There were plenty of cool and interesting things that I saw during PAX East. That being said this is a “ Best Of” list and not everything can make the cut. This list is a list of games that I thought were better than the rest and will probably be different from your best of. That being said, the only requirement for this list is that I played the game at the convention. If I didn’t play it, it doesn’t make the list. Before we begin, I’d like to give a shoutout to all the PAX East staff, the Enforcers at the show, and the security/police staff at the convention center. Without them PAX East doesn’t go off as smoothly as it does. WITHOUT further delay, the GamerFudge “Best of PAX East” awards! This list is in no particular order.
Snow Brothers 2 Special-Gravity Co.
If you know anything about me then you know that it feels like I’m the only person that wants a new Snow Brothers game. You should have seen my face when I saw Snow Bros 2 Special on the PAX East show floor. Whenever I get to play a newer, modern Snow Bros game, it makes my day. IT has to be included in the best of PAX East 2024 list!
Kamikaze Lassplanes-Inky Dreams
Part visual novel, part 1942 styled arcade shoot ‘em up. The story feels like it’s going to take a dark, dramatic turn but the demo didn’t go too far into it. Play the role of Alba Trosse or Hannah Brandenburg and take control of the story. It’s an interesting take on the graphic novel genre by adding shooting levels with girls who become airplanes or their souls jump into the plane. That doesn’t matter just enjoy the ride of Kamikaze Lassplanes.
Tape to Tape-Null Games
Make sure you read my coverage of Tape to Tape from PAX East to find out just how great this game is. Hockey Roguelite and could be comparable to one of the best Hockey games ever, NHL 94. Combine that with custom teams, players, and should be coming to Nintendo Switch. It also kicks ass and I highly recommend it.
Binho-Binho Board
Our first tabletop/board game on the list. Binho is a tabletop Soccer game that plays like tabletop paper football. There are pegs on the field that prevent straight on shots to the goal. Where it plays like paper football is that you flick the soccer ball across the pitch to try and score. The pegs stuck in the field get in the way of a direct shot. Show your friends who the king of the foot is!
Lucid- Apogee Entertainment
Luicd pays homage to several different classic games and that’s a good thing. How can something that takes things from Celeste, Metroid, Legend of Zelda, and more be a bad thing? Combine that with tough jumps and dodges and Lucid is one to keep an eye out for. It also has a Mega Man X wall slide and air dash that are awesome and if you’re good, allow you to progress earlier than you should be able to. Put that in your back pocket for now.
Fretless-Playdigious Originals
The GuitaRPG! Turn based role playing game that has the main character attack with a guitar. I love a good turn based RPG and Fretless has it. Retro style and modern jams make the game so fun to play. Special attacks have their own musical scores too. AND you can pet a puppy and bring him a bone to get him out of a doorway.
Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland-The Mix Games/Limited Run Games
A modern Rugrats game with a classic feel, sign me up. This game feels like such a love letter to the Rugrats franchise. You can see that by whom the first few boss fights are and how they’re such deep cuts. When you think about it, it’s a Rugrats game that plays like Super Mario 2. I didn’t hear anything I didn’t like there.
AFK Journey- Farlight Games
The mobile game I didn’t know I needed but thanks to PAX East that has changed. An RPG like Gotcha game that you can all the Waifus, I mean warriors, without using real money. The music is fantastic and the art is great too. It’s also on mobile and PC so added bonus that I can do daily logins on my phone and play on PC.
Baladins-Armor Games Studios
A tabletop game with Paper Mario charm, who would say no to that? Combine that with lovely characters, being able to play with your friends and play at my speed. Your actions have consequences and there’s a dragon that controls time.
There you have it folks, the inaugural GamerFudge Best of PAX East awards for 2024. I’d like to congratulate all the winners and good luck to all the companies that showed games at PAX East this year.