ACMI’s Big Games Night In is back for its third year running with Melbourne International Games Week (Oct 2–9) and it’s bigger than ever. Showcasing a range of diverse and unique Australian games and game creators, BGNI is an opportunity for you to try out free-to-access demos made by your favourite Australian Developers from the comfort of your own home.
BGNI features numerous finalists from the 2022 Australian Game Developer Awards, and for the first time you yourself can participate. ACMI is partnering with the AGDAs for the inaugural ACMI Audience Award. Not only can you test and play all the new and upcoming locally made games, but you can visit ACMI in Melbourne to vote for your favourite, with the winner announced on October 9th.
To download the games and support BGNI, be sure to visit the ACMI Website, which is available until October 9, 2022.
Cult of the Lamb
Start your own cult in a land of false prophets, venturing out into diverse and mysterious regions to build a loyal community of woodland Followers and spread your Word to become the one true cult.
Cult of the Lamb by Melbourne developers Massive Monster is an adorably dark adventure/management game that sees you play god-worshipper and recruit other animals to join your cult.
You can find the demo here.
A Halloween Valentine
A much anticipated follow-up to last year’s award-winning Video World by Things for Humans. A spooky and romantic puzzle game with a synth-pop soundtrack composed by Jacob Leaney, get a first look at A Halloween Valentine at BGNI.
You can find the demo here.
e-scape // Drive Me to the Moon
e-scape is a zen nature experience game that sees you explore an abandoned virtual world, and a virtual love letter to the bygone online worlds of the 2000s. Drive Me to the Moon on the other hand is a tiny open-world driving game with a romantic twist. Both are developed by the talented Olivia Haines.
You can find the demos here.
Susurrus
A narrative adventure game created by winner of the ACMI + RMIT Games Prize, Caleb Noeller, in collaboration with Sarah Carlton. Explore a foreign country as Bo, who teams up with his friend Asha to help find Bo’s archaeologist uncle who has mysteriously gone missing.
You can find the demo here.
Mars First Logistics
An open-world physics simulator set on the surface of Mars developed by Ian MacLarty. Your task is to build robots, gather materials and help deliver unwieldy resources to other space colonies, and explore the hostile environment using any and all tools at your disposal.
You can find the demo here.
Call of the Golden Valley
A first-person modern murder mystery by O’Saurus Studios, set in the High Country of Victoria. After a magpie postpones your trip to America, a friend asks you to go look for her missing brother in a regional town – travel to Phillipston, interview locals and uncover clues. Also, did I mention magpies?
You can find the demo here.
Butterfly Dollhouse
Explore a dollhouse as your beloved doll Vanessa to solve puzzles and find secrets left behind by your grandmother.
Created by ACMI+RMIT Games Prize runner up Chase Profeca, along with team members Jessica Schembri, Jessica Tuohey, Joshua Bowyer and Jam Walker. The game features a player exploring a dollhouse to uncover secrets and solve adorable puzzles.
You can find the demo here.
Big Games Night In is running from October 2–9 as part of the Melbourne International Games Week. Let us know what games you check out in the comments.
Chantelle McColl is a writer based in Melbourne, Narrm, who specialises in video games and analysing how they convey memorable narratives and experiences. Dabbling in indie genres like platformers, Metroidvanias and all games story-rich, Chantelle is always on the lookout for the next experimental game. You can find her work on Checkpoint Gaming, Byteside, ScreenHub Australia and on Twitter.
