by Jayden Leggett, Editor
Wow. Just… wow. After my long weekend at this year’s PAX Aus in Melbourne, Victoria, it is fair to say that I am exhausted and very much still in recovery mode. But man oh man was it ever so worth it! For a convention that is only in its second year,the organizers behind PAX Aus sure know how to put on a stellar show.
Taking place at its new location at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, PAX Aus 2014 was a three day extravaganza of gaming goodness. The first thing worth mentioning is just how much physically larger the event was when compared to last year’s. The Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre is, in a word, enormous. Hell, just walking around to the media room was a marathon in itself, so you better believe me when I say that I feel one million times more fit after walking all over the grounds of the convention itself. There were booths, stalls and exhibits everywhere! Which is just as well, considering that all tickets to the event were sold out, as evidenced by the thousands of gamers roaming around the place (many of which were wearing detailed costumes).
Being a games convention, naturally there were videogames everywhere the eye could see. Big name publishers definitely made their presence known. Nintendo was showing off its many crowd-pleasing titles in the forms of Splatoon, Super Smash Bros (for 3DS and for Wii U), Hyrule Warriors, Mario Kart 8, Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, Bayonetta 2 and Captain Toad: Treasure Tracker. Xbox One had its own section also, showing off the likes of Killer Instinct, Halo: The Master Chief Collection, Sunset Overdrive, Minecraft: Xbox One Edition, Forza Horizon 2 and many more.
Ubisoft’s exhibit featured many playable versions of its latest and upcoming offerings such as Tom Clancy’s The Division, Assasin’s Creed: Rogue, Assassin’s Creed: Unity, The Crew and Just Dance 2015. Nearby to this was the Wargaming.net exhibit, complete with announcers commentating on some of the World of Tanks and World of Warships skirmishes taking place, with loads of fans participating and spectating.
In fact, gaming as a sport was a huge theme across the entire PAX Aus event. Bethesda’s Battlecry multiplayer matches drew quite a crowd (the huge screen and loud commentary probably helped), as fans were enthralled by the multiplayer carnage that was unfolding onscreen. In terms of crowd numbers and fan enthusiasm, the League of Legends live matches clearly dominated all. Literally hundreds of gamers filled the seats, cheering and shouting whenever their team claimed a kill or pulled off a fancy tactical manoeuvre. Seriously, the applause and excitement for League of Legends could be heard and felt from miles away!
Expanding upon the success of last year’s PAX Aus, the presence for indie gaming was huge, with over forty local and international indie games available to play. I’ve already posted a couple of articles (click here and here) detailing some of my top pics, and will be detailing even more very soon, but for the meantime, I recommend checking out titles such as Ninja Pizza Girl, Sundae Drive, Phantasmal, Square Heroes and Crawl, just to name a mere few.
Maybe you’re not so keen on new games, and prefer to replay the classics of days long past. Turns out PAX Aus had that covered too, featuring a playable classic consoles section packed full of vintage consoles and games for punters to play to their heart’s content. A library full of modern consoles and PC games were available for plays and tournaments also, for those who were so inclined. And if you are a hardcore gamer craving the best experience from the latest and greatest in gaming, plenty of exhibitors were there showing their wares ranging from headsets and keyboards to gaming mice and sweet gaming rigs. Drool…
As many a geek will undoubtedly know, videogames are not the only type of games that people play. Whilst the videogames were where the majority of punters spent their time and attention, tabletop games and trading card games also drew in a huge attendee presence. Magic: The Gathering, Pokemon, Zombicide, Warhammer, Dungeons & Dragons and more were all being played by the hundreds of gamers, whether they be seasoned veterans or fresh-faced newcomers. +10 Fun to all players!
PAX Aus 2014 was an undeniable success. This games expo has clearly cemented itself as being one of the leading gaming conventions to attend in Australia. If you were unlucky enough to miss out on a ticket to this year’s event, you can ease some of the pain by checking out my impressions on some of the indie games on offer (again, by following these links here and here), and take this article as a stern lesson about why booking your ticket for next year’s event well in advance will be vital. If things continue at this rate, PAX Aus 2015 will be a very special spectacle indeed…
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