Which game will you be playing on Christmas Day?
MIRIAM MCDONALD OPERATIONS EDITOR When I’m not wrestling furry beasts and stealing their treasure (that is, dragging the cats out of the Christmas tree and collecting the baubles they’ve stolen), I’d like to put in some time on Dragon Quest Builders. To be honest, it’s not going to be that different to being at work on OPM: I’ll be labouring away to build something, trying to keep everyone happy and healthy, eating to keep my strength up, occasionally coming to blows with monstrous opposition… the main difference will be that the townspeople in the game actually do what they’re told, unlike the Agents Of Anarchy in the office, who require regular beatings.
MATTHEW PELLETT EDITOR
Think it’s hard waiting for Santa to come once a year? Just pity the monsters of Final Fantasy XV – they’ve been eager to pounce since before PS3 was launched. A mainline Final Fantasy release comes but once a generation now, so this Christmas I’ll be roasting my chestnuts on the campfires of FFXV’s cookery sections to celebrate. But Xmas is a time for indulgence, so why stop there? I’m also keen to settle down with another game I’ve had on my list for a full generation: The Last Guardian. Oh, and I’ll definitely carve out a spare hour to roam the snowy peaks of Skyrim as a Little Dunmer Boy… JEN SIMPKINS GAMES EDITOR Christmas is a time for family – a concept that has been quite literally drummed into me by my two older brothers over the years. Ouch. But this year, I’ve got a plan. To distract them from giving me ‘Yuletide’ noogies and ‘festive’ dead arms, I’ll be booting up PS VR freebie The Playroom VR. The asymmetric multiplayer will mean one bullying bro wearing the headset can rampage about as a ‘toon Godzilla swatting me, while the other helps me lob virtual junk at him. Plus, my baby nephew will love the cute robots. After all, it wouldn’t be Christmas without some kind of fighting.
BEN TYRER STAFF WRITER
XCOM is a great shared experience, what with its freedom to name and shape the soldiers who could suffer permadeath at any second. Finally, I can experience the joy and terror of leading the people I love through this traumatic experience at the most magical time of the year. Queenie, we’ll have to miss your message as my dad needs to know if his avatar can get through a Sectoid ambush. Sorry Doctor Who, my sister has a date with death as I use her recruit as a decoy. The dinner that’s been lovingly slaved over for hours may go cold, but that’s a small – and fair – price to pay to fight off the extraterrestrial scourge with my folks.
I’LL BE BUILDING MY OWN LITTLE WORLD, BLOCK BY BEAUTIFUL BLOCK.
THIS YULETIDE I’M DOUBLE-TEAMING TWO FOREVER-INTHE-MAKING TITLES.
THE PLAYROOM VR IS THE PERFECT WAY TO GET MY FAMILY INVOLVED THIS XMAS (AND AVOID THE REAL-LIFE SCRAPS).
MY FAMILY NEED TO KNOW IF THEY’LL SURVIVE XCOM 2.