Monday 21 October, 2013 – The world’s premier games festival, Penny Arcade Expo (PAX), will return to Melbourne in 2014 after a critically successful sold out inaugural year in 2013. Community demand will see the show move to the larger Melbourne Convention & Exhibition Centre, to be held from 31 October to 2 November 2014.
Minister for Innovation, Services and Small Business Louise Asher announced the highly anticipated return of PAX Australia to Melbourne and said it was a boost for Victoria’s flourishing games industry.
“PAX is the world’s leading games festival and the return of PAX Australia to Melbourne for the second consecutive year highlights Victoria’s reputation as a key hub for games development in the Asia Pacific region,” Ms Asher said.
“This year’s event in Melbourne represented the first time that PAX had been held outside of the United States – not only was it a great coup for Melbourne but the event was a runaway success.”
The 2013 show completely sold out of tickets months before the event itself, as a result, PAX Australia 2014 will move to the Melbourne Conference and Exhibition Centre in order to increase its capacity.
Ms Asher said the Victorian Coalition Government is a major sponsor of the event and played an important role in securing PAX Australia 2013 and 2014 for Victoria.
“PAX Australia is a fantastic opportunity to show off the breadth and diversity of Victoria’s games development community,” Ms Asher said.
PAX Australia 2014 will build on the success of the 2013 event and will combine exciting international and local content with community events. International guests, speakers, musicians and developers will join local game industry representatives to showcase games and community events in Australia. PAX Australia is also supported by the Interactive Games & Entertainment Association and the Game Developers Association of Australia.
Robert Khoo, President of Penny Arcade said Melbourne has been an incredible home for PAX, and the Victorian Government has been as accommodating as the fans.
“Not only have they helped us secure a much-needed larger venue for the show, but they’ve paved the way for talented local creators to be showcased on the global stage. The games community here is incredible, and PAX Australia is here to stay,” Mr Khoo said.
PAX Australia will be held at the Melbourne Conference and Exhibition Centre from 31 October and 2 November, 2014 and will be run by ReedPOP in conjunction with Penny Arcade.
So to recap, that’s a change in date to October 31st – November 2, as well as a move to the Melbourne Conference and Exhibition Centre!
This is fantastic news; the lines were ridiculously long last year, and the biggest room could fit around 250 people. Jodie and I barely made it into a number of the panels last year, and for one panel, we were the cut-off; the people behind us weren’t allowed in. Hopefully, the larger venue will alleviate this problem. The date change to October is nice as well, as the event will now take place in spring as it moves into summer, so attendees will not have to suffer the freezing Melbourne winter winds.
So, is anyone else going to be there? You can bet Jodie and I will be, though we may be reading exam revision notes. I’m already looking forward to it!
