Today marked the first day of PAX West 2026 in Seattle, Washington. The weather was a traditional “Seattle grey” with light showers to start the morning. The theme this year is PAXLand, inspired by an amusement park adventure (similar to East 2026), and the show in Seattle was split between expo halls: Arch–where the indie games and AAA developers’ booths were set up, and Summit–where the tabletop games, merch, panel talks, arcades, and more are waiting for PAX West visitors. Here are our highlights for PAX West on Friday, September 4, 2026.

The Boss Rush Network team attendance at PAX West 2025: Corey (Founder and President), Ed (Vice President), David (Editor In Chief), Sofi (Associate Writer) and Andre (AV assistant). Each day, we’ll share our highlights from all the action at PAX West.

Corey

Being back in Seattle for PAX West was already an exciting notion for me. I missed my friends, I missed the creators, and I missed walking the show floor looking at all of the developers working so hard to make their games stand out. And being back was better than I ever thought it could be.

Day One at PAX West started with an awesome demo from SEGA and RGG Studio for Stranger than Heaven, the Yakuza-style action game that was more than just another trip through Japan. Its combat was brutal, intentional, and difficult, but when you finally land that final blow, it was incredibly satisfying.

Walking over to DoubleFine afterwards and meeting the writer behind The Art of Psychonauts 2 and signing my copy of the book was amazing. She was one of the coolest artists I’ve met in a long time and I’m happy to see she is with a company that appreciates her talents.

The standout for me though was the Destiny Community Party. Hanging around the fans, Joe from Guardians Mental Health, and meeting Liana Rupert in person after interacting for twelve years on the internet was one of the best experiences I’ve ever had at an event, full stop. Being recognized as a part of a community for a game that has meant so much to me and this brand was an incredible and bittersweet moment. As Destiny ends, the community remains strong.

And that’s what PAX is about, honestly. Community and supporting our creative endeavors, our passions, and our dreams. I’m extremely proud of not just our team, but all of our friends that work so hard to make their dreams happen. We’re all in it together. Stay tuned for Day Two coverage.

Steph

If I were to describe day one at PAX West 2026: epic. The Boss Rush Network team arrived at the convention center and caught up with our media peers and putting our media kits together. During Media Hour, I hit up Konami’s booth where both Andre and I played the demo of Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse. I also enjoyed the Silent Hill: Townfall experience. After lunch, I walked around the tabletop section with Corey and scoured their wares. Then, several hours were spent dedicated to Square Enix, playing various demos. The folks that coordinated the experience were wonderful. It’s been a full day, and it’s not even over. Later, I will close the evening with a panel and the MIX. Stay tuned!

Ed

Day one of PAX West was not only fun and busy, it was educational and passionate. Speaking to the creators and team members for each game I played, was miraculous by hearing their stories on how and why they are making the games they have here at the show.

Voidwood had me jumping with the wild beast that came from nowhere and murdered me. Desolum made me feel at peace with Portal aesthetic and intriguing puzzles. Stranger Than Fiction, although beautiful in graphics, had a frustrating combat system and gameplay that made me worried.

Dungeon Lurker fed me the best retro nostalgia with its 32-bit graphics and gameplay. The creative director was surprised how far I got and said I was the only one who got that far into the demo. The four Polish games I experienced once again makes me want their games now. Lastly, Portentum, a meta data auto battle card game, had me focus and worried because of the difficult but after talking to the cofounder, I had a better understanding of the game.

Overall, it was a day of taking everything in and enjoy all these fun moments. Day 2 is going to be blast and looking forward to it.

David

The first day of PAX West is always hectic, with the pressure of media hour and the first day excitement energizing crowds. Getting to play the upcoming Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse at the Konami booth was certainly a huge highlight from the day. I’m a big fan of the franchise and love metroidvanias in general—safe to say this one was a winner for me! I spent the rest of the morning and afternoon meeting game developers for interviews (really enjoyed the indie devs in the PAX Rising space–more on that tomorrow!).

The best part of my day, however, was getting to meet BigGaming64. My youngest is starting high school this year, and one of our favorite activities to do together is watch BigGaming64 play indie horror games on YouTube. His “Buddy Time” intros to his videos emphasize mental health and self-care, important messages for young viewers. It’s rare to meet someone in real life who you’ve “gotten to know” online and to discover that they are just as kind and genuine as you’d hoped they’d be. This was one of those cases. After getting to chat, I stuck around for his session on the Creator Stage in the expo hall as he teamed up with others to play Machine Party.

Sofi

Today was probably the best “first day of PAX” I’ve had in all my three times attending the bi-annual event. The highlight of today (and most probably the entire event) was getting the opportunity to play Final Fantasy VII: Revelations. All the games in the world can’t beat the feeling of community though. The fans and creators swarming the floor with nothing but child-like wonder in their eyes only ever reminds me that I am exactly where I belong. Can’t wait to see what tomorrow holds.

Andre

For my first PAX ever, the number one highlight was easily finally meeting everyone in person whom I’ve spoken to for years.

Moving forward from that, just taking in all the sights of vendors and such, walking into the expo hall was truly amazing–seeing it online versus in person is really something else to see. Getting to network and meet other like-minded people was a blessed feeling and overall on day one, I had a blast!

I cant imagine what day two has in store for me

Are you at PAX West? Come find us and say hi! If not, please continue to follow our adventures (and shenanigans) tomorrow!

The Boss Rush Podcast – A Podcast About Video Games

The Boss Rush Podcast is the flagship podcast of Boss Rush Media and The Boss Rush Network. Each week, hosts Corey Dirrig, LeRon Dawkins, Stephanie Klimov, and Pat Klein, as well as their friends, fellow content creators, developers, and industry veterans come together to discuss their week in gaming, including what they’ve been playing, a randomly chosen rotating weekly segment, the Boss Rush Banter of the week, answer community write-ins, and more. New episodes are released every Thursday. Members of The Boss Rush Network’s Patreon will receive the exclusive Pre-Show at any tier along with other perks.

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