PAX Rising - The Indie Games of PAX AUS 2025
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PAX Rising - The Indie Games of PAX AUS 2025 (Cont...)
BraveCart - Hojo Studio
BraveCart is a cosy puzzle game where you must help a shopping trolley escape from the evil duopolistic supermarket overlords. In a simple grid, players must manoeuvre their hero cart so it can collect other abandoned trolleys and move to the exit before being caught by the supermarket employees - some of which only move once a trolley enters their zone. Our trolley moves in a straight line until it hits an object or a wall. Some of the objects (such as boxes) can break when hit, so players will need to think ahead and plan accordingly.
BraveCart will also come with a Level Editor so that players can produce their own fiendish creations for friends and others online. Bright visuals, simple controls and the signature Hojo Studio humour (they're the team behind Godfeather and Inflatality) ensure that BraveCart will suit a range of gamers. Further adding to this, the team at Hojo Studios are attempting to make a real impact for a sustainable future by donating 10% of every sale to a charity. The game also features a "Trolley Tracker", enabling players to report abandoned trolleys in real life whenever they find them, so they can be retrieved and reused.
Wishlist BraveCart on Steam.
Momento - Fat Cat Alien
Inspired by cosy games such as Unpacking and A Little to the Left, Momento has players organising rooms and then deciding which items are most important to them. These mementos can be kept, but the items you choose to keep will determine the course of the story. Players begin in childhood, picking out toys that represent your dreams for the future and will progress into adulthood, exploring wildly different settings and themes. Uncover stories of heartbreak, wonder and love, and learn the significance behind the sentimental treasures that follow you throughout.
The approachable visual style will immerse players in a relaxed atmosphere, whilst multiple endings to the story ensure Momento will have a decent amount of narrative replayability. A creative mode (once unlocked) allows players to freely design their own rooms.
Join the Playtest or Wishlist Momento on Steam.
Memory's Reach - 100 Stones Interactive
We had the chance to check out Memory's Reach a couple of years ago and we were certainly keen to see how it had progressed. Memory's Reach is a first person puzzle based metroidvania. Inspired by games such as Metroid Prime, The Talos Principle and the dungeon puzzles in The Legend of Zelda, players will explore the alien megastructures in a quest to reveal the legacy of the doomed civilization.
As players progress, they will unlock different tools, enabling them to access previously unreachable locations within the alien-like structure. The narrative has players discovering what happened to the alien planet and searching for a rumoured treasure, helped with a scanning mechanic similar to Metroid Prime. Memory's Reach looks gorgeous, and will have players exploring and thinking through the puzzles when it releases on Steam.
Download the Demo or Wishlist Memory's Reach on Steam.
Lunars - Anubis Arts
Inspired by couch games much as Mario Party, Lunars has players competing in a series of mini-games to become the party champion. Each player takes the guise of one of the animals from the Lunar Zodiac as they compete in four player local co-op or eight player online games. Lunars currently features over 30 mini games, with the developers aiming to have 45 for release.
Each mini games has simple controls, allowing family members of all ages the ability to compete and enjoy. The visuals also have a family friendly feel about them, with inspiration from Sackboy, with each game being designed around not knocking anyone out of the action, or making players wait for another's turn. If a player is eliminated from a minigame, they can often come back to effect the result of those still playing.
Lunars is Steamdeck compatible and is planned for a Q4 2025 release on Steam, with potential for console cross-play at a later time. Download the Demo, Join the Playtest, or Wishlist Lunars on Steam.
Shatter Rush - Tetra Studios
Shatter Rush is a parkour and Titanfall inspired online and local split-screen shooter for up to sixteen (technically 24) players. Players begin games choosing their loadout consisting of a primary weapon, a secondary weapon and from three movement abilities - stim, dash and grapple. Using the abilities, weapons and a wallrunning mechanic, players will attempt to take down their opponents in a series of destructible maps, reminiscent of some old-school deathmatch shooters.
Players score points for kills, and combined with a timed mechanic, enables the use of the Titanfall-inspired mech. Although these behemoths are powerful, the team at Tetra Studios have balanced the game so that they are slower, giving those that do not have access to the mech a chance to catch up. With the option to play with either a controller or a keyboard and mouse combo, the game is accessible for most first-person shooter fans.
Download the Pre-Alpha or Wishlist ShatterRush on Steam.
Bashful Adoration - KittyWampus
Initially beginning life as a PvP game, the developers changed tack and turned Bashful Adoration into a 3D platformer with similarities to Crash Bandicoot. However, the story in this narrative driven puzzle platformer is quite different. It involves four witches that all fall in love with the same crush and explores their rivalries, struggles with identity, and love.
Players will guide their chosen witch (and her broomstick) through a series of vibrant 3D worlds to battle a cast of dangerous enemies and collect coins and collectibles across each themed biome. Interspersed within the gameplay are several fun mini-games that allow a respite from the platforming action provided by this Chibi artstyle game that would look right at home on Nintendo platforms.
Wishlist Bashful Adoration on Steam.