The New Zealand Centre of Digital Excellence (CODE) has announced the lineup of games made in Aotearoa New Zealand set to feature at its booth during PAX Aus 2025. Over the last few years, the organisation – which supports indie game development with funding, mentorship, and more – has showcased an array of shiny, upcoming titles at its booth, sharing the talents of local game developers with the PAX Aus audience.
This year is no exception, with a strong array of new and in-development titles set to feature at the company’s booth – Booth #1840 (alongside PAX Rising). Those who visit will be able to play through the following games.
PAX Aus 2025: CODE NZ-made games showcase
- Adaptory (Stormcloak Games) – ‘Deep in uncharted space, your expedition took a challenging turn when your ship crash-landed. Master complex simulations to keep your outspoken explorers alive, face unpredictable challenges, and figure out a way back home.’
- Apothecurse (Lesser Key Studios) – ‘Faced with expulsion from his order, fledgling alchemist Leon must brave the seas and travel to Port Gelour, a city on the brink of revolution. Guide Leon’s journey by brewing potent potions, befriending quirky locals and uncovering the supernatural origins of the city’s societal collapse.’
- Bashful Adoration (KittyWampus) – ‘Bashful Adoration is a 3D Platformer which features expressive movement mechanics and bombastic combat, tied together through a romantic comedy adventure starring four lovestruck witches who are in love with the same crush!’
- Canvas City (Disc 2 Games) – ‘Canvas City is a turn-based tactics RPG of rebellion on rollerblades. Lead a crew of skaters and street artists rising up against an oppressive regime. Each map is a battleground and a canvas, where your actions shift control, leave your mark, and shape the city’s future.’
- Clonebreaker (Wildboy Studios) – ‘Born from slime in a machine underground, you are the Breaker: a disposable clone tasked with stopping a new species from breaching the surface. Build your base, deploy your droids, and survive relentless waves in this side-scrolling strategy roguelike.’
- Davy Jones’ Deckhand (Cass Bay Games) – ‘Unleash outrageous perfect parry counter-attack chains in this swashbuckling adventure where every voyage is a challenging roguelike deckbuilder. Will you break free from Davy Jones’ Locker?’
- Design and Conjure (Tiny Kiwi Games) – ‘Join Dalia, a young witch, in her cosy adventure to fix her hometown. Reconnect with nature and bring beauty back as you clean, decorate, solve light puzzles, and help magical creatures affected by the mysterious corruption.’
- Dream Team Supreme (Big Adventure) – ‘Pilot a giant robot against a horde of monsters in this co-op roguelike deckbuilder. Attempt each proc-gen run alone or with a friend. Draw from and build up two decks at the same time, plan the sequence of each turn, and plug in the best mods. You’ll need a big brain, or two, to prevent the invasion!’
- Headlice (Bunguin Games) – ‘Headlice is a reverse horror game where you play as an escaped biological abomination fleeing an inept corporation. Embrace your parasitic nature and become the monster you were meant to be.’
- How Was Your Day? (Mad Carnival) – ‘When her dog Beans vanishes and she’s trapped in a time loop, 13-year-old Diya discovers that uncovering the town’s secrets is key to solving the sinister mystery. Groundhog Day meets Stranger Things in this coming-of-age, supernatural mystery set in 1980s New Zealand.’
- Killing Things With Your Friends (Flightless) – ‘Killing Things With Your Friends is a co-op game about survival, dark humour, and limb-based problem-solving. Tear off parts, work as a team, and navigate randomised clinical trials for profit.’
- Middle Management (Headplug Games) – ‘Middle Management is a satirical office building and management game. Design an office. Hire the right talent. Spread your tentacles. Keep your rebellious workers productive. Delve into brains to design the perfect employees. Don’t you dare cross your boss or his influential clients.’
- Pinball Hero (Lazy Bones) – ‘Pinball meets RPG in this fast-paced roguelike. Launch heroic pinballs, battle bumper enemies, and choose your fate through mystery doors. Wield powerful items, and defeat bosses to reclaim your adventurer spirit in this retro-inspired reimagining of pinball – where every bounce is a battle.’
- PlanetSmith (Incandescent Games) – ‘Explore procedurally generated spherical planets in this hexagonal block voxel game! Navigate large open worlds from cold polar caps to scorching deserts. Delve deep into dungeons to defeat bosses, find artefacts, and craft your very own spaceship before launching off to other worlds!’
- Project Storm (Transformative Games) – ‘The ultimate chase begins. Rise through the ranks to become a Legendary Storm Chaser in this solo/co-op action-adventure sim. Choose from three thrilling career paths and take the wheel to complete contracts amid nature’s powerful superstorms, such as Tornadoes, Lightning Storms and Hurricanes.’
- Shyftrs (Wicked Art Games) – ‘Shyftrs is a 2D stylised action adventure Metroidvania game that will take you on a journey to uncover the mysteries of your lineage and the world beyond. Your weapons of choice are Cane Sword, Pistol – or use your newfound powers. Step up and embrace the adventure.’
- Teeto (Eat Pant Games) – ‘Teeto is a 3D adventure platformer where you play as a tiny blob and bunny duo on an extraordinary journey. Absorb objects from the world, harnessing their powers to fight the shadow corruption and help out a cast of crazy characters in an action packed adventure!’
- Ten Thousand Coins: The Golden Merchant (Thousand Tonic) – ‘A story-rich strategy trading game set in a hand-illustrated world where merchantry meets mystery. As a young fox merchant, you’ll trade, scheme, and survive in a land where every deal brings you closer to uncovering the truth behind the mysterious disappearance of your mentor: the Golden Merchant.’
Those keen to discover a new gem should make time to explore everything on show at the CODE booth.
