So you want to be a pirate, eh?

In Issue 5 of The Week in Games I wrote a little bit about Edge magazine, and about how I’d been reading it since I was around 11 years old. I’ve admired the quality of the writing and art design in Edge for nearly three quarters of my life, and for pretty much that entire time it has always been a dream of mine to have an article or feature published in its pages. This isn't a "my dream has finally come true!" article, I'm afraid, but it isn't far off.

Over the last week or so I’ve had the opportunity to write for another (albeit much newer) publication that I am a huge fan of. One with a similar focus on both its words and the imagery that goes with them. I have finished one article already, and I'm currently working on a second, much larger one. One for which I had the pleasure of interviewing a developer who I won’t name yet, but who I admire greatly and consider to be hugely influential in the industry. It was the first time I’d ever done anything like it, and - slight nerves aside - it was a wonderful and hugely rewarding experience.

Reading and writing about games has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember - it’s why The Week in Games exists - and I'm thankful that I'm just as passionate about it now as I was back then.

I guess the point of this is that I wanted to express my gratitude to those who have given me these opportunities recently, and to everybody who reads and supports The Week in Games. I hope you have some idea of just how much it means to me.

Thank you all. Until next time!

NEWS

  • PS5 exclusive Returnal was the big winner at the BAFTA Game Awards. See all of the nominations and winners on the official BAFTA site.

  • Valve has confirmed it is now ramping up Steam Deck shipments. Although if you don't already have a pre-order locked in, don't expect to get your mitts on one before October.

  • Somebody has completed the world's first no-damage run of Elden Ring, taking under 3 hours to achieve the feat.

  • Blue Box Game Studios head Hasan Kahraman has spoken to IGN about the controversy surrounding the definitely-not-Silent Hill, definitely-not-cancelled Abandoned.

  • Sony has reportedly laid off almost 90 staff in North America as part of a 'global transformation'. Sales and marketing positions are rumoured to be those hit by the move.

  • The April additions to Xbox Game Pass have been revealed. Life is Strange: True Colors is the headline title.

  • An official Witcher cookbook and food guide is on the way later this year. It is available to pre-order here.

  • Somewhat more bizarrely, a Halo cookbook is also in the works, and also due this year.

  • Kirby, or more specifically, the 8-Bit Big Band Orchestra, has won a Grammy for the arrangement of Meta Knight's Revenge from Kirby Superstar.

  • The next Tomb Raider has been announced by Crystal Dynamics, and is confirmed to be using Epic's new Unreal Engine 5.

  • Speaking of Unreal Engine 5, this week it was finally made available to download. And just like its predecessor, it's free.

  • Six months after its catastrophic launch, Konami's eFootball 2022 v1.0.0 releases next week, with an awful lot of making up to do.

  • Next-gen remakes of Max Payne 1 & 2 are one the way courtesy of Remedy and Rockstar. The games will be rebuilt in Remedy's Northlight engine with a "AAA budget".

  • The LEGO Group and Epic Games have announced that they will team up to build a safe space for kids to play in the Metaverse.

  • Microsoft is using Minecraft to teach children about flooding and climate change.

  • Return to Monkey Island has been announced! With series co-creator Ron Gilbert saying he's been working on the project in complete secrecy for two years. Breaking the news on April Fools' Day was a bit naughty, but - hold on to your skull - this long-awaited new Monkey Island is indeed real.

NEW RELEASES:

This week saw the release of the long-awaited Lego Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga on all platforms. Eurogamer had mixed feelings about it, but generally the critical consensus is good!

This week also saw remakes of fan-favourites Chrono Cross (on all platforms) and The House of the Dead (Switch), and Nintendo announced that the N64's brilliant Mario Golf will hit the Nintendo Switch Online + Expansion Pak service next Friday (15th April)!

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC, Switch) – April 5

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, Switch) – April 5

(Xbox, Switch, PC) – April 7

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC, Switch) – April 7

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC, Switch) – April 7

(Switch) – April 7

(PS4, PS5, Xbox, Switch) – April 7

(Switch) – April 7

UPCOMING RELEASES:

(Switch) – April 12

(Switch, PC) – April 14

(PS4, PS5) – April 14

(PS4, PS5, Xbox) – April 14

Also worth mentioning this week is that the new SUPERJUMP website is now live. This site has been in the making for a long time, and is already filled with brilliant video game articles. It's well worth checking out.

GAME OF THE WEEK

A randomly selected game each week! Any and all games are eligible for selection regardless of age, platform, popularity, or otherwise.

This week, the honour goes to…

Viva Piñata (2006)

After a couple of disappointing titles for Microsoft, Rare returned to form in style with Viva Piñata. A delightfully playful, often devious, and stunningly beautiful game in which players must create a garden paradise in order to attract and retain wild Piñata. Piñata who would inevitably end up trying to eat and kill each other.

GAMING ANNIVERSARIES

Another round of video game anniversaries to make you feel old... Sorry!

Click through the links to see what people had to say about them...

Xenoblade Chronicles released 10 years ago in the US!

Lionhead's Black & White was released in the UK 21 years ago!

RECOMMENDED READS

This week’s recommended articles see Cristopher Dring of Games Industry Biz discuss whether the cancellation of E3 2022 marks the beginning of the end for the event, Rob Fahey talks Sony's new PlayStation Plus service, and Andrew Dickinson champions the humble game map. Also this week there's a recommendation for the brilliant Nintendo-focused newsletter Switch Weekly.

Christopher Dring - GamesIndustryBiz

E3 faces new competition, an identity crisis and uncertainty around physical events. After the cancellation of E3 2022, will it ever be the same again?

Rob Fahey - GamesIndustryBiz

PS Plus' new tiers reflect Sony's discomfort with subscriptions cannibalising game sales - but this industry shift now feels inevitable.

Andrew Dickinson - Superjump

Andrew explains how Elden Ring has made one of mankind's oldest tools, the humble map, essential and artistic again.

Chris Brandrick

An excellent weekly newsletter focused on the latest news and new releases for Nintendo's world-beating console/handheld hybrid.

CROWDFUNDING CAMPAIGNS

Dead by Daylight: The Board Game

By David B Talton Jr. - campaign ends April 22

A strategic survival horror experience for 3–5 players. Become a Killer or fight for your life as a Survivor. Death is not an escape.

Toasty: Ashes of Dusk

By Pocket Llama - campaign ends April 28

Stop the cataclysm and save your friends in this Action RPG! Overfunded in just 5 hours!

Long Live Mortal Kombat - The Definitive History of MK

By David L Craddock - campaign ends April 28

This first book in the Long Live MK trilogy of books celebrates the series' coin-op era, the fandom, and impact on pop culture.

A Handheld History

By Lost In Cult & Retro Dodo - campaign ends May 9

A high-quality, explorative jaunt through the systems and games that defined the legacy of portable systems.

Please support The Week in Games!

If you enjoy The Week in Games, I’d be delighted if you would consider forwarding this email to anybody you think may like it, or by sharing this link on social media! Thank you :)

...and that's it for this week!

I hope you enjoyed this issue of The Week in Games!

I'm always looking at ways to improve this newsletter, so if you have any comments, suggestions or enquiries, please reply to this email directly, write to [email protected], or catch me on Twitter!

Thanks again, and I hope to see you next week!