PAX Rising - The Indie Games of PAX AUS 2025
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PAX Rising - The Indie Games of PAX AUS 2025 (Cont...)
Davy Jones' Deckhand - Cass Bay Games
With a narrative, mechanical and artistic design dripping over from the likes of Monkey Island, Captain Pugwash and Muppet Treasure Island; Davy Jones' Deckhand has you engaging in a deckbuilding swashbuckling adventure to duel pirates, knaves and ne'er-do-wells in counter-based combat. A unique stance system and the ability to perform perfect parries feature in the inner gameplay loop, which is in turn complemented by the outer loop having you explore the port through quests, the artifact system and a roguelite experience.
But alas, as a deckhand you strike a Faustian deal with the devil in the form of Davy Jones, allowing you to resurrect your roguelite run at some cost. Developed over the last year, this three person development team has you fighting historical pirates to prove your worth in a battle coming to PC first, then hopefully to consoles featuring full controller support.
Wishlist Davy Jones' Deckhand on Steam.
Silk Soar - Stout Heart Games
Taking on the role of Tumbles, a cute, newly-hatched caterpillar, players will attempt to make it from the forest floor to the rainforest canopy. The game uses simple mouse controls - holding the right mouse button, pulling back and aiming and then letting go, flinging our little caterpillar towards his destination. It sounds simple, but often requires a deft touch, with one wrong move seeing you tumbling far below similar to other Foddian games.
Gorgeously cute visuals make it an ideal game for younger gamers, as do the basic mouse-only controls. Getting the precise angle and power can take some getting used to, but the hint mode definitely makes it easier for the for up-and comers in the family. With themes of persistence and mental health woven throughout the allegorical poem narrative, Silk Soar definitely has a deeper tone than the visual style presents.
Download the Demo or Wishlist Silk Soar on Steam.
Design and Conjure - Tiny Kiwi Games
In this cosy room decoration game you play as Dalia, a young witch returning home after university. As you clean and decorate beautiful areas to your liking, you will help the town and the magical creatures that inhabit it. The relaxing game has an Unpacking vibe, as players unpack and move items around their room and then complete similar quests for other characters in the neighbourhood with the help of your wisecracking cat (which has vibes of Salem the cat from Sabrina the Teenage Witch)
With no right spot to place an item, players are free to decorate their rooms as they choose and with no timers, they can do so at their leisure ensuring a calm gameplay experience. With simple point and click controls and some light puzzle elements, Design and Conjure is a game for all ages.
Download the Demo or Wishlist Design and Conjure on Steam.
Middle Management - Headplug Games
Satirical and parasitical, Middle Management has you spreading your roguelike tentacles to design the ideal office environment and fill it with the ideal employees. If the ideal employees are unavailable, don't worry, you can hook your tentacles up to the brains of your subordinates and re-jig their minds like puzzle pieces. Try to please your boss and clients by making your office as productive as possible in this management sim featuring performance reviews and the endless pursuit of cost-saving efficiencies.
Inspired by some of those office workplace environments that maybe aren't all that healthy, Middle Management's visual art design features SpongeBob inspired gross-ups that we couldn't look away from. With further design sensibilities from Mini Motorways, Minami Lane and Evil Genius, we at Hooked Gamers are most assuredly looking forward to when this New Zealand developed gem is released.
Wishlist Middle Management on Steam.
Blood Vow: Survive the Night - Ship It Studios
With a grimdark aesthetic reminiscent of the original Diablo, Blood Vow presents a wave-based roguelike re-interpretation of the tower-defense genre. Protect your followers with strategically placed towers and combat skills at night, and prepare and build during the day. As the days become shorter, and nights longer, you attempt to keep the hordes of enemies at bay alone or with up to three other players with custom loadouts.
Inspired by multiple genres mashed together, Blood Vow: Survive the Night has been in development for 15 months, is currently self-funded amongst four developers and is aiming for release on Steam next year. We at Hooked Gamers are looking forward to reigniting our interest in a modern take of a genre that grew so close to our hearts all the way back with Warcraft III custom maps like Tree Tag.
Wishlist Blood Vow: Survive the Night on Steam.
Enter The Chronosphere - Effort Star
Enter the Chronosphere is a psychedelic time-walking turn-based bullet-hell rogue-like with an art style dipped in the ink of French artist Mœbius. It's strange to meet a bullet-hell that actually gives you time to think, but Chronosphere's world only moves in turns as you do, presenting each paused frame as a puzzle to be solved. With three characters to choose from, five biomes and randomly generated levels, each run is unique as you choose from a pool of randomly generated skills.
Strategic, tactical and with a pumping soundtrack, enter the flow state with a variety of ranged and melee weapons in this beautifully gorgeous unique collapsing universe to stop the Chronospheres from consuming what is left of space and time.
Download the Demo or Wishlist Enter the Chronosphere on Steam.
We also had the opportunity to take a look at the latest version of Adaptory, which we have mentioned in previous PAX Rising specials, as it heads towards a release. With a host of new features and some quality of life improvements, Adaptory is looking polished, and is a game that we're looking to spend more time with as it nears release.
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