Spooktober wrap up and my mini October log

This Spooktober wrap up is coming super late but bear with me.

Spooktober: week 3 update

Three games crossed off my list while one more joins the play-along.

I completed Gloomy Eyes as my last Spooktober game. It is a puzzle game where a human girl (Neena) and a zombie boy (Gloomy) become unlikely friends.

Even though I really liked the self co-op concept, where you alternate between controlling both of the main characters to solve each puzzle, the voice acting from the narrator and the gorgeous graphics, I found the game to be a frustrating experience. I got stuck and had to look things up more than I would have liked, when in some levels the game didn’t give a clear hint about the solution. The camera is fixed so you can’t look around to try and get unstuck, except for its diorama view mode where you still can’t control it that much. I don’t mind a challenging puzzle, just let me investigate!

I’m really glad that Margot picked up the game at the same time and we were half of the time helping each other, the other half agreeing with each other’s complaints.

Doing the Spooktober was really lovely. I finally finished some games that were waiting for so long in my backlog, it helped me with decision paralysis last month as I had a list to go through, and playing games with friends is always fun. Now I’m wondering if I should do another thematic month at some point, and what theme would it have?

What else happened in October?

I didn’t want to create a separate post for my October log because, well, I didn’t play games or demos worth mentioning beyond the 5 Spooktober ones. I also didn’t have time to join Steam Next Fest because I had family visiting and we just played Rhythm Paradise Groove together (we had a blast).

Are there any demos that were released during Next Fest that you think I should try? Let me know in the comments.

Aside from gaming, I started a crochet project with my friend Strawberry, a picnic blanket from the Scheepjes 2026 Crochet-Along. I had to dust off my hooks as it had been a while since I made a piece, and it’s clear to me that I’ll take much longer than the CAL schedule, but I feel so ready to tackle my biggest project yet!

Last but not least, in October I got myself a Steam Machine! I had been in the waiting list since release, even though I wasn’t sure if I was really going to buy it. I received an email from Valve letting me know they had reserved one for me, so I gave it some good thought and decided to take the plunge. I know it’s something I’m going to use, plus my hand-me-down 12+ years old PC is on its last legs.

Why things are a bit slow around these corners

This year my availability (both the time and mentally speaking) for the blog fluctuated a lot. Earlier this year I moved in with my partner, we had renovations in the new house, we did some renovation ourselves, and we had to pack up in each of our own individual homes. Phew. Now we are on the last stretch, as I’m finally handing over my house to the new owner in January. I can’t wait to have all my books with me again!!! (the amount of stuff I left behind for the staging is no joke)

Thank you for reading. I don’t want to speak too soon but I’m really hoping that next year I’ll have more time to write 💜 I hope you all are having a lovely Autumn or Spring time.

Oh yeah! If you want season-based recommendations, check out this list I put together last year.

Autumn/Spring is (almost) here: 5 recommendations of games to play this season

We are halfway through September, and this means that depending on where you live, it’s either time to cozy up while it’s raining outside or admire the flowers blooming all around. Check out my list of games to play this season, no matter where you are!

-Luna