PAX Aus 2026 Review

Welcome home

You'll hear two words a lot at PAX Australia: Welcome Home. To someone who's never attended, they might sound like a standard greeting. To those of us who return year after year, they mean considerably more. PAX is where friendships made through headsets and screens become face-to-face conversations, and where thousands of people somehow manage to make a convention centre feel like a community.

That's the spirit I arrived hoping to find in 2026. And once again, PAX delivered.

The crowds, the layout and those first impressions

The excitement began before the doors even opened. On Friday morning, the chatter outside the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre seemed louder and the crowds busier than I'd remembered from previous Fridays. But it was the good kind of noise: friends catching up, people laughing and everyone ready for the weekend.

Despite the numbers, entry felt remarkably orderly in my experience. On Saturday, rather than take my eleven-year-old into the intense Queue Hall atmosphere again, we waited further back. We still got inside within minutes of the 10 am opening. It was an excellent reminder that you don't have to join every enormous queue to have a full PAX experience.

Inside, the Expo Hall felt easier to navigate. There appeared to be more room around many of the major exhibitors and retail displays, giving attendees space to stop, watch and browse. I can't tell you whether every aisle was objectively wider, but I can tell you the difference was noticeable to me.

PAX Rising: the highlight of my weekend

Anyone familiar with my coverage will know what happened when I first entered the hall. I went straight to PAX Rising. I'm not going to pretend otherwise.

The indie booths felt thoughtfully arranged, with clear signage and generally enough room for people to try games, chat with developers and watch others play. More importantly, the developers were exactly what I love about the Australian indie scene: knowledgeable, approachable, funny and genuinely enthusiastic about their work.

The dedicated Aus Indie Showcase, powered by Superloop, was especially well presented. The twelve winners—six digital games and six tabletop games—had a clearly identified area that recognised what they'd achieved without making the neighbouring indie booths feel like an afterthought.

The digital winners were Cozy Game Restoration, Key Fairy, Finch & Archie, The Last Exterminator, Mission Delta and A Real Life Party. The tabletop winners were Thrive, Aqueducks, Deathbed, Drago's Dreamland, Caught in the Rain and Wireburn.

My five standout booth experiences

These aren't necessarily my five favourite games overall. They're the experiences that stood out at PAX itself: X300, Pie in the Sky, Dungeon Pizza, Toya and Dungeons and Dining Tables.

The X300 team embraced their theme with lab coats, impressive merchandise and thoughtful creator packs, but it was the time they gave visitors—particularly my son—that I appreciated most. Dungeon Pizza had a clean, colourful and professional booth staffed by wonderfully welcoming people. Toya was easy to jump into and had memorable little squishy cubes inspired by the game. At Dungeons and Dining Tables, we had absolutely no choice but to acquire an axolotl plushie, which subsequently accompanied us everywhere. And the developer behind Pie in the Sky was great fun to talk to about a gloriously ridiculous Australian concept: being a magpie and, among other things, shitting on people.

The common thread wasn't merchandise or even gameplay. It was the people. None of those conversations felt like a rehearsed sales pitch. They felt like getting to know someone who genuinely loves what they've made.

One thing I'd improve

Getting a turn at some indie demos remained difficult. When a booth has only a couple of playable stations, one person spending twenty or thirty minutes on a game can mean several others miss out. I understand how it happens—getting absorbed in a game is usually a compliment to the developer—but a convention demo is a chance to try something, not finish it.

I wouldn't impose the same strict timer on every game. Some need a minute; others need ten. But gentle reminders, or suggested demo lengths decided by the developers, could help more people get hands-on. Mostly, I'd just encourage attendees to be considerate of the people waiting behind them.

The bigger Expo Hall: spectacle, shopping and temptation

There was plenty beyond PAX Rising. The 2026 lineup included major game displays from SEGA, Activision and Square Enix, alongside hardware and technology exhibitors such as Aftershock PC, Mwave, ASUS ROG, Keychron, Turtle Beach and Bluemouth Interactive.

Aftershock's custom PC builds were spectacular—castle-like creations, elaborate shapes, incredible lighting and detail that made some of the computers look like artwork. My son and I also enjoyed the little keyboard and keycap activities, collecting clicky keyring novelties along the way.

Bluemouth Interactive, meanwhile, was a direct threat to my bank account. My son discovered the retro-inspired 8BitDo accessories and worked out very quickly that I am a complete sucker for that aesthetic. A keyboard became a mouse, a matching calculator and an Xbox controller. In my defence, I thought the PAX prices were better than I'd usually seen. Whether that justified buying the lot is another matter.

The official merchandise store is another success story. Since the main store moved onto the Expo Hall floor, I've found the experience far less congested than the old concourse queues. In 2025 and 2026 I was able to browse and purchase what I wanted without the hours of waiting I remember from earlier years. And yes, I bought my annual hoodie. Some traditions are non-negotiable.

More than an exhibition hall

One of PAX's strengths is how much it offers beyond the show-floor booths. Tabletop Freeplay, the board game library, Dungeons & Dragons, the Collaboratory for unreleased tabletop games, PC and console freeplay, speedrunning, pin trading, miniature painting, cosplay, tournaments and live entertainment make it possible for two people to attend the same convention and have completely different weekends.

I've always been more of a video-game person, but I genuinely enjoy tabletop games and want to explore more of them. Blood on the Clocktower is a particular favourite when I can fit it in. The board game library is also fantastic: you can arrive with friends or sit down with strangers and, by the end of a game, find you've acquired a few new mates.

I also loved seeing the creativity of the cosplay community. I'm no cosplay expert; I'm the person stopping to stare in admiration and wondering how on earth somebody made that outfit. The level of craftsmanship on show was incredible.

On Sunday we finally visited Classic Gaming in the Magpie Room. I thought the separate space was a real improvement. There were old computers and consoles for my son to discover, pinball to try, and several pieces of hardware I was privately considering adding to my holy-grail collecting list. I visited on the quieter Sunday, so I can't claim it felt the same on Friday or Saturday, but I appreciated the more relaxed setting.

Panels, community and an unforgettable hosting experience

The schedule was packed with talks about industry careers, game preservation, regional creativity, community building and plenty of live entertainment. I carefully planned which panels I'd attend and then, naturally, managed to miss many of them. There are never enough hours at PAX.

This year I had the privilege of co-hosting two Aus Indie Showcase winner panels alongside Jim, @thenogoodgame. Both Friday's Inside the Aus Indie Showcase: Tomorrow's Hits Today and Saturday's From Submission to Showcase: The Indie Journey drew capacity audiences at the Dropbear Theatre.

The developers were funny, generous and fascinating to hear from. More importantly, people told us afterwards that the conversations had made them want to go out and play the featured games. That's exactly the sort of outcome I hope for when promoting Australian indie development.

Our panel-hosting story deserves its own space, and I've told it in the companion feature, Welcome Home: My PAX Aus 2026 Experience.

Bringing a child to PAX

I attended with my eleven-year-old son for the first time this year, and that gave me a completely different perspective on how family-friendly PAX can be. He tried indie games, interviewed two developer teams, met Loserfruit and had his badge signed, and consumed what I suspect was the country's entire supply of bubble tea.

There were also activities suitable for younger visitors, including opportunities to learn tabletop games and explore gaming history. The developers we spoke with were exceptionally patient and welcoming towards him.

Would I recommend taking your child? Based on our experience, absolutely—provided you plan around their interests, comfort and limits. PAX is loud and busy. The AFK Room offers a dedicated quieter environment, and there are places to step away, sit down or simply have a break. Bring water, snacks, comfortable shoes and spare clothes if cosplay is involved. Trust me on the last one.

What worked, what could improve, and the verdict

My strongest positives were the atmosphere, PAX Rising, the Aus Indie Showcase presentation, the exhibition layout, the improved merchandise experience and the sheer variety of things to do. The event app and schedule were useful tools for planning a very full weekend, even if the convention centre's different levels and less obvious theatre locations could still be confusing for newcomers.

My two practical suggestions for future years are clearer directions to some rooms and more considerate turnover at small demo stations. Beyond that, I didn't personally encounter major problems. I don't see a reason to invent complaints to make a positive review look more critical.

PAX Aus 2026 was busy, exhausting, funny and completely worth it. I arrived excited, left with sore feet and an unreasonable amount of merchandise, and immediately wished I had another day.

So here's my final suggestion: four-day PAX. I know, I know. But you can't blame me for trying.

For anyone wondering whether PAX Aus is worth attending, my answer is an enthusiastic yes. Come for the games, the panels or the community that interests you. Remember to eat. Don't expect to do everything. And make room for the conversations you didn't plan.

Because the best part of PAX isn't always what you find on the schedule.

Sometimes it's the people who make you feel like you've come home.

Further reading: Welcome Home: My PAX Aus 2026 Experience | Schrödinger's Cat Burglar review

Factual references:

• Official PAX dates and schedule: https://aus.paxsite.com/en-us.html
• 2026 exhibitor announcement: https://aus.paxsite.com/en-us/info/news/2026-expo-floor.html
• Official showcase winners: https://aus.paxsite.com/en-us/info/news/aus-indie-showcase-superloop-2026.html
• Official merchandise information: https://aus.paxsite.com/en-us/features/merch-store.html