PAX 2018 Trip - Games Galore!

Today I'm continuing my posts from my PAX trip as well as keeping the gaming theme going following yesterdays PUBG post. I'll be writing about some of the games we checked out at PAX East 2018.

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So much to do and see, but such little time.. My main goals were to check out what the Xbox booth had going on, the Mages of Mystralia booth, and dive into the indie section of games and see what gems we could find.

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We had our share of watching others play as well, here they were having the Castrol EDGE Titanium Gamer challenge with Need for Speed and people were perfecting their times and racing against others which was a lot of fun to watch when the good players took the controller and the game looked like it was straight out of a Tokyo Drift scene.

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ASHEN

When we went to the Xbox booth we checked out more than PUBG We checked out Ashen.

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I enjoyed playing it and would have to say that it reminded me a little of Dark Souls in its own way.

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Ashen is an action RPG about a wanderer in search of a place to call home. There is no sun and the natural light that exists comes from eruptions that cover the land in ash. This is a world where nothing lasts, no matter how tightly you cling to it.

At its core, Ashen is about forging relationships.
Players can choose to guide those they trust to their camp, encouraging them to rest at the fire and perhaps remain. People you meet out in the world will have unique skills and crafting abilities to bolster your chances of survival.

Together, you might just stand a chance.

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I'll be picking this game up for Xbox One for sure.

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PROTOCOL AURORA

We got a chance to check out Protocol Aurora and talk to some of the developers. Some of the games there are from student game development teams from various colleges, this one was from the Champlain College Game Studio.

In Protocol Aurora you are suddenly reactivated as Io, a repair robot powered by the cosmic aurora. Your programming requires you to repair the mysterious – and deactivated – Northern Aurora Station.

Use your portable capacitor to aid your journey by gathering energy from semi-sentient constructs, attacking them through ‘third person ranged brawler’ gameplay, and launching the device across large gaps to traverse otherwise impassible terrain.

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Their features page is worth checking out if the summary has your interest.

Bugs aside, the ranged combat system was interesting and its a fun concept. The game is still being worked on and I believe they mentioned you'd be able to download the game for free at some point so also worth looking into and seeing their development.

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EARTHFALL

EARTHFALL caught my eye as we passed.

As I watched people play I thought it reminded me of Left 4 Dead and I knew I was interested. One of the guys from the booth came over and explained the game and basically said it's Left 4 Dead with aliens and you 3D print your weapons to fight back the alien invasion! Enough said.. I'm getting the game when it comes out for Xbox One.

The end of the world is here! Emerging from the devastation of a global meteor strike, aliens swarm the landscape and ravage the planet. Everyday people must stand together and fight back with a wide variety of weapons, supplies and defenses as they battle through the towns and wilderness of the Pacific Northwest.

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MAGES OF MYSTRALIA

I was happy to swing by the Mages of Mystralia booth and check out what spells these mages were creating. Last year at PAX East we found out about the game. They finished developing their game but were showcasing it at PAX and running a Kickstarter campaign to add more features to the game with the community feedback, which I thought was a huge success. I was a bit bummed I didn't get to see the developers again this year, but still was fun to see.

The only way to really explain it is.. Wizardry meets Zelda in this amazing game where you can create almost infinite combinations of spells! But don't take it from me, check out their page for more info and get the game!

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COFFENCE

We watched a few people Coffence which was a funny Street Fighter with caffeine game.

Coffence is a fast-paced blend of fighting games and twin stick shooters with a dash of caffeine. Coffee is literally your health bar and every hit ejects the precious liquid up in the air for anyone to take. Experience dramatic reversals and tense stand-offs as you fight to the last drop with up to four players.

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Not sure if I'd get it, but it was entertaining and seems like it could be a fun party game.

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CODE VEIN

Code Vein is up next. It's basically the next Dark Souls straight from Bandai Namco.

In the not too distant future, a mysterious disaster has brought collapse to the world as we know it. Towering skyscrapers, once symbols of prosperity, are now lifeless graves of humanity’s past pierced by the Thorns of Judgment. At the center of the destruction lies a hidden society of Revenants called Vein. This final stronghold is where the remaining few fight to survive, blessed with Gifts of power in exchange for their memories and a thirst for blood.

Team up and embark on a journey to the ends of hell to unlock your past and escape your living nightmare in CODE VEIN.

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If you enjoyed Dark Souls, Lords of the Fallen, or Bloodborne, you'll be picking this game up just like me.

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BELOW

We swung by the Below booth from Capybara Games.

Although this is a game I already have played at PAX in the past and own, I figured I'd mention another great game that again.. reminds me of Dark Souls.. there's a pattern developing..

If you don't know about their game, go to their page and find out more about the game and check it out.

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A.N.N.E.

A.N.N.E. was an interesting game we got to play and talk to the developers.

Again.. I managed to find some bugs that they have never seen before.. so just doing my part..

It had an interesting system of fighting people along the way to your destinations and the gameplay and platforming were pretty fun as we "tried" to save our girlfriend from the bad guys.

A.N.N.E is an exciting game blending platforming and a shoot’em up gameplay with a touch of RPG elements. A.N.N.E's style is inspired by 8-bit and 16-bit era games; an anthology in pixels that will take you back to the early days of video games using current technologies running in glorious 720p and with a dash of physics gameplay.

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OTHER GAMES

We played other games but here are a few worth mentioning that we checked out but didn't get pictures...

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• IMMURE: Inescapable Horror

IMMURE is a 2.5D story-driven, psychological horror game. Will, the main character, has found himself trapped inside a foreboding Mansion with no exit. To escape, Will must travel through strange doors which lead into other dimensions filled with tormented souls. Will must choose to save or destroy these wraiths, in order to discover the truth behind the Mansion.

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Someone actually screamed as we passed by so we checked it out, definitely a scary game I'll have to play when in the mood for something to freak me out.

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• Omensight

You are the Harbinger, a skilled warrior who exists outside of time. You have foreseen the annihilation of the land known as Urralia and have been summoned to rewrite its fate. Serve as the eyes and the sword of Urralia as you identify characters who may have played a part in the story of its destruction, like a war general or a powerful sorcerer. Appear alongside these characters to discover how they chose to spend their final moments. Will you fight with them or against them?

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Looks like a lot of fun and am interested in seeing all the different ways the game can pan out.

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• Primus Vita

Destination Primus Vita is an episodic first person, narrative and puzzle video game. It is set in the 3040s, when a special crew is sent to Primus Vita to retrieve all the water that was stolen from us hundreds of years prior.
We will accompany Crew 121, made up of Austin, Coby, Geny, Hayao, Artemis and BrX, in their extraordinary journey en route to Primus Vita. The voyage is four years long: every passenger is put in cryo-sleep and NIM, the AI of the ship, will construct a special simulation to help prepare them for their upcoming mission. The puzzles will stimulate their cognitive intelligence, and personal memories will stimulate their emotional intelligence.

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It seems like a pretty infesting puzzle game and apparently it is based off of their comic book which I thought was interesting that they are using the game to tell part of the story, and the comic can continue to tell more of it.

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• Rite of Ilk

RITE of ILK is a cooperative exploration-adventure played entirely by two players
and supports both local multiplayer and online multiplayer.

You will find two young Ilk bound together by a single rope as they cling to survival in a world most stranger to them. Sacrificed for the sake of their people, Mokh and Tarh must combine each other's strengths to quell any weaknesses they will inevitably face if they have any hope in restoring peace with the gods. They soon discover that uncovering the past may be the only way to salvage the future.

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I originally was watching my girlfriend play the game and when she went up to a temple door to unlock it, I had to jump in as player 2 and help her open it. It's a visually pleasing game that's a great couch co-op experience that'll make you work together to solve puzzles.

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FINAL THOUGHTS

I had a lot of fun checking out these games and more while at PAX East 2018. I hope you enjoyed this post and hopefully I could help you make a decision about a game or two maybe you wanted to check out or new nothing about. If you have any questions or game suggestions, lemme know!

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Gamer | Designer | Architectural Draftsman | Full Time Nerd

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