PLAY August 2022 - n.16

No E3? No problem. Between Summer Game Fest, The Future Games Show, PlayStation’s own broadcast, and invitations to meet behind closed doors with publishers, this summer is business as usual. There’s loads to look forward to, and – as we love saying – games that’ll redefine our favourite medium’s future. You can discover our picks for the biggest on the horizon in the annual Hot 50 (p33), all packed into the hefty 180-page tome you’re poring over right now. If you’d asked us about the Hot 50 at the start of the year, we might have felt anxious, but in the end we struggled to fit in all our upcoming favourites. Gaming is starting to heat up indeed, and many titles are new-gen only – making the most of PS5. “GAMING IS…

Rachel Watts STAFF WRITER Becoming the master of putting stuff in boxes, she’s packed up to leave PLAY. We wish Rachel well in new adventures! GAME OF THE MONTH Unpacking BEST HOT 50 GAME Stray Jess Kinghorn GAMES EDITOR Flintlock’s Enki has given her ideas. Prowling the local cat shelter, she’s looking to adopt a god. GAME OF THE MONTH VTM: Swansong BEST HOT 50 GAME Flintlock: The Siege Of Dawn Miriam McDonald OPERATIONS EDITOR Getting writers in line is tough. Luckily, Mim’s picked up some devilish tricks from Vampire. You will avoid typos. GAME OF THE MONTH VTM: Swansong BEST HOT 50 GAME The Wolf Among Us 2 Milford Coppock MANAGING ART EDITOR A Dead Space remake, a spiritual sequel, and Resident Evil 4 remake? Milf’s in horror heaven (or is that horror hell?). GAME OF THE MONTH Sniper Elite 5 BEST HOT 50 GAME The Callisto Protocol…

“PSVR2 should make drawing back a bowstring silky-smooth, thanks to its four built-in cameras.” We may still be waiting to learn the release date and (gulp) price, but Sony is no longer coy about showing off games running on its upcoming virtual reality headset. The company revealed footage of an existing VR title promising to be better than ever, an adaptation of the tall vampire lady game, brand-new titles… it’s clear that PSVR2 is set to hit the virtual ground running. The star attraction among the games revealed so far is, surely, Horizon Call Of The Mountain. This isn’t a VR port of Zero Dawn or Forbidden West, it’s being created from the ground up exclusively for PSVR2 by Horizon’s usual developer, Guerrilla Games, plus Liverpool-based Firesprite (acquired by Sony last year). “The…

Considering we used to be Official PlayStation Magazine, we’re no stranger to rebrands at PLAY. But even we have to admit that EA ditching the FIFA licence feels odd. The FIFA series has been around since 1993, with EA steadily releasing annual updates plus a few spin-offs (like FIFA Street) along the way. Now the name is being abandoned, to be replaced by EA Sports FC after the release of FIFA 23. It is just that name, though. The licence for the FIFA title is separate from the other licensing EA has to do to make an authentic footie game. Those agreements, for real teams, players, leagues, and stadia, will remain the same as they were. The likes of UEFA and the Premier League have already released statements saying they’re sticking…

We’ve definitely been guilty of complaining about the triple-A gaming drought (won’t somebody think of the PS5 owners?), but the last couple of years have seen some great indie and ‘double-A’ releases, a trend that’s set to continue. As a result, we couldn’t be happier to see Nacon announce Greedfall 2: The Dying World. The first game was far from our favourite, but enough about it felt distinctive that we couldn’t help but be compelled by it, and this evolution could be just what it needs. As it’s not due until 2024 at the earliest (developer Spiders is wrapping up other projects), there’s time to make sure the historical fantasy RPG is just right. With A Plague Tale’s sequel heating up (check out p49), we’re hoping for a future where these inventive,…

Once one of the surest bets in gaming, Activision has had to explain to investors why Call Of Duty revenue has taken a year-on-year dip. That makes Task Force 141’s new mission an important one, and it’s one that they just might pull off. “Captain Price and the gang aren’t just recognisable now, they evoke nostalgia in many players.” While the series is constantly pingponging between sub-series and developers, Infinity Ward’s Call Of Duty 4: Modern Warfare looms large over just about everything. The studio’s rebooted version was successfully launched in 2019, and this sequel is rocketing out of the gate with Captain John Price, Simon ‘Ghost’ Riley, John ‘Soap’ MacTavish, and Kyle ‘Gaz’ Garrick all present and correct (along with newcomer Mexican Special Forces Colonel Alejandro Vargas). IT’S ALL HISTORY The first Modern…