Disco Elysium gets an October release date and a new trailer

Disco Elysium is a detective RPG where your skills talk to you, sometimes chiming in with some insight into a case, sometimes just telling you to drink yourself stupid. It's odd. It's also launching very soon. You'll be able to have a chat with yourself on October 15, but in the meantime you can watch the features trailer above.

It's an unconventional RPG where your amnesiac detective's personality is directly influenced by the skills you invest in, not just your dialogue choices. If you take the electrochemistry skill, for instance, you'll have lots of scientific knowledge at your disposal, but you'll also be driven to smoke, drink and have sex.

Last year, I spoke to developers about the future of CRPGs, including Disco Elyium's lead designer, Robert Kurvitz. He reckons the genre is too conservative and set in its ways, and that a lot of the really interesting stuff is happening in tabletop RPGs. It's no surprise, then, that what Disco Elysium most resembles are social tabletop romps like Call of Cthulhu.

It's looking very promising, and I'm a sucker for RPGs that lean into their tabletop roots. Divinity: Original Sin 2 is one of the best recent examples, and it ended up becoming our favourite game in the latest PC Gamer Top 100.

Disco Elysium is due out on October 15 on Steam and GOG.

Fraser is the UK online editor and has actually met The Internet in person. With over a decade of experience, he's been around the block a few times, serving as a freelancer, news editor and prolific reviewer. Strategy games have been a 30-year-long obsession, from tiny RTSs to sprawling political sims, and he never turns down the chance to rave about Total War or Crusader Kings. He's also been known to set up shop in the latest MMO and likes to wind down with an endlessly deep, systemic RPG. These days, when he's not editing, he can usually be found writing features that are 1,000 words too long or talking about his dog.