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Attending E3 every year is
a double-edged sword: while
you get a taste of what you’ll be
playing before year’s end, getting
a glimpse of how good these games
are already looking and knowing it’ll be a
good three or so months at least until you can play
them is almost unbearable. The days on the office
calendar are being struck off for the following.
Please note that release dates, like a prime
minister’s promise, are subject to change.
Should you be excited about what’s
on the horizon?You bet. Here’s a quick
look at some of the monsters dropping
later this year.
Words Paul Jones
Destiny 2
What a place to start. A new
beginning, a new grind and a
whole new reason to cancel social
engagements, Bungie unlocks the
next chapter in Destiny’s ten-year
plan. September 6
Project CARS 2
For the ultimate in realism, Project
CARS 2 is the game all racing
enthusiasts need to be putting on
the wish list. It’s fast, authentic
and feverishly hard.
September 22
FIFA 18
STACK’s perennial favourite drives
fervent competition, and at times
bitter feuds, in the office. There
is no other game that interrupts
productivity more than FIFA.
September 29
Forza Motorsport 7
This racing series is known
for setting the bar on car and
environment aesthetics and
from what we saw at E3, 7 is no
different. And that’s without adding
the Xbox One X into the mix.
October 3
Middle-earth: Shadow
of War
Return to Middle-earth in
Shadow of War – the sequel to
2012’s Shadow of Mordor. The
revolutionary Nemesis system
returns – as does the series’
trademark humour.
October 10
The Evil Within 2
The brilliant Shinji Mikami is back
with another underwear-soiling
installment of the Evil Within
universe. Word of warning: Play
it with the lights on. Thankfully,
there is no VR component to this
one. Fittingly releasing on Friday
October 13.
Assassin’s Creed: Origins
Back after a gap year, Ubisoft’s
flagship franchise takes the
Templar and Assassin struggle
to Ancient Egypt. We played it
in Los Angeles and arrived at
the conclusion that there surely
couldn’t be a better setting for the
game. October 29
Super Mario Odyssey
In an open-world Mario title that
people are already comparing to
Super Mario Sunshine, the red
plumber is making his way to the
Switch. Super Mario Odyssey is a
great homage to the Mario RPGs
of old, and in this one you’ve even
got a handy sentient cap.
October 29
Wolfenstein II: The
New Colossus
What’s not to love about
MachineGames’ reboot of the
Wolfenstein franchise. The insane
alternative history premise lurches
into the second full title from
the Swedish developer with B.J.
Blazkowicz once again sticking it
up the Nazis. October 29
Still to
Come in
2017
Call of Duty: WWII
With the series dialing back to
1944, there hasn’t been the usual
chorus of disdain that generally
accompanies a CoD reveal. No,
there’s real enthusiasm for this
title and having played it at E3,
there’s good reason for it. Start
working on your sick day excuses
now. November 3
Crackdown 3
Terry Crews appeared in the
cinematic trailer for this, and that
should tell you everything you
need to know. Open-world, action
adventure, environment-breaking
mayhem. It’s been promised for
years but finally we’re getting it.
November 7
Star Wars Battlefront II
While it was fun to play and die
incessantly online in the first
Battlefront, adding a campaign to
Battlefront II is a no-brainer. And,
if you read our E3 round-up in the
last issue, you’ll know we were
impressed with it at E3.
November 17
066 AUGUST 2017
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