BOSTON – March 29, 2026 – Show organizers ReedPop and Penny Arcade revealed today at the conclusion of PAX East, the East Coast’s most-attended gaming event, that next year’s edition of the show returns to the Thomas M. Menino Convention & Exhibition Center from Thursday, April 22, through Sunday, April 25, 2027.
PAX East 2026 welcomed more than a hundred thousand attendees from all over the world, with even more fans coming together digitally to participate in the festivities hosted across Twitch, Steam, Youtube, and other online platforms.
Highlights from the weekend include hands-on demos for Nintendo’s latest hit Pokopia and the upcoming Pokemon Champions, a Storytime Keynote from games industry veteran Xalavier Nelson Jr. (Forbes 30 Under 30 honoree, BAFTA Award nominee), a star-studded panel for IllFonic’s Halloween which included legendary film director John Carpenter, as well as the world premiere of the co-op fantasy RPG Wyldheart.
The show also featured a massive expo hall with gaming industry titans, indie developers, tabletop freeplay areas, and high-stakes gaming tournaments for cash prizes. After a packed day of demos, attendees left the showfloor to partake in panel discussions, community meetups, cosplay contests, and live concerts.
“PAX East is always the Grand Opening for a year of shows, and we’re taking that momentum with us,” said Jerry Holkins, co-founder of PAX, Penny Arcade, and Child’s Play. “We’re always thinking about the future.”
Relive a weekend celebrating all things gaming and pop culture, or catch it for the first time with uploads of all the recorded content on the official PAX YouTube channel. For fans who can’t wait until PAX East next year, PAX West returns to Seattle, WA, this Labor Day weekend from Friday, Sept. 4, through Monday, Sept. 7, 2026. Badges for PAX West will go on sale in the coming months.
For information on future PAX events, follow PAX on Instagram, Bluesky, YouTube, Facebook, Twitch, and Twitter.
About PAX
PAX, or Penny Arcade Expo, is a festival for gamers to celebrate gaming culture. First held in Seattle in 2004, PAX has nearly doubled in size each successive year, with PAX Prime 2014 selling out of tickets in a matter of minutes. Connecting the world’s leading game publishers with their most avid and influential fans, PAX expanded with a second show in Boston in 2010, and a third in San Antonio in 2015, making it the three largest gaming shows in North America. The first international PAX was held in Melbourne, Australia in 2013. In 2017, Penny Arcade established PAX Unplugged, its first tabletop-focused show, held in Philadelphia.
About ReedPop
ReedPop is a boutique group within RX – one of the world’s leading event organizers. Launched in 2006, the group has become the number one producer of pop culture events globally and a full-service digital content provider and media company. Delivering once-in-a-lifetime fan experiences curated specifically for localized audiences, ReedPop currently features events in North America, Europe and Asia, including New York Comic Con (NYCC), Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2), PAX West, East, and Unplugged, Emerald City Comic Con (ECCC), Star Wars Celebration, MCM Comic Con, Eurogamer Expo (EGX), MagicCon, and more. In addition to organizing and managing events, ReedPop owns and operates the pop culture news site, Popverse, which is the exclusive home for livestreams from all of ReedPop’s major comic cons. The staff at ReedPop are a fan-based group of professionals uniquely qualified to build and serve the communities with whom they share a common passion.
About Penny Arcade
Penny Arcade has been the world’s most popular webcomic for over 20 years, with over 3.5 million readers. Started in 1998 in the living room of Mike Krahulik & Jerry Holkins, it has grown into a media empire encompassing multiple beloved properties such as Lookouts, Automata, and beloved D&D live-play series Acquisitions Incorporated. Penny Arcade was responsible for the creation of Child’s Play, a gaming charity that has raised over $45 million dollars for children across the world. They are also the founders of PAX, the number one consumer gaming festival in North America, with hundreds of thousands of loyal visitors every year.
