Board Games: Best of PAX Unplugged 2024
PAX Unplugged was this past weekend and after a whirlwind of a trip I’m back with a boat load of board games to talk about.
Last week I went to PAX Unplugged in Philadelphia. It was an awesome trip overall. While it was kind of a vacation of sorts it’s kind of hard for me to not be in “work mode” when part of this gig is talking about all things tabletop. So I kept my eye open for new things and old friends as I was walking the vendor hall and I’m here to report back on what I found.
PAX Unplugged – Board Game Central
If you’re not familiar with the concept of PAX Unplugged it’s more focused on tabletop and boardgame vs the videogames you might associate with the Penny Arcade Expos. So a TON of vendors show up with new games and upcoming ones. There’s loads to demos to try and games to buy. If you’re planning on buying any games I highly recommend you think about how you’re going to take them home before you head to PAXU. We packed an extra suitcase and it came back full of games.
As far as the games, I wanted to go over a few that stood out. There were MANY, MANY more — and if you aren’t on my list it’s not because you should be here. It’s probably because I just didn’t get to it. But these were games my crew got demos with and we thought they were worth sharing.
The Games
Campfire Smokeout, Pair of Jacks Games – This one is pretty simple. And no, that’s not a pot-joke. It’s a game for 2-4 players and the goal is to not get the smoke from the campfire blown in your face. It’s a simple concept, super fast to learn, and it fits in your pocket. I think this is a good one for trips or family game night.
Steam Up, Hot Banana Games – While it’s not a new game, I really liked this one. Steam Up is a very cute game about Dim Sum. Each player has a slightly different player card and your goal is to collect Dim Sum and score points. The components are cute and well made. I got hungry playing this one.
I Mustache U, Social Experiment Gaming – So this one is a bit more for the 18+ crowd. They did say there’s a family friendly expansion coming soon. It’s another pocket sized game that you can bring anywhere. It’s a really fast way to get to know folks…I’ll say that much!
Fromage, Allplay – Do you like cheese? Cause this game brings all the cheese. It’s a worker placement game about being a french cheesemaker. It’s also played simultaneously with 1-4 players. The goal is to plan out and manage your cheese. It can age and gains more points over time. Plus the rotating board has 4 sections and each one is basically it’s own minigame. It’s a little hectic but it’s also fun.
Sabobatage – This one isn’t a new one either but it’s got a few expansions out now. Sabobatage is a game about Boba Tea. And if you couldn’t tell from the name, it’s got some backstabbing and skullduggery happening. The goal is to complete your drink sets before the other players. But there are ways to mess with the other players and their drink sets. It’s a cute game that’s pretty easy to pick-up and learn. The expansions add more cards and new mechanics to play around with, too.
Catastrophe, The Original Sasquatch – This one is for the cat people out there. You play as a cat with nine lives. You’re goal is to survive to the end and avoid the Grim Reapurr. There’s a bunch of cats on cards with this one. It’s got some mini games as well as “Power Cats” to help you on your journey. It had a successful Kickstarter and it’s currently shipping.
Portmanteau, Doghalla Games – This one is a word association game. Well, maybe image association? Anyhow, it’s a co-op one where your speaker is trying to take two icons from a 3×3 grid and smoosh them together to create a word. The group is trying to guess which two icons the word is from. It’s harder than it sounds but a fun game for 2-6 players nonetheless.
Couture, Allplay – Alright fashion designers, this one is for YOU. But also it’s for anyone who likes secret bidding games. There’s three simultaneous auctions going on and you’ve got to bid on them to win. You can’t win them all but can you win the right auctions to score big points? There’s multiple ways to score and there’s other ways to maximize points. It’s a lot more strategic than just buying what looks pretty.
Kabuto Sumo, Allplay – You’re a beetle. But you’re also a Sumo Wrestler. And you’re literally going to be pushing stuff off the board with this one. This one is a slide/pushing dexterity game. It’s designed for 2-4 players and it’s great for ages 6+. And yeah, it might be geared towards kids and families but I think it would also be a pretty interesting drinking game. Just tossing that out there…
Above and Below: Haunted, Red Raven Games – So this one had a successful Gamefound campaign but we got to check it out in person at PAXU. It’s a lot like the original Above and Below but with some new twists. It is a standalone game as well so you don’t need to have the previous versions. The big twists here is that your buildings can become haunted by ghosts. There’s also new actions, cave types to explore, and buildings to uh…build. If you like the first version (or missed it) then check out this one for sure.
Future Releases
There were a few games that weren’t officially out yet but looked quite promising. Or they were basically sold out and are launching in stores in 2025. So keep an eye out for these.
A Place for All My Books (2025), Smirk and Dagger – This is a cozy game about organizing your books. You go out to get books, organize them, and gain energy from doing so. Then you go out and do it again. It’s a pretty chill game and I’m looking forward to playing this one to relax.
Duck and Cover (January 2025), Captain Games – Okay this one is goofy but in a good way. It also sits 2-7 players which is nice for a party game. Each player has 12 cards which they will deal out randomly in a 3×4 grid. The goal is to end the game with the fewest points. You do that by covering up your cards with other cards. It’s easy to pickup and fast to play. And there’s quacking involved. If you’ve got a group of friends and 15 minutes, you’ll enjoy Duck and Cover.
Thing in Rings, Allplay – This one was sold out but we got to see it in action. It’s kind of like Codenames but different. It involves using a Venn Diagram of circles to determine the word. The “Finders” have to figure out the word based on the categories — but only the “Knower” knows the secret rules of the categories. It’s firmly in the logic/deduction category but it’s fun for ages 6+.
Other Games We Took Home
So again, the above is NOT an exhaustive list. There was a lot of great games at PAXU. That said, here’s a few more that when push came to shove, we actually shoved…into our suit case to take home.
Adventure Party, Smirk and Dagger – What if you played an RPG where you got to describe your own actions based on how you rolled instead of rolling to see if you succeeded? That’s basically what Adventure Party is. Your group each rolls a D20 in secret and then describes their action and how well/poorly it went. Then the GM (Guess Master) has to guess what you rolled. The closer the guess, the more XP you earn.
River Valley Glassworks – So the river is full of different colored glass pieces. You’re playing as a glass collector and your goal is to grab the glass and strategically place it on your board. Between the components and the cute art I was not expecting such a strategic game. The scoring is more complex than I was expecting because it’s based on rows and columns. I really liked this one and I’m busting this one out at my next game night for sure.
Sequoia – This is another game that’s pocket-sized but packs a lot of fun. It’s for 2-5 players and the goal is to roll dice and then pair them up to place your tree tokens on their respective spots. The player with the most tree tokens in a spot scores the points there (either first or second). But aware there are some negative point spots, too. We played this on the train ride home.
This Game is Killer – It really was! The concept of this game is that you’re playing cooperatively(ish) with your crew of 3-10 players. There’s an alien on board and it’s coming to kill you. Your goal is to stop the alien and also survive. The last player(s) alive win if you manage to take out the alien…but there’s quite a few ways to go about that. I’m pretty sure this concept could apply to a WHOLE bunch of different properties — particularly any slasher films. And that’s totally not a Xenomorph.
Landmarks – This is another one that’s kind of like Codenames, but different. You have to give your team one word clues to help steer them on the right path. However, there’s also traps, curses, and other teams listening in. There’s only one treasure — so who’s going to get there (safely) first.
Décorum – I’m fairly sure I had seen this one somewhere before. That said it’s a keeper for my group. The idea here is that you’ve got to decorate your home. But you’ve got certain things you want in the home and so does your partner (or other players). You’re not allowed to say exactly what you need either. There’s also a bunch of scenarios to try out, too.
Harmonies – You know when you’re at the con and you’ve got a game you play until it’s time to leave? Well, this was the game ended up playing until closing. Harmonies is a game where you’ve got to build habitats for animals. You’ve got to match the tiles on your board in the correct pattern to place your animals, too. And the tiles can stack, too. Between the 3D tiles, the cool art, and the core gameplay, we were sucked in. It’s a quick setup and with multiple ways to score you can’t really repeat the same strategy twice.
Wyrmspan – I don’t really think I need to explain this one. But it’s Wingspan with Dragons. And some slightly different mechanics. And now I own this game and all the fancy components that we could get our hands on at their booth. I’m not mad about it either.
Halo: Flashpoint – The final game I came home with was Halo: Flashpoint. I was going to grab a copy at my FLGS but it’s been a little tough to get my hands on. So when I saw they had the Spartan Edition at the Mantic Booth (which I didn’t know they’d be there), I grabbed a copy! We probably WOULD have been playing this one all weekend but I didn’t want to unbox it there. Plus, I’d have to assemble stuff…and I wasn’t ready to travel with it like that.
You can bet I’ll be talking more about Halo: Flashpoint in the future, too.
Honorable, Not Board Game Mentions
Netrunner – I did NOT know Netrunner was still around. But Null Signal Games has kept this one going. I was really into this game before FFG and WotC ended their licensing agreement in 2018. I don’t know all the details (yet). But This is one I’m going to be digging into because I still have my old cards and apparently a lot of them are still 100% “legal” to use in this version.
Game Theory Tables – I watch a presentation of these tables at PAX and they have a lot going for them. There’s one version that’s basically got a TV Screen inside that you can plug your PC into and run your VVT environments on it. Honestly, I couldn’t quite hear them too well but it seemed neat. If you’ve got the cash for a car down payment burning a hole in your pocket and you want a very fancy gaming tabletop check them out.
Copper Frog Games Shelfie Tote – Do you have Ikea Shelves? Maybe the Kallax in particular? Well, these tote bags are the correct dimensions to fit your games inside of them and then slide right into that 5×5 Kallax you store your games on. There’s a bunch of different totes that you can get. I highly recommend these for both storage and transporting your most loved board games.
So there you have it. Those are (almost?) all the game we got to interact with at PAX Unplugged. Again, this is by no means an exhaustive list. I had a blast at PAX Unplugged. I’m looking forward to next year. Maybe one of these times I’ll get to actually go to a panel and sit for a bit…Nah! Too many games and only 3 days to try them all!
Let us know what you got to play at PAX Unplugged in the comments!
