A packed week in gaming gives us Hellblade 2, XDefiant and a Paper Mario remake.
This is a pretty packed week in gaming - even more so than usual! If you’re looking for something to while away the time before Call of Duty 2024 releases, Ubisoft’s XDefiant is finally launching this week on all platforms with a fairly packed ‘pre-season’ of content. Meanwhile, Nintendo is remaking an old classic for the Switch and Xbox Game Studios is launching Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2. Will the latter game be enough to save Xbox from the widespread discourse of its ongoing controversies? Time will tell.
Director George Miller’s new Mad Max movie also hits theatres this week - and that’s cause for celebration if you can tear yourselves away from the many games coming out over the next few days. Here’s what we’re playing and watching this week.
What are we playing?
Xbox Game Studios’ first big exclusive since Starfield arrives on May 21 this week: Senua’s Saga: Hellblade 2. Ninja Theory’s sequel arrives seven long years after Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice, but the slew of trailers we’ve seen over the years suggest that it’s going to be a visually gorgeous experience - if a tad grim due to its supernatural setting.
Also on May 21, Ubisoft’s multiplayer shooter XDefiant launches after being delayed from 2023. The game mashes together multiple Ubisoft franchises, like Splinter Cell, The Division, Far Cry, Ghost Recon and Watch Dogs, into a faction-based shooter that launches with a six week-long ‘preseason’ of content before Season 1.
Nintendo’s remake of the classic Super Mario RPG, Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door also launches on May 23. The Thousand Year Door sees a 2D paper-cut version of Mario set off to rescue Princess Peach and find a mystic treasure in a very different kind of Super Mario game.
What are we watching?
It took nine years for us to get George Miller’s long-promised prequel to Mad Max: Fury Road, but it’s finally here. Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga follows the life of its titular character (Anya Taylor-Joy) before she ran into Max Rockatansky in Fury Road. If it’s anything like the latter movie, it’s going to be two hours of cinematic excellence - but perhaps I have my hopes too high. I’ll let you know next week, as I'm seeing it in IMAX on Wednesday!
For easier watching, The Garfield Movie also hits theatres this week. This animated movie stars Chris Pratt as the iconic orange cat, who reunites with his long-last father and embarks on a heist.
