Halo Fest takes place December 11-13 in Seattle, but there’s another big event there before then: PAX West 2026, where gamers and Spartans alike got a little preview of what we have in store.

It also ended up being our most successful PAX West yet.

If you haven’t heard of or been to PAX West, it is the biggest of Penny Arcade’s expos, generally held on Labor Day Weekend every year. PAX West draws roughly 120,000 attendees annually, and it’s one of our favorites because it caters to all kinds of gamers. You can be a fan of fighting games, Halo, Candy Crush… any video game at all, and for at least one weekend, we’re all one and the same. We’re gamers unified by the enjoyment we get from video games.

This was our third consecutive year exhibiting at PAX West. As with most events we participate in, we brought the heartwarming vibes only our GO Karts can provide. At the Gamers Outreach booth, attendees could learn about the foundation and take a load off by playing featured video games on our GO Karts, including Marvel Tokon: Fighting Souls, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, and Split Fiction. Like last year, we also brought enamel pins as nice little keepsakes for kind attendees who donated to our cause.

That’s where we upped the ante.

“Prepare to Drop: Pinny Arcade Exclusive”

This year also marked the first time we participated at PAX as an Authorized Pinny Arcade Dealer. The Gamers Outreach booth was a hot destination every morning at PAX West because of our exclusive, limited-edition Halo Infinite x Gamers Outreach pin. Inspired by the exclusive windbreaker you could only get at the Halo World Championships last year, our pin was definitely a hot ticket item.

“The pin is easily one of the best Pinny Arcade pins this year,” said an attendee who was wearing one of our aforementioned windbreakers. “I think it’s the first Halo pin since, like, 2017, too.”

1,000 Halo Infinite X GO Pinny Arcade pins were made for PAX, with specific allocations available every morning, and they sold out faster than the time it takes Master Chief to flip a Warthog. Proceeds from every donation to the booth will continue to fund our programs that bring play to kids in hospitals, so we’re beyond thankful for everyone’s kindness and enthusiasm. 

See You At Halo Fest!

If you’re one of the lucky people to have secured a Halo Fest ticket for the big event in December, congratulations. You’re going to have an awesome time, and you can bet we’ll do everything we can to make your Halo Fest experience legendary.

While we can’t share all the specifics yet, we can tell you that if you didn’t get the Halo Infinite x Gamers Outreach Pinny Arcade Pin at PAX West, Halo Fest will be your last chance. We will have another small allotment available to those who make a donation at the booth, plus another big surprise and fun activities to take part in.

Stay tuned for more!

Support Gamers Outreach Online

Looking to help Gamers Outreach, but conventions and big events aren't your thing? No problem. There are plenty of ways to support the foundation’s mission of bringing video games to kids in hospitals worldwide.

Monthly Giving

Monthly donors go a long way in supporting our programs and everything in between. From upkeep to logistics, our Monthly Giving program members make a real difference.

Donating as little as $10 a month unlocks exclusive perks like invitations to quarterly calls with our staff to discuss the latest with the foundation, early access to Gamers For Giving, and other benefits.

Follow Gamers Outreach, and spread the word

Donating isn’t the only way you can support Gamers Outreach. 

Following and sharing the blog or our social pages on Facebook, X, Instagram, Bluesky, YouTube, and joining our Discord server will keep you up to date on how you can help us make an impact in both healthcare and gaming!