PAX West is a gaming convention held in Seattle every year where you can learn about new games, meet developers, and attend talks where you can learn more about game development. As someone who has followed PAX for years, I was thrilled to finally get to experience it for myself.
After years of watching the exhibition hall on YouTube, I finally walked through the doors and got to see a huge room filled with exhibits from my favorite companies and games: Nintendo, Innersloth, Larian, Playstation, and more. While the room was a little overwhelming with all the options and all the people and all the noise, at the individual booths you got to connect with people who loved the games just as much as you. I had so much fun getting to try out Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom and Mario Party Jamboree at the Nintendo booth and AstroBot at the Playstation booth. Getting to experience all of this with my wife Julie was so much fun, and we had a blast!
In the indie area, I was able to catch up with former coworkers who had worked at Traega Entertainment and had founded their own studio, Turning Gear. One of their team members is a part of the Nashville Game Developers, which I am also a part of, so it’s always great to see people from my hometown. My favorite game that I got to try out in the indie section was Spirit of Midnight. It was soooo cute and well done, and my wife Julie even got a plush of the main character, a cat named Midnight. I’m excited to follow its development and see where it goes!
While the exhibit hall was one of the parts I was most excited about, the amazing talks at PAX were an unexpected highlight. I learned so much about making games, voice acting, and even networking. Many of the panelists were so kind to stay afterwards and talk and answer questions. It was great to learn from people who have a long history of doing what I love and were able to share their wisdom about game development.
The last part of PAX that I was excited about was catching up with a few friends who had moved to Seattle to work at Bungie. Going up the Space Needle, exploring the aquarium, and trying out some of the incredible restaurants was a highlight. I was so impressed by the stunning evergreen trees surrounding the city and the welcoming, accepting vibe Seattle had.
In summary, it was truly the friends we made along the way. From the amazing staff running PAX to the expo booth workers to the panelists and speakers to the old friends we reconnected with, it was a great experience, and I am excited to go to PAX again!
Preston Grau 