Highlights
- 2023 has been a busy year for gaming, with highly anticipated releases like Starfield and Baldur's Gate 3, and plenty more to come.
- The period between October 17th and October 24th is packed with new games, including Sonic Superstars, Marvel's Spider-Man 2, and Super Mario Bros. Wonder.
- While exciting, the dense release window may be overwhelming for some players who are already busy with other successful games like Baldur's Gate 3 and Starfield.
With so many impressive, highly anticipated games released this year, it can be hard to believe that there is still more to come. Not every upcoming 2023 game will have the massive scope of games like Starfield or Baldur's Gate 3, but there are plenty that will undoubtedly be among the biggest releases of the year, with many anxiously awaited titles dropping within the same seven-day period in October. To say that 2023 has been a busy year for gaming would be a massive understatement.
The year started strong, with big-name releases like the Dead Space remake and Hogwarts Legacy alongside sleeper hits like Hi-Fi Rush, and things kept picking up from there. 2023's spring season was the backdrop for the Resident Evil 4 remake, Dredge, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty, Star Wars Jedi: Survivor, and Tears of the Kingdom. The trend of highly-rated titles continued with games like Mortal Kombat 1, Armored Core 6, and GOTY contenders Baldur's Gate 3 and Starfield. Gamers may be barely recovering from those games, along with recent releases like Lies of P and Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, but 2023 doesn't seem to be slowing down.
October 17–October 24 Will be a Week Packed with New Games
Anyone still knee-deep in Starfield or Baldur's Gate 3 may want to pick up the pace, as mid-October is going to be rapid-firing hyped-up, promising video games. The month begins and ends with highly anticipated titles like Assassin's Creed: Mirage and Alan Wake 2, but the period between the 17th and the 24th is the densest.
The busy period will start off with a bang, ushering in a brand-new Sonic game, Sonic Superstars. The next few days will rapid-fire indie releases like Wizard with a Gun, Endless Dungeon, and Gargoyles Remastered before two of the year's biggest games release on the same day. October 20 will see the launch of both Marvel's Spider-Man 2 and Super Mario Bros. Wonder, making it a significant day for both Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5 owners. Things will cool off a bit after the 20th, but only marginally, as other games like the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection Vol. 1, The Lord of the Rings: Return to Moria, and the sequel to the cult classic City Skylines will all launch on October 24.
Whether someone is looking forward to polished AAA experiences like Marvel's Spider-Man 2, charming indies like Wizard with a Gun, or classic games such as those included in the Metal Gear Solid Master Collection, the middle of October will have something to offer. Indeed, it seems like just about any gamer will find interest in at least one game releasing during the seven-day window of the 17th to the 24th. So many high-profile releases dropping during the same handful of days is certainly exciting and doesn't happen often.
By that same token, though, this packed release window could be overwhelming to some players. As previously noted, 2023 has seen no shortage of successful games, and time-consuming releases like Baldur's Gate 3 and Starfield have been eating up many gamers' schedules. For those passionate about different types of games, who want to play a wide array of the year's releases, jamming so many hotly anticipated titles into the same short period can feel like a bit too much.
Of course, this is not the worst problem to have. The best games of 2023 aren't going anywhere, and it will be nice for gamers to have a backlog to return to when the industry has more dry periods. There have been some swirls of negativity surrounding the state of big-budget gaming in the modern era, but looking at the fantastic 2023 games on offer, it's hard to argue that things aren't going well for gamers.