Top 14 Must-Play Games at PAX West 2024
- PAX West is a major gaming convention in North America.
- Showcased games from Nintendo, Square Enix, and Bandai Namco.
- The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom releases on September 26, 2024.
- Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake releases on November 14, 2024.
- Life Is Strange: Double Exposure releases on October 29, 2024.
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12 OF THE BEST GAMES AT PAX WEST 2024
PAX West continues to be one of North America's most prolific gaming conventions.
It's not only a great place for the gaming community to gather and celebrate our favorite pastime but also an excellent opportunity to check out the upcoming slate of games coming this year and early in 2025.
Coming hot on the heels of Gamescom, PAX West 2024 showcased a substantial suite of games from big favorites like Nintendo, Square Enix, and Bandai Namco, along with some under-the-radar releases that have the potential to become someone's next sleeper hit.
In this roundup, I share some of the best games I saw at PAX West 2024 and other gaming events taking place around it, such as The Mix and The Media Indie Exchange.
Here is our list of some of the most exciting games from this year's show.
And while a few games were still under embargo when this post first went live, they've now been added; you'll find them in the top two slots of the list.
THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: ECHOES OF WISDOM
Developer: Nintendo
Platform: Nintendo Switch
Release Date: September 26, 2024
It's been a long time coming for Princess Zelda to star in a proper game that's not a middling CDI spinoff.
With The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, we see the series step back into the classic top-down adventure style of games like A Link to the Past and Link's Awakening but with a heightened focus on building up Zelda as a heroine of her own story.
From the hour I spent with Echoes of Wisdom, it's shaping up to be the most inventive take on a classic-style Zelda game we've seen yet.
What surprised me most was how much you can push the game's echo system to create surprisingly effective combat and puzzle-solving strategies.
Zelda can use her powers to conjure up imitations of ordinary items and even enemies like Darknuts or moblins, using bits of the world to her advantage in nearly any situation.
It's far more open-ended than I expected it would be, and I can already envision players devising unique and clever ways to traverse the world and clear encounters that others may not have considered.
After my hands-on, Echoes of Wisdom shot up my list of most anticipated games. I can't wait to see more of it.
DRAGON QUEST III HD-2D REMAKE
Developer: Square Enix, Artdink
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One/Series X|S
Release Date: November 14, 2024
The Dragon Quest series was incredibly influential for role-playing video games, especially the original trilogy.
Unfortunately, the earliest entries of the series from the '80s have not aged as gracefully as some of its JRPG brethren.
This full remake of the original trilogy aims to freshen up the experience, giving it a new look and updated gameplay while retaining the spirit of a classic console JRPG.
Playing Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake put me back into that familiar mood of bundling up with a compelling role-playing game from back in the day.
It retains that simple yet still compelling pace of a classic Dragon Quest game.
The remake also focuses on creating a better sense of direction and purpose within the world, which is gorgeously recreated with crisp new sprite work and 3D environments.
So far, it seems as if the HD-2D Remake of DQ3 is elevating the original experience to its best self, and I'm looking forward to diving back into this world again.
LIFE IS STRANGE: DOUBLE EXPOSURE
Developer: Deck Nine Games
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X|S
Release Date: October 29, 2024
While the Life Is Strange series had adopted the anthology approach for its many sequels, Double Exposure brings the focus back to the original protagonist, Max Caufield.
This time, we see Max, now older, wiser, and a famous photographer, possessing new powers that allow her to slip into two parallel realities.
Max has to uncover who was behind the death of her friend Safi in one reality while still interacting with her in another and trying to prevent her death.
According to the developers, they weren't too concerned with the canon events of the original game's impossible choice ending.
Double Exposure puts that aspect at the forefront, yet the causality of these choices is still important.
Being able to transition between realities seamlessly was so intriguing, and interacting with two different versions of the same character led to some interesting dilemmas that I want to see play out.
This focus on relationships is part of what makes the Life Is Strange series so well-loved by fans.
Its empathetic storytelling makes it very welcoming for players who often quickly become attached to the cast of characters.
I like where Double Exposure is going with its story, and it could prove to be one of the boldest entries in the series yet.
ANTONBLAST
Developer: Summitsphere
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One/Series X|S
Release Date: November 12, 2024
AntonBlast felt equal parts like a high-energy '90s Nickelodeon cartoon and an early 2D PS1-era platformer.
Inspired directly by the Crash Bandicoot and Wario Land games, AntonBlast has you play as a pair of chaotic bruisers that plow through environments and baddies with reckless abandon.
Similar to Pizza Tower, the aim is to tear through levels as fast as possible while causing destruction to the levels and enemies in equal fashion.
Once I got into the groove of its high-octane platforming pace, I found AntonBlast to be a fun throwback filled to the brim with raucous energy that I couldn't help but admire.
GHOSTS
Developer: Jed Shepherd in association with Limited Run Games and Visible Games
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One/Series X|S
Release Date: TBD 2025
On the surface, Ghosts presents itself as a tribute to the so-bad-they're-good FMV (full motion video) games from the '90s.
However, Ghosts puts a twist on the formula, playing as a producer of a horror-based reality TV show where you cycle through camera feeds watching contestants explore a haunted house.
The game employs a fascinating gimmick: it will only be playable in real-time after 10 PM based on your current timezone.
Quitting the game prematurely will result in the worst and most gruesome ending for the live-action cast.
Ghosts is an alluring spin on popular narrative-driven horror experiences and the experimental games that never left the '90s.
The combination of the two, with the jarring yet playful use of live-action actors exploring the house and the explorable space of the van feeling increasingly unsafe, made for something very compelling.
It's something I want to see more of, especially with monster designs coming from Siren Head creator Trevor Henderson.
MIGHTY MORPHIN POWER RANGERS: RITA'S REWIND
Developer: Digital Eclipse
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One/Series X|S
Release Date: TBD 2024
The main goal behind Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita's Rewind was to make the proper high-energy, bombastic arcade-style beat 'em up that the series never got.
Playing MMPR: Rita's Rewind feels like a throwback to '90s-style fast-paced brawler action.
Each member of the OG crew feels unique and possesses their own moves.
It was thrilling seeing all the action unfold.
Along with planned missions focusing on giant robot and kaiju battles presented in SNES-style Mode 7 visuals, MMPR: Rita's Rewind looks to not only show the greatest hits of the series but also offer a fun dive back to a classic era of gaming.
DEMON SPORE
Developer: DinoBoss
Platforms: PC, other platforms TBD
Release Date: TBD 2024
Demon Spore turns the general idea of John Carpenter's The Thing into a co-op roguelite experience.
Focusing on a group of scientists and security guards trapped in a facility slowly being overrun by a hostile organism, the survivors must scrape together supplies and chart out an escape while staying one step ahead of the growing parasite.
It mixes elements of survival horror with top-down twin-stick shooters, all within the framework of a dungeon crawler.
Demon Spore was such a blast with a crew, and seeing how quickly things escalated was a real trip.
You have to pick up whatever you can find to survive, including guns and fire extinguishers to freeze enemies or computer screens to shock them.
My favorite moments came when things took a turn for the worse, seeing the chaos and sense of desperation that occurred when the parasitic tendrils took over sections of the room in real-time was so unnerving.
It has all the makings of a fun and unsettling time with a crew.
EVERDEEP AURORA
Developer: Nautilus Games
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch
Release Date: TBD
Everdeep Aurora presents a more cozy and atmospheric take on a post-apocalyptic game.
Set in the time after a meteor has collided with the planet, you take on the role of Shell, a cat-like explorer armed with a drill that can burrow deep below the surface.
After your mother goes missing, you resolve to find her, with your only clue being a note leading you down into the depths below the village into caverns filled with oddball scavengers and platforming challenges.
Everdeep Aurora is a visual stunner, using the aesthetic of a 16-bit game to establish itself as a stunning and atmospheric adventure.
As you delve deeper, new 16-bit filters show off the change in scenery, which are cool moments that help to build up its atmosphere even further.
With no combat, Everdeep Aurora focuses more on platforming action and adventure-like quests to set the mood and give you a sense of growth throughout Shell's journey.
LITTLE NIGHTMARES III
Developer: Supermassive Games
Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One/Series X|S
Release Date: TBD 2025
The Little Nightmares series manages to be simultaneously whimsical and utterly terrifying.
The first two games from developer Tarsier Studios told a connected story, but with the third game coming from Supermassive Games, the series is going for a fresh start.
This new beginning also means a change in scope, and Little Nightmares III focuses on two playable protagonists experiencing the horrors of the story together.
During my co-op session, I coordinated with my partner to find the best ways to get ahead of the new baddies lurking about.
Playing with another person heightened that sense of dread as we had to figure out the best way to proceed.
Supermassive Games is keeping up well with the series' focus on an unsettling cinematic platformer experience.
While the third game does feel very familiar, it looks to be building off its foundations for a promising third entry that could take Little Nightmares to new heights.
HEARTWORM
Developer: Vincent Adinolfi
Platforms: PC
Release Date:
