PAX Unplugged 2024 - Day 3
- Daniel Nixon
- Aug 25
- 5 min read
PAX Unplugged is a three-day convention focusing on tabletop gaming. Board games, card games, role-playing games, and all the surrounding peripherals can be found. Penny Arcade Expo, or PAX, was started by the creators of the Penny Arcade webcomic, Jerry Holkins and Mike Krahulik. The conventions are centered around gaming culture, with the Unplugged version, first run in 2017, being entirely based on tabletop gaming. PAXU 2023 was held at the beginning of December in Philadelphia at the Pennsylvania Convention Center, as it always is. The folks at Penny Arcade first came to Philly in 2017 and, apart from 2020 (you know why), have returned every year since. This is the second year I’ve attended as a “Content Creator” for all three days, and every year, I go home amazed, exhausted, and excited about the board gaming hobby.
PAX Unplugged 2025 badges on sale now:
PAX Unplugged 2024 Day 1:
PAX Unplugged 2024 Day 2:
It's Day Three of PAX Unplugged 2024, and the struggle is real! But we can't quit now, we have a lot of meetings with publishers! It's a solo day in the convention hall, but we are starting with breakfast at the hotel with friends. Shout out to the Tabletop Express. Go Birds!!!!
Which now seems like a tradition, I ran into Jaime and Jeff from Foster the Meeple. Each year, my daughter reminds me to find her favorite YouTube board game channel and to get a pic. Well, three years in a row now, and Jaime was kind enough to send my daughter a promo Final Girl Card.
I started the day with Weird City Games and meeting its founder, Tim Eisner. Tim is also a designer with games like Wonderland's War, The Grimm Forest, and Tidal Blades under his belt at other publishers. With Weird City Games, Tim was showcasing three of their own.
First, there was Canopy: Evergreen, which expands on his previous game, Canopy. Set in the Pacific Northwest, you are growing the best forest, complete with 3D tree components. Attract wildlife, grow your forest through a three-pile card drafting mechanism, and face threats to your forest, all for points. The game looks gorgeous, and Tim was very enthusiastic and proud while showing this game.
Second, was Leaf a tile-laying, nature-themed game. You are the wind, placing leaves on the forest floor. Connecting the leaves gives the player the ability to use actions, and the more you connect, the more actions you get. Actions are all ways to help create a thriving forest with wildlife and mushrooms, again for points!!!
Lastly, was 3 of a Kind a fun party game that looks to connect its players creatively. A category (Pizza Toppings, Winter Clothing, US Cities, etc.) and three adjectives (Weakest, Most Spontaneous, Most Likely to Join a Cult, etc.) are selected. Each player then writes their answers down, and if you match, you each get points. I got to play a quick round of this with Tim and Mr. Eisner, his dad. So cool!!!
We are thankful to Tim for providing us with a copy for review, and we have had many games of this great party game. Highly recommend it.
Next up was Kosmos, and they had a lot to showcase. The Gang was their big hit. A cooperative poker game where you are trying to find which player has the best Texas Hold'Em poker hand as each card is revealed. Grab the higher point chip if you feel you have the best hand, or grab the 1 value chip if you have 2- 7 off suit.
Nunatak: Temple of Ice is a multi-layered block placing game. The base level of the board is filled out by placing your ice block by collecting a card from the four available. As everyone builds out their blocks, squares will be formed, and points will be given out based on the majority of ice blocks forming the square. As the base level gets more built out, you can eventually start to build higher. The cards you collect all have endgame scoring, and some have abilities as well. The table presence of this game brought many people over, asking questions just during the quick demo.
Australis is a dice-rolling game where you use the dice to do various actions to earn points. You can create reefs, feed fish, swim down current with your sea turtles, or be the first player next round. It's colorful, gorgeous on the table, and has sea turtles on the cover. Super cute.
Floodgate Games
Landmarks, you are using one-word clues to guide the players on a map to the exit. The player will place your next word clue, and depending on how the space is marked on the clue giver's card, you either get benefits or detriments.
Decorum is a cooperative, hidden information game where players are trying to decorate their home to make each other happy. However, you don't know what makes your partner happy. In fact, what makes them happy could be in contrast with what makes you happy. The expansion, Movin' Out, adds more challenges, such as bubble wrap, boxes, and positioning on the moving vehicles.
Finally, we ended the day with Ross at NorthStar Games. We both were exhausted and hungry, and after a quick downing of lunch and a recommendation of Laser Wolf for dinner, we got to the games. Be sure to check Ross out over on Bluesky. He was a delight to chat with and a great ambassador for the board game hobby.
Ross did his research on Comic Book Yeti and recommended Elia and Something Shiny specifically for our readers. A solo story-driven board game experience with tremendous art. I've only heard great things about this game. Puzzles, challenges, and decisions all alter the story as you play through five chapters. A board game for a comic fan if I ever saw one.
He tried to introduce me to Paint the Roses next, but I had already been demoed this brain burner last year by designer Ben Goldman himself. A cooperative puzzle game of guessing your teammates' "Whim" card based on where they place and don't place tiles on a board. Alice and Wonderland themed, and I'm in. It's so fun, but it was so hard to work out on the last day of the con two years ago.
Finally, we discussed Nature their next big game that builds off their previous hit Evolution. Give your species traits to help them survive their ever-changing environment. Modules will be released regularly, and you can mix and match them as you play to get a different variety every time.
And that will wrap PAX Unplugged 2024 from sunny South Philly. I left a little early, tired, hoping for an Eagles win (they did), and eager to dive into all the games purchased or provided for review. I already can't wait for next year.
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