Making its first return to San Antonio Texas since Pax South 2015, our video game heroes (video game developers) return to battle. Some of our heroes may have fallen and we may meet new heroes that offer us new adventures and new challenges.
This is my officially unofficial 2016 Pax South Preview.
A little about myself as it pertains to my video game tastes. I am a console and handheld gamer. I am not a fan of PC gaming but I don’t begrudge any one that prefers or only plays PC games, its just not my thing. From most to least I enjoy my PS4, Wii U, Ps vita, 3DS xl and then lastly my Xbox One. And I love my Xbox One. So that means I either love all dedicated gaming devices or I don’t know what that word means. (I Love Lamp)
Years back I would have never thought that independent smaller budget games were going to be some of my favorite games. And Sony has really had some of the best indie games in their line-up and I really look forward to some of their upcoming titles.
Here is my bold prediction: Microsoft/Xbox One is gonna take over Pax South. I think Pax South is the right place at the right time for Microsoft to show that they are willing to get interesting titles exclusively on their platform. Sony just had their Playstation Experience in early December and I imagine they won’t have a large presence if any at all at Pax South.
This can be an opportune time for an Xbox corporate ninja to infiltrate the convention and turn some ronin indie developers into Xbox One assets.
On a serious note, I’d like to see some Cuphead at Pax. I saw Cuphead in person when I attended E3 but I decided not to wait in line to play it. I knew it was coming soon and I opted to just wait until it comes out for me to own it and play it when I also have an xbox elite controller.. 6 months later and I am going through withdrawals. There hasn’t been much info about the game lately, so I’m hoping to see it at Pax.
I’ll be attending Pax with my friend and colleague Ryan Guerra and he told me a few of the things he enjoyed at last years Pax South event. One of the things he said was how impressive Light Fall by Bishop games was. Light Fall is coming to PC and Mac and looks like it will be coming to one or more consoles even though nothing has been confirmed. I would like to see this game come out as an Xbox exclusive. I want to be compelled to play more games on my Xbox One. CupHead is the exclusive that will get me playing on my xbox but I wouldn’t be upset if more awesome indie titles showed up as Xbox exclusives. I am looking forward to what indie titles are on the Horizon.
Sadly I missed my chance to visit the Devolver trailers that were parked across the street outside of E3 earlier this year. So as I journey to San Antonio at the end of next month, I am hoping to see Devolver if they are there. I would like to get some hands on time with Eitr, Crossing Souls, Enter the Gungeon, and Mother Russia Bleeds. Even if they don’t have any other games in development I would still be interested in any new games they might be publishing for any talented indie developers.
Another Developer that puts out some great games is Housemarque. As we get close to Housemarque’s release of Alienation, (not to be confused with the 1989 si-fi tv show Alien Nation), we may get a chance to see a completed game. Or maybe we will even get to see more from their recently announced game MatterFall.
Outside of traditional console gaming I would like to see firsthand what VR has in store for us. I haven’t been too excited for this as I’m a bit skeptical regarding this application of this technology into my gaming life. I have become more curious in recent months as I have heard others that have had first hand experience’s share some positive opinions with hope for a chance to turn glorious gaming potential into a reality, virtually speaking.
Since there are some indie developers that are working on titles that make use of VR tech, I am expecting to see some virtually reality tech in one form or another.
Though I am still skeptical about VR as I previously mentioned, I feel like the holy grail of gaming could be something in the form of a playstation VR version of P.T. or full on Silent Hills. Unfortunately with Silent Hills being cancelled, this amazing dream/nightmare will never come true.
I have heard of an indie developer that was inspired by P.T. and has been working on a game that reflects this. So it is possible that we may get an experience that is attempting to be what P.T. was. Hopefully in a more fleshed out fully realized way. And if that was able to use VR in a way that makes the fear more immersive, the technology and the expense of owning it may be justified.
I personally find myself addicted to technology so I am sure I may wander into some area’s showing off cool gaming accessories for consoles or maybe even tablets or computers.
I will be writing about my experiences sometime in February so check back if you are interested in hearing my opinions of PAX South Episode II.
