So I've been playing Pax Dei lately with some friends, and I've thus far been really impressed by what they have in place. Given the nature of my last few posts, one would probably assume I'd be elbow deep in Eve Frontier's Cycle 3 release, but alas I've given in to the siren song of another novel sandbox universe. I'd heard about the game some time ago but only started really paying attention to it when I saw the demo booth at Fanfest 2025. The visuals are stunning, but of course they're stunning due to the game being built on Unreal Engine 5.
Pax Dei's visuals aside, the general gameplay loop is also pretty fun, though it's possible that this is mostly due to the fact that it's a new world to explore and the novelty of it all is likely eclipsing something that's lived in the back of my mind after the 40 hours I've spent in its world, which is "Okay but why?" Interestingly enough, I went searching for opinions on this very question and ran across one immediately on Reddit. This user has the same question I do. I realize that it's still in development and they're still ironing out systems before they add the "real" content or whatever, but right now it seems to be focused mostly on "number go up", simply being content watching your skills improve. It's a really giant world that for the most part functions solely as a real estate development-- neighbors forming posses to tackle challenges together or compete with one another, but as I see it now, there's really no reason to reach the "endgame".
This seems really strange for a "1.0" release. Granted, I haven't ventured into the wilderness to any meaningful degree yet, nor have I made my way into the PVP area, "Lyonesse", or tried my hand at conquering a dungeon with friends, but what would I do with the rewards from my efforts other than park them in a storage box at my base? There needs to be something to constantly strive for, and there needs to be more risk.
We'll see how things shake out over the coming months, but for now just know that it's on my radar and has entered the content base of what I plan to write about on this site going forward.
Cheers!