The Next Level: The Games of October 2011

Welcome back my friends to the show that never ends, come inside, come inside… because it’s getting cold out and there are games to play. There are men in costumes fighting scary clowns, zombies in the center ring, and an angry bunch of mutants all under this vaulted big top. There’s also racing cars and dark souls and Kinectimals with bears, on my! Great Scott! The future certainly looks full of great games…

John Scalzo
Editor-In-Chief
We’re really getting into the Fall gaming season now. October starts with a flaming angry spider and ends with a bat and a cat beating up a clown. Score! OK, allow me to explain.

In the early part of the month we’ve got EA’s downloadable NBA Jam: On Fire Edition. Then there’s the first game from id Software in over seven years, the Mad Max/Fallout mashup known as Rage. And then there’s the latest Spider-Man game, Spider-Man: Edge of Time, which once again features multiple Spider-Men in a time-travelling tale of titanic tumulte. Excelsior!

Finally, the month of October brings us Batman: Arkham City, which expands the Dark Knight’s base of operations outside Arkham and into a walled off section of Gotham known as “Arkham City.” And once he’s inside, he’ll have to deal with The Joker, Catwoman, Mr. Freeze and more members of his rogue’s gallery.

Nicole Kline
Senior Editor
Truth be told, there’s not a whole lot I’m looking forward to this October. I’m excited to play Crysis on my PlayStation 3 for sure, and eager to be able to say that it can run Crysis! After that, I might finally play Crysis 2, which has been pouting at me for ages. The other only thing I even want to play this month is Batman: Arkham City. The first game blew my mind, and I’m really looking forward to whatever the developers have added in this time. Other than all that, I’m wrapping up previous purchases Resistance 3 as well as the Ico & Shadow of the Colossus Collection. A gamer’s life is never boring.

Ryan Littlefield
Podcast Producer
Thankfully for me, October will be slipping by quietly until the very end. I could use a little time to catch up before the end of the month hits. Coming up first for me will be the long-awaited Professor Layton and the Last Specter, which is awesome in that it includes “London Life,” a full Earthbound-inspired RPG – apparently as lengthy as 100 hours! Next up will be Batman: Arkham City and Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One. I’m guessing that one of these games will be making the wait until the holiday season, and my guess is that it won’t be the caped crusader. Kirby’s Return to Dream Land may end up being an impulse purchase even though I should really hold off on it. It just looks so fun. Of course, passing up Battlefield 3 this month won’t be a fun chore either. We’ll see what actually ends up in my collection this month and what will have to wait. And like a bad TV special, I leave you to “Find out next time on… the November edition of What! We’re! Playing!” *crowd applause*

John Martin
Staff Writer
Octobeard is upon us! To revel in this manly month, I’m set to play Batman: Arkham City! I’m hoping that Mark Hamill’s voice will provide the aural vibrations needed to stimulate the growth of thick facial hair. Armed with a beard, I’ll jump right into Battlefield 3 and unleash a vehicular onslaught of epic proportions on my enemies. The current beta’s more than enough to whet my appetite for destruction. I’m not sure if my body can withstand the masculine power of just these two games, but if I have any strength left, I’ll try my hand at Dark Souls. I’m debating whether or not to play a drinking game where I take a shot every time I die. I’d probably die in real life. To wind down from all of this hardcore violence, I plan on selling my soul to the 3DS version of Harvest Moon: The Tale of Two Towns. Farm life beckons. Gonna grow some crops. Gonna grow a beard. ROCKTOBER!

Chris Urie
Staff Writer
October ushers in a creepy month full of demons and clowns. Dark Souls is going to rip my soul out through my mouth and feast on what is left of my poor little gamer ego. I am up for a challenge and hopefully Dark Souls can bring the pain. Next on the agenda is Batman: Arkham City. The original was such a huge surprise for me and I enjoyed it with bone crunching pleasure. I am salivating at the prospect of slipping back into the Dark Knight’s shoes to mercilessly punch, kick, and swoop my way through the streets of Gotham once again. Hopefully I won’t get too into the game and decide to unearth my old Batman costume for Halloween. I wonder if it still fits?

Adam Woolcott
West Coast Editor
It’s hard to imagine, but there’s only one game that really interests me this month, and that’s Forza Motorsport 4. Since the series debuted in 2005, every single game in the franchise has impressed and improved over the previous entry (though I still want a lot of the fantasy courses from the first game to make their return). Forza Motorsport 3 is such a deep game that I’m still playing through all the single-player races… and now here comes the fourth game! Needless to day, the game itself could last me the entire winter and I probably wouldn’t notice. Regardless, October being so quiet for me is a good thing – especially with the looming monster called November.

Continue on to the next page for a complete look at the October release schedule.

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