Find out who took home Best of PAX East 2023!
Being able to attend PAX East in Boston, MA is always a fun event but I don’t usually do a “ Best of” recap article. It’s the year 2023 and that is about to change. Stay tuned for the GamerHub.TV Best of PAX Awards. There were plenty of potential options to get a GamerHub Best of award but there were a few that stood out above the rest. There’s a lot to cover so let’s get to it! I also would like to point out that these were games that I was able to play during PAX East and opinion.
Wild Bill's Craft Beverage Co.
This first one felt like a no brainer to me. Wild Bill’s has great flavors of Soda and allows you to bring your Wild Bill’s cup to any event they happen to be at and get yourself a refill. They also happen to be from New Jersey so that gets them bonus points as I too am from the great state of New Jersey.
Cuisineer- XSEED Games
Fun simulation type game where you take over your family restaurant from your deadbeat parents. You have to explore different locations that are different every time you explore them. Have to be on guard as there are various enemies that could end your journey. You’ll have to find different ingredients because you never know what the next customer in the shop could want to eat!
Homeseek- The Iterative Collective
Survive the end of the world/apocalypse by building a settlement. That settlement will need to be your everything. You will need to make all kinds of supplies like shelter and water. If you don’t, it’s going to be tough to survive. AND you’ll have to make sure everyone is doing his or her part. You might get sick people, you might get invaders or unhappy residents in the settlement. What will you do to make it through each challenge?
Dead Island 2/Route 96: Mile Zero-Plaion
Plaion has two “Best of” games at PAX East this year. Dead Island 2 is a tough survival game where you’ll have to figure out how to defeat hordes of zombies. You might think things are going fine but then 20 or 30 zombies show up to ruin your time at the carnival. Whereas Route 96: Mile Zero is a nice alternative with rhythm-based challenges with some bitchin music to go along with it. Skating to The Offspring, sign me up.
Curse Crackers: For Whom The Belle Toils-Colorgrave Games
This game is easily in my top three games of PAX East this year. It feels like a modern Game Boy Color Game and the platforming is smooth. You play as Belle who can jump all over the place with help from her bell-shaped friend Chime. Your quest is to save Belle’s boyfriend back from the Bonnie, the evil bunny-earned Necromancer. Beating a boss by playing power chords on a guitar gets you bonus points in my book!
ODR Hockey Heroes- Treewood Studios
This is a Hockey game that plays like NBA Jam, complete with multiplayer and power-ups. What other game turns you into a pigeon while playing hockey? Simple controls allows you to put all your energy into schooling your friends in the finer art of hockey. I beat the Developers in a best of 5 series but we bonder over hockey and that’s a win. It’s more of a win when a Devils fan and Maple Leafs fan can come together to hate on the Bruins!
Mina the Hollower-Yacht Club Games
Mina the Hollower is the next big thing from Yacht Club Games. Combines Game Boy Legend of Zelda and Castlevania elements and makes it it’s own. A cute yet dark graphical styling makes Mina the Hollower more fun. Getting to use daggers and a dash attack for more damage is a plus for me! Top three games of PAX East for sure!
Alterium Shift-Drattzy Games
Alterium Shift pays homage to classic role-playing games of the 90s like Chrono Trigger, Super Mario RPG and Final Fantasy 6. It looks like it could have been made 30 years ago or last week, it does such a good job in old school role-playing. Character design is fantastic and has great music. Another one of my top three games of PAX.
That's all she wrote for this year's GamerHub.TV Best of PAX East Awards. I would like to again remind you that these are games that I was able to play at PAX East this year. That being said, all the games at PAX were fun but these games stood out above the rest!