experience of using the drill.
Developed and published by Lucid Dreams Studios, Biomorph is a dark metroidvania with a crisp hand-drawn art style and fully animated cutscenes. You play as Harlo, a creature with the ability to take the form of the monsters you kill as you fight your way through the game's environments, solve puzzles, and uncover the mystery at the heart of the game's narrative. The engaging gameplay loop involves choosing which enemies to morph into in order to solve puzzles, unlock different areas within the levels, and gain their powers for combat situations. Strategy plays just as much of a role as the combat itself.
The gameplay of the Biomorph demo felt polished and rewarding. The combat feels satisfying, and the platforming isn't punishing. Checkpointing doesn't seem very frequent, but actions you took before you died carry over, so if you smashed your way through a wall while in the form of an enemy, that wall is still smashed when you respawn, and you can avoid that enemy this time around. The enemies do respawn, however, so you have to redo any necessary combat situations if you die, which can become a little tedious if you get stuck on a specific enemy long after your last checkpoint.
The animated cutscenes were also very polished, and the story and characters were compelling beyond what similar demos show in fifteen minutes of gameplay. The full game will also includes some city-building mechanics as you restore the city and interact with the townspeople, though this was not included in the demo. Biomorph has a demo out now on Steam, and will be coming soon to PC and Switch.
Wild Country, developed by Lost Native, is an adorable city-building card game with narrative elements. Your player-character is an animal in Big Sky County who has decided to participate in a tournament of the card game Wild Country. The prize for winning the tournament is to become the next mayor of the city.
The dialogue between characters is quippy and fun, but the real star of the game is the card game itself. This game is like a cross between Settlers of Catan and Monopoly. Each turn, you use the points available to play various cards that can add buildings and/or revenue streams to your city, freeze your opponent's assets, or even send havoc-wreaking raccoons to destroy opponent buildings. The goal is to be the first to collect a certain amount of cash. I was sucked right into the gameplay loop, and I can't wait to play more when Wild Country releases soon on PC and Switch.
Developed by Label This and published by Crunching Koalas, The Gap is a mind-bending mystery game. This first-person narrative-based adventure follows Joshua, a neuroscientist with a rare genetic disorder that destroys memories. The game features clue-based exploration mechanics meant to mirror déjà vu that you use to travel between different memories to solve puzzles and unlock the mystery at the heart of the story. I am intrigued to see if the full game offers any commentary on mental health, as the demo seemed to be hinting at. The Gap will release on Steam, PlayStation, and Xbox on October 19th.
Play as a fly with seconds to live in Time Flies. Developed by Playables and published by Panic, Time Flies is a game about living life to the fullest within the short amount of time that we have. As the titular fly, you must explore and interact with your surroundings in order to complete quests before your time runs out.
At the start of each run, you can also choose which country your play-through takes place in. Your location affects how many seconds you have to live, and the number of seconds corresponds to the human lifespan (in years) in that country. This game really makes you think about how you're spending your time, and encourages you to move as quickly as possible while also enjoying the moments you have. I am interested to see if there are more environments to explore beyond the first area, as well as if it is possible to complete all tasks within one run. I will definitely be checking out Time Flies when it releases in 2024 on PlayStation, Switch, and PC.
Honorable Mentions:
In addition to the ten above games that really stood above all the others, there were four more games that I really enjoyed and wanted to highlight here. These are my Honorable Mentions.
Honorable Mention #1: Knight vs. Giant: The Broken Excalibur
Knight vs. Giant is a roguelite with a beautiful hand-painted art style and polished, satisfying combat. Not only does this game feel good to play, but the incorporation of Arthurian legend into the story is also very cool. You play as King Arthur, defeating monsters and channeling different Knights of the Round Table in combat whilst trying to restore Camelot to its former glory. Knight vs. Giant: The Broken Excalibur is developed by Gambir Studio and published by PQube, and it will release on PC and consoles on October 5th.
Honorable Mention #2: PixelJunk Eden 2
PixelJunk Eden 2, developed by Q-Games, is a meditative platformer in which you swing through psychedelic gardens to beautiful music by composer Baiyon. The platforming is solid, and I specifically appreciate the way your actions within each space can influence the space itself, as you pollinate plants and help them grow in order to move through the level. PixelJunk Eden 2 offers both a full single-player campaign as well as 2-player local co-op, which is how Luke and I played the demo. You can play PixelJunk Eden 2 on Switch now, or you can wait until it releases on PC and PlayStation later this year.
Honorable Mention #3: Pile Up!
Pile Up! was made by students in Turkey, and is developed by Remoob and published by Next in Game and IndieArk. It is a vertical city builder in which your goal is to increase the population of the city by piling buildings higher and higher. It has turn-based strategy and tetris elements as you must use the buildings in your "hand" within each turn without running out of space. The art style is cute, and the gameplay loop is engaging. Pile Up! is out now on Steam.
Honorable Mention #4: Sail Forth
Sail Forth, developed by Festive Vector and published by The Quantum Astrophysicists Guild, is an exploration-based adventure game in which you command your fleet across the high seas. It features adorable characters, witty dialogue and writing, and a beautiful low-poly art style. Fight pirates, collect flotsam and jetsam, customize your ships, and go fishing, all while exploring the world. But what really stood out to me were Sail Forth's realistic, physics-based sailing mechanics. Wind direction affects the speed of your ship, and you can adjust which sails you are using and how much sail is in use in order to fit different navigation and weather situations. There is also a mystery to be uncovered at the heart of the game. Sail Forth is out now on Switch and PC.
I am so excited to play each of these games when they release in full. If any of these titles have you as excited or intrigued as I am, make sure to Wishlist them on Steam, and check out the many demos and full games that are available to play now!
