ABOVE The world
is expanded, and
has more
diversity this
time around, and
there are fights
in every corner
of the world.ETA14 MAYPUBLISHERBETHESDADEVELOPERAVALANCHE STUDIOSMAD MAX MEETS JUST CAUSE
Rage 2
e should’ve known that
a game made by the
combined powers of id
and Avalanche would be
something to behold.
Rage 2takes the fast-paced FPS
gunplay ofDoom, throws in a big lump
of crazy fromJust Cause, and then
dumps it all into a huge open world.
Now, we’ve finally had a chance to
see more of that world. For fans of the
originalRage, it will be a trip down
memory lane. Wellspring and Gunbarrel
are both back, with updated visuals
and some obvious changes. Mutant
Bash TV makes an explosive return,
too – which means you’ll be shooting
mutants out of the air after they
explode out of giant cannons. There
are plenty of new locations to explore,W
too, including the EcoPod – a giant
structure that you call down from orbit
early in the game.
From what we’ve seen from our
hands-on time so far, the shooting is
slick, fast, destructive and fun thanks
to some weapons that defy physics
and help you chain together some
explosive combos. It’s a huge world
too – and that means we spent a lot of
time driving between locations. Luckily,
those locations are varied, not just
barren desert wastelands but a variety
of biomes, including lush green areas.
You can get to all of these places in
a range of vehicles, from monster
trucks to flying bikes. Yep, this time
around you can soar through the
skies, hover on water, and drive on two
or four wheels. Hell yes. Qfter the E3 hands-on in
2018,expectations
skyrocketed for this,
the spiritual successor
toAssassin’s Creed:
Black Flag. There’s no stealthy stabbing
here, though. It’s all about the naval
combat, with more options, more
enemies, and focus on competitive
and cooperative multiplayer.
We’ve seen a few different ship and
weapon types from the pre-alpha
demo, and it looks like this could turn
into a deep, extensive RPG. Ubisoft has
proven it can handle the genre with
aplomb with the recent Assassin’s
Creed entries, and if it can combine
that with Black Flag’s excellent
pirate-y tone it could be onto a winner.
Our big question, though, is whether
ship-based combat keeps us coming
back. The combat looks like it will be
just as fun as it was when we first saw
it in AC, and there’ll be plenty to
unlock, but Ubi will have to work hard
to avoid missions getting repetitive. QETATBC 2019PUBLISHERUBISOFTDEVELOPERUBISOFT SINGAPORE
A BEAUTIFULLY RENDERED PIRATE’S LIFE FOR ME
Skull & Bones
A
LEFTYou can
customise your
ship, and even
disguise yourself
as your foes to
slip past enemy
fortresses.More Xbox news at gamesradar.com/oxm THE OFFICIAL XBOX MAGAZINE 0392019 PREVIEW