PAX Thoughts: Some Flops

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I played a ton of new games that I liked at PAX.  I found new games that I had never heard of that are now very much on my radar.  I saw games that I know and love being played.  I saw games that I've known I'm going to buy on day one for a long time.

I also saw some letdowns.

In no particular order:

  • World of Warships - It didn't click with me at all.  Slow and clunky.  The controls and playstyle were much more annoying than even world of tanks.  At least I got a sweet pinny arcade pin.
  • Some Indie Games - Most of the indie sections were awesome but some had games that looked super derivative and generic.  I'm not going to pick on any one in particular, but some sections of the indies were a letdown.
  • AAA Lines - We decided not to wait in any super crazy 3+ hour lines for the triple A games.  I'm looking at you For Honor, Halo 5, Assassin's Creed Syndicate, Battleborn, Rainbow Six Siege, and a few more.  I pretty much already know what these games will but, but it was still a letdown.
  • Bethesda - They had a huge side of one of the big expo halls and all they had were trailers and life size statues to take pictures with.  Lots of ads for Fallout 4, Doom, and Dishonored, but no hands on experience for the players.  It seemed like a waste of space at a convention that's supposed to be about the players.  But, they did manage to cram in a merch booth.  I guess they're still willing to take our money.
  • Hidden Tabletop Gaming - It was my first PAX, but I still expected a bigger tabletop gaming presence than I saw.  I suppose PAX is just much more about video games, but I would have loved to see more board games around.
Nothing too bad and nothing that can't be forgiven.  I just thought that after so much praise for these new games I've been writing about I should talk about the other side of it.

Either way, now I have a much better idea about what to expect if I ever go to a PAX again!

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