Assassin’s Creed Mirage leaps onto PLAY’s cover
With more Assassin’s Creed games on the way. Plus: Iizuka on Sonic Frontiers, God Of War Ragnarok, hands-on with Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7, and more!
PLAY #20 is out now, and it marks a milestone moment for Assassin’s Creed heads out there, thanks to a deluge of exciting announcements celebrating the series’ past and future. We’ve got loads more inside, going hands-on with games yet to arrive in 2022, and a look at what’s ahead next year.
Assassin's Creed Mirage
We take a look at everything on the horizon for Assassin’s Creed, including the long-awaited Japan-set open world title. But, it’s Assassin’s Creed Mirage that steals the show, returning to the “city playground” style of previous games and meshing it with the new. Even though it celebrates the series’ legacy, it’s still bringing that action stealth forward, becoming something new.
The Callisto Protocol
Our preview section kicks off with The Callisto Protocol, a frightening space-set horror that nevertheless looks to be a breath of fresh air, pushing the genre ahead while other franchises still play things cautiously with remakes. We also go hands on with Steins;Gate successor Anonymous;Code, Crisis Core: Final Fantasy 7 Reunion, and chat with the new Star Ocean’s celebrated scenario writer.
Sonic Frontiers
Speaking of, well, speaking, we also sat down to have a natter with Takashi Iizuka, Sonic The Hedgehog’s long-time project lead. As well as discussing the change in direction with Sonic Frontiers to the the open world-style “open zone” approach, he also tells us about bringing Sonic into 3D the first time around. It’s a fascinating insight into how the blue blur has reinvented himself time and time again.
God Of War Ragnarok
As you might expect, God Of War Ragnarok leads Insider as we get a bigger look at the brawls to come for Kratos and son, as well as the realms they’ll be traveling and how combat has evolved.
We also dig into Yakuza’s rebrand as ‘Like A Dragon’, and ponder what the three newly announced games could mean for the series’ future. Plus, a developer interview with Infinity Ward about Call Of Duty Modern Warfare 2’s bold new campaign, hands-on with the first new third-person Resident Evil campaign in years, the GTA leaks, and more.
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Reviews
Three sports games (including the final FIFA), tonnes of JRPGs, and a surprisingly satisfying soulslike in Steelrising – this month’s reviews section is stacked. Plus, we introduce ‘Extended PLAY’, where we take an unscored dive into the latest updates and revisitations – this month we dive into Destiny 2’s King’s Fall raid revamp, the PS4 launch of Phantasy Star Online 2: New Genesis, and why Call Of Duty: Advanced Warfare still feels inventive.
RetroStation
We return to Ivalice to re-examine why Final Fantasy XII was such an odd duck, and still feels so unique all these years on. Plus, we investigate the Making Of Hogs Of War, and tip our hat to the very first Ratchet & Clank as it turns 20 (!). For PlayStation fans old and new, PLAY has something for everyone.
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Games Editor Oscar Taylor-Kent brings his Official PlayStation Magazine and PLAY knowledge to continue to revel in all things capital 'G' games. A noted PS Vita apologist, he's always got his fingers on many buttons, having also written for Edge, PC Gamer, SFX, Official Xbox Magazine, Kotaku, Waypoint, GamesMaster, PCGamesN, and Xbox, to name a few.
When not knee deep in character action games, he loves to get lost in an epic story across RPGs and visual novels. Recent favourites? Elden Ring: Shadow Of The Erdtree, 1000xResist, and Metaphor: ReFantazio! Rarely focused entirely on the new, the call to return to retro is constant, whether that's a quick evening speed through Sonic 3 & Knuckles or yet another Jakathon through Naughty Dog's PS2 masterpieces.
Ubisoft had to "retool" the mobile game lore for Assassin's Creed Shadows, with a brand new modern narrative that "will develop over time"
Assassin's Creed Shadows devs "felt there was a stickiness in the parkour," but the delay allowed time for it to be fixed along with improvements to parrying mechanics