With October around the corner, players will be able to start downloading the set of games for the month's Xbox Live Games with Gold. Compared to past months, there will be a more Halloween-themed lineup for the service, which will match the fall holiday.
Naturally, there are plenty of games people want on the Xbox's Games with Gold next month, but the slate of games revealed was selected with the season in mind. The games include the slasher-themed Slayaway Camp: Butcher's Cut, the first-person Maid of Sker, Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy, inspired by Ancient Egypt; and Costume Quest, which features trick-or-treat battles taking place on Halloween. Each game is free for a specific window, some starting on October 1, and others later in the month. All will be available to players with an active subscription to Xbox Live Gold.
Subscribers with Xbox Live Gold membership and the Game Pass Ultimate will have full access to all the games, but two of these games have been released one day before the month starts. The two games available now are Slayaway Camp: Butcher's Cut and the original Xbox game Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy.
Slayaway Camp puts players in the role of Skullface, a slasher determined to get his revenge on camp counselors of the titular campground in a comic homage to 80's slasher movies. Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy is a third-person action-adventure largely inspired by Egyptian mythology where players are the titular demi-god Sphinx and a prince-turned-mummy on a quest through ancient Egypt.
Both titles are currently available on the Microsoft Store, which players can use to claim the games. However, only Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy appears to be free with the "Gold Exclusive," while Slayaway Camp still has the regular price showing on the Microsoft Store, but can currently be claimed through the Xbox for free. There doesn't seem to be a specific reason why these two games are available one day early, but the release windows still remain the same. September's Games with Gold certainly had its quirks, and it looks like October will have its own, starting with these two early games.
It's too soon to tell whether this is an error with Xbox Live or a deliberate move from Microsoft, but it's possible there will be a response to the situation soon. Whatever the case, this development is certainly an odd one right before October comes around.
Source: Slayaway Camp: Butcher's Cut, Sphinx and the Cursed Mummy