October 2 – Bilkins’ Folly (PS5/PS4/Switch/PC)
October 3 – Diagaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless (PS5/PS4/Switch/PC)
October 3 – Scorn (PS5)
October 4 – Warhammer 40,000: Darktide (Xbox Series X)
October 4 – Wordless (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Xbox One/Switch/PC)
October 5 – Forza Motorsport Premium Edition (Xbox Series X|S/PC)
October 5 – Ghost Signal: A StellarisGame (PSVR2/PC)
October 5 – Assassin’s Creed Mirage (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Xbox One/PC)
October 5 – FRONT MISSION 2 Remake (Switch)
October 5 – Wargroove (Switch/PC)
October 6 – Sword Art Online: Last Recollection (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Xbox One/PC)
October 6 – Detective Pikachu Returns (Switch)
October 10 – Forza Motorsport (Xbox Series X|S/PC)
October 10 – Lil Gator Game (Xbox Series X|S)
October 11 – Honkai: Star Rail (PS5)
October 13 – Lords of the Fallen (2023) (PS5/Xbox Series X|S/PC)
October 19 – Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Xbox
One/Switch/PC)
October 19 – Gargoyles Remastered (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Xbox One/Switch/PC)
October 20 – Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 (PS5)
October 20 – Super Mario Bros. Wonder (Switch)
October 24 – Cities: Skylines 2 (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Xbox One/PC)
October 24 – Metal Gear Solid: Master Collection Vol. 1 (PS5/PS4/Xbox Series X|S/Switch/PC)
October 24 – The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria (PS5/PC)
October 26 – Ghostrunner 2 (PS5/Xbox Series X|S/PC)
October 27 – Alan Wake II (PS5/Xbox Series X|S/PC)
October 31 – Jusant (PS5/Xbox Series X|S/PC)
Hmm? What’s that? You wanted a break from game releases? Carn’, mate. Lean in.
With the deluge of RPGs largely out of the way we move into a month absolutely dripping in action and vibes. Two of New York’s finest are launching on the same day, with Nintendo beginning its Switch swan song and Sony dropping one of the most anticipated open-worlds of the year. Alan has woken back up too, this time with the benefit of Remedy’s years of abstract game design and a new protagonist. There’s yet another Soulslike, a litany of remasters, Aussie treats, French delights, and more cars than you can shift a gear at. We’ve never been more Jorts.
James
I am absolutely fanging for Alan Wake II. The first major release in a hot minute that I have actively said no to covering so that I could simply sit and enjoy it, like the days of gaming old. It’s Americana-infused horror schtick already had me on board but the addition of a whole new protagonist and even meta-ier writing solidifies it as the game to watch this October. Speaking of solid things, that there Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1 looks the goods too. Exhaustive frame rate debates aside, it’s good to finally see these games made readily available on modern hardware.
I often feel like Homer strapped into that doughnut-feeding machine in Hell when it comes to Soulslikes, a perplexed devil looking on as I unashamedly go to town on as many as this industry can feed me. But fuck, man, Lords of the Fallen has me hyped. An overly designed European metal horror aesthetic colliding with the team’s vision of essentially a fourth Dark Souls AND co-op? Mate. Assassin’s Creed Mirage is also trying to do the impossible and please Assassin’s Creed fans with a specifically built to their desires entry that could honestly go either way, but I’m keenly awaiting the outcome of that leap of faith. And Jusant looks ju-sweet.
Nathan
Goodness, this month could break me, so I’m going to try and keep these jorts tight and cut the circulation around my overflowing enthusiasm for this tidal wave of releases. Based on what I think will fly under the radar for the rest of the team, here’s what’s got me dizzy.
Despite 2021’s Disgaea 6 being a tad underwhelming due to its tepid progression and nonsensical stat integers making the ordeal a bit bloated, Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless looks like a confident refresh of the classic strategy roleplaying game that is now set in a feudal Japan hell. Delightful.
My desire is to appreciate two upcoming franchise instalments belonging to series that my fiancé has happily forsaken me for, months at a time. Cities Skylines is getting its number two sequel for PC on October 24. Not only did she boast for months about her 64 gigabytes of RAM she acquired to load 100 mods simultaneously, I can also look forward to her plotting out transport networks deep into the morning. The only thing keeping these sheets moist is my lone perspiration as Spring heats up. Similarly, my dearest will play the armchair general in any given Total War, running various campaigns of terror as she indulges her inner tyrant. As an ancient Civs nerd, I wouldn’t mind scratching that itch myself in ancient Egypt with Total War: Pharaoh.
Strangely for me, the final three game of note are multiplayer games. This means there is little to no chance of me playing them, but I maintain an ambition to squeeze into the social gaming denims I sported in my youth. The standout of October is Deep Rock Moria, or The Lord of The Rings: Return To Moria. A survival crafter set in the dangerous depths of the titular mine, you and your mates will dwarf-up with the necessary mining tools and carve out your existence and exploitation of these depths. Then there is XDefiant, supposedly a tight COD-like flavoured by Ubisoft properties that might just manage to stay live for longer than 12 months. We all slept on the beta here at WellPlayed. And finally, a timely remake-slash-remaster of one of the biggest games to show off the early Unreal 4 engine, Ark: Survival Ascended. The Dino Riders-themes survival crafter is now going to be a showcase for the relatively new Unreal 5 engine, in the leadup to the sequel starring Vin Diesel.
Mark
Look, I could go on and on about how jam-packed this month is, how there’s a new Mario game to get all jazzed up about, or the fact that Alan freaking Wake is back at it. But the truth is, there’s only one game that I’m itching at the bit to get my hands on. It’s a character I’ve connected with the most, not because of his heroics but because of his heart. Peter Parker means so much more to me than most people may ever understand, he’s an everyday kid (granted, from Queens not Perth) given an incredible responsibility that continually gets pulled left and right but still manages to hold things together.
The first Insomniac Spider-Man left me very satisfied, combining an open world I loved swinging through and a story that matched some of the best comic book and movie encounters so far. Miles Morales followed that up by reinventing what it means to be the wall crawler. Now, Spider-Man 2 has the chance to finally do the Venom arc justice within an established formula of heart-pulling moments and high-octane action. To say I’m excited is an understatement, my hopes are so high I don’t feel there’s any chance Parker and Co. can let me down.
Adam
You know what, I refuse to be bullied by a slate of releases. A packed month of big-budget launches doesn’t scare me, in fact, I’m sitting here laughing at my colleague’s fear of October.
What’s that? There are a dozen titles that I want to play in the span of 31 days? Jesus.
Yeah alright, we’ve all blown enough smoke up October’s arse, let’s get down to business because we clearly don’t have any time to waste.
No bait and switches here, the heavy-hitter that kicks off the silly season is Marvel’s Spider-Man 2, without question. Having Pete and Miles as dual protagonists was the natural next step, and being able to switch between them on the fly is going to be awesome. I could drone on about the excitement surrounding the story and the new abilities that the black suit will offer, but we’re all friends here, and we’re all excited for this game, so it’s nothing you don’t already know.
With the top dog out of the way, let’s look at a few games that I think will be sleeper hits. Jusant, from DON’T NOD looked gorgeous in its debut trailer, and the promise of a calm climbing game sounds like something that October desperately needs. That and bouldering is all kinds of popular now, for some reason, so why not jump on the bandwagon?
In the interest of keeping things short, I’ll end with a spooky game, because it’s Halloween season after all. Many of you will already know about/have played Phasmophobia, but what better way to ratchet up the tension in an already terrifying game than to bring it to VR. Using all of the flashy equipment to hunt down spectres with your friends in virtual reality sounds like a nightmare come true and I can’t wait to be too scared to play it.
What games are you keen for in October? Have you ever, ever felt like this? Had strange things happen? Be sure to let us know in the comments below and on social media.
