Of the many cheerful (and occasionally pun-tastic) messages displayed on the billboards at PAX Australia, one in particular stuck out for us—the simple phrase, “Welcome home.” Despite the festival breaking ground down under back in 2013, this year was the first time for this writer, and everything was a novel delight. “Welcome home” truly encapsulates what it feels like to step into these hallowed halls of gaming—to live and breathe a kinship with thousands of other gamers, cosplayers, and tech enthusiasts.
Join us today as we discuss PAX Australia 2024!
Super-Charge My Con!
As we’ve discussed multiple times here at Anime Corner, Australia often struggles to host large events—be they anime, music, or games. Blame our geographical location and disproportionately sized population, but it’s often best to set your expectations low when it comes to Aussie cons. Thus, knowing relatively little about PAX Aus, we were completely blown away by the sheer scale of the convention.
Taking out the entirety of the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Center, including all levels, ground spaces, and most of the theatre rooms, PAX made excellent use of all available spaces. Events were spread out across each of the three days, from meaningful discussions about the gaming industry to delightfully silly panels about the best waifus (courtesy of our friends over at the More Than Hentai podcast). The main attraction was, of course, the show floor, which was neatly split into one half focused on tabletop games, role-playing, and card games; and the other being traditional console gaming, indie games, and PC and home living.
We took the opportunity to visit on both Friday and Sunday, enjoying a range of activities across both the show floor and theatre rooms. The event management cleverly created a variety of areas to engage with, including a large space with bean bags for handheld gaming or simply unwinding from the chaotic show floor. With the floor open from 10 am to 6:30 pm, and events running all the way through to 10 pm, there wasn’t a desperate need to get in early, and even when we left after a few hours, there were still plenty of people trickling in.
Although PAX doesn’t offer too many opportunities to bow before the throne of capitalism, we still managed quite a decent haul across anime figures, trading cards, plushies, pins, and more. We were also eying off some incredibly expensive dice sets—but there’s only so much you can buy before the bank questions if your credit card was stolen.
A (Mostly) Well-Oiled Convention
PAX Australia runs with the sort of professionalism that only twenty years in the industry can bring. The sheer number of yellow-shirt volunteers meant helpful advice was only ever a few meters away, and we felt incredibly safe at all times, even when we came back for a nighttime panel. Despite the huge number of attendees, it never felt too crowded or overwhelming; a sensible amount of planning from both PAX and MCEC meant the entire center shared the burden.
Our usual complaint about the state of MCEC’s food and catering stands unchanged, though thankfully there were plenty of food and drink vendors about. It’s a little hard not to feel like the surrounding restaurants are holding attendees ransom with $22 schnitzels and $14 beer, but we digress. The convention hall did provide some free water stations, although we were disappointed that hand sanitization had all but disappeared from the show floor itself.
Still, that could do little to dampen our enjoyment of the convention overall. Even just wandering around and checking out the exhibitors was entertaining, especially seeing expensive gaming setups we could only dream of affording. We heard from more experienced PAX-goers that the exhibitor numbers were down on previous years, with heavy hitters like Microsoft and Sony notably absent, and industry titans like Bethesda relegated to a few cardboard displays. Maybe that says more about the state of The Elder Scrolls and Starfield than anything else, since Square Enix had an enormous Final Fantasy XIV setup, with several dozen PCs ready for gamers to trial the latest expansion of their award-winning MMO.
If AAA-gaming isn’t your cup of tea, PAX Australia offered quite a number of independent studios the chance to show off their games, too. Australia always punches above our weight, with applauded game indie titles like Hollow Knight and Untitled Goose Game coming from our humble indie scene. In recent years, the Victorian State Government and New South Wales (NSW) State Government have increasingly invested in this growing industry, allowing more independent developers to make games and show them at events like PAX.
GG; WP
As the last major convention for the calendar year, PAX Australia was a beautiful delight, and one we simply cannot wait to see again next year. Everybody deserves to have a community they can call their own, a family made by either blood or bond and a place that makes them feel truly at home. To PAX Aus 2024, we say: thanks for welcoming us into your home, even just for a few days, and we’ll see you again in 2025!
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