5 spooky Halloween Events in Games

October is here and with it the joys and horrors of another Halloween season. While candy and costumes fill the shelves and horror movies stream on Netflix, video games are also getting in the spooky mood by hosting live Halloween events and allowing players to celebrate the holiday from the comfort of their own homes.

While spookiness reigns in almost all media during October, horror video games aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. Fortunately, there are a number of games in almost all genres that host Halloween events for players, so even the most easily spooked gamers can participate in the festivities without any real fear.

APEX Legends

Like every year, APEX Legends will once again feature the Monsters Within event. The main new addition to Monsters Within is Encore, a brand new map for Arena Mode that takes players to Boreas, the home planet of the recently introduced playable character Seer. This sprawling map is flanked by two high-altitude High Gorund Power Positions – the VIP Lounge and the Performance Stage – that require distinct teamwork and strategy to achieve victory.

In Shadowfall, players who died during the first Battle Royale could resurface as undead versions of their characters with new abilities and join the Shadow Squad with the rest of the undead to face the remaining living Legends. The event offered a dark, exciting twist on the game that fits perfectly with the Halloween season and hopefully sets the stage for an even better sequel this year.

Destiny 2

Destiny 2 also kicks off the spookiest of seasons with its annual Halloween event “Festival of the Lost” and provides a few weeks of creeps and chills. The Festival of the Lost is free for all Destiny 2 players and runs until November 2.

Unlike previous years, when Guardians ventured into Mercury’s Infinite Forrest, this year’s event takes place in the Haunted Sectors on the Moon, which are full of enemies whose heads have been replaced with pumpkins.
The event brings with it a number of cosmetics. The Honk Moon mask seems to be a nod to the indie game Untitled Goose Game from 2019, but nothing in that game or Destiny 2 is anywhere near as scary as that damn mask.

Overwatch

The annual spooky season in Overwatch, the three-week Halloween Terror event, has been running since October 12. This year’s edition of Halloween Terror will bring the return of the Junkenstein’s Revenge co-op mode and a number of spooky skins.

Blizzard has released five new legendary skins for Halloween Terror 2021: Draugr Reinhardt, Satyr Lucio, Vampire Bat Echo, Coffin Bastion and Vampire Hunter Brigitte. Players can also unlock three new epic skins (Skeleton Genji, Einherjar Zarya and Clown Roadhog) by playing games each week.

Fortnite

Fortnite’s big Halloween event, Fortnitemares, returns again this year. But this year’s edition comes with a fun twist: Ariana Grande is now officially part of the game’s lore, with a quest line that transforms her into “the galaxy’s greatest monster hunter.”

The event runs through November 2 and, in keeping with the season’s theme, revolves around the omnipresent cubes that now dominate Fortnite’s island.

The event also includes the return of Horde Rush mode, as well as new quests from various characters. This is where Grande comes in: a new version of her, called “Spacefarer Ariana Grande,” will introduce a monster-hunting quest line. As usual, completing quests will unlock some free goodies like gliders and pickaxes.

Rocket League

The annual Haunted Hallows event in Rocket League is back again this year. This year, it’s all about Batman.
The event runs until November 1 and features a special limited-time Rumble mode with power-ups inspired by Batman and co. including Joker’s boxing glove, Harley’s hammer (which replaces the boot), and Poison Ivy’s tendrils that replace the grappling hook.

And finally, because what would a seasonal event be without premium cosmetics to buy? Three Batmobiles will appear in the Rocket League store for the duration of Haunted Hallows – the Batmobile (1989), the Dark Knight’s Tumbler, and the Batmobile (2016) – as well as three Bat-Signal Gate Explosions inspired by three different Batman eras.