Exhibit at PAX Aus
PAX Collaboratory
PAX Collaboratory
Is your brain permanently occupied by game mechanics, balance tweaks and "what if we changed this one rule"? Is your desk riddled with scrap paper and placeholder assets? Do your friends instinctively brace themselves when you say 'quick playtest'?
Do you love it anyway?
Perfect. You'll fit right in.
If you're designing a tabletop game - board, card, RPG or something gloriously unclassifiable - consider this your laboratory. We'll gather the test subjects, hand them the pieces and let you observe what happens next. Results may vary. That's kind of the point.
If you’re a designer with an unpublished tabletop game and you’re ready to unveil your promethean labours to the world, join PAX Collaboratory!
Criteria for entry:
- Your game is in at least beta form
- You are able to bring a physical copy to the show
- You are not funded by an outside party, government grants or attempting crowdsourcing, you will be excluded, or expelled.
- Judges will be looking for fun factor and a great gameplay experience that is well presented
- Please no AI-generated artwork—imperfect art created by a human is always better than AI
- If chosen, you or a representative must be able to demo the game live at PAX Aus 2026, 9-11 October 2026 in Melbourne, Victoria during open exhibition hours. Two complimentary badges will be given to each game team.
This year all Collab entrants will be entered into the "PAX Collab Best in Show" Competition!
All participants and players are welcome to cast their votes after playing games at the booth. The ratings will be averaged and a winner announced on Sunday night. We invite all Collab entrants to encourage attendees to play as many Collab games as they can and rating them via the QR code provided on tables and at the TDGA booth.
PAX Collaboratory is in partnership with the support of Tabletop Game Designers Australia - Find them at one of the links below.
For any further questions, join the Collaboratory Discord!
