Innholdsfortegnelse for May 2018 i PLAY

You can’t kill a good zombie game. Despite being delayed for two years, and in development for five, Overkill’s The Walking Dead (p46) is finally emerging from the shadows. It looks amazing. Jess flew to Stockholm for an exclusive look at the blockbuster co-op, online shooter that could challenge the mighty Destiny 2 for your attention when it finally releases. The blockbuster theme continues throughout the issue, as we play God Of War (p32), get the first details on The Elder Scrolls Online: Summerset (p16), ponder what’s in store for Shadow Of The Tomb Raider (p21), and Epic Games talks about the future of Fortnite (p6). There’s also nostalgia in the air, as we play Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection (p56) and discuss what’s next with series producer Yoshinori Ono.…

BLUMING GOOD NEWS Iconic jazz-talking actor Jeff Goldblum will be in Jurassic Park: Evolution. Over to you Jeff: “I’m gonna be with you the whole game, as Dr Ian Malcolm, the character that I play in those Jurassic Park movies. I highly recommend it. It gets ten Goldblums out of a possible 10 Goldblums. That’s my highest rating.” SEGA POWERS BACK The retro revival continues, as Sega kicks up an Alien Storm and sharpens its Golden Axe all over again. The Sega Mega Drive Classics collection is heading to PS4 on 29 May. With over 50 games from the publisher’s 16-bit back catalogue, with online multiplayer now included, this is the definitive Sega bundle. SOULS-ALIKE, FOR REAL The first screens of Bandai Namco’s Dark Souls Remastered have escaped from under…

“WITH FAR-AWAY FRIENDS, THE OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE A GAME BRIDGES THAT GAP. SO, WHY CAN’T I DO IT WITH SOMEONE ON MY SOFA?” While modern online multiplayer no longer forces you to split your prime screen real estate, in an age of increasing inches this seems far less of an issue than it was in the days of squinting at your own corner of a poky CRT monitor. With screens that can properly accommodate a locally shared experience, why has couch co-op become a relic relegated to gaming’s bygone era? Now, I enjoy cockroaching my way into fifth place against highly skilled strangers in Fortnite as much as the next person. But A Way Out, where couch co-op is such an integral part of the experience, has me hankering for…

1 GRAVITY RUSH 2 Kat’s gravity-manipulating abilities make for a thrilling time, whether traversing surfaces or soaring through the air. While she’s able to slip-slide across surfaces at great speed, the sequel also grants her Lunar and Jupiter styles, with one making her swifter in movement and the other giving her a more powerful surge kick. 2 ROCKET LEAGUE Easy to pick up, difficult to master, Psyonix’s mash-up sport continues to pile up more players around the world. While it takes practice to perfect the skills you need, racing over a booster so that you can get your car soaring through the air and tap that huge ball into the back of the net is something to set your sights on. 3 VANQUISH It may look like a Japanese take…

“IMAGINE IF YOUR D&D PARTY WERE ALMOST ENTIRELY MADE UP OF BARDS.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 10 JUL / PUB SEGA / DEV MEDIA.VISION Any Dungeons & Dragons player knows that bringing a bard along can liven up even a beginner campaign, so imagine if your entire party were made up of the travelling musicians – now you’ve got a Party with a capital P, right? That’s Shining Resonance (though warriors of the staff and clef are called Dragoneers here). Originally released on PS3, Refrain is its PS4 remaster plus all of the original’s DLC bundled in, and marks the Shining series’ return to the West after a ten-year absence. You play as a dragon in human form, Yuma. His kind long thought to be extinct, his ability to…

“YOUR PRO WILL REACT TO EVENTS, THEY WILL BECOME DESTABILISED.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 22 MAY / PUB BIGBEN INTERACTIVE / DEV BREAKPOINT There was a time when most summers you’d get a minor league tussle between Virtua Tennis and 2K’s Top Spin, the PES and FIFA of the tennis sim world. While those heady days of tea on the virtual lawns are long gone, one publisher, Bigben Interactive, is taking a swing at the genre all by itself. And it could serve up an ace. It must be said, however, that Bigben’s lob to win over tennis fans doesn’t feel like much of a gamble given it’s hired the devs behind Top Spin to create Tennis World Tour. It’s even set up a tennis-themed studio, Breakpoint, just to…

“THE PLANET ISN’T SIMPLY A THING TO GAWP AT, IT’S A LIVING SPACE.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 2018 / PUB TEAM17 / DEV PLANET ALPHA APS If you squashed No Man’s Sky down onto a 2D plane then you’d get something akin to this new side-scrolling planetary explorathon from Team17. But don’t think this is just an excuse to indulge your right-brained inner voice, as there’s plenty of puzzling and shooting to be done between bouts of wonderment. The fact your heroic space explorer is so tiny on screen – he’s regularly dwarfed by towering rock formations, flying whales, and windswept vistas – sells the scale of Planet Alpha’s beautiful world. It also makes you feel alone and vulnerable amid the craziness of this vibrant alien setting. Running from…

Newly revealed playable character Maya, one of four, was at the epicentre of the zombie pandemic as it erupted. As a doctor, she was duty-bound to provide support to the first infected, and had to overcome more than the ensuing deluge of Walkers. As the game’s producer, Saul Gascon, says: “She went through Hell only to exit into Hell.” Her medical background gives her a clinical, cool-headed outlook on even the most dire of situations, and makes her a perfect foil to Aiden’s more direct approach to threat management – a baseball bat full of nails or a close-range shotgun blast to a Walker’s head.…

“THERE’S ONE CONSTANT IN THE WORLD: EVERYONE HAS PLAYED A VERSION OF STREET FIGHTER.” No matter what your age or gaming passions, there’s one constant in the world and it’s that, at some point, everyone has played a version of Street Fighter. Some of us are ageing fans who remember cramming 10 pence pieces into a fairground coin-op. Others may have spent their university years mastering Street Fighter Alpha 3 in late-night sessions, skills improving at the rate of a student debt. We’ve all played Street Fighter. Capcom’s Yoshinori Ono, who’s in charge of the series, past and present, at the Japanese developer, tells us his passion for the series began by going to his local arcade, “to figure out the command inputs for Hadouken and Shoryuken… There was no…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB KOEI TECMO DEV OMEGA FORCE Turning a popular television series into a videogame isn’t always an easy task. Looking at Attack On Titan’s premise, though, it’s hard to believe it wasn’t a game to begin with. Soldiers equipped with grappling hooks and big swords do battle with giants, which can only be defeated by attacking the tiny weak points on the backs of their necks. Forget watching the action, it sounds like it was made to be played. This means that the anime – which was itself adapted from the manga by Hajime Isayama – translates beautifully into a game. You’re put in the thigh-high boots of a Paradis military cadet, tasked with bringing down as many of the titular naked zombie behemoths…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB MERGE GAMES DEV PAINTED BLACK GAMES While being trapped in a research facility after an experiment goes wrong sounds familiar, The Long Reach does have a more refreshing premise. The lab was researching mind-sharing, so instead of another zombie apocalypse the effects are more to do with messing with people’s heads, including your own. Indeed, things are at their most interesting when the psychological horror elements come into play and you start questioning what you see. Is the elevator talking to you? Is the outside world really burning? Just who is this Alan who’s being worshipped by everyone? But such hallucinatory moments are in short supply. The rest of the time is more a dreary case of navigating an old-school adventure game with…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB SONY DEV MIND CANDY, VIRTUAL TOYS Do you love collecting stuff? Like really, maniacally need to feel that sense of completion you get when a game pings a new character at you that is slightly different to the cast of heroes already jauntily dancing around your roster? Then World Of Warriors is your drug of choice. The game’s heritage as an iPad collect’em-up is clear. Every round rewards you with stones that you can trade in for new characters. Divided into Common, Rare, Super Rare and Legendary, each hero is a cute, bobble-headed interpretation of a famous warrior from history, such as Boudica or Hannibal.1 Each character’s health and attack stats level after a match, ensuring there’s a long road ahead to build…

INFO FORMAT PS VR ETA OUT NOW PUB POLYARC DEV POLYARC From the moment she catches your eye, Quill charms as gaming’s most adorable heroine. While she doesn’t speak your language – though other anthropomorphic features like walking on two legs and living in an whimsical world with mouse-sized castles and pubs are present and correct – her vividly realised animations and gestures gives her more personality than Crash or Spyro have ever mustered. Of course, Moss isn’t another third-person platformer. You’re also a character in the story, who Quill reacts to, communicates with, and shares a bond with. As well as controlling her with a traditional setup, moving the DualShock sensor bar and squeezing either trigger lets you physically interact with environmental puzzles, which extends to making contact with…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB MILESTONE / SQUARE ENIX DEV MILESTONE This was initially announced as being a 50-hour game, with sprawling, open-world tracks through which you could choose your route to the goal. A tech demo showed full, realistic destruction physics as rocks were thrown at a car, snapping carbon fibre and denting metal. How strange, then, that the final game delivers a fraction of that initial potential. Dang. Fundamentally, Gravel is a competent game in every area. It looks nice, handles well, and has licensed vehicles, a few cool drum fills in the heavy metal menu music, and neat weather and day/night effects. There are fictional stadia and real rallycross layouts, as well as channelled point-to-point races across the Namibian desert and through Alaskan forests. It…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB WB GAMES DEV SHIVER ENTERTAINMENT Marking Scribblenauts’ first foray into PlayStation territory, Showdown mixes the series’ word-based mayhem with party-style minigames.1 Players go head-to-head in challenges that put imagination and finger dexterity to the test. While Speedy games like Piñata Bash just require you to waggle the thumbstick more quickly than your opponent, Wordy challenges demand a creative approach. Players are asked to create an object beginning with a random letter for use in each minigame, resulting in some hilarious scenarios such as spawning a sheep to ride through the obstacle course in Super Sprint. One of the best games is Medieval Mayhem, an arena battle where you must knock out your opponent with whatever item you can think of. Roll the letter…

INFO FORMAT PS VR ETA OUT NOW PUB SAMURAI PUNK DEV SAMURAI PUNK Burgers are made with freedom and the prom punch is spiked with patriotism – this isn’t the American dream you’re used to hearing about. But then, when you’re strapped inside a brass bullet with an adorable Alsatian who sounds like Gregory Peck narrating your life’s story while you trim the garden hedges with a machine gun, anything is possible. Midway through my time with The American Dream I take off the PS VR headset, wipe the sweat from my brow, and jot down some thoughts: ‘Open a beer can with a gunshot’, ‘wash cars with a Thompson submachine gun’, ‘feed my girlfriend candy floss at the end of a rifle barrel’… yeah, this game’s weird. Behind these…

Eh, good Hunter, if we get another bout of snow any time soon… well, let’s just say it’ll be another reason to stay indoors – that and our Instant Game Collection got a shot in the arm in March. With Bloodborne leading the charge, it was as good a time as any to return to Yharnam with one of PS Plus’ finest line-ups yet for PS4. Adding the incredible BLOODBORNE to the PS Plus library saw the game’s community revitalised. So if you were unlucky enough to have missed FromSoftware’s gothic action-RPG in the sale at new year, you had another chance to die like you meant it while attempting to get to the bottom of Yharnam’s many mysteries and clear out the monsters plaguing the Hunters’ Dream. It’s a…

INFO FORMAT PS VR PUB SURVIOS DEV SURVIOS REVIEW #147, 9/10 Finishing last is never fun, but in Survios’ physical racer the journey to the finish line is as gratifying as taking pole position. Online and unshackled from the game’s lightweight AI you’ll need to get used to losing – and losing a lot. Sprint Vector’s community is a passionate one; players dance and chat ahead of races, but when the light turns green everyone wants to win… by any means. Getting to that start line can be more frustrating than constantly being whipped, however, as like many PS VR games the player base is small and matches can take time to set up. Survios planned for this, so the lobby is an effective playground of ramps and wall climbs…

“CLASSIC CHLOE” OUTFIT Missing your old Chloe from the original game? Then rekindle the feels with this outfit skin for Life Is Strange: Before The Storm. DC SUPER HEROES PACK Batman takes over Rocket League! This pack includes two Batmobiles – the Dark Knight Rises’ realistic armoured motor and 1989’s rocket car. KING OF THE MOUNTAIN Ride the Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade in the ‘Tribute to Joey Dunlop’ livery as John McGuinness. (TT Isle Of Man has possibly the most niche DLC ever.) CHARACTER DLC Broly and Bardock will be the first new characters added to excellent anime brawler Dragon Ball FighterZ – expect six more heroes to join the action this year. HADES BETRAYAL The third chapter in stylish 4v1 shooter Raiders Of The Broken Planet adds a new upgrade…

SUICIDE SQUAD: HELL TO PAY 16 APR Forget the dreadful movie, this animation sees DC’s anti-Avengers stopping an artefact targeting villains. SLEEPING DOGS 16 APR Not to be confused with United Front’s GTA-alike, this ’77 thriller stars Sam Neill as a man living in New Zealand as martial law is declared. CARRIE 16 APR Brian de Palma’s Stephen King adaptation about a bullied schoolgirl with telekinetic abilities has been remastered in 4K, with tons of extras to boot. BETTER WATCH OUT 16 APR A babysitter defends a boy from intruders in this festive horror stuffed with nasty surprises. Let’s just say it’s no Home Alone. PITCH PERFECT 3 23 APR The third and final outing for the Barden Bellas sees the a capella queens take part in a battle of…

Resident Evil often springs to mind when considering classic survival horror, perhaps because for years the genre hadn’t developed much beyond aping Capcom’s series. So when a game comes along that doesn’t have one genuinely new idea but several, it’s worth paying attention to. Forbidden Siren’s title refers to an actual eerie noise that triggers the game’s unique power of Sight Jacking. Essentially, when you hear it you can tune into the point of view of someone else nearby – specifically the game’s undead enemies, the Shibito. More unnerving still, the way to jack into their sight is by turning the left stick towards where they’re located – basically, you don’t want to move the stick down and discover that you’re being approached from behind with a knife. Once you…

1 UNCHARTED 4: A THIEF’S END Nathan Drake’s swansong is a daring evolution. It combines series-defining set-pieces, quietly devastating storytelling beats, and sprawling levels that make you feel like a real-life explorer. This franchise finale retains its signature charm, with the wisecracks flowing as fast as the bullets, while the new characters each justify their inclusion. With an astonishing attention to detail, it’s Naughty Dog’s best yet. 2 THE WITCHER 3: WILD HUNT GAME OF THE YEAR EDITION The White Wolf’s epic journey is an RPG experience like no other on PS4. It’s been made even more spectacular with this gigantic pack stuffed with DLC, making this a must-have part of any gaming library. 3 HORIZON ZERO DAWN A staggeringly large world that condenses cracking combat, accessible systems, and uncut…

1 TEARAWAY Peerless crafty platforming from Media Molecule, this time using PS Vita’s raft of touchscreen/ touchpad controls to surprise and delight you in new ways for hours on end. Full of whimsy, charm, and enough personality to put most games to shame, Tearaway’s papercraft world remains Vita’s most vibrant title. 2 PERSONA 4: GOLDEN This thoughtful and unique JRPG epic gives you another stab at high school – only this time with intrigue and superpowers instead of nerves, acne, and an unpredictable vocal register. 3 RAYMAN LEGENDS Rather than losing its lustre on the move to PS Vita, Ray’s second slice of sumptuous side-scrolling is even better on handheld. Touchscreen gestures make this fine platformer all the sweeter. 4 VELOCITY 2X A ludicrously enjoyable puzzle/platformer hybrid that should come…

Sam Greer GUEST WRITER We poached Sam from sister mag GamesMaster to review A Way Out (p82). She wants to stay longer. Of corpse you can, Sam. GAME OF THE MONTH A Way Out BEST ZOMBIE GAME Dead Rising Jess Kinghorn STAFF WRITER Jess made a brief trip to Sweden to visit Overkill for our cover feature. There and back in two days. Now that’s dead-ication for you. GAME OF THE MONTH Scribblenauts Showdown BEST ZOMBIE GAME Forbidden Siren 2 Miriam McDonald OPERATIONS EDITOR Dragon Quest Heroes 2 has convinced Mim taking on the undead is easy – you just need a giant axe. GAME OF THE MONTH Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom BEST ZOMBIE GAME Telltale’s The Walking Dead Milford Coppock MANAGING ART EDITOR Despite losing every game…

89% Players spared Olin in Horizon Zero Dawn, with 54% not fighting Nil. 513 Characters in Detroit: Become Human – portrayed by 250 mo-capped actors. 2019 Is when PS Plus will stop including free monthly PS3 and PS Vita games. *sad* 27 Heroes in Overwatch after Brigitte, Torbjörn’s daughter, joined the cast. 35,000 Camera shots in Detroit: Become Human. It’s like a full-blown movie! $375 For a new special edition of Inside, contents (beside game) to be revealed. 5.50 The latest system patch, which adds a fantstic custom wallpaper option. 20,900,000 The number of times Sawtooths in Horizon Zero Dawn have killed players.…

LARA RETURNS Determined to stem the tide of leaks, Square Enix officially teased Shadow Of The Tomb Raider. Jess is playing it as you read this, and you can read her thoughts next issue. BLOCK BUSTER Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s iconic PSP rhythmic-puzzler, Lumines, is being remastered for PS4. We can’t wait to dive back into this seductive brain teaser and smash those blocks in 4K on our PS4 Pro. PRE-ORDER PUNCH As if you needed another reason to get Street Fighter 30th Anniversary Collection, Capcom is offering a free copy of Ultra Street Fighter IV with every pre-order. SNEAKER HIT Puma and Sega made a beeline for our wallets by revealing the Puma X Sega RS-0 Sonic, a trainer that blends the two iconic brands and presumably makes you run faster.…

@SHIIIVA That’s cool! Love @OPM_UK especially the Limited Edition Subscribers covers. @MAKOMW Reading PS VR Lootbox in @OPM_UK and thinking “Yeah, alright, I might well give Chernobyl VR a go.” @POKEWARRIOR I love these [stickers]! But I just want like 50 Lara Crofts. @DODGE49697925 A game based on exploring, like a real life sim would be great. @NIPPONMARATHON There’s a great feature about Mascots in the latest edition of @ OPM_UK… This little guy feels left out he wasn’t included, maybe next time. [Release Nippon Marathon and we’ll see! – ed] @ASIF90562965 [blorp!] call of duty, besides it’s [blorp!] as [blorp!]!.... right everyone else!.... @THEORIGINALBFL Used to play the book-and-dice version of Werewolf growing up... A LOT. Always thought it could make a great videogame... Hope other tribes are playable…

“WHEN IT COMES TO REMASTERING A GAME, IF IT AIN’T BROKE, DON’T FIX IT.” Over the past two generations, developers have looked to the past as much as the future when it comes to releasing games. While there’s always a market for bigger, better, more intricate worlds with all the modern virtual bells and whistles, there’s also a constant desire to relive the past among creators and players alike. But should remasters go further than just polishing over ageing graphics by updating classics with new content? Or should players be free to experience these golden oldies in all their original glory? CRASH AND LEARN There is an argument for both in the Crash Bandicoot N.Sane Trilogy. Adding the discarded ‘Stormy Ascent’ level gave fans the chance to enjoy content that…

“KRATOS NEEDS TO GET ELBOW-DEEP IN A NORSE GOD’S FACE.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 22 APR PUB SONY / DEV SANTA MONICA STUDIO The trend for narrative-led games continues apace. But inserting Kratos – a character best known for simply being an angry bald man who hits things – into an emotional tale of a father getting to know his son following the death of the mother, on paper, feels like pushing round story pegs into square game holes. Still, if one game can force those parts together, it’s God Of War. Having spent over three hours in the company of Kratos, it has to be said the man is a dick. “Don’t be sorry, be better,” he growls at his tearful child. Kratos communicates through shrugs, gruff world-weary advice,…

DETROIT A rock-loving android kid and his friends must journey across a futuristic America to see a robotically rebuilt KISS perform ‘live’ in Detroit. Expect crazy, crazy nights and the odd Gene Simmons bass solo from this RPG oddity. FORMAT PS4 ETA 25 MAY THE LOST CHILD “May the guardian of Hayato Ibuki please collect him from reception. He’s scaring the other children.” Thus begins this bizarre platformer, in which you collect lost kiddies like Sonic hoovers up gold rings. FORMAT PS4 ETA SUMMER 2018 TRANSFERENCE In this survival horror, the loneliest Garageband user seeks someone to listen to his mixtape, met only by dispassionate silhouettes. Little does he know he’s in a simulated hellscape. FORMAT PS4 ETA SPRING 2018…

“CROSSBOW-WIELDING DUCKS AND GRIZZLED WARTHOGS ROAM THE EARTH.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 2018 PUB FUNCOM / DEV THE BEARDED LADIES Chances are, you’ve seen a few ends of the world in your time as a gamer. One where crossbow-wielding ducks and grizzled warthogs roam the post-apocalyptic earth alongside the usual human survivors and robots, however? Maybe not. Mutant Year Zero is set in a future where the same nukes that brought about the apocalypse created mutants. It’s adapted from a Swedish pen-and-paper RPG that has been running since the ’80s, but has more in common with XCOM, if that turn-based game had real-time exploration and stealth sections. Rather than the customisable goons who populate your squads in those games, Mutant Year Zero has a smaller roster of characters. These…

HELLO NEIGHBOR FORMAT PS4 / ETA SUMMER 2018 PUB TINY BUILD / DEV TINY BUILD / DYNAMIC PIXELS The lure of a good basement is the staple of many horror movies, and Hello Neighbor panders to our need to be nosy. Determined to prove the creep next door is up to bad things you must sneak into his house and uncover the truths that lay behind his basement door. It’s you versus a very clever AI adversary, and it’s going to get weird. Set in a sandbox world, the neighbour will react to your actions and alter his behaviour to catch you out. It’s more than a test of your stealth skills, however, as some tricky puzzles bar your way too. Don’t go into the basement? Just try to stop…

1987 The original Street Fighter launches in arcades. The first cabinets featured pressure-sensitive pads that you had to punch. No-one went to the arcades for exercise in the ’80s so this was soon ditched for the classic six-button layout. 1988 A home console cartridge version of Street Fighter was developed but never released. This is the only existing screenshot. Street Fighter ‘89 was teased by Capcom; developed as a scrolling action game, it evolved into Final Fight. 1989 Final Fight releases and home versions of Street Fighter make an appearance – a nation of ZX Spectrum owners look confused and go back to playing Monty Mole. 1990 Street Fighter 2010: The Final Fight is leaked. This futuristic 8-bit action platformer set in the Street Fighter universe was never released. Even…

GOLD AWARD Awarded to a game that’s brilliantly executed on every level, combining significant innovation, near-flawless gameplay, great graphics and lasting appeal. EDITOR’S AWARD Not at the very highest echelon, but this is a game that deserves recognition and special praise based on its ambition, innovation or other notable achievement. 10 INCREDIBLE The kind of phenomenal experience rarely seen in a console generation. 9 OUTSTANDING Unreservedly brilliant – this should be in every collection. 8 VERY GOOD A truly excellent game, marred by just a few minor issues. 7 GOOD A great concept unfulfilled or the familiar done well, but still well worth playing. 6 DECENT Fun in parts, flawed in others, but more right than wrong. 5 AVERAGE What you expect and little more, this is for devotees only.…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB SQUARE ENIX DEV DEMIMONDE An unnamed writer retreats into the isolation of his cabin in the woods. On taking a quiet stroll among the trees, he finds himself disturbed by a neon-soaked spectre. Making no attempts to run, he finds himself overcome by its influence, his head replaced by the titular three-dimensional shape. Talk about having writer’s block! Transformed, the writer descends into a portal and soon finds himself in a world that has to be seen in motion to be believed. Static images simply do not do it justice. As you move the stage behind you pulsates, spewing glowing shapes behind you. THROWING SHAPES As the transfigured protagonist, you begin with the ability to create up to two temporary platforms in mid…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB PARADOX INTERACTIVE DEV HAEMIMONT GAMES The idea of establishing human colonies on Mars has enthralled mankind for decades, and while we get ever closer to turning that dream into a reality, we’ve still got quite a wait before we can mark the Red Planet as our next holiday destination. Until then, there’s always videogames. You head up humanity’s first mission to Mars, choosing a space agency to fund your out-of-this-world endeavour.1 Navigating the game’s intricate menus using a controller will have you seeing red, however, a situation that’s further aggravated by the absence of any form of tutorial. You’re basically plopped on the dusty planet and left to figure out how to establish a civilisation all on your lonesome. While this does encourage…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB BANDAI NAMCO DEV NATSUMEATARI For a game that lets you fight as a talking pig and a giantess,1 you’d think there’d be a lot to love. And I really did try to like this one but… Recounting a compressed version of events from the anime, Knights Of Britannia begins with Princess Elizabeth trying to reassemble the titular group of fighters so that she can push back against the tyrants who have taken over the kingdom Of Liones. She soon meets Meliodas, the Dragon Of Wrath, and together they attempt to track down the other sins, using the mobile bar The Boar Hat as a base of operations. From here, you’ll travel the overworld, stopping to go on quests unique to each pit-stop. Well,…

“THEY PROMISED THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION. WHAT WE GOT WAS KANE & LYNCH: DEAD MEN.” INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB EA DEV HAZELIGHT STUDIOS This isn’t a new story. No, I’m not talking about the tale of two men bonding under extreme circumstances despite their differences, though that’s as old as hell too. No, it’s not new for a game to be touted by its creators as a highbrow piece of drama only for the end result to fall squarely into the same schlocky videogame plot we have seen a thousand times before. A Way Out is a narrative driven co-operative adventure from the developer of the acclaimed Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons. This one’s much more grounded in reality, however. Two players each take on the…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB BIGBEN INTERACTIVE DEV KYLOTONN Hurtle’ is probably the best word to describe what you do in TT Isle Of Man. You hurtle through mile after mile of exquisitely-reproduced countryside and picturesque towns on a two-wheeled rocket, then brain yourself on a dry stone wall. The crashes are shocking, and you’ll wonder why anyone even considers doing this for real. In all probability, you won’t be able to even do it virtually – at least, not to begin with. This is no Manx TT Superbike;1 the tiniest jumps will have you somersaulting down the road if you don’t straighten up properly, and over-confidence on a well-practiced turn will push your adhesion limits too far and you’ll fall. On sim settings, merely getting the bike…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB TRAPPED NERVE GAMES DEV TOXIC GAMES Q.U.B.E. 2 is beautiful. While its predecessor is a competent little puzzler, the monochromatic palette – though spiced up with the occasional splash of technicolour – does not make for the most interesting of backdrops. All that’s been set right in the sequel, however; Q.U.B.E. 2 ditches its sibling’s cold, sterile set-pieces in favour of bright foliage and plenty of colourful, inviting spaces in which to experiment. Yes, the similarities to Portal are as obvious as they are immediate. The second Q.U.B.E. game still looks a lot like Valve’s seminal puzzler, and it sounds quite a bit like it, too. These games are so alike we wouldn’t hold it against you if you wrote it off as…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB FOCUS HOME INTERACTIVE DEV BIG BAD WOLF Too many narrative games offer you weighty choices only to wrestle the story away from you, feeling little more than a glorified DVD scene select screen in the end. So when a title tries to return agency to the player and elevate the illusion of choice past obvious smoke and mirrors, it’s difficult not to take notice. In this series opener Louis de Richet has been invited, among a number of highly prestigious guests, to the island home of Lord Mortimer. His mother, a woman respected and feared in equal measure, went on before him and has since disappeared. Each guest has something to hide from Louis and it’s your job to force each one to…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB SQUARE ENIX DEV SQUARE ENIX Even at launch Final Fantasy XV felt like an incomplete game. With a first half that gently let you explore a gorgeous open world, then a second half that stuck you on a train and pelted you with location changes on the way to a rushed conclusion, it was hard to follow. Since then, Square Enix has worked hard to fill in gaps in the story with free updates, while also releasing four DLC episodes. This Royal Edition brings everything released so far in a Game Of The Year-style package, with some added new extras. However, in a move that sends my inner fan into meltdown, Final Fantasy XV: Royal Edition is not actually complete, because four more…

FORTNITE Jess is back to chug shield potions and kick ass. And she’s all out of shield potions. After my initial failed foray into Fortnite, I decided to give it another shot. But not knowing how to aim from Adam, it was clear a new tactic was necessary if I wanted to get to grips with the game: cockroaching. A coward I may be but I am also a coward who managed to rank fifth, only perishing when I got a bit too brave and tried to introduce some more adept players to my little friend. I still have a lot to learn before I can truly hone my skills but I’m already learning so much by observing at a safe distance from behind a bush. DRAGON QUEST BUILDERS Miriam…

1 £2.99 THE VIRTUAL ORCHESTRA (PREMIUM) This collection of high-quality 360 videos puts you into the heart of the performance with the Philharmonia Orchestra in a rendition of Sibelius’ Symphony No. 5. The premium version takes you from the riverside to centre stage at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall. It’s gorgeous, though less an experience and more of a mini-documentary. Both the preview and premium versions of this experience are brief (the full version taking less than 15 minutes to play out) with the absolute bare minimum in regards to interactivity. While the performance itself is extremely enjoyable, I did feel a bit silly wearing a headset for it; it’s never a good sign when a VR experience leaves you only wishing you’d gone out into the real world…

1 “I CAN’T HELP BUT THINK IT SHOULD’VE BEEN CALLED RIFLING THROUGH MEDICINE CABINETS: THE GAME.” 2 “IT WILL HAUNT YOUR HUMS FOR THE NEXT FEW MONTHS. JUST TRY PLAYING WITHOUT A SMILE AND TAPPING FOOT.” 3 “THIS CRIME CAPER IS STILL CRAMMED FULL OF GROWN-UP POP CULTURE REFERENCES – COLUMBO, STARSKY & HUTCH, SHERLOCK HOLMES.” 4 “THAT STORYLINE IS COMPELLING ENOUGH TO KEEP YOU HITTING THOSE COMBAT QTES AND LEAVING STINKY XPBOOSTING DEPOSITS IN THE TOILETS.”…

PICK #1 WAR OF THE MONSTERS Ian Dean zips up his Godzilla onesie and embraces the B-movie madness Playing like a monster-sized WWE brawler with stamina affecting your attacks, nearby skyscrapers offering flying elbow potential, and buses becoming makeshift clubs, you can’t help but smile as your giganticus-rex pummels an oversized ape. The addition of four-player versus battles ups the ante and levels the cities. Total destruction and B-movie references? Perfection. “THE PRIMITIVE PROJECTION MAPPING ON THE FACES IS DELICIOUSLY UNSETTLING.” PICK #2 FORBIDDEN SIREN Jess Kinghorn takes a trip to a secluded village with this horror classic Having missed out on this hide-and-seek horror the first time due to being a jumpy tween, I leapt at the chance to play it on a modern console. The primitive projection mapping…

“OBSERVE, THINK, DECIDE, FEEL, FOLLOW YOUR INTUITION OR YOUR HEART.” Billed as one of the most ambitious games to grace PlayStation, Quantic Dream’s narrative-led adventure will release on PlayStation 4 on 25 May. Set in the near future, Detroit: Become Human follows the story of three androids who start to feel emotions. They come alive and begin to see a world of discrimination. Promising a new way to play a story-driven game, where your every action and decision, whether based on rational choice or emotional connection, can affect the game’s world, Detroit could be something special. You can even kill off one or all of the three main characters with a careless dialogue choice or unobserved moment. “Each story is almost as unique as your DNA,” writes Quantic Dream…

“IT SHOULD EMBRACE BLOOD TIES’ VIRTUAL REALITY FOR A MORE COMPLETE PUZZLE EXPERIENCE.” I’m going to sound like a broken record now but I’d love to see the new Tomb Raider embrace Rise Of The Tomb Raider’s PS VR support. While playing Blood Ties in virtual reality was a novelty, it was a limited experience. It would be fantastic to play in large-scale puzzle rooms – VR spaces to push, pull, and explore. Pitting Lara in an escape room scenario against a ticking clock (collapsing room?) would fit the Tomb Raider universe perfectly. Lara and her PS Move controllers against certain death and a giant room puzzle that proves the ancient Aztecs had too much time on their hands. “A NEW TAKE ON BATTLE ROYALE MUST BE IN THE NEW…

“TOTAKU FIGURES SHOULD MARK THE START OF A PLAYSTATION MERCH EXPLOSION.” Cast your eye way back to the Opinion section in OPM #133, where yours truly confessed to wanting “a tiny PaRappa The Rapper I can share my secrets with.” Fast forward almost exactly one year and, by the time you read this, the first wave of Totaku figurines will be with us, including a certain beat-dropping beagle. If you aren’t familiar with them, Totaku are a series of four-inch figures of characters that (for the most part) represent the past and present of PlayStation gaming. As well as PaRappa you’ve got the likes of Crash Bandicoot, Heihachi from Tekken 7, the Hunter from Bloodborne, Sackboy, and a ship from WipEout. TOTAKU MY MONEY Now, let’s be clear: while many…

1 One of the cleverest uses of the axe is to freeze cogs and widgets found in the environment to open gates or pause and release spiky traps. 2 Here we unblock a gate by exploding fallen rocks that have jammed it. This involves knocking a burning lantern down onto the oddly combustible rocks. 3 The basic move is to hurl your axe at an enemy. You can link this into combos to freeze foes, trip them by throwing it at their legs, or use it as a finisher. 4 Finally, the throw move comes in useful for taking out ‘sniping’ enemies who like to hide in hard to reach places. Or you can get Atreus on the case.…

“LOOK BEYOND THE BUSTY BARBARIAN WOMEN AND HIDDEN IN HERE IS A MASTERLY RPG.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 15 MAY / PUB ATLUS / DEV VANILLAWARE Treading a fine line between lewd and cult classic, artist George Kamitani’s action-RPG is wall-to-wall boobs, butts, and barrel-chested bruisers. Dragon’s Crown is also regarded as one of the best roleplayers to grace PlayStation 3 and PS Vita, and now it’s heading to PS4 in 4K with a new orchestral score recorded live for impact. Look beyond the milky-thighed witches and busty barbarian women and hidden somewhere in here is a masterly RPG. Naturally the hand-drawn environments and bold character designs grab your attention but it’s the gameplay that will hold it. Dragon’s Crown Pro mixes melee combat with deeper RPG levelling to…

“MASHES UP PINBALL WITH THE METROIDVANIA SUB-GENRE.” FORMAT PS4 / ETA 2018 PUB TEAM17 / DEV VILLA GORILLA In 2018, pinball machines seem like they should be a part of gaming’s arcade history, but somehow we’ve never let them go. Nose around the PlayStation Store and you’ll find plenty of digital pinball games recreating these strange gaming relics. Yoku’s Island Express takes a healthy dose of inspiration from pinball, but is mashing it up with other game genres. Specifically, 2D platformers and action-adventure games. Very specifically, the metroidvania subgenre, where open worlds are unlocked by accessing new equipment – another part of gaming history, but one that’s seen a revival with the likes of Axiom Verge and Iconoclasts. You play Yoku, the dung beetle postmaster of Mokumana Island. Yoku…

“YOU CAN STRIKE OUT ALONE. IT’S JUST NOT PROBABLE YOU’LL LAST LONG.” The other three players did try to tell you. “Alone or alive,” they kept saying. But you didn’t listen. As soon as the driver dropped you off, you broke away from the pack to amass your own stock of what supplies are left in this dying world. Your teammates called after you but you were undeterred as you tramped away. Breaking locks and heaving open doors as you sprinted through the ruins, it wasn’t long before you drew the attention of unwanted company. Maybe it wouldn’t have been so bad if it had been other survivors; at least there would be the chance you could reason with them. But in this four-player co-op game you share the planet…

The game features no lobby area before missions, leaving all inter-mission admin to be carried out at Anderson’s camp. However, that doesn’t mean you’ll find yourself high and dry during a mission as you can craft things on the go. If you’re able to scrounge up a few bandages, you can whip up a medkit and get a struggling party member back on their feet in the heat of combat. And it’s not just Maya’s medical supplies you can craft in a pinch; there’s a little something for everyone. As an example, let’s say Aiden needs to make evasive manoeuvres in a hurry and would really rather maintain some distance between himself and a very hungry horde of Walkers. As he sprints back to cover, you can give him some…

“THE WIDE-EYED NAIVETE BEGINS TO UNDERMINE THE ADULT THEMES IT WANTS TO EXPLORE.” INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB BANDAI NAMCO DEV LEVEL-5 When it comes to making a videogame sequel, it’s usually a case of refining what made the first one so engrossing. So it comes as a surprise that for Revenant Kingdom Level-5 has brought in largely new ideas to Ni No Kuni. If you loved the original, you’ll find this less familiar than perhaps you expect. It certainly attempts a more grown-up story. Roland, the president of an unnamed country, is caught in what appears to be a nuclear attack. Rather than linger on this, he’s whisked off to the kingdom of Ding Dong Dell, and, before you can even say ‘interdimensional portal’ (or point…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB SONY DEV NAPNOK GAMES Sony’s very keen to get PlayLink off the ground. The problem is, rather than soaring through the skies, it keeps tripping over its own feet and landing on its metaphorical face. With the exception of Knowledge Is Power (which we awarded 8/10 last year), the games are all undeniably flawed in some way. A minigame collection is an unlikely killer app… but that might be what we have here. For the benefit of the uninitiated, PlayLink works by turning your phone or tablet into a controller via a free, game-specific app. This means you can have four people play together in a party game like this without the need for well over a hundred quid’s worth of DualShocks. As…

INFO FORMAT PS VR ETA OUT NOW PUB GRAB GAMES DEV GRAB GAMES You won’t be able to spend more than an hour at a time in Knockout League’s virtual boxing rings, not because of VR motion sickness, but because the game offers a genuine workout.1 Using two PS Move controllers you need to physically duck and dodge punches and counter by swinging at thin air. The faster your swing, the more power in your punch – inside the headset your opponent grimaces as your virtual jabs hit their target. The act of punching someone is one of PS VR’s more primitive uses, but in the hands of Grab Games it becomes a complex dance. There’s no doubting the influence; aging arcade videogames Punch-Out and Ready 2 Rumble are in…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB FOREVER ENTERTAINMENT DEV SUSHEE Perhaps this return is 17 years too late. The two original games on PS1 featured a cinematic shtick mixed with cel-shaded graphics long before either truly came into vogue. Both offered enjoyably shlocky romps – against the hordes of Hell and mutated abominations respectively. The innuendo-laden dialogue between the two female protagonists, the catsuits, and cel shading: it’s all back in Sedna. But along with that is sadly period-appropriate frustrating design and questionable voice performances. While the story, dialogue and graphical stylings feel true to the series, Sedna is overall a departure. Hana, Rain, Deke, and Glas are facing off against mythological foes in a top-down tactical shooter. Each character has their own firearm, secondary weapon, and a handful…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB LIENZO DEV LIENZO With its chunky, low-poly visuals and elementary action-RPG gameplay, not unlike a popular Nintendo franchise (indeed, there’s a trophy that references that clear influence), Mulaka is a hard game to dislike. That it’s the work of a small Mexican indie studio, and tells a story rooted in their country’s history and folklore, specifically the society and legends of the Tarahumara people, is also greatly endearing. But for all of the insights into a culture that’ll be completely alien to most players, and the artefacts scattered across Mulaka’s sprawling levels – each a little open world of its own – there’s no shaking the impression that this adventure is only average. With imprecise combat, repetitive puzzles, and grating audio, the positives…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB VISION GAMES PUBLISHING DEV CLIMAX STUDIOS This might look like a classic arcade top-down bullet hell shooter but it sure doesn’t play like one. For starters, you won’t be able to keep the trigger held as your guns will overheat. It’s also not a twin-stick shooter, though you’ll use the right stick to improve your aim, at the expense of speed. Your ship has limited thrusters and a barrel-rolling dodge, but it lacks the freewheeling manoeuvrability of just being able to swerve through an armada of bullets1 . In short, there are constant trade-offs to stop you from ever becoming overpowered. But that’s perhaps the point, as the incentive to keep playing is not so much perfecting your skills but snagging loot and…

INFO FORMAT PS VR ETA OUT NOW PUB SONY DEV SUPERMASSIVE GAMES Look at this way: as a demo for the PS VR Aim controller Supermassive’s latest game ticks all the boxes. It’s (often) accurate, versatile, and fun with a friend when the pressure’s on to score big on a last-ditch headshot. As a standalone game, however, Bravo Team misses the target. The opening 15 minutes of Bravo Team play out like a poor man’s Tom Clancy. You and your partner sit uncomfortably in a Hummer as the daughter of a tin-pot state’s president shows you photos of her family. It’s an excuse to ogle your virtual assault rifle and coo over the ‘reality’ of holding this thing in a VR space. Once the inevitable ambush occurs and your package…

INFO FORMAT PS4 ETA OUT NOW PUB EA DEV CRITERION SOFTWARE Pressing Start brings back all those fuzzy feelings, and ten years on Burnout’s open world opus still impresses. The smorgasbord of teasing delights, the pure pursuit of violent speed, and the grunge soundtrack – which with the inclusion of Avril Lavigne was a knowing nod of nostalgia back in 2008 – all feel relevant now, on PS4. As a pure racer Burnout Paradise lacked the narrow focus of Burnout 3, but in its open world approach it became something more interesting. The map is sufficiently small to remain fun but deep enough to occupy whatever part of your brain needs to collect stuff. In fact, it’s a work of art. The mix of yellow-gated shortcuts, billboards to smash, and…

WHAT WE SAID: FINAL FANTASY XV “For a series that once thrived on its ability to spin an epic yarn there’s something missing; the chemistry is off… Despite a “Miss” in the story slots, series staples and modern-day mechanics converge to create a seamless spectacle.” THE EVOLUTION OF… FINAL FANTASY XV FILLING IN GAPS MARCH 2017 Chapter 13, Verse 2 launches. It’s a bold attempt to fill in some of the game’s incoherent backstory. GLADIO RISES MARCH 2017 Episode Gladiolus, first of the season pass chapters, launches. It remakes the game’s combat system around a different character. PROMPTO IN THE SNOW JULY 2017 Episode Prompto explains the back story of FFXV’s likeable photographer in a pretty boring snowy environment. CO-OP NOVEMBER 2017 The multiplayer expansion Comrades launches. It’s hard to…

INFO FORMAT PS VR PUB CHERRY POP GAMES DEV CHERRY POP GAMES REVIEW N/A Ditch your expectations of how a football videogame should be played. Here, two PS Move controllers represent your feet, and with practice you can pass, shoot, and even juggle the ball like a polygonal Ronaldo. It’s odd, it’s not FIFA, and it’s only playable online in up to 4v4 matches. Matchmaking times are eased by crossplay – team up with other players on HTC Vive and Oculus Rift headsets. But you’ll still struggle to get a full team together, with squads of one or two common. On the pitch the game plays like schoolyard football: there are no tactics or positional play to consider, and goal hanging is common. Yet put aside your idea of what…

WOLFENSTEIN II – THE DEEDS OF CAPTAIN WILKINS We’ve had melee combat and stretchy stealth, and in the final Freedom Chronicles DLC we get to go out in style. Take a Battlewalker to the streets and put a stop to the Nazis’ Sun Gun project. Wolfenstein II is going out with a bang. DISSIDIA FINAL FANTASY NT – DLC Final Fantasy XII’s Vayne Carudas Solidor becomes the first new character to enter the fray. Square Enix is promising an avalanche of new heroes for its online brawler, with one new character released every two months between now and February 2019. BATTLEFIELD 1 – APOCALYPSE The fourth and final DLC for Battlefield 1 doesn’t pull any punches. The new multiplayer maps are inspired by some of World War I’s most horrific…

Having achieved the impossible with The Force Awakens – a film that not only proved Star Wars movies could still be good, but managed to waft away the stink of the prequels – the odds that Rian Johnson’s much-anticipated follow-up could repeat the trick was at least 3,720 to 1. But as a certain rogue smuggler might have said, “Never tell me the odds.” A thrillingly inventive and brazenly gutsy chapter in the Skywalker saga, The Last Jedi’s greatest strength is that it repeatedly does the unexpected. Picking up moments after The Force Awakens, it sees Rey embark on a form of training with Luke, while Poe, Finn, and Leia do all they can to evade the First Order. Upending the series in spectacular fashion, The Last Jedi practically rewrites…

WHO? Luke Kemp knows his games… and he knows how to hold a grudge, too. Will finally giving Bloodborne a chance prove him childish, or prove him right? Once upon a time, there was a game named Demon’s Souls, which I loved. Fast forward several years, and I give Dark Souls 2 a go… which I learn to despise. As far as I was concerned, it had all of the “harsh” and none of the “fair”. I swore off any future FromSoftware adventures (and swear I did, a lot). When Bloodborne swaggered onto the scene in 2015, therefore, I said “Can’t fool me mate, that’s Dark Souls in a top hat,” and went about my business. Now having finally taken the plunge in the line of duty, it seems that…

1 REZ INFINITE Fifteen years after the original’s release, the psychedelic rhythm rail shooter has achieved its final form. In PS VR, creator Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s vision becomes reality, the glittering polygonal trance-world and pounding techno inspiring total synaesthesia within you. Its crowning achievement? New level Area X, powerful enough to bring players to tears. Deserving of its name, this is a truly timeless title. 2 THUMPER Make no mistake: the brave chrome beetle gave Rez a run for its money for our top spot. Hurtling down a violently kaleidoscopic track, pounding notes and scraping round corners is exquisitely tough – and the manic magic is enhanced and perfected in PS VR. 3 KEEP TALKING AND NOBODY EXPLODES Who knew bombs could bring people together? With one headsetted Defuser, and as…