September 2018 was a busy month for games, seeing the release of a number of critically-acclaimed titles including Dragon Quest 11: Echoes of an Elusive Age and of course, the PS4-exclusive Spider-Man from Insomniac Games. However, if gamers thought September was a busy month, then they're going to be completely blown away by October, which stands to be the busiest month for gaming in all of 2018.

Considering the sheer amount of content releasing this month, it's not surprising that some people may have a hard time keeping track of it all. For those who are looking to add some games, betas, or special events to their calendars, here are all the biggest game releases, betas, and events for the gaming industry in October 2018.

Big Game Releases

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October is typically the busiest month for game releases, and this year is no different. In fact, there are four games releasing this week alone that could all be considered fairly high profile, including Assassin's Creed Odyssey and Super Mario Party on Friday, October 5th. Overall, October 2018 is dominated by blockbuster, triple-A game releases, including Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, which is likely to be the best-selling game of the year, and the highly anticipated Red Dead Redemption 2, which will hit stores on October 26th.

Between Black Ops 4 and Red Dead Redemption 2 are a number of games that may not be quite as popular, but all stand a chance of making a name for themselves this month. This includes games like Starlink: Battle for Atlas, which has gotten more attention thanks to its Star Fox-crossover content, and Soulcalibur 6, which is coming off the heels of a relatively successful online network test.

Here are the biggest games releasing in October 2018:

  • Forza Horizon 4 (PC/Xbox One) - October 2nd
  • Mega Man 11 (PC/PS4/Switch/Xbox One) - October 2nd
  • Assassin's Creed Odyssey (PC/PS4/Xbox One) - October 5th
  • Super Mario Party (Switch) - October 5th
  • WWE 2K19 (PC/PS4/Xbox One) - October 9th
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (PC/PS4/Xbox One) - October 12th
  • LEGO DC Super-Villains (PC/PS4/Switch/Xbox One) - October 16th
  • Starlink: Battle for Atlas (PS4/Switch/Xbox One) - October 16th
  • Soulcalibur 6 (PC/PS4/Xbox One) - October 19th
  • Just Dance 2019 (PC/PS4/Switch/360/Xbox One/Wii/Wii U) - October 23rd
  • My Hero One's Justice (PC/PS4/Switch/Xbox One) - October 26th
  • Red Dead Redemption 2 (PS4/Xbox One) - October 26th
  • Call of Cthulhu: The Official Video Game (PC/PS4/Xbox One) - October 30th

Halloween Events

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Not only is October especially busy when it comes to brand new game releases, but it's also a busy time for in-game events. Thanks to Halloween, October is usually stuffed full of holiday-themed in-game events, with some of this year's already announced or ongoing. For example, Halloween decorations are all over the battle royale map in Fortnite, and Blizzard has already confirmed that the Halloween Terror event is coming back to Overwatch from October 9 to October 31.

Many other live services games will likely have Halloween events as well, including Pokemon GOPokemon GO's Halloween event usually lasts a couple of weeks, and sees the spawn rate of ghost- and dark-type Pokemon greatly increased. Last year's Halloween event even saw the debut of the first third generation Pokemon, which has led to some speculation that this year's Halloween event could see the first fourth generation Pokemon added to the popular mobile game.

In the meantime, there are some games where it's unclear if a Halloween event will take place or not. Last year, Destiny 2 didn't host a Festival of the Lost event like we saw in the first Destiny, but it's possible that will change this year. We'll just have to wait for Bungie to share more information one way or another to be sure.

B.E.T.A.

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While gamers will have no shortage of brand new, full-release games to try in October, they will also have some betas to test as well. Jump Force, the upcoming anime fighting game featuring characters like Naruto, Goku, Luffy, and even Yugi Moto, will have a closed beta that will take place from October 12 to October 14.

The Jump Force beta is certainly exciting, but the headlining beta event for October is easily Fallout 76. Bethesda Games Studios' first crack at a multiplayer-focused experience, many fans are both excited and nervous to see what Fallout 76 will have in store, and Xbox One owners that pre-order the game can see what all the fuss is about beginning October 23. Meanwhile, PC and PS4 gamers can jump into the post-apocalyptic wasteland beginning October 30. The betas across all platforms will last until Fallout 76's launch, and unlike many other beta tests, progress will actually carry over to the full game.