LAST MONTH ON PS PLUS

If you’ve been keeping up with this column then you know fanfiction is always a comfort. However, as we spilled over into May, I found myself longing for the consolation of making order from all the chaos. The May lineup from PS Plus really hit the spot.

Leading the charge at a, uh, steady pace was Farming Simulator 19.

Having long been the butt of jokes online, it arrived last month like some sort of soil-encrusted saviour. Yes, we wanted to till the earth into regimented lines. Yes, we wanted to keep our paddock nice and neat. Yes, we were desperate for a virtual space we could have even a smidge of direct control over! But if you were more desperate for the simple joy of a wide-open space, you could also hop on your horse or take the driving seat in your very own John Deere tractor, take a tour of the farm and take a load off.

If, after logging hundreds of hours in Farming Simulator 19, you found your inner control freak not quite sated – not that we’re talking from experience – you couldn’t go far wrong with May’s other offering. Cities: Skylines was perfect for anyone even remotely interested in civil engineering. This city builder gave you a small town with big ambitions and tasked you with fulfilling them. As the new mayor, you were responsible for everything from building new roads to handling city policy. Perhaps you wanted to create a car-free district. Or maybe you were all about ‘education, education, education,’ and wanted to overhaul your school districts? The power was in your hands. Who needed an island escape?

With so many gamers cooped up indoors, last month really was the best time for PS Plus to push out these indepth sims. Here’s hoping that when we emerge from hundreds of hours spent poring over city systems and tubers, we’ll all feel just a little more in control.