Seattle was once again the center of the gaming world as PAX West 2024 took over the Emerald City. Players, developers, and cosplayers galore met to play the biggest upcoming titles, meet new friends, and party deep into the night. Digital Trends was there (on our best behavior, of course) to uncover the most promising upcoming games that you should have your eye on. Whether it’s the biggest franchises or the smallest hidden gems, we looked high and low, on and off the show floor, to create this list of the can’t-miss games.
Pizza Bandit
I don’t know what I was expecting from Pizza Bandit, but Overcooked-meets-Gears of War was certainly not it.
The demo I played had me atop a small platform as I juggled gathering ingredients and baking various pizza orders that would then load into launchers. As chaotic as it was trying to manage all of that without sending the wrong order or taking too long, a near-constant horde of mutant-like creatures kept spawning. Knowing when I had time to finish carrying a case of soda to fulfill an order or when I needed to spin up my minigun to turn the incoming monsters to pink mists added to the sense of chaos. I was by myself (though it supports up to four-player co-op), so I had to make do with automated turrets and grenades to provide cover. When I narrowly completed the mission, I could feel my heart pounding in my chest. It was awesome. ~ Justin Koreis
Unknown 9: Awakening
Unknown 9: Awakening journeys through real-world-inspired locales from India to Portugal with Haroona, a superpowered heroine who channels her powers from a mysterious dimension called the Fold. She can temporarily take control of another person’s body, turn invisible for a sneak attack or to evade detection, or even telepathically push enemies off ledges. In my 60-minute playthrough, the abilities covered a wide range of playstyles and leaned into stealth and environmental puzzle-solving in a way that made me appreciate the work put into her abilities and the setting. ~ Jess Reyes
Monster Hunter Wilds
There might not have been a game at PAX that drew more attention than Monster Hunter Wilds, as people rushed in each day to line up and play the demo. Our hunt was for a Doshaguma, a creature that looked like a cross between a giant bear and a lion. Much of the core hunt gameplay works just like it does in Monster Hunter: World, but the things that are different are very different. Riding a Seikret, and using it in a high-speed chase simplifies the slower parts of the hunt, and jumping off to execute a big attack to start a fight feels great.
Where World had large maps with endemic life, it didn’t feel nearly as lifelike as what I saw here. At one point, I crossed a desert and a massive sinkhole opened up, pulling the Doshaguma down. My crew all jumped on our Siekrets and tried to race fast enough up to the sides to avoid getting sucked in. One electricity-based monster inserted itself into the fight, hitting us and our target with massive bolts of lightning. When it left, the skies cleared and the colors all around us became vibrant, and we slew the Doshaguma in an exhilarating last stand. The final release, scheduled for sometime in 2025, can’t come soon enough. ~ Justin Koreis
Life is Strange: Double Exposure
Life is Strange: Double Exposure brings back a past protagonist in a way that the series hasn’t done before. An older Max Caufield has decided to use her Rewind powers again to solve the murder of her close friend, Safi. However, she can now jump between two parallel universes, which you need to do to solve the puzzles with information you might be missing in the main timeline. Double Exposure impressed me with its character writing, detailed settings, and puzzle-solving. In my demo, I witnessed the aftermath of Safi’s death, with Max and her friend Moses’ grief playing out with expressive animation and voice acting. I needed to delve into proble- solving to stealthily retrieve a missing camera. My heart was pumping as I hid from prying officers and dug through drawers for clues. ~ Jess Reyes
Chain Staff
At first glance, Chain Staff from Mommy’s Best Games looks like if Contra took place in a 1960s, sci-fi-inspired rock ‘n’ roll album cover. It’s a bloody run-and-gun shooter, and the handcrafted Roger Dean-esque art style with comically over-the-top gore alone would be intriguing enough, but the titular Chain Staff is the real star of the show. It can be aimed and thrown like a javelin for far greater damage than your gun, lashed out like a whip to swing around the map, or even planted in a wall or the ground as a platform/shield. It’s extremely versatile, and watching a cartoonish geyser of blood erupt from an enemy you skewered from across the screen is supremely satisfying.
The level I played had me fighting through alien scorpions, bats, and lizards, culminating in a boss fight versus a massive skull with constantly regenerating teeth. Knowing when to shoot and when to let the Chain Staff do the talking added a great puzzle-solving element to the combat. This is one to keep an eye on when it releases on Steam sometime in 2025. ~ Justin Koreis
Infinity Nikki
Infinity Nikki, the latest in Infold Games’ Nikki series, takes the expectation of an open-world RPG and puts a creative spin on it with its dress-up gameplay. Nikki’s different outfits aren’t just for show — they also sometimes include unique buffs and abilities. There’s one for double jumping, another for animal care, and even one that she puts on during an interrogation to raise her persuasion. While Infinity Nikki has some combat, like one boss I needed to subdue with bubble attacks, it isn’t the main draw. It seems to focus more on exploration and collecting in a way that complements the dress-up mechanic. You might need certain drops to craft an outfit, unlock new outfits as you complete quests, and so on.
Also, you can pet the dog. ~ Jess Reyes
The Knightling
The problem with trying to stand out as an indie action-adventure with a fantasy setting is that there are simply a lot of good ones. That’s part of what makes The Knightling from Twirlbound so impressive. Its cartoonish whimsy and big open world didn’t just stand out in my hands-on time — it shined. Sir Lionstone is the strongest, bravest, and greatest knight in the land and you … are not Sir Lionstone. Instead, you are his diminutive squire, a small knight in training, left with just a shield when Sir Lionstone goes missing. The in-over-his-head Knightling fighting to save the realm reminds me of Sir Dan from Medieval in the best way.
The bit of gameplay I experienced was strong too, as I completed quests around a surprisingly massive city, rode my shield down slopes like a toboggan, and fought off shadowy creatures with a mix of blocks, attacks, and air juggles. ~ Justin Koreis
Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven
Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven remakes the original RPG from 1993 from the ground up. It’s replaced the 2D pixel art with fully rendered 3D graphics and includes many quality-of-life upgrades, including voice acting. Most of my enjoyment came from its turn-based combat, which weaves discovery in between attacks. The signature Glimmer mechanic is the highlight, rewarding players for using specific attacks with new moves that strengthen their skillsets.
The Inheritance System, one of the defining features, passes on skills from one protagonist to another. In this case, I played with the first protagonist, Gerard, but you’d eventually need to ditch him sometime later in the game to defeat the seven villains. Revenge of the Seven gives players plenty of teammates to pick from in order to freshen up gameplay. You wouldn’t even be able to keep the same team if you wanted to, considering the story happens over three lifetimes. ~ Jess Reyes
Little Nightmares 3
The latest in the Little Nightmares series introduces co-op for the first time, and it’s a welcome addition. Trying to navigate a terror-inducing candy factory with a stranger while avoiding a giant lady with too many arms was one of the most compelling experiences to be had at all of PAX West. The pressure to not get us both killed and the tension of watching my partner sneak past danger was palpable.
Each character has a unique tool to help them solve puzzles and stay alive. Alone uses a large wrench to smash things, while Low uses a bow to interact with distant objects like buttons. Exits from areas often required both of us to lift a heavy door, or for one player to help the other reach a high control lever, emphasizing the need for both players to sneak and platform together. It has all the makings of another great single-player game and one of the year’s best co-op experiences when it releases in next year. ~ Justin Koreis
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