The holiday season is fast approaching and the months are becoming so packed with new game releases that we need to get picky when compiling our monthly list of the best upcoming games.
October is bringing two sequels of huge first-person shooters, another Lego game where you actually build things, and a disturbing yet masterfully crafted body horror adventure.
Sports fans are getting the annual versions of the biggest licensed hockey and golf simulators, while Nintendo Switch owners have two exclusive releases to get excited about.
All in all, plenty of new games to go through as we unwrap our list of the biggest and best games releasing in October 2022.
Overwatch 2
The highly-anticipated sequel to Blizzard’s hit hero shooter is finally coming this month. The new game will replace the original one entirely and, unlike its predecessor, Overwatch 2 will be free to play.
Overwatch 2 is bringing new modes, new maps, redesigned heroes, and three new additions to the character roster – Sojourn, Junker Queen, and Kiriko.
Now that the game is free to play, new heroes will be locked behind a battle pass, and newcomers that haven’t played the original Overwatch will have to gradually unlock old characters and modes, too.
Blizzard has revealed an Overwatch 2 content roadmap, with new seasons starting every nine weeks and bringing plenty of new heroes, skins, maps, and modes. The game’s long-awaited PvE mode is also coming sometime in 2023.
Overwatch 2 releases on Oct. 4 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
Lego Bricktales
Lego Bricktales is a puzzle adventure game that takes place in five gorgeous diorama biomes crafted from Lego bricks. Your task is to help the minifigures inhabiting these worlds by solving puzzles that put your building skills to the test.
Throughout your journey, you unlock additional skills that let you explore the worlds further and discover even more secrets and collectibles. The game also features a Sandbox Mode letting you go back to contraptions you’ve already built and improve them to your liking with additional bricks.
Lego Bricktales is coming on Oct. 12 to PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC.
NHL 23
After the latest Madden NFL and FIFA games, EA Sports is releasing its annual licensed hockey sim, NHL 23, and the new version brings mixed women’s and men’s teams to Hockey Ultimate Team mode, among other tweaks and improvements.
A post-launch update, coming in November 2022, will also add cross-platform matchmaking for players on the same platform generation in HUT and online World of Chel modes.
As usual, EA has revealed the top player ratings from the men’s league ahead of the game’s launch, and we’ve also got the top-rated women’s league players.
NHL 23 will be out Oct. 14 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and Xbox One.
PGA Tour 2K23
On the same day NHL 23 is coming, we are also getting the latest PGA Tour 2K23, the second licensed golf video game under the 2K Sports brand.
Tiger Woods is gracing the game’s cover which marks his first appearance since 2013 when he last lent his name and likeness to a licensed PGA Tour game, then made by rival EA Sports.
The golfing legend is of course playable in PGA Tour 2K23 and he also served as executive director, bringing his knowledge and expertise to refine the virtual golfing experience.
Players who pre-order the Deluxe or Tiger Woods Editions can jun into the game several days early, on Oct. 11, 2022, and these two editions include the Michael Jordan Bonus Pack, which lets you play as MJ himself. Pre-orders of the Standard Edition will also come with His Airness DLC included.
PGA Tour 2K23 releases on Oct. 14 for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
Scorn
Scorn is a first-person horror adventure game set in a nightmarish world inspired by H.R. Giger’s surreal biomechanical art style we know (and love) from the Alien movies.
You’re thrown into a disgusting and hostile environment made of bones and decaying organic matter. The horrifying and mysterious world is non-linear and composed of different interconnected regions, each with it’s own story and things to do.
Behind the unsettling visuals is a game of exploration and puzzle-solving. You roam the fleshy corridos and insert your limbs in scary-looking contraptions and weapons, searching for answers about the game’s world and your place in it.
The game is a timed Xbox and PC exclusive and won’t be coming to previous-gen consoles. Also, we’ll be getting our hands on it earlier as the original Oct. 21 release date got moved up by one week. You can take a look at our Scorn preview to get a feel for its spooky atmosphere.
Scorn is releasing on Oct. 14 for Xbox Series X|S, and PC.
Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope
Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope is the sequel to Ubisoft’s 2017 Mario + Rabbids Kingdom Battle which successfully merged the worlds of Mario and Ubi’s own Raving Rabbids in an XCOM-like turn-based tactical game.
Sparks of Hope promises to be bigger, better, and – as creative director David Soliani told GLHF – “more dynamic” than its predecessor. The new game brings improvements to combat, expanded exploration, and plenty of content to play through. Also, the sequel will see the Rabbids speak for the first time ever.
We had a hands-on with the game, so you can check our Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope preview for more details.
Mario + Rabbids: Sparks of Hope arrives Oct. 20 exclusively for the Switch.
Gotham Knights
Gotham Knights, the highly-anticipated followup to the Arkham Trilogy, is finally just around the corner, after being delayed last year.
The game is set in a Gotham City that’s falling apart following the death of Batman, and tells the story of his successor vigilantes, Nightwing, Robin, and Batgirl, teaming up with Red Hood to take on a criminal cult known as the Court of Owls.
Gotham Knights is an open-world, action RPG and is expected to play similarly to its highly successful Arkham predecessors. Also, the latest trailer for the PC version looks spectacular.
Gotham Knights is slated for an Oct. 21 release for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC
New Tales from the Borderlands
New Tales from the Borderlands is another episodic graphic adventure game in the Tales from the Borderlands series, which itself spun off from the Borderlands role-playing FPS games.
The new game was announced at this year’s Gamescom Opening Night Live and we know that it will offer a brand-new story set in the Borderlands universe with a fresh character roster.
New Tales is a choice-based narrative adventure, where you explore the world and make dialogue choices to influence the story. You take control of three protagonists – Anu, Octavio, and Fran – as they fight against sinister agents, monsters, and criminals on the invaded planet of Promethea.
The original Tales from the Borderlands is bundled with the Deluxe Edition of the new game and pre-orders will be coming with the Adventure Capital Pack featuring in-game cosmetics and currency.
New Tales from the Borderlands releases on Oct. 21 for PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC.
Bayonetta 3
It is hard to believe that Bayonetta 3 is coming this month, as fans have been waiting for a sequel ever since 2014, when Bayonetta 2 arrived.
In the new action-adventure game, the titular character will be helped by her alternate versions and an Umbra Witch in-training named Viola, in a quest to defeat mysterious threats, known as Homunculi.
The latest Bayonetta 3 gameplay trailer, presented at the September Nintendo Direct, looks very promising, showing off exciting combat moves, new abilities, and Infernal Demons summoning.
Bayonetta 3 is releasing on Oct. 28 exclusively for the Switch.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2
Whether you are into shooters or not, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is shaping up as the biggest release of the month. The new game in Activision’s flagship FPS series is a direct sequel to 2019’s Modern Warfare reboot and brings a ton of welcome gameplay improvements.
The ninth game in the Call of Duty series will boast an advanced AI system in the campaign and co-op modes, swimming mechanics, and overhauled vehicle gameplay.
Multiplayer comes with several new modes: Knockout, where two teams try to capture a package with limited lives, and Prisoner Rescue, a new hostage extraction mode.
Pre-orders are granting early access to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s campaign up to a week before launch.
Despite uncertainty around the franchise’s future on PlayStation consoles amid Microsoft’s acquisition of Activision Blizzard, Modern Warfare 2 is getting a wide release that includes PS5 and PS4, and Sony’s platforms will continue to receive Activision Blizzard games for the time being.
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 is launching on Oct. 28 on PS5, Xbox Series X|S, PS4, Xbox One, and PC.
Written by Stoyan Ovcharov on behalf of GLHF.
