STACK Aug #154

GAMES FEATURE

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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 Still to Come in 2017

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.

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

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

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 .

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

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AUGUST 2017

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21/7/17 2:27 pm