PAX West continues to be one of the most prominent gaming conventions in North America. It's not only a fantastic gathering for the gaming community to celebrate its favorite pastime, but also an excellent opportunity to preview upcoming games set to launch later this year and into early 2025. Following closely after Gamescom, PAX West 2024 showcased an impressive lineup of games from major players like Nintendo, Square-Enix, and Bandai Namco, alongside some lesser-known titles that could turn out to be the next sleeper hits.

Life Is Strange: Double Exposure

Developer: Deck Nine Games

Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X/S

Release Date: October 29, 2024

The Life Is Strange series has explored various stories through its anthology format, but Double Exposure returns the focus to the original protagonist, Max Caulfield. Now older and more experienced, Max is a famous photographer with a new ability to slip between two parallel realities. In this game, Max is pulled into a murder mystery across dimensions, where she must uncover the culprit behind her friend Safi’s death in one reality while interacting with Safi in another, trying to prevent the tragedy.

What’s particularly intriguing about Double Exposure is its unique take on choices. The developers aren’t concerned with canon events from the original game's multiple endings. Instead, they see Double Exposure as a "best-of-both-worlds" approach, where your past decisions shape but don’t restrict the narrative. The ability to seamlessly transition between realities was compelling, and interacting with two versions of the same character led to thought-provoking dilemmas. Double Exposure seems poised to deliver the emotionally rich storytelling that fans love, making it one of the boldest entries in the series yet.

AntonBlast

Developer: Summitsphere

Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One & Series X/S

Release Date: November 12, 2024

AntonBlast delivers a wild and chaotic platforming experience reminiscent of a 90s Nickelodeon cartoon fused with early 2D PlayStation platformers. Clearly inspired by games like Crash Bandicoot and Wario Land, AntonBlast lets you control two tough protagonists who bulldoze through environments with reckless abandon. The game’s energy is infectious, with fast-paced action that has you tearing through levels as quickly as possible while causing destruction along the way.

Ghosts

Developer: Jed Shepherd in association with Limited Run Games and Visible Games

Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One & Series X/S

Release Date: TBD 2025

Ghosts offers a fresh spin on the nostalgic FMV (full motion video) games of the 90s, with a twist. In this game, you play as a producer of a horror reality TV show, monitoring contestants as they explore a haunted house. The twist comes when you begin to experience hauntings yourself from the safety of your van, blurring the lines between producer and victim.

One of the game’s unique features is that it can only be played after 10PM in your local timezone. If you quit the game early, the live-action cast suffers a gruesome fate. Ghosts combines Five Nights at Freddy's style tension with the jarring live-action format of games like Night Trap. With monster designs from Trevor Henderson (creator of Siren Head), this game promises to be a disturbing, experimental horror experience.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind

Developer: Digital Eclipse

Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One & Series X/S

Release Date: TBD 2024

Rita’s Rewind aims to be the high-energy, arcade-style beat-em-up that Mighty Morphin Power Rangers always deserved. Like the nostalgia-heavy TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge, this game channels the best of the genre’s 90s era roots. Each member of the original Power Rangers team feels distinct, with their own unique moves, making the combat both thrilling and diverse.

With missions that include kaiju battles presented in SNES-style Mode 7 visuals, Rita’s Rewind is shaping up to be a fun and faithful tribute to the original series while offering a solid beat-em-up experience in its own right.

Demon Spore

Developer: DinoBoss

Platforms: PC

Release Date: TBD 2024

Demon Spore turns the premise of John Carpenter’s The Thing into a gripping co-op roguelite. Set in a facility overrun by a hostile organism, players must scavenge for supplies and work together to escape while avoiding the growing parasitic threat. The game blends survival horror with twin-stick shooting and dungeon crawling, making for an intense cooperative experience.

What made Demon Spore memorable was the chaotic escalation as the parasite spread. Desperation set in as the environment became overrun, and survival required quick thinking and teamwork. It's a tense, thrilling experience that feels fresh in the roguelite genre.

Everdeep Aurora

Developer: Nautilus Games

Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch

Release Date: TBD

Everdeep Aurora is a visually stunning post-apocalyptic adventure that embraces a cozy, atmospheric style. You play as Shell, a cat-like explorer armed with a drill, searching for your missing mother in the caverns beneath a village. With no combat, the game focuses on platforming and exploration, offering a laid-back yet immersive experience.

Inspired by games like Hollow Knight and Steamworld Dig, Everdeep Aurora impressed with its 16-bit aesthetic and atmospheric world. The deeper you go, the more intricate and beautiful the environments become.

Little Nightmares III

Developer: Supermassive Games

Platforms: PC, Nintendo Switch, PS4/PS5, Xbox One & Series X/S

Release Date: TBD 2025

Little Nightmares III continues the series' tradition of blending whimsy with horror. This time, the game introduces two protagonists, and players can tackle the eerie world in solo play or co-op.

Supermassive Games, known for Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology, has managed to preserve the unsettling tone of the earlier Little Nightmares games while expanding the scope of the experience with new cooperative mechanics.

Heartworm

Developer: Vincent Adinolfi

Platforms: PC

Release Date: TBD 2025

Heartworm taps into the nostalgia of classic ‘90s survival horror games, capturing the eerie atmosphere of titles like Silent Hill and Resident Evil. With its low-polygon aesthetic and psychological horror elements, Heartworm evokes a sense of unease reminiscent of Twin Peaks and Fatal Frame.

Monsters that looked like they crawled out of static televisions added to the unsettling vibe. The eerie, ever-changing landscapes combined with familiar survival horror mechanics make Heartworm a game to watch for fans of the genre’s golden age.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2

Developer: Warhorse Studios

Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S

Release Date: February 11, 2025

The original Kingdom Come: Deliverance was praised for its realistic portrayal of medieval life, and its sequel aims to build on that foundation. Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 picks up where the first game left off, with protagonist Henry returning to explore an even larger version of Bohemia during a civil war.

The demo showcased an immersive medieval world, filled with historical detail and atmospheric settings. Whether walking through bustling towns during the day or navigating torch-lit streets at night, the game’s attention to detail stood out. The directional-based swordfighting returns, but Henry also has more options for solving problems, allowing for greater freedom in how players approach the game’s challenges. This sequel promises to deliver a more refined and expansive medieval RPG experience.

Tears of Metal

Developer: Paper Cult

Platforms: PC

Release Date: TBD 2025

Paper Cult’s Tears of Metal mixes medieval action with roguelite mechanics in a large-scale brawler set in the Scottish highlands. Players lead a battalion of soldiers in a race to reach a fallen meteor before rival factions. The game’s large-scale battles are reminiscent of the Dynasty Warriors series, but with a grim fantasy aesthetic. Players can earn buffs during combat, such as explosive fire damage or heightened defense, which makes each battle more intense.

The dynamic nature of the fights, coupled with the roguelite elements, creates an exciting and replayable experience. Tears of Metal is shaping up to be a unique blend of genres, combining the thrill of massive battles with the strategy and unpredictability of roguelite gameplay.

PAX West 2024 left a lasting impression with its diverse lineup of games, ranging from narrative-driven adventures to fast-paced action titles. Whether you're looking for nostalgic throwbacks or innovative new experiences, the upcoming releases promise to offer something for every type of gamer. Keep an eye out for these titles as they head towards their release dates, and don’t forget to check back for updates on embargoed games that could be the next big hit!

See you next year for PAX West 2025: August 29th - September 1st, 2025.

What are you most excited to play?

Join us for meetups, panels, hands-on workshops, and the Cospitality Lounge run by Pacific Northwest Guild of Cosplayers at the show. Connect, learn, and get inspired!

Our 20th anniversary Storytime Speaker's career spans 30+ years in gaming, tech and entertainment, and you’ve seen him around talking about games like Minecraft, Halo, Starfield, World of Warcraft, Call of Duty & more. Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, will be joining us on Friday, August 30 at PAXWest 2024 in Seattle, WA.