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GAMING FEATURE

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WHAT’S COMING IN SEPTEMBER?

Game director on Diablo IV at Blizzard Entertainment. JOE SHELY

STARFIELD As the great Douglas Adams once

THE CREW MOTORFEST Motorfest? Yes, Motorfest! It’s a car culture packed festival that promises to let players “fulfil their ultimate action driving bucket list”. This will be achieved via various races, themed events, and other challenges, available to hit solo or with your crew. The setting for this automotive mayhem is the picturesque Hawaiian island of O‘ahu, where players will race from the city streets of Honolulu, through volcanic slopes, lush rainforest, twisting mountain roads, and gorgeous sunny beaches.

observed, space is big, and Bethesda’s spacey new IP Starfield - their first newly created world in 25 years - promises a whole lot of the stuff. Set in the year 2330 and billed as a next generation role-playing game that’s set amongst the stars, players will be able to create their own bespoke character before roaming freely through the game’s universe, on a journey “to answer humanity’s greatest mystery”.

1 What’s the first game that you remember playing? A Pac-Man clone called Cosmic Cruncher for the Commodore VIC-20. 2 What was the last game that you finished? The Cult of the Lamb Heretic Pack DLC. 3 What’s your favourite video game/ series of all time? The Last of Us , for its emotional impact.

ACTION RPG MULTIPLAYER?

RACING MULTIPLAYER?

6/9/23

14/9/23

4 What do you think is the most

underrated video game of all time? Celeste , for inspiring me to climb an actual mountain, or Race the Sun , which I find relaxing.

MORTAL KOMBAT 1 The arcade fighting behemoth returns, promising us all of the signature brutality, battles, and fan-favourite characters that we’ve fought with over the years like we’ve never seen them before – new histories, with new interactions! We’ll also be introduced to Kameo Fighter assistants, part of a reborn universe that’s been crafted by the Keeper of Time and protector of Earthrealm, Fire God Liu Kang, all in a brand-new story with an upgraded fighting system – and all-new fatalities.

PAYDAY 3 It’s been a while between heists for the Payday crew – a whole ten years – but now they’re back and out of retirement, in all of their wild, co-op shooter glory! Not that they’re necessarily that jazzed about giving up the good life, as they’re faced with a new threat – one that was born from their previous exploits. So, it’s a move to New York City, and a whole new world of loot and weapons to plunder. Do you possess the smarts, grit, and artistry to pull off the perfect heist?

Celeste

FIGHTING MULTIPLAYER?

SHOOTER MULTIPLAYER?

19/9/23

21/9/23

5 What’s the game that you most wish you’d worked on? I like the challenge of designing brand new mechanics, so I think it would have been a lot of fun to be on the team figuring out asynchronous messages and invasions in Demon’s Souls , or something like the triple jump in Super Mario 64 .

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With Activision’s “toys to life” Skylanders games going great guns, the House of Mouse threw their considerable hand into the ring, with August of 2013 seeing the birth of Disney Infinity . The package included

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a game, of course, and figurines of Mr Incredible, Sully from Monsters Inc . and Captain Jack Sparrow, which

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appeared as playable avatars in-game once placed on a USB-powered “Infinity Base”.

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34 AUGUST 2023

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