AIE students and alumni had a big weekend at PAX Aus 2026. Across the three days in Melbourne, AIE students and alumni teams showed up to 15 games, the most AIE has ever brought to PAX, and many were played in public for the first time. Players lined up, gave feedback, and asked when they could buy them.
For many of our students, it was the first time strangers had sat down with something they made. The response was better than anyone expected, and several teams left with real momentum and a clear plan for what comes next.
Australia’s biggest stage for games
The standout story of the weekend was Decideum. The student team spent three weeks on proof of concept, planning and pitching, then just six weeks in production. In that time, they took the game from an idea to a playable public debut on one of the biggest show floors in the country.
The response blew them away. Players kept coming back to the booth, and many asked for Steam keys so they could keep playing at home. Demand was so strong that the team ran out of cards to hand out before the weekend was over.
The students were over the moon with the result. For a game that was only pitched nine weeks earlier, it is a remarkable start, and the future of Decideum is looking very bright.
Highlight: Decideum, from pitch to PAX debut in nine weeks
The standout story of the weekend was Decideum. The student team spent three weeks on proof of concept, planning and pitching, then just six weeks in production. In that time, they took the game from an idea to a playable public debut on one of the biggest show floors in the country.
The response blew them away. Players kept coming back to the booth, and many asked for Steam keys so they could keep playing at home. Demand was so strong that the team ran out of cards to hand out before the weekend was over.
The students were over the moon with the result. For a game that was only pitched nine weeks earlier, it is a remarkable start, and the future of Decideum is looking very bright.
Student and alumni games put to the test
Decideum was far from the only AIE game on show. Student and alumni teams brought up to 15 games to PAX, AIE’s biggest lineup at the show yet, and many made their public debut over the weekend.
Every team left with something just as valuable as the applause: honest feedback from real players. They saw where players got stuck, what made them laugh, and what kept them coming back. Many teams are now taking that feedback straight into the next stage of development and will continue their projects beyond PAX.
Two AIE games also caught the eye of the press. ScreenHub’s PAX roundup noted that alumni game Foodomina drew big crowds with its bright pink demo station and pixel art. It also reported that players kept bringing up student game Tiny Transit while chatting on the show floor.
Student games
- Decideum by Sable Fables
- Tiny Transit by Lab Grown Games
- Sacrisigil by VisceraTek
- Tidy by GSS Studios
- Gramaus by 5000 Pigeons
- WildCaster by Hyrax Studios
- ShieldPunk by SunBreaker Games
- A Knight’s Tail by The Mouseketeers
- Stuck In Steel by Gerbil Games
Alumni games
Shown at the booth
- Mimicry! by Wayward Skies
- Knight City by Half Eaten Bread
Independently shown
- Shatter Rush by Tetra Studios
- TOYA by RND Department
- Dungeons and Dining Tables by Catalyst Games
- Castle Cab by Royale Reign Studios
- Foodomina by Lumelli Studios
Why PAX matters for our students
There is no substitute for watching someone play your game for the first time. PAX gives students a live test with a real audience; the kind of feedback a classroom playtest can only approximate.
It also puts their work in front of the wider industry. Publishers, media and fellow developers walk in the same halls as players, and every conversation at a booth is a chance to build a network. For students about to start their careers, that exposure is hard to match.
What’s next
PAX Aus 2026 showed what AIE students and alumni can do when they put their work in front of players. Decideum’s six-week sprint to a standout debut is a reminder of how fast a strong team can move, and how ready audiences are to back local talent.
Congratulations to every student and alumnus who exhibited and thank you to everyone who stopped by to play. Keep an eye out for these games, because many of them are only just getting started.
Interested in game development and making your own games? Learn more about AIE’s game development courses here.