The PGDX 2026 experience

All good things must come to an end and I’m firm in my belief that the 4th year of the Philippine Game Dev Expo (PGDX) brought with it an international experience while maintaining its identity all throughout.

Starting way back in 2023, it definitely grew with its emphasis on the Game Developers really showing through and that’s not all but the environment, albeit a bit stimulating to some, was just electric and it wasn’t just on one corner of the venue but literally everywhere!

160+ Indie Games present

The highlight of the Philippine Game Dev expo are the indie games created both in and even from previous years, out of the country. Imagine you have a wide assortment of games coming from various backgrounds and genres and you could try out over more than 160 of them at PGDX! While you could find them online especially on Steam which so happens to have an exclusive PGDX event banner or even itch, if you were lucky and went through the Hatch website by PGDX which houses some of the games, you could try them at your own accord but with some of the games presented being prototypes, PGDX was genuinely the only place you could try the game out for yourself! All that hype about Sepak U? You could genuinely try it for yourself during the event. 

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While I’m definitely in the privileged position to even get scoops and details from the game devs themselves as they were given a platform, literally in the middle of all the indie games through Indie Game Stars, you had games with releases and reveals during PGDX itself! Filipino made game High Times had its full game release during the first day of PGDX and games from abroad like ALTEREDBLOOD+ [AB+] and The Misadventures of Spaceman Biff had exclusive demo builds just for the event. There were even some games like Souls of Bombarika which were stealth announced at PGDX bringing to light how big of an event it had become. 

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The latest tech showcases and crowds to match

What is a game without its console but apart from that, what are the experiences like without your friends and gaming together with tech go hand in hand garnering various crowds in multiple areas of the SMX halls. Did you know that fighting games are better played wired to ensure quicker inputs and a better monitor would match your inputs (and mistaps) among other things? Did you also know that having a wider TV makes it easier for bigger crowds to join in and Just Dance? I kid you not when camera and mic quality was something you had to worry about because apart from getting to try out sample devices from some of the booths there, you could even live stream direct from the venue! It was a practical way of getting to try out the latest tech offerings there at PGDX and a fun one at that and if you even felt like it, with the welcoming communities gathering around, you might just join in too.

Surprisingly great deals and it’s not just the tech or games

It’s tiring both physically and financially to go around a whole day event and with the variety of merchandise surrounding you, outside of having a budget, something is sure to catch your eye but the biggest surprise was the affordability of the amenities in the event.

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Sure there are massive sales for the tech booths which happen to include great deals on a Nintendo Switch 2 by Nintendo of all things and for cultural fans or people that just like something fun and affordable, the PGDX staple of Sticky Expo, which mind you is a free event even if you don’t have a ticket for PGDX, and yes you could get tons of freebies and merch all around depending on how hardworking you were about the affair but the usual con staple of food, was affordable all things considered. No need to go out the venue as you could stay in all day and relax but legitimately speaking, depending on your goals for the event, you’d need more than a day at least if you wanted to dig deep at the Indie Games.

An experience the whole family could enjoy

Event inclusivity is something that almost every organizer should take into consideration. Like for instance Toy Conventions should be for everyone regardless of your background or status but designer toy conventions have a certain market in mind. You wouldn’t let your kid in a gambling event for instance right?

In the case of PGDX, it did something which looked magical to me. I saw some of our mature gaming community mingling with the kids, families being supportive of their game developer family members and even celebrities joining in mixing in with everyone else. It’s just so cool to see how inclusive the community is and how indiscriminate the entire experience was. What really had me excited was when I saw a kid which according to the developers of Mecha Blitz, was still there at their booth for more than half an hour trying to beat their challenge. He could’ve opted to face an easier opponent but he trudged on even if he was clearly being toyed with. That’s a gamer right there if I saw one.

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Final thoughts

An overall great event, fun games, a welcoming community and of course a wonderful celebration of gaming over all. PGDX is shaping to be more of a must attend event in the gaming space both locally and internationally and I hope it continues its momentum as the years go on.

And on a side note, I hope that kid won that challenge because that’s what really matters, you, a game, and having fun win or lose.

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