5 GAMES FOR OCTOBER

On this eve of All Hallow's Eve, take a trip down memories once forgotten with October's spooktacular quintet of games. Adventure meets FPS in the movie tie-in to the classic horror franchise Bloodwings: Pumpkinhead's Revenge. Then make sure you Don't Go Alone in an under-appreciated computer RPG from the late 80s. If you make it out alive, investigate some real-life hauntings with Christopher Lee in Ghosts. Need some lighter scares? Try Scooby-Doo! Showdown in Ghost Town, a point-and-click adventure for younger players. If bloody gore's more your thing, enter the horrifying fantasy world of Witchaven, an often overlooked FPS using the Build engine. Enjoy.... if you dare!!!

VOODOO KID

There's something incredibly fun and full of life about Voodoo, or at least the pop-culture depiction of it. For an approximation of a religion that features zombies, death magic and the afterlife the festival atmosphere is palpable. Voodoo Kid (1997, Infogrames) puts that fictionalised framework into a traditional point-and-click adventure with a 'scary tale' of a pre-teen having a particularly spooky sea-bound nightmare.

THE MUMMY

You can go one of two routes for a movie tie-in. You could spend time developing a decent game, perhaps sacrificing the release date to make it so (GoldenEye, Alien Resurrection) or you can make any old guffins just to cash in on the brand name (Batman & Robin, Frank Herbert's Dune). Developed by Konami, The Mummy (2000, Universal Interactive Studios) falls somewhere between the two.

SCOOBY-DOO COLLECTION

Not too long ago, the Scooby Gang turned 50 years old and it's still as much a part of the pop culture as ever. To kick off this October, let's take a look at the majority of their video game adaptations. Spread over 11 systems, there are 19 games to get through in this Scooby-Doo collection so let's get started!

5 GAMES FOR SEPTEMBER

There are actually 12 games in September's monthly 5 if you include ports and compilations so it'll keep you busy as Autumn officially rolls in. First up is the 4th 3D Ultra Pinball game; the stock car themed 3D Ultra NASCAR Pinball. Next is the cyberpunk stylings of B.A.T. II: The Koshan Conspiracy, the bigger-budgeted sequel to last months adventure/RPG hybrid. The legendary developers at ORIGIN added some fantasy to their cyberpunk in the ahead-of-its-time FPS CyberMage: Darklight Awakening. Then travel back in time to a compilation of early Sierra graphical text adventures under the Hi-Res Adventures banner, including the official tie-in to The Dark Crystal film (damn, that Netflix prequel show was good!). Then, tend to a farm in another entry into Maxis' Sim series in the aptly titled SimFarm.

THE PAGEMASTER

I have a soft spot for traditional cell animated movies. You can see the effort of every ink and painter up there on the big screen. Even when, like The Pagemaster from 1994, the movie itself is a little mediocre there's no doubt I'll put aside its misgivings and thoroughly enjoy it. That same year, a number of videogame adaptations came out, including this little known adventure game published by Turner Interactive.

HEAVEN'S DAWN

Heaven's Dawn by the Taiwanese developers at Art 9 Entertainment is perhaps one of the rarest games I've ever played. This traditional point-and-click adventure was only ever translated into English for the Australian and New Zealand markets and judging by the dearth of information out there sold very little. Despite its Eastern roots, this tale of high-fantasy feels far more western than its origins would have you believe.