Saturday’s are for having your mind read. Or, at least, this Saturday is because I’m seeing Derren Brown’s new show. I’m a little self-conscious about it, not because I’m worried the mentalist will hypnotise me and make me profess a false love for consoles over PC games but because my partner and her family have never seen me at a magic (or magic adjacent show).

Reader, I am an awful audience member for conjurors, illusionists, and psychics.

Throughout their performance my face is fixed in an almost angry glare, my eyes narrowed, brow furrowed, and lips drawn thinly. It’s not that I’m not enjoying myself, it’s that I’m so intently trying to work out what the trick is before it happens or how it was done afterwards that I forget to smile. I’ve been called on stage more than once and friends in the audience have told me afterward that I look like I was about to lamp the magician.

So, today, I will be trying desperately hard to look like the good time I’m having, all while also trying to work out which parts of the set are secretly hypnotising me.

Enough about me, though, this is what the rest of the team are up to.

Mark
After finishing a stint with Over the Hill (read myself and Jules’ verdict pls), I’ve gone for a bit of change from all of the motoring and racing I’ve been doing by finally trying to get all the way through Assassin’s Creed 3. I bought the remaster years ago, got a decent way in, but then had my enthusiasm peter out for reasons I can’t recall. Maybe this time I’ll see how all that American revolution business ends. Can’t imagine it’ll result in a country that ends up having much of an impact on world history.

James
I’m curious to try DayZ Badlands, which takes Bohemia’s zombie sandbox and adds more sand. Was supposed to play this at Gamescom, but their PCs broke.

Callum
I assume I’ll continue with Star Wars: Zero Company this weekend, but I’m also beyond ready to continue my annual Halloween tradition of marathoning horror games I’ve plucked from the depths of the Steam drain. I’ve spotted a demo for a game called Haunted Paws, which is just co-op Little Nightmares if you and your buddy were dogs in cool hats, and that’s the greatest pitch I’ve ever heard. But there’s also Rolla, where you roll around a big city as a “mass of pulsing flesh,” and what can I say? I’m the kind of guy who’d probably get a kick out of rolling around as a mass of pulsing flesh.

Jeremy
More Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse for me this weekend as I continue our exhaustive walkthrough. Our review had some critiques of this one, but I’ve personally enjoyed it. You can tell it’s a good game because it’s igniting the usual discourse cycle everytime a new Castlevania thing comes out these days: Classicvania purists arguing with Metroidvania fans arguing with people who have only watched the Netflix series arguing with folks who insist that Koji Igarashi’s retconned timeline is irrefutable. Truly, we are a wretched fanbase.

Ollie
My brother’s coming to visit this weekend, and it looks like I’ll be introducing him to Factorio at last. I’ve built it up quite a bit over the years, seeing as it’s just about my favourite game ever. So I’m gonna have to make sure it’s a pretty spectacular experience. Alcohol should do the trick. Automation and alcohol. A wonderful pairing.

Edwin
I do not wish to play any games this weekend and you cannot make me, but I might try creating one. I’ve got this idea for a simple text adventure. It’ll doubtless turn out to be nightmarishly complicated, but let’s pretend it’s a brisk couple hours work for the moment.

Julian
At last, it is my turn to say I’m playing something secret. But, alongside that, I want to make time for Dreadline Express. I really liked what I played at Gamescom and I need to see if it holds up for a full playthrough. But, when I’m not playing that or attempting to fend off Derren Brown’s attempts to read my mind, I will be reading SAS: Rogue Heroes for a book club, it makes quite a change from my other book club where we’re reading Happy All The Time.

And you, reader dear, what are you playing this weekend…?