Innholdsfortegnelse for December 2018 i Gamesmaster

Hello, and welcome to the 336th edition of GamesMaster. It’s another issue packed with games we love, and you’ll love too. You can tell Christmas is almost upon us, as big-hitting series such as Call Of Duty and Assassin’s Creed have their latest instalments reviewed right here. Elsewhere, we recount the fascinating story of Dungeons & Dragons, and how the tabletop RPG would come to shape videogames. Then there’s all the regular madness, with previews of Battlefield V and Days Gone, while RetroMaster takes on the Amiga-powered might of The Bitmap Brothers. In sadder news, it’s my unfortunate duty to inform you that this will be the final issue of GamesMaster. The past 25 (almost 26!) years have seen videogames mature as an artform, changing as they have become a…

When we were all younger the thrill of going to a friend’s house or having family round and playing a videogame split-screen or couch co-op was amazing. Fast forward and now with the boom of so many multiplayer-only games why has the option to play with real friends at home disappeared? My son loves Roblox and Fortnite, two games which would be amazing in split-screen or co-op, but instead it’s playing mostly against faceless players over broadband. I found my son being bullied out of games on Roblox just because he wasn’t playing how they wanted him to. That wouldn’t happen as much with local multiplayer. There is definitely place for single-player, online multiplayer, and split-screen, especially with the boom of battle royale style games… it’s a great excuse to…

Let’s be honest, @GamesMaster was the king. Orange Caution, @orangecaution Why ‘when you were younger’? Was collecting @GamesMaster as a kid and still read them while in my thirties. Great mag. Leigh Way, @ LA_Way The mag is still going strong today and it looks amazing SUPERNERDSUK_gaming, @SNUKgaming [*cries* Thanks, guys!] Arkham Knight/ City are the best combat games when it comes to superheroes. They almost make me want to dig out my bat-suit, start looking for the copies of the Batman: Dark Tomorrow game while shouting ‘WHERE ARE THEY!?!’ Daniel Climo, Facebook My fave game is every single game that ever existed!!! Play on people! Monica Kershaw, Facebook I do like the stealthy elements of Assassin’s Creed Jen McBatcat, Facebook SPEAK TO MEEEEEE SeanGabriel, @SeanGabriel83…

Despite the zombies and mechs there’s a pleasingly grounded feel to Scum as you try to balance nutrition, disease, and trying to stay alive. Its bodily functions are gimmicky, but beyond that it’s surprisingly deep, with RPG elements expanded by sim-like character creation. Stronger people can carry more, for example, but use more energy. The skills and abilities mean there is an in-depth survival game here, one in which who you are is just as important as what you pick up, and the ability to fine-tune a character’s skills, and grow them, is an interesting change to the usual race to collect the best gear. While the learning curve is steep, there’s a lot to work with already.…

Ubisoft CEO and co-founder and Yves Guillemot recently stated that in the future “game streaming will replace all gaming platforms”. He’s not alone in that sentiment, with Microsoft working on a standalone streaming device codenamed ‘Project Scarlett’. I’m not going to waste your time by listing everything that could go wrong in a streaming-only future. Just try watching Netflix on a countryside bus service and you’ll become an expert. I will, however, stake my non-existent reputation on the fact that this is all total bobbins. Streaming services are not going to replace physical games, at least not any time soon. Here’s why. When I game, I do it on wired gear. My keyboard and mouse are both wired, as are the controllers for most of my consoles. I never connect…

IAN’S PICK Hitman 2 People around the office know that I’m neither a quiet nor subtle man, but there’s a thrill to be had in becoming the thing you are not. Hitman 2 looks to provide this thrill, with the jungle-set levels we’ve seen providing the perfect playground for poisonings and a lovely locale for liquidation. There’s something about 47’s precise and confident approach to whacking on a chef’s hat and immediately being taken for a chef that we could all learn from – though perhaps in real life we shouldn’t dress as a policeman and try directing traffic. PS4, XO, PC – 13 November ROB’S PICK Battlefield V Although Cyberpunk 2077 is my long-term most wanted, in the short term my heart belongs to Battlefield V. I’m so excited…

If you’ve read our past previews, you’ll know that this game has been raising our eyebrows in a good way. Giant robots fighting each other, without the complex controls or crushing weight of a million stats this usually entails? Yes please! We were already excited and now, thanks to extended hands-on time – including exclusive access to the story mode and every multiplayer map – we’re even moreexcited. The fundamental concept is pretty simple: a brawler for two to four players, where every character is a mech, and each limb on a mech is controlled with a different trigger button. In fact, this control scheme came about before everything else. “It first started as more of a tech demo,” says producer Andrew Nguyen. “The developers were actually trying to make…

Format PS4, XO, PC Publisher Square Enix Dev Avalanche Studios ETA 4 December During our hands-on session with Just Cause 4 we sit down with the man himself, the game’s director, Francesco Antolini. As he shows us the game, he’s constantly talking about his love of open world games – Just Cause 2 is the one that got him to join Avalanche Studios, after all. He speaks with passion about some of his recent favourites: The Legend Of Zelda: Breath Of The Wild; Metal Gear Solid V; and Assassin’s Creed Origins (the man himself used to work at Ubisoft). “There is actually one thing I’m seeing, where all good open worlds are going,” Antolini notes. “It’s this attempt at making the world itself more plausible and more able to communicate…

Format PS4, XO, PC Pub Nightdive Studios Dev Nightdive Studios ETA2020 A playable, though glitchy and enemy-free, alpha version has been released to backers of this remake of Looking Glass’s influential game. It’s looking like the update will be staying extremely close to the original, with wall textures and map layouts that look just like what we played in 1994, just with massively increased resolution, and much better lit. The claustrophobic nature of the space station setting – either the ceilings are really low, or the player character is surprisingly tall – brings to mind Alien Isolation. It’s a long wait until 2020, but we’re glad this is still getting made.…

Format PC Developer Gwen Frey ETA 2019 Web bit.ly/gm_kine The breeziest, bounciest, happiesttrailer we’ve seen in a long time belongs to Gwen Frey’s Kine, an ingenious new puzzle game featuring a trio of sentient musical instruments. “There’s just so much negativity in the world that I knew I wanted to make something light-hearted and joyful, that makes people smile,” Frey says. As founder of The Molasses Flood, Frey was at a loose end after the studio’s gorgeous survival game The Flame In The Flood shipped. “I started prototyping and pitching things at work and one of them had this kernel of something interesting, which was the way that a character could move in a 3D grid,” she says. “I just liked the way this character moved.…

Dungeon (1975) It’s disputed to this day what the first ever CRPG was, but most people agree it was Don Daglow’s Dungeon that started it all. D&D: Shadow Over Mystara (1996) This game cleverly took the feel of D&D and melded it with the mechanics of an arcade beat-’em-up. Warhammer: Dark Omen (1998) Total War might be the king of epic battles but Dark Omen really pioneered this kind of large-scale warfare. Neverwinter Nights (2002) Not to be confused with the 1991 release of the same name, NWN had a very strong modding community. Vampire: The Masquerade – Bloodlines (2004) Almost unplayable on release, but after years of fan patches it’s now the best bloodsucker out there. Divinity: Original Sin 2 (2017) Has a GM mode which allows four players…

Engage in enough combat and you’ll eventually garner the attention of someone willing to pay to snuff you out. Once your notoriety goes up, the bounty hunters come out to play. This works similarly to Shadow Of Mordor’s Nemesis system, as a near-endless array of rival mercenaries with their own backstories and loot come looking to collect the bounty on your head. They’re often a chaotic wild card, showing up at the least opportune time to spoil your plans. Fighting them is a thrill, and their presence makes the world feel more reactive.…

The most bizarre addition in Forza Horizon 4 is that of a Halo Experience Showcase. It’s basically a big excuse to drive a Warthog round the rolling hills of the home nations while suited up as Master Chief. Even so, it makes for a fun few minutes. Cortana provides a humorous commentary on the perplexing nature of modern-day Britain throughout the race (heck, modern-day Britain perplexes us and we live here), which sees you competing with Banshees and other Warthogs as you sprint to the finish. If you’re a Forza fan, you’ll remember the Warthog was also included in Horizon 3, and like in that game, you can optionally choose to unlock it for casual driving outside the Showcase event.…

1 ASSASSINS CREED ODYSSEY PS4, XO, PC Exploration mode brings a big change to AC. Instead of setting off in a straight line toward my target, I’m actually using the roads as more than ambush points. Ian Evenden, Editor 2 FORZA HORIZON 4 XO, PC Thrashing an Audi around the Lake District in autumn turns out to be a lot of fun, especially when the game’s easygoing enough to reward you for just about anything. Whoever built all those dry stone walls: I’m very sorry. Ian Evenden, Editor 3 ASSETTO CORSA COMPETIZIONE PC This is in Early Access, and the potential is here, though it’s not Assetto Corsa yet. With force feedback working on my Fanatec wheel it will be sweeter. Rob Crossland, Art Editor 4 BLOOD BOWL 2 PC…

Developer The Bitmap Brothers Publisher Renegade Software Released 1993 Format PC, Amiga CD32, SNES, Mega Drive, Amiga, Atari ST Get it Steam, GOG, eBay, car boot sales Thumping techno; blasting hand-cannons; working with your sibling, friend, parent, guardian, enemy, grandma; chanting along with the voiceover man as he proclaims ‘EXIT OPEN’; dying repeatedly because it’s way too difficult – The Chaos Engine has gone down in history as an impactful game for many a reason. All of them are shared experiences, while at the same time they’re all deeply personal – the Amiga game is a legend for far too many reasons to count. The origin Someone at The Bitmap Brothers had played Gauntlet when they were younger and liked it quite a lot. Enough, in fact, that they decided…

1 FORZA MOTORSPORT 7 2 HALO 5: GUARDIANS 3 KALIMBA 4 QUANTUM BREAK 5 GEARS OF WAR 4 1 THE LAST OF US REMASTERED 2 SHADOW OF THE COLOSSUS 3 HORIZON: ZERO DAWN 4 UNCHARTED 4: A THIEF’S END 5 GOD OF WAR 1 THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: BREATH OF THE WILD 2 SUPER MARIO ODYSSEY 3 MARIO KART 8 DELUXE 4 MARIO + RABBIDS KINGDOM BATTLE 5 ARMS 1 DOTA 2 2 TOTAL WAR: WARHAMMER II 3 GUILD WARS 2 4 THE SIMS 4 5 CRUSADER KINGS 2 1 POKÉMON SUN AND MOON 2 FIRE EMBLEM FATES 3 ANIMAL CROSSING: NEW LEAF 4 MONSTER HUNTER GENERATIONS 5 THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: A LINK BETWEEN WORLDS 1 HEARTHSTONE 2 DEVICE 6 3 80 DAYS 4 SORCERY 4 5 MONUMENT VALLEY…

25mbps The internet download speed you’ll need to stream triple-A games to any device using Google’s Project Stream. Oh, and you’ll need to live in the US too, for now. 1in 10 The unusually high proportion of players who collected all the trophies in Marvel’s Spider-Man in the month after release. 2.5hrs The time it took the How Big Is The Map? YouTube channel to walk from one end of AC Odyssey’s map to the other. 1,000 The number of V-bucks you’ll get if you purchase the Fortnite Deep Freeze Bundle on console, which also comes with an ice-themed outfit and axe. Yours for £25.…

Topping the leaderboard this issue DLC TLC 11-11: Memories Retold looks utterly beautiful, if a game about war could be said to be such a thing, and we’re anticipating a good degree of heartstring-tugging from it. Bandai Namco has announced it’s going to release a DLC following two children drawn into the events of World War I. All the profits from the DLC will go to War Child UK, a charity supporting children affected by war. HISTORY LESSON Here’s a museum we’d happily spend a night in: the National Videogame Museum is opening in Sheffield on 24 November. It’s home to the only permanently accessible collection of videogame memorabilia in the UK – get down there and be all cultured! GO WEST Ever looked at a game’s nuclear-blighted wasteland and…

We expect a significant number of new players to gravitate toward Metageckon. We certainly did. He’s the stuff of mech battle dreams, a giant metal dinosaur with the ability to shoot laser beams from his mouth – who wouldn’t want a go at that? His short arms mean that his standing punches don’t have quite the range of his opponents’, but he’s still one of the more fearsome characters. One special move sees him curl himself into a ball, and roll around the map with surprising speed; another, activated in mid-air, again curls him up before sending him hurtling to the ground with devastating force.…

Chain whip Soft, strong, and very, very long (okay, we’re lying about the ‘soft’ bit), the chain whip can also be used as a grappling hook for crossing gaps. Once you gain the Flame Hollow it can transform into nunchucks. Hammer Purple-haired Force Fury’s secondary weapon, the hammer hits hard but is distinctly slower, like something War would have used. Fans of the previous two games will enjoy smacking away with it. Daggers Fire Fury’s secondary weapon is a quick knife attack. Her strikes are so fast the weapons blur through the air and you might never see them properly – but look at the fabulously fiery trail they leave behind.. Fire The special attack in Flame mode burns everything around Fury, but you’ll need a full wrath meter to…

Format PS VR Developer From Software Publisher Sony Interactive Entertainment ETA November It says a lot about Hidetaka Miyazaki’s creative clout that he’s famed for creating Dark Souls, but when he comes out with a walking sim about fairies in a traditional British boarding school, you’re all-in to see how it pans out. On the evidence of the half-hour demo we played of Miyazaki-san’s VR fairy simulator Déraciné, it’s going very beautifully indeed. At a glance, Déraciné looks like a walking sim, though hands-on it actually feels more like an old point-and-click adventure. The segment we play lets us move around a large chunk of the beautiful Victorian-era boarding school, but movement is entirely based around teleporting. This sacrifices some immersion in favour of negating motion sickness, but it also…

Format Mobile Pub Ubisoft Dev Behaviour Interactive ETA 21 Nov We don’t know a great deal about this upcoming mobile game, other than it looks to be Assassin’s Creed’s answer to Fallout Shelter, sharing as it does both a developer and the home-base-that-sends-out -explorers schtick with Bethesda’s post-apocalyptic spin-off. The assassins’ hideout is more like XCOM HQ than a vault, however, with separate rooms that can be constructed and used to train a band of hired killers you’ve recruited from across time. Killers they may be, but they’re also cute, with a large-headed kawaii look that makes them appear like especially threatening Amiibo. Missions are represented as a series of rooms, with obstacles and enemies tailored to the skills of your three-strong team. GM Instant Reaction THRILL-O-METER Because you can’t…

Format Switch Pub Warner Bros Dev TT Games ETA 2 November We assume the name means it’s a collection that will last you an eternity rather than that you’ll be collecting things for ever, but even though (2012 PC game) Diablo III, its expansions Reaper Of Souls and Rise Of The Necromancer, and some exclusive extras sounds like a package that’ll keep you playing for a long time, there will still be a lot of loot to collect. The loot is at the heart of Diablo, and with four-player local multiplayer as well as online, there will be plenty to go around as you crawl dungeons, bash skeletons, and take on demons.…

MACHINARIUM Amanita Design’s gorgeous, hand-drawn point-and-clicker is as rich in life and detail as any blockbuster: you’ll click on everything because you’ll always get a response. And despite the rusty environments it’s anything but creaky, streamlining puzzles and offering hints. A gem. STEAMWORLD DIG 2 No joints need oiling in this slick Metroidvania, which places a Nintendo-like emphasis on feel and certainly benefits from it. As the optimistic Dorothy, tasked with looking for original game protagonist Rusty, you’ll carve your own path downward: it’s a joy, and subtle design tricks ensure you’ll never get truly lost. GROW HOME Developed by a tiny team at Ubisoft Reflections, this casts you as BUD, a little robot who must plant seeds and climb their shoots to reach new heights. BUD’s toddler-like movements as…

Videogames and tabletop gaming are indisputably intertwined. The classic pen-and-paper games’ idea that certain characteristics can be represented by numbers is at the beating heart of everything from the most classic fantasy RPG, to sports and racing sims. Without those dice-lobbing classics like Warhammer and D&D, this hobby of ours would never have existed. Whether it’s your wizard’s intelligence determining how much damage her spells do, or Lionel Messi’s shot accuracy enabling him to take a long-range stab at goal, the principles (and heritage) of tabletop gaming are always present. “WITHOUT THOSE DICE-LOBBING CLASSICS LIKE WARHAMMER AND D&D, THIS HOBBY OF OURS WOULD NEVER HAVE EXISTED” To tell this story, we have to go back to the early ’70s, when a couple of guys named Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson…

Format PS4, XO, PC Publisher Ubisoft Developer Ubisoft Québec ETA Out now Players 1 The reinvention of Assassin’s Creed continues apace. Following Bayek’s Egyptian adventures in last year’s fantastic Assassin’s Creed Origins, Ubisoft Québec takes the series back another 300 years to Ancient Greece at the onset of the Peloponnesian War between Athens and Sparta. It’s certainly a bold choice, Spartan-kicking any notion of the assassin-versus-Templar soap opera at the heart of the series’ mythos off the nearest cliff. Yet the setting of an Assassin’s Creed game is often its most crucial aspect, and this inviting world is worth exploring to its fullest. “EVERY INCH OF ODYSSEY’S ANCIENT GREECE CONTAINS SOMETHING WORTH SEEKING OUT” Taking a gander at the map in Assassin’s Creed Odyssey doesn’t quite tell you how mammoth…

0-39 Awful Avoid it as you would a bullet with your name on. 40-59 Poor Major issues here that won’t be solved with a hug. 60-69 Decent A mixed bag filled with sweets and sharp stones. 70-79 Good Some flaws, but still a very enjoyable experience. 80-89 Excellent Buy it, love it, thank us when you’re done. 90-100 Outstanding A rare and essential piece of brilliance. The small print: We rate games in comparison to what else is available on the same system, in the same genre, and for the same format at the time of release. So this year’s FIFA might score less than a FIFA from three years ago, but still be a better game. Because time, and our expectations, move on. Hey, you’re smart, you get it……

Victory in a boss battle doesn’t just offer bragging rights, it also gives you access to a brand-new weapon. Once unlocked, these can be switched on the fly using the shoulder buttons and Mega Man’s armour changes depending on what weapon he’s currently got equipped. 1 Scramble Thunder lets you unleash balls of electricity that cling to solid surfaces to give enemies a shock. 2 You wouldn’t think throwing rubber balls at an enemy would be entirely effective, but Bounce Ball is devastating. 3 Make enemies hot under the collar with Blazing Torch, which launches a fireball diagonally into the air. 4 Pile Driver is a fetching orange and yellow ensemble that lets you charge forward and spike enemies. 5 With Acid Barrier, Mega Man can encase himself in a…

HEAD RAP When it comes to headgear, they don’t get much more recognisable than PaRappa the Rapper’s orange beanie. Despite the game being released over two decades ago, officially licensed hats are still being sold to this day, so you can channel the paper-thin dog and lay down some sick beats. Warning, rapping ability not included. STYLE LEVEL UP If there was an award for the coolest hat in gaming (and there should be) it would undoubtedly go to League Of Legends’ Veigar. The Tiny Master Of Evil’s pointy blue number offers both comfort and style. Pair with a blue cloak for maximum badassery, and be mindful of low ceilings. HAT’S MORE LIKE IT The complexity of animating hair on ’80s console hardware resulted in videogames’ most iconic hat resting…

Rockstar heist I’m an avid fan of all the games Rockstar have made, and have been since I started way back in the day with San Andreas, which is a true classic. Today, however, I’m very worried that their newest game, Red Dead Redemption 2, will not live up to my expectations, not in the gameplay aspect. I’m very excited to get into the open wilderness in gorgeous HD. What I’m concerned about is the business model Rockstar employed with GTA 5 and it’s online, where everything is ridiculously expensive, and missions become a tedious chore. I’m worried that they will bring this method back for Red Dead online, and even worse, implement microtransactions into the single-player. What if they charge you hundreds of thousands for a new horse? What…

RED DEAD REDEMPTION 2 Format PS4, XO ETA 26 October There’s hardly any time at all until we’re all let loose on Rockstar’s wide open range – and the record for ‘best-selling game ever’ gets smashed… CYBERPUNK 2077 Format PS4, XO, PC ETA TBC Will this game come out before we hit the real cyberpunk dystopia? Our cover feature in GM 333 thinks it’s in with a chance, and might be amazing too. THE LAST OF US PART II Format PS4 ETA TBC At least Naughty Dog’s latest will probably arrive before the actual apocalypse – though we’ve got a PS4 hidden in a bomb shelter just in case. RESIDENT EVIL 2 Format PS4, XO, PC ETA January 2019 A remake of one of the original PlayStation’s greatest games has…

Scum is an open world survival game about prisoners condemned to fight, scavenge, and craft their way across a massive island. Think Rust or Ark as you try to stay alive long enough to be the most dangerous thing on the server – although you’ve probably heard of the game because it lets you control your bodily functions. We condemned Leon to hard time testing what it can really do-do. 0 MINUTES I’m not sure what worries me more as I fire up Scum for the first time and begin to build a character – the stern-looking setup of stat points and sliders that defines my skills, or the haunted look on the face of the man I’m creating. It’s a face that has apparently already seen things. Perhaps that’s…

Sam & Max Beyond Time and Space The second of Telltale’s outings for the wisecracking rabbit and his straight-dog partner made the first look like a dry run. It was funnier, better looking, and the last couple of episodes were minor classics. Nelson Tethers: Puzzle Agent Combining black humour with Lynchian weirdness, this dialogue-led puzzler (which emerged from an internal pilot programme) might well be the studio’s most underrated game. Not a big hit, but a winner in our book. Back To The Future: The Game Capturing the breezy, anarchic spirit of the films, this essentially marked the end of Old Telltale before it started doing things differently. But as a farewell to the point-and-click, it could hardly have been better. The Walking Dead: Season One The studio’s defining moment:…

Few tasks are more menial than sniffing out videogame collectibles. These useless items serve no purpose than to artificially inflate a game’s length. In the case of Marvel’s Spider-Man, however, I’m determinedly tracking down the lot. Throughout New York, Spider-Man’s webbed 55 of his old backpacks to buildings (hey, he had a little time on his hands), and each one contains a nostalgic memento: his bulky first web-shooter; a vial containing the Sandman’s dastardly grains; a business card bearing the details of ace lawyer Matt Murdock, who you might also know as Daredevil. You’re uncovering Spider-Man’s history with each bag you bring in. Selecting any of these collectibles prompts a line from Spider-Man.“A toy designer made this prototype to get me to license my likeness,” he says of a plushie.…

DIE FAWKES It’s Bonfire Night, so play something appropriate – how about Dark Souls? POKéMON CATCHES YOU Pokémon: Let’s Go, Pikachu/Eevee! launches, aiming to draw newcomers in to the Pokécult. ENLIST TODAY! Test your scrap mettle, as epic WWII battler Battlefield V arrives in shops. RELIGHT YOUR FIRE And keep that gaming flame burning: Spyro Reignited Trilogy launches today. A FURY TALE Darksiders III launches today, with faster, harder combat and a more intricate world. GUARANTEED HIT Make your stealthy way down to the shops to take out a copy of Hitman 2, out today. FALLOUT BELTER Leave your bunker to snap up today’s big release, Fallout 76. And be careful out there! MECH YOUR MIND UP This issue’s cover star, Override: Mech City Brawl, clanks onto shelves today.…

We’re not sure what inspired Pescado’s pilot to design their mech in such a way – a half-man, half-fish wrestler with star-shaped nipples – but we presume it involves a traumatic childhood event. Disadvantaged at a distance, he’s possibly the trickiest mech to master – and a favourite of the developer. “We like that he’s kind of self-punishing,” says Nguyen, referring to the fact that mistiming many of Pescado’s moves leaves you wide open to attack. “His entire body is a hitbox. Anywhere on the body will do damage.” So don’t be shy about bodyslamming your way to victory!…

Format PS4, PC Publisher Inkle Developer Inkle ETA 2019 Making 3D games is complex, and even the biggest studios have trouble producing convincing character models and animations. However, Inkle Studios has come up with an elegant solution, which is immediately striking when we go hands-on with Heaven’s Vault. It’s a 3D open world but its characters, including protagonist Aliya, are depicted as hand-drawn 2D art, with over a thousand individual frames that fade into each other as she moves or when the camera rotates. Sidestepping 3D character modelling, this mesmerising comic-book effect allows for a variety of angles and expressions. The game itself reminds us of The Witness. Rather than grappling with puzzles, it has you deciphering an alien language. As an archaeologist, you find inscriptions in the ruins, and…

Format PC Publisher Bossa Studios Developer A Brave Plan ETA 2019 Whether you’re starting work at a police station in the midst of a zombie outbreak or a science lab conducting fishy experiments, first days on the job never pan out very well in videogames. Usually, disaster strikes so early that we end up missing out on an essential procedure at any workplace: the corporate induction. In first-person adventure The Bradwell Conspiracy, our silent protagonist doesn’t even work at the titular tech company but assumes the identity of a new employee after an explosion occurs in its offices, leaving us trapped after everyone else has already been evacuated. Help is at hand in the shape of an AI guide and a fellow survivor, Amber, who’s in another part of the…

Format PS VR Pub 2K Games Dev Gearbox ETA December You have to do more to a game to make it VR-friendly than slap on a new control scheme, and Gearbox has supplied this by retooling Borderlands 2 – a four-player co-op open world ARPG – into a pure single-player experience. There’s also a new mode, Bad-Ass Mega Fun Time, that will slow time when triggered for bullet-dodging moves. Vehicles are becoming first-person as well, with head-aimed weapons, which sounds like a recipe for motion sickness to us. Elsewhere, the cel-shaded graphics and insane weapons and characters look like being the same as they’ve always been.…

Format PS4, PC Pub Square Enix Dev Square Enix ETA 5 March 2019 A shooter and survival game set in the Front Mission universe (that’s one populated with big stompy robots, if you’re not already a fan), Left Alive comes from the metallic brains of Toshifumi Nabeshima, the man behind Armored Core V, and Metal Gear designer Yoji Shinkawa. There are three paths through the game, each taken by one of three characters, and their choices along the way have an effect on the story as it unfolds. While you will be fighting mechs, there will be infantry and vehicles to take care of, and you can do it with traps, stealth, or lots of guns.…

“This is literally the first time I’ve had to speak to a real person about the game, so god knows! I guess it’s a 2D cinematic platform adventure. “I’m concentrating on story and general atmosphere, which isn’t necessarily missing from a lot of modern indie games, but it’s often very much put to the side with more gameplay-focused titles. I really wanted more of a balance between the two because I still play a lot of retro games, and I find unless they have incredible gameplay – you know, like Mario – within an hour or two there’s nothing to keep me going. So I felt something with a story to help push the gameplay along would work well. “When I sat down to write the story I wrote it…

Dark Soles A guessing game in which you turn off the lights and see if you can guess which celebrity’s shoe-print you’re touching. League Of Legends: The Board Game A party game where the purpose is to be as verbally abusive to the other team as possible. Metal Gear: The Gathering Collect as many cards as you can before Konami announces a new set that replaces the deck you just spent £500 on. Call Of Duty Of Cthulhu An eldritch horror RPG in which you investigate an illness that’s causing millions of people to buy the same game every year. PaRappa the Rapper Mahjong This can be basically anything because nobody really understands what mahjong is anyway.…

0-39 Awful Avoid it as you would a bullet with your name on. 40-59 Poor Major issues here that won’t be solved with a hug. 60-69 Decent A mixed bag filled with sweets and sharp stones. 70-79 Good Some flaws, but still a very enjoyable experience. 80-89 Excellent Buy it, love it, thank us when you’re done. 90-100 Outstanding A rare and essential piece of brilliance. The small print: We rate games in comparison to what else is available on the same system, in the same genre, and for the same format at the time of release. So this year’s FIFA might score less than a FIFA from three years ago, but still be a better game. Because time, and our expectations, move on. Hey, you’re smart, you get it……

Starlink manages not only to squeeze in the entire Star Fox crew – Fox, Falco, Peppy, and Slippy – but makes their presence in the Atlas system feel surprisingly organic. They’re on a mission to hunt down longtime nemesis Star Wolf, which brings them into the company of the main cast, and supplies Fox with his own side-quests. It’s hard to spot the seams between these missions and the base game, and their slightly cheesy Saturday-morning cartoon voice acting fits in perfectly. And yes, that immortal barrel roll-related catchphrase get deployed the first chance the game gets.…

Battery Working in the field of explosions, Battery’s ability is a bouncing grenade launcher called War Machine. Her equipment is a looping cluster grenade that spits out more grenades. It’s designed to flush enemies from cover, blow them up, and then blow them up again. Bonus feel-good points if you manage to stick someone with it. Firebreak Area denial is Firebreak’s stock-in-trade. He’s got a flamethrower as his ability, and this scorches enemies at close range – making it perfect for burning bunched-up foes. His equipment is a reactor core that emits a damaging radiation field wounding enemies within its radius, even if they’re on a balcony or behind a wall. Nomad Nomad is an ambush kinda guy, partnering with a battle-scarred pit bull terrier that you can command to…

One of Super Mario Party’s headline features is the introduction of minigames that utilise two Switches at once. There are just four of these in total, off in their own corner of the hub. Banana, Split is the only game that actually requires two to play – it shows halves of bananas on each screen and challenges you to line them up by moving the Switches around. But the highlight is Shell Shocked, a fairly straightforward top-down tank battle game where the way screens are arranged on the table dictates the shape of the map. There’s a genuine magic to shuffling in-game space around as you move each Switch.…

We love the pulp heroes in Strange Brigade. The newest is Hachiro Shimuzu, who you can get in the Japanese Naval Officer Character Expansion Pack. Later this month you can also welcome Anjali Khan to the Brigade in the Maharani Huntress Character Expansion Pack. But that’s not all: if you want more thrills for your Brigadiers, three-part campaign The Thrice Damned should deliver the goods. Part one, Isle Of The Dead, and part two, The Sunken Kingdom, are out now, so get on board and prepare to conquer part three, Pyramid Of Bes, again later in November. Spiffing, eh? 3D anime arena fighter My Hero One’s Justice has only just launched but you can already get your mitts on a brand-new fighter. Endeavor was available as a bonus to everyone…

Not sure which games to grab? Trust the experts (that’s us) to shine a light of clarity through your fog of confusion. Over this spread you’ll find GamesMaster’s 100 per cent scientifically accurate and indisputable list of the greatest games on modern machines – updated monthly – as well as the top five most vital exclusives on each of the major platforms. Pick one of these up and, buddy, you’re going to have yourself a good time. THE LEGEND OF ZELDA: BREATH OF THE WILD Switch / Wii U Nintendo casually revolutionises the open-world genre with perhaps the best launch title ever. Explore, fight, and cook your way across Hyrule. GRAND THEFT AUTO V PS4 / XO / PC / PS3 / 360 Rockstar’s most detailed, immersive cityscape yet serves…