October 2 - 8

  Felix “Wafer Thin Mint” Threepaper

Welcome folks, and happy “73rd Anniversary of the first Peanuts comic strip” week!

On 2 October 1950, Peanuts appeared as a comic strip in 7 newspapers. Charles Schulz had already been publishing comics for a few years under the title “L’il Folks”, but in those comics he featured little kids without naming them or using recurring characters. With the rebrand to Peanuts, he stuck with the same set of named characters and adopted the 4-panel format that would become standard for newspaper comics for years to come. Peanuts went on to run for 50 years, making it arguably the longest story ever told by one person. You may all celebrate by playing a game with unskippable cutscenes.

This week is crammed full of AAA heavyweights and indies galore.

You could end 2023 today and it would still arguably be the biggest year for games of this generation. October is packed so full of games that it will put it beyond doubt. As we hurtle towards the holiday purchasing maelstrom, there is little leeway for delays. The game devs can hear the wallets opening and want a piece of that action. As the song says, the games start coming and they don’t stop coming.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage must be the first mainline Assassin’s Creed game that is selling itself on being smaller than before. Odyssey and Valhalla had huge maps, sprawling stories, and long DLCs that bolted a whole ‘nother 30 hours onto each. Mirage looks more like a sequel to an Ezio-era game. Set in Baghdad in 861, it’s a smaller but more densely-packed location. Combat has been taken back to the “counter, attack, dodge” framework of the Ezio games. Each enemy is a threat and being outnumbered is dangerous, instead of encounters where enemy level predetermines whether a fight is impossible or a cakewalk. There’s also a renewed emphasis on stealth. If you’re not already burnt out on Assassin’s Creed, this could be a welcome return to the formula that put the franchise on the map, before the feature bloat set in.

The Lamplighters League is a Microsoft ‘sclusy by the devs of Battletech. It’s turn-based tactics, XCOM-style, with a 1930s aesthetic and a stealth component. Usually in XCOM, you can start in stealth but once you go loud, you stay loud for the rest of the mission. In Lamplighters League, you stealth around a portion of a level to do recon and prepare, enter turn-based mode for a self-contained skirmish that doesn’t alert the whole map, then re-enter stealth until you engage the next group. Also, your squaddies have different skill sets available when in and out of stealth. The last time we saw turn-based tactics with a pre-war feel was Empire of Sin, but that was more tied to Prohibition, whereas this has fantasy elements, magic and a broader sense of adventure. Instead of building a criminal empire, your squad is taking on a bunch of sinister, supernatural factions, more like Indiana Jones.

Bilkins' Folly is an indie adventure game—the first game by Aussie devs, Webbysoft. You’re a boy and his dog who are shipwrecked on a pirate-infested island while searching for their missing family. It’s got a 2D Zelda vibe as you explore the map, meet people, do quests, find dungeons and solve puzzles. As you repair your boat, further islands open up for exploration. The puzzles are straightforward rather than relying on old-school adventure game logic: you will get through with genuine thinking and using your tools, rather than just smooshing all your inventory items together until something works.

Trepang2 is a port of an indie horror shooter that you probably missed when it originally dropped in June (I certainly did). It’s big on jump scares and boss fights that play out across a whole level, without bogging you down with lore dumps and expositional walking. You also get a “Sparta” kick, which is a great addition to any game.

The Godfeather : A Mafia Pigeon Saga is all about poopin and swoopin. You control your boid in a top-down view, with various missions that involve poopin on stuff, or swoopin down to save your pigeon cronies and hiding in trees to avoid the police.

Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless is the Western release of this entry, that takes the series into tactical, isometric territory. Jump in for the highest maximum stats in RPGs.

Detective Pikachu Returns is a sequel to a popular 3DS game. Detective Pikachu and his human sidekick will solve a bunch of mysteries, but if you get stuck, there’s a Story Jump Mode where you can skip ahead, even right to the end if you want.

Survivor: Castaway Island is the 4th attempt to make a game out of Survivor. It’s also a reskin of a French-made Survivor knockoff series, called Koh-Lanta. The day is split up into different events, giving you a chance each day to forage, interact with your tribe around camp and do challenges. Your chance to get along with your tribemates can be dictated more by the RNG gods that determine their personality traits than your choices, which maybe a little truer to the game but can also mean you get stuck in a bad position with no way to get back. The upshot is that while it’s the best Survivor game, it may not be that great of a game.

It’s a tough week to pick a GOTW. Not for the lack of games, but because I already feel as full as Mr Creosote (a reference which turns 40 years old this year). It would be easy to give it to Assassin’s Creed Mirage, but my Creed burnout is real, especially after the many, many hours I put in to finish Odyssey and Valhalla. Instead, The Lamplighters League ticks many of my favourite boxes. I love this mid-tier niche of tactical, turn-based games and am also a sucker for when they are in different settings than medieval fantasy or alien scifi. Even though it’s on the systems I don’t use, it’s the one I’d most like to play. GOTW.

Here's the list, in release-date AND alphabetical order!

PC

• 10-02

• A Promise Best Left Unkept
• Bilkins' Folly
• Bomber Party
• Chain
• Chapel 3-D: The Ascent
• Cosmos: Stella Returns
• Death Lease
• Death Unphased
• Devexus
• Dinky Guardians
• Hidden City Top-Down 3D
• Highland Panic
• In His Time
• Internet Cafe Mini Games 10 in 1
• Ion Fury: Aftershock
• IOO
• Lair of Torment
• Medieval Remembrance
• MeiQi 2021
• My Ex-future Family
• Pact of the Ancients - 3D Bara Action RPG
• Quasimorphosis
• RAINBOW CREAM SAGA
• Rising Dead
• Stardander
• The Windows Are Gone
• Tricky Typing
• Two Moon : Space Rabbit
• University Massacre
• Vlad Voievod Dracula. Episode 1 Manhunt
• Yogurt: Wet Dreams
• ZED Patrol

• 10-03

• 100 Halloweens
• Battle Shapers
• Blitz Guard
• BloodMoon
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless
• Explosive Madness
• Game Dev Masters
• Gehinnom
• Habroxia
• High on Life: High on Knife
• IGNISTONE
• Internet addicted youth 2005
• Iron Dungeon
• Only Multiplayer: Up!
• Ragnarok Survivors: Valhalla
• Silent Hope
• Station to Station
• Sundermead
• Survivor: Castaway Island
• The Lamplighters League
• Trolley Delayma

• 10-04

• A Tiny Sticker Tale
• Blue Ribbon Bake Off
• Cassette Beasts: Pier of the Unknown
• Dinobreak
• dotAGE
• Garden of Seif: Chronicles of an Assassin
• Hidden Prototype Top-Down 3D
• Hidden Western Frontier Top-Down 3D
• Idle Catfarmia
• Mercenaries of the Kingdom
• Pea Pod Power
• The Fabulous Fear Machine
• Thief Simulator 2: Prologue
• True Colours
• Wordless

• 10-05

• Ooblets
• The Godfeather : A Mafia Pigeon Saga

Xbox Series X

• 10-02

• Trepang2

• 10-03

• BATTLE OF REBELS
• High on Life: High on Knife
• Survivor: Castaway Island
• Synergia
• The Lamplighters League

• 10-04

• Blossom Tales 2: The Minotaur Prince
• Cassette Beasts: Pier of the Unknown
• Dinobreak
• Diorama Dungeoncrawl
• Warhammer 40,000: Darktide
• Wordless

• 10-05

• Assassin's Creed Mirage
• Bang-On Balls: Chronicles
• Knight vs Giant: The Broken Excalibur
• The Sisters 2: Road to Fame

• 10-06

• NHL 24
• Sunshine Manor
• Sword Art Online: Last Recollection

Xbox One

• 10-03

• High on Life: High on Knife
• Survivor: Castaway Island

• 10-04

• Blossom Tales 2: The Minotaur Prince
• Cassette Beasts: Pier of the Unknown
• Diorama Dungeoncrawl
• Wordless

• 10-05

• Assassin's Creed Mirage
• The Sisters 2: Road to Fame

• 10-06

• NHL 24
• Project Blue
• Sunshine Manor
• Sword Art Online: Last Recollection
• Torn Away

PlayStation 5

• 10-02

• Bilkins' Folly
• Trepang2

• 10-03

• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless
• High on Life: High on Knife
• Pixel Ripped 1995
• Scorn
• Survivor: Castaway Island
• Synergia

• 10-04

• Dinobreak
• Diorama Dungeoncrawl
• Wordless

• 10-05

• Assassin's Creed Mirage
• Cricket 24: Official Game of The Ashes
• Knight vs Giant: The Broken Excalibur
• The Sisters 2: Road to Fame

• 10-06

• Horizon Forbidden West: Complete Edition
• NHL 24
• Sunshine Manor
• Sword Art Online: Last Recollection

PlayStation 4

• 10-02

• Bilkins' Folly

• 10-03

• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless
• High on Life: High on Knife
• Survivor: Castaway Island

• 10-04

• Diorama Dungeoncrawl
• Wordless

• 10-05

• Assassin's Creed Mirage
• Bang-On Balls: Chronicles
• Cricket 24: Official Game of The Ashes
• The Sisters 2: Road to Fame

• 10-06

• Lord Winklebottom Investigates
• NHL 24
• Sunshine Manor
• Sword Art Online: Last Recollection

Nintendo Switch

• 10-02

• Bilkins' Folly
• Madfarmer: Lost Kingdoms and Crazy Critters

• 10-03

• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Delinquent, Curry Lover, and Lady Overlord
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Honor Student, Final Boss, and Ex-President
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Hothead, Princess, and Dreamer
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Instructor, Steward, and Fallen Angel of Love
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Kind Demon, Singing Princess, and Thief Angel
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Overlord, Demon Lord, and Sheltered Girl
• Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless - Bonus Story: The Zombie Sibs and Angel Little Sister
• Elder Story
• PAINT PRO for KIDS 0+
• PictoPull
• Silent Hope
• Survivor: Castaway Island
• World of Outlaws: Dirt Racing

• 10-04

• A Tiny Sticker Tale
• Cassette Beasts: Pier of the Unknown
• Dinobreak
• Diorama Dungeoncrawl
• Treachery in Beatdown City: Ultra Remix
• UDO
• Wordless

• 10-05

• AEW: Fight Forever - HOOKHAUSEN: Very Handsome, Very Evil
• Bang-On Balls: Chronicles
• Black Witchcraft
• Cafe Master Story
• Fabled Lands
• Family Games
• Front Mission 2 Remake
• Kissa Blend Monogatari
• Knight vs Giant: The Broken Excalibur
• Machigai Sagashi Dai Sousa-sen
• My Little Universe
• schleich Puzzles FARM WORLD
• The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope
• The Sisters 2: Road to Fame
• Wargroove 2

• 10-06

• Aquarium Land
• Borderlands 3: Ultimate Edition
• Detective Pikachu Returns
• Freaky Trip
• Jinsei Game for Nintendo Switch
• Mario Kart 8 Deluxe + Course Tsuika Pass
• Merge Master
• Park Racer
• Pirates on Target
• Project Blue
• Shy Cats Hidden Orchestra
• Sunshine Manor
• The Pale Beyond

• 10-07

• Hyper Gym Life 3D - Tough Guys