5 New Mystery Games to Play - October 2025
The spooky season has led to many positively received releases!
October was apparently a very popular month for mystery games! Not only was Next Fest filled with over a hundred demos, but it looks like there were just as many mystery-themed releases this month as well.
It’s really hard to pick out just a few, but this month there were actually five games that all come from developers who I’ve personally gotten to know. All of their games are also doing really well in terms of positive reviews, which makes me really happy to see, and so it’s easy for me to recommend all of these games for you to play. Enjoy!
Murder Is Game Over: Murder Otaku
A new stand-alone murder mystery in the Murder Is Game Over series. Solve the murder of a beautiful J-pop singer at an anime convention in a historic high-rise hotel.
The 5th entry in the Murder Is Game Over series, this murder mystery game takes place in the unique location of an anime convention.
In the game, you explore different environments, switching between a human detective who can question each suspect, and a dog that can find hidden clues.
The story is especially interesting because it follows the structure of a classic golden age murder mystery, even including a locked-room puzzle! I played through the game as a beta tester and was really impressed by the fairness and solvability of the mystery.
Also, I recently interviewed this game’s developer on the Mystery Gamedev Podcast, where we discussed his design decisions for creating the Murder Is Game Over series.
Decide 4 God
The final entry of the Abime Series. Six intruders and six captives share a high-tech prison where their moral dilemmas may lead them to a fate worse than death. Can they overcome the wiles of Empathy Systems? What dark secrets lurk behind that institution? When does knowledge become a curse?
I played the demo for this game in June when it entered Early Access, and now the game is fully completed and finally released. As the final episode in a trilogy, I know a lot of people have been awaiting this game for a really long time.
The game features an overwhelming amount of content (at least dozens of hours, according to reviews) that spans various Zero Escape-inspired puzzle sections and branching story paths.
The demo includes an initial escape room that is on a turn-based timer, and the other characters in the room change locations and dialogue depending on the time. Your interactions with the characters during these sections influence the direction of the story. There are also mini-puzzles to solve, or you can let the other characters solve them for you (at the cost of time). I’ve only played a little bit so far, but it’s definitely well-made and enjoyable fun. The art and music are excellent, too.
But to fully enjoy the story (and avoid spoilers) it’s recommended to play through the prior two games in the series first: Head AS Code and Birth ME Code.
Call of the Golden Valley
Your friend is missing in the Australian outback and you must find her. Search the Internet for clues, solve mysterious puzzles and uncover the conspiracy of the vanishing hikers of Golden Valley.
I played this game on video during Part 1 of my recent Next Fest Stream, and really enjoyed it.
This game takes inspiration from true crime stories as you must uncover the truth behind the disappearance of your friend. You play as an American tourist visiting Australia in search of your friend. You can roam a full 3D environment, interrogate characters, investigate using computers, and even take pictures with a camera.
There are also animals native to Australia wandering around the land that you will need to photograph, so it is cool to learn about the wildlife through gameplay!
Geamana Village
A first-person investigative game set in a drowned village. Explore abandoned homes, speak with the last remaining locals, and capture through your lens the destruction left behind by the toxic sludge. Gather evidence, follow every clue, and uncover the truth hidden beneath silence and decay.
I played this game during Part 2 of my Next Fest Stream and I enjoyed this one a lot, too.
This game lets you explore a huge 3D open world with levels of fog that really remind me of Silent Hill. You can drive a truck, search with a flashlight, and even take pictures with a camera to uncover clues. There are also various ways of getting killed if you’re not too careful.
Inspired by true events, you play as a journalist recently fired for getting too close to an environmental conspiracy. The world is large and mysterious characters send you on quests, so the demo definitely has you wondering about the truth beneath the surface.
SpookY2K Demo
You wake up on a cold bathroom floor, only to discover that you somehow time travelled to a Halloween party in 1999! As you try to make sense of your situation and get closer to the other guests, will your clueless involvement let the party take a deadly turn?
Although technically a demo, this game is still worth mentioning. Written by ZetaKen (who previously wrote the script for Reaplaced) plus art and direction from KigyoDev, this game ended up winning 2nd place in the Spooktober 2025 visual novel jam.
While I haven’t had the time to play it myself, it must be good if it ranked so highly in the competition! Congratulations to their team and best of luck with the eventual full release!
Disclaimer: Unless otherwise stated, we were not paid to promote any of the above games. Each game was selected based on its relevance to our readers, considering its release date, number of positive reviews, and store page description. We are not responsible for any issues arising from attempting to purchase, download, or play any game.
Thanks for reading!
If you want to learn how to make your own mystery game…
Or if you want to discover the best mystery games before anyone else…
Join our 500+ member Mystery Gamedev community today!
And please consider sharing our newsletter with a friend — we appreciate it!