Once a year, the gaming industry remembers that there is an entire country in between the East and West coasts, and decides to grace us inner-country plebs with their presence. Yes, I’m talking about PAX South. When the PAX showrunners decided they were going to be launching a third expo in the U.S., I was ecstatic to learn that they were going to be in my hometown of San Antonio, Texas.
Those of you that live elsewhere in the country should understand something. San Antonio is not known for having anything cool. Our most popular symbol is an icon that’s about 300 years old. This city is steeped in its culture and heritage, which is great, but it also acts as a deterrent to anything new coming along. It also doesn’t help that we’re only about an hour’s drive to Austin, which despite having horrible traffic and insufferable hipsters, is usually the landing place for anything big and new. SXSW was a small music festival that turned into a gigantic nationwide everything-festival after only a few years, and honestly it was probably the reason PAX chose SA. It was close enough to grab the Austinites, but in a city lame enough to not have much competition.
That’s all my personal speculation, but whatever the reason, I am super glad it’s here, and it appears as though everyone else is, too. This is the third year that it has been held here in S.A., but it’s the first year I was able to actually attend in any capacity. Back in 2016 I was unable to attend, but in 2017 I was able to make it for a very short time, just long enough to be in awe and wonder of all the gaming goodness around me. Then I had to leave. So I vowed this year I would at least spend a day at the event, and that I did.
One of the first decisions I had to make while being there was whether or not I was attending as a gamer, or as a website blogger. Since this was my first real visit, I chose the former. I wanted to enjoy myself, not bog myself down with the responsibility of taking notes, asking questions, blah blah blah. There will be time enough for that next year, when I can actually get my hands on a three-day pass. So this year I was there as a fan, spectating and enjoying the atmosphere. I grabbed plenty of business cards and flyers though, so I will hopefully get to re-visit some of these games in the comfort of my own home.
One of the great things about PAX has always been the indie presence. This show is great for letting the “smaller guys” have some exposure without the likes of EA or Ubisoft stealing the show, though Capcom did have a booth there for the second year, this time showing off Monster Hunter World. Even though there was an impressively large and cool dragon looming over their booth, it was fairly unintrusive and placed off to the side of the show floor so as not to overshadow smaller developer booths. Discord, Mixer, Devolver Digital, and Larian studios also made an appearance, with Devolver and Larian showing off the likes of Enter the Gungeon and Divinity Original Sin II respectively.
I was impressed by the cosplay as well. With San Japan, Alamo City Comic Con, and now PAX South, these guys and girls are really getting the mileage out of their creations, which is awesome. The more opportunities they have to show off their talent, the more dedication and work they’re likely to put in. Plus, seeing a Tracer or Zero Suit Samus walking around the floor is always good for morale! I’ll have to write Valve a letter and thank them for Overwatch. The D.Va’s were out in numbers as well, and you’ll get no complaints from me!
If there is one thing that bummed me out a little, is that the absence of larger platform holders such as Sony and Microsoft is felt, even if the purpose of the expo is to focus on smaller developers. Microsoft was there in a small capacity with their Mixer booth, but they were just pimping their streaming service, not their console or software. Sony was nowhere to be found. And I get it, this isn’t their show. They have E3 and Gamescom and their other smaller press events, but they are always on the East or West coast. Even if Microsoft has one of their public events, it’s usually at one of their stores in New York or Los Angeles. They need to show their fans in the middle of the country some love, and PAX South is a great venue for them to have a presence, even if it’s just a small one (not related to a service). Just show us that you know we’re here, for Pete’s sake. Even Nintendo made an appearance last year on the eve of their Switch release. As a gamer, seeing that big ass Nintendo booth was cool, even if I wasn’t going to stand in a three-hour line to play Legend of Zelda. It felt like what we have here now was legit.
That’s not to take away from what the smaller developers bring to the table. I saw a lot of fresh ideas, a few twists on old ones, and some games that just look way out there. And that’s awesome! It’s weird and quirky and if it’s going to have any success at all, it’s gonna be because it was seen at PAX by people like me, who aren’t always down with the latest indie trends, but will definitely give anything a try. That’s what makes PAX South so great, and I hope that it enjoys continued success. Judging by the consistent crowd I saw on Saturday, I don’t think that will be a problem.
At this point, the only thing that could chase PAX away from San Antonio, is San Antonio. They have a talent for pushing out things that resemble progress. So let’s hope that the SA officials love seeing that spike in tourism, hotel reservations, etc. and continue to lease out that convention center for as long as PAX will have us. And no, the Alamodome is not a substitute for a dedicated convention center. I’m looking at you, Alamo City Comic Con.
