Australian_Mens_Fitness_April_2017

48 MEN’S FITNESS APRIL 2017

■

Thebiggest

videogames

of2016,asinevery

otheryear,were

almostuniversally

oftheshooter

variety:Titanfall

2, Battlefield 1,

eventhecartoony

Overwatch.Their

machoarsenalsand

familiargameplay

scratchedtheitch

manygamersfeelif

theirtriggerfingers

gotoolongwithout

poppingafoe’shead

likeacherry.

Butvarietyisthe

killstreakoflife,and

Ubisoft’scombat-

focusedFor Honor

introducesamuch

moreup-close-

and-personalstyle

ofkilling.

Setinaworldof

knights,Vikings

andsamurai,it’s

anall-outbrawl,

offeringplayers

thepromiseof

gloryinbattle

beforecrushing

theirskullsunder

broadswords,

katanasand

morningstars.

For Honor’s

uniquecombat

systemisamulti-

layeredgameof

rock-paper-scissors:

Flick between

stances(left,right

andhigh)todefend

againstattacksand

launchyourown.

Andregardless

ofwhichwarrior

youchoose,you

canswitchamong

adozenunique

fightingstyles—

eachdesignedby

real-lifemasters

inweaponry—so

whenyouengage

withfoesonthe

battlefield,mind

games,feints,and

parriesarecrucial

tosurvival.

Unleash your inner warrior

Campaignsin

multiplayer“Faction

Wars”lastreal-

worldweeks;

whenthedust

settlesandthe

smokeclears,the

victorsgetthe

spoils,likewarrior

customisation

options.Theycan

alsoopttoplunder

thein-gameworld

andcontrola

namelesswarrior,

likeaVikingRaider

whochallengesand

seekstooverthrow

theruthless

chieftainRagnar.

Why?For Honor.

Go for glory as a knight, Viking or samurai in Ubisoft’s brutal, blood-tinglingFor Honor.By Mike Rougeau

BMX bikerNigel Sylvester

■

Video games help me hone my hand-eye coordination, but I’m always

busy doing a million things, so I usually play only when I’m flying.

I was hooked on Temple Run for a while. I liked the superfast game

speed and collecting characters, each of which had different abilities.

My favourite was Scarlett Fox — she’s more agile than the others.

My new obsession is Dots. Since I’m naturally curious and like solving old

puzzles, it’s the perfect game for me. When I play it, I keep all distractions

to a minimum. I raise the brightness on my iPhone 6S screen so I can see

everything really well, listen to some Young Thug or J Cole and just zone out.

What I play on my smartphone

The thud of swords against shields and armoured

chests is part of the excitement of For Honor.

What are the go-to

weightlifting moves

that’ll max both my

lifting and gaming

potential?

■ The most important

moves I do are

compound lifts —

like deadlifts, bench

presses, and squats —

because they train the

neural pathways of my

brain to actively fire

multiple muscle groups

at the same time. That

way, I’m priming those

signals — whether from

my brain to my fingers

(to pick up that bar) or

to my hips (for power

to lift) — to perform

optimally even if I’m

not exercising.

Secondly, deadlifts

work your grip like no

other. Even after I’ve

played eight hours a

day (or even all night),

my finger movements

still feel effortless;

I’ve trained them to

adapt to the constant

demands I put on them.

A lot of gamers like

me, who play first-

person-shooter games,

struggle with forearm

and finger strength.

But doing deadlifts

with a mixed grip —

one overhand, one

underhand — makes

holding a controller for

hours much easier.

I also deadlift with

heavier and heavier

weights, so when I’m

playing multiple days in

a row at a tournament,

the constant stress of

holding the controller

doesn’t bother my

hands. My brain and

body are equipped to

work in tandem.

THE FIT GAMER

OPTIC GAMING’S

HALO MASTER AND

RESIDENT GYM RAT

MICHAEL “FLAMESWORD”

CHAVES