PLAY November 2022 - n.19

Greetings, PLAYer. We don’t often put games you can already play on the cover, but Genshin Impact is such a sensation that it rightly bucks that trend. With the big new storyline now kicked off for version three (which will progress in the months ahead), and the anniversary of its launch imminent, there’s never been a better time to get playing. It also makes this the perfect time to chat with HoYoverse about Genshin Impact’s current state of play (p46). Introducing a whole new region to the game’s already huge open world, it’s a smart evolution of what came before. We talk to the team about the development process, and break down the success story behind the game’s phenomenal last two years. Struggling to know where to begin with the hefty free-to-play…

It’s really good playing with the DualSense. I’m happy that people will soon play and give us feedback about it! When you think about the creative possibilities raised by the latest and more powerful technology, you probably think of something that’s both large in scale and pleasing to the eye. In other words, even larger groups of disgusting, plague-carrying, flesh-eating rats was probably not among the things you pictured – though it does fit the bill. But once A Plague Tale: Requiem, followup to surprise hit A Plague Tale: Innocence, is released on 18 October on PS5, you’ll never be too far from hordes of the rodents, which now swarm in bands of 300,000 rather than the 3,000 managed on PS4 (which we found impressive enough). The rats aren’t the only things…

Our arms are only so long, meaning our embraces are limited. That’s not the case for Embracer Group, which we already wrote about mere months ago when it acquired Square Enix’s western development studios. Yes, Embracer’s made even more purchases in recent weeks, making its portfolio even more eclectic. Studios it now owns include: Tripwire Interactive, which makes horde shooter series Killing Floor; Tuxedo Labs, the developer of PC phenomenon Teardown; Limited Run Games, which, as you’d expect, publishes games physically in limited runs (ones which might not otherwise be released at all in hard form); and vocal processing tech company Singtrix. And that course was only a second breakfast. For elevenses, Embracer devoured something truly mouthwatering: the IP rights to The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit books. That’s a lot…

Last month the first proper Evo since PlayStation took co-ownership went off without a hitch. With plenty of standout moments and exciting commentary, it was a blast to watch. But fighting game fans weren’t only enraptured by the head-to-heads, they got to hear some big announcements too. With most of the main-stage games getting a little old, the genre is on the verge of a revamp that could change it entirely. Street Fighter 6 is the biggest game on the horizon, and was shown off at Evo alongside the best-of-the-best dishing out beatdowns in Street Fighter V. Two characters were announced, the returning Juri displaying as chaotic and dangerous an energy as ever, and newcomer ninja Kimberly bouncing around in a wild and infectious fashion. When she walked onto the stage,…

Frogwares is returning to 2007’s Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened, giving it an overhaul and bringing it to PS5 and PS4. The original game’s story will be rewritten (it’ll follow a younger Holmes and Watson, for a start) but the setup will remain the same: what if Sherlock Holmes encountered a clutch of Cthulhu cultists? Continuing the ‘young Sherlock’ arc established in 2021’s Chapter One, the lad’s since teamed up with the good doctor, grown some stubble, and is ready to take on some absolute horrors in London. What begins as a missing person case soon spins out into a shocking supernatural conspiracy, including all the soggy twists and turns you’d expect of a Doyle-meets-Lovecraft mashup. The lad has teamed up with the good doctor and is ready to take on some absolute…

This has been a sweltering summer, but it’s been a good excuse to get outside to touch some grass. In PLAY’s case, though, we’ve been hitting concrete and braving crowds, armed with only a face mask, hand gel, and enthusiasm, as we found ourselves once more in Cologne, Germany for Gamescom. Europe’s very own ‘heart of gaming’ was back and in-person. Even with the now-traditional Opening Night Live hosted by Geoff Keighley to kick things off, Gamescom has always had fewer big reveals than the likes of E3. That’s largely owing to it taking place later in the summer, although given the absence of E3 this year, with only the modest Play Days (also organised by Keighley) to fill the gap, you might have thought of this as an open goal.…