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Day: 4 June 2018

Ubisoft confirm Assassin’s Creed: Odyssey

After the recent Walmart leaks and the likes of Bethesda having to cash in on the buzz with their announcement of Rage 2, not to mention having just dropped the proverbial atom bomb that is Fallout 76, it feels like E3 is already here and we already know a great deal about what’s in store.

Thanks to a leak from French website JeuxVideo, we can add another would-be reveal to that list with the next installment in the Assassin’s Creed franchise: Odyssey. The leak came in the form of a photo taken of some merchandise: a key ring featuring Spartan-esque helmet, as well as the full packaging, complete with title and a new variation on the iconic Assassin’s insignia.

Screenshot: Arcticblue @ JeuxVideo
Screenshot: Arcticblue@JeuxVideo

This leak comes after a long period of speculation over the next title in the series, with many having already posed the suggestion of ancient Greece in light of the numerous references in Assassin’s Creed: Origins — the cities of Cyrene and Alexandria, not forgetting the more direct references to Alexander the Great himself — as well as Liam Robertson of ComicBook.com reporting that sources had been toying with the idea of Greece as early as 2015.

According to Robertson, Greece was initially going to feature in Origins, but the decision was made to save it for the next game as it would enable them to more deeply explore a period rich in history and culture. As alluded to, some references were made in the most recent title, with both Alexander’s tomb and shield featuring in the narrative, suggesting that Ubisoft were intentionally pointing players in the right direction long before any of this information dropped.

As you can imagine, this most recent and convincingly substantial leak sent the internet into a veritable frenzy and since the proverbial cat had already been let out of the bag, Ubisoft elected to make an official announcement.

Mere hours after the keychain leak began circulating around the web, Ubisoft posted a 5-second clip apparently alluding to the iconic “this is Sparta” scene in 300, showing what looks like one heavily-armoured Greek phalanx kicking another off a cliff, before promptly confirming the official title and simply captioning it: “See you at E3!”

For many, this reveal was doubly-surprising given the fact that after the less than impressive Unity and Syndicate, Ubisoft had remarked that they planned to take more time between installments, as a 2-year break clearly seemed to pay off with Origins, both critically and financially.

Photo: BagoGames@Flickr
Photo: BagoGames@Flickr

The release date has not yet been confirmed, though E3 might change that. However, it appears Odyssey is now being touted for a late-2018 release (as opposed to the original 2019 launch window tipped by Robertson and the like).

Of course, nothing is confirmed as of yet, but if there is one thing to be sure of it’s that we’ll hear more about it at E3.

 

Bethesda announce Fallout 76

Finally, after years of speculation, Bethesda released the official trailer for Fallout 76: not an Obsidian-developed game, not a remastered version of Fallout 3 or Fallout New Vegas, but a completely new game. News first started to spread about a new Fallout game earlier this week, followed by a Twitch livestream that went on for 24 hours. Bethesda then released a short trailer announcing that their new game will be centred around Vault 76.

What we know about the game so far, from looking at the trailer, is that the player takes on the role of a Vault Dweller from Vault 76, 25 years after bombs dropped (which we can find out from the Pip-Boy’s date). Unlike other vaults where the aim was to carry out social and psychological experiments, this “control” vault’s main task was to occupy 500 people, then 20 years after the bombs dropped, the Vault doors open to allow residents to venture out after the nuclear terror.

Fans of the franchise would have first heard about Vault 76 in Fallout 3, where you discover on a terminal in the Citadel that the Vault is located around the DC area of the Capital Wasteland. Some fans have also pointed out that Vault 76 is referenced in Fallout 4 at the very beginning of the game where the news anchor on the television announces that the ‘welcome-home promotion’, which included vaults such as 76, prompted Vault Tec to create 100 more because of its success.

Multiple sources, such as Kotaku’s news editor Jason Schreier, have suggested that Fallout 76 will be an online-survival RPG, which was apparently a feature that was supposed to come with Fallout 4 but never went through. Whilst some are happy to see that Bethesda are experimenting beyond creating typical RPG games, others would have preferred to see a remastered Fallout 3, especially for its 10th anniversary since its release.

A key scene in the trailer is the decorations around the Atrium that celebrate Reclamation Day, the day that supposedly the doors open and the vault dwellers venture out to reclaim and restore America. If Fallout 76 is going to be an online-survival RPG, then from the trailer, the general idea of the game may be that each player is a Vault Dweller from Vault 76. Presumably, you can then venture out into the Wasteland exploring new areas, fighting mutated creatures — and possibly different factions and players — whilst Vault 76 will act as a hub for the player to return to.

Whilst the news surrounding the game is very limited, Bethesda are going to have a very interesting E3 showcase this year with Fallout 76 and Rage 2, and if you’re one of the brave few that wants to watch E3 live, then make sure to tune in at 2:30 AM on June the 11th to watch Bethesda’s press conference.

Community Festival returns to UoM

The University of Manchester is welcoming back its annual Community Festival on Saturday 16th June. Its aim? Showing the general public what happens behind the scenes at the university.

Visitors will have the opportunity to get hands-on with some of the university’s research. There will be the opportunity take part in live experiments, interactive demonstrations, musical and dramatic performances, as well as a historical campus tour. Attendees will also have the chance to meet staff and scientists.

One highlight includes a workshop about Delia Derbyshire, a pioneer of electronic music and the woman behind the world famous Dr Who theme.

A university spokesperson said: “We are so excited that our annual Community Festival returns in 16 June. We look forward to inviting our local neighbours onto campus to meet us, find out what we do and have a fantastic fun day out.”

For more information about the Festival, go to the Community Festival website and follow them on Facebook and Twitter for updates on the programme.

Formula One series set to return in 2018

Months before its release, Codemasters has announced on their official Twitter page the release date of their latest installment in their FORMULA ONE™ series, F1 2018, for August the 24th 2018.

Fans have been speculating when they would find out the date, ever since the release of F1 2017 in August of last year and its critical success.

“We were delighted by the reception that the highly-acclaimed F1 2017 game received, and are extremely excited to be able to further build on such a strong starting point with F1 2018” said Paul Jeal, F1 Franchise Director at Codemasters, “We cannot wait to unveil more details on features we know our fans will love”.

It certainly seems that Codemasters have listened to their audience, making significant changes in the career mode, fixing problems such as F1 2017’s crashes and bugs in the game or major issues with research & development, as well as the ironic issue of the McLaren’s Honda Engine breaking down.

The developers may improve on gameplay, revive the Young Driver Tests from previous games that some fans missed in later games, or even trigger unscheduled car failures to make the gameplay spontaneous. Hopefully with their latest installment, they are able to release the game with these issues taken into account.

“We are also adding more classic cars, again listening to our fans as to which of the historical F1 cars they would most like to virtually drive next”. Last year they brought in cars from McLaren, Renault and Red Bull, spanning from 1988-2010, and for the first time, incorporated them into the career mode. Many fans predict that classic cars such as the Brawn GP 2009 car, or cars from earlier decades such as the 1978 Brabham BT46 and the 1954 Maserati 250F will make a surprise appearance. What’s for certain is that this year, we can expect the developers to venture beyond what they achieved with F1 2017.

The information available at the moment is limited. In terms of an official trailer, nothing has been released yet by the British developers. What fans can definitely expect are more details to come in the next month at E3 2018, possibly a teaser trailer and more details on their improvement of the career mode. For now, gamers eager for the release of this game should return to F1 2017, stay tuned for the Canadian GP on the 10th of June, and follow Codemasters for more information as this news develops.

Repealing the 8th: What the vote for “YES” means to the women of Ireland

On the 25th of May Irish history was changed with the Republic’s landslide referendum victory for a “YES” vote to repeal the 8th amendment on the criminalisation of abortion.

The death of Savita Halappanavar in 2012 was the catalyst for legal reform surrounding abortion in the country. Halappanavar, 31, died of sepsis in the University Hospital Galway after being denied an abortion for a pregnancy in which doctors estimated that miscarriage was inevitable. The Protection of Life During Pregnancy Act 2013 was passed after her death. For generations, women were literally dying, and it seemed no one was listening.

Flickr @ William Murphy
Flickr @ William Murphy

I spoke to some of the women from Autonomy, a women-led collection of creative writing published by New Binary Press of which the profit goes to the Together For Yes campaign in Ireland.

Editor of Autonomy and Chair of Cork Together For Yes, Kathy D’Arcy, told me that “sometimes stories about real human experiences have the power to change people’s hearts and to make them understand, where even hard evidence fails.” Being able to humanise an idea which has been so politicised for generations is important to the understanding of what it means to be pregnant in a country that criminalises, and demonises, abortion. Autonomy brings us one step closer to understanding the real experiences of women in Ireland. By reading the anthology, which I urge everyone to do, one witnesses women demanding back the power and conversation over their bodies.

“If you still wonder if it’s alright to force someone to stay pregnant against their will, please read the stories in this book with an open heart. It’s time to stand up for our women” D’Arcy said.

The anthology covers an array of issues concerning the 8th amendment. ‘Dystopia’, a poem by Elaine Feeney, contemplates the dangers of unregulated and illegal abortions. One powerful stanza reads:

“There is woman and organ, uterus, brain, lung, skin, heart. They can do good, or sometimes they can kill her.

“Till you all know this we will carry sharpened blades in our apron pockets.”

Before the 25th of May, importing and taking abortifacient medication could lead to the woman’s arrested and possible sentencing of up to 14 years in prison. It’s almost unbelievable to think that in the last three years Ireland has legalised same-sex marriage (the first nation to do so by way of referendum) and voted to repeal the 8th amendment.

The political and social scope of the country is in the midsts of revolutionary change and liberalism in direct opposition to its conservative history. It was only in 1993 that same-sex relations were decriminalised, the same year that condoms were no longer defined as a contraceptive and could, therefore, be deregulated. It was only two years later a public referendum decriminalised divorce.

As the granddaughter of a divorced Irish woman, and the great-granddaughter of an Irish woman who hid her teen pregnancy from the world and was forced to watch her daughter grow up pretending she was her sister, votes for women’s rights in the country are a vote for women being able to take back their bodies, take back their lives, and fight for the equality they have been hungry for, for generations.

Aoife Inman, the author of ‘The Contaminating Agent’, a short story for Autonomy, and current postgraduate History student at the University of Manchester, said that a vote for yes: “made more than just history… It was also a beautifully emotive moment for so many people across the country whose personal stories has been so closely affected by the cruelty of the Eighth Amendment, which was something really moving to be a part of.”

But a vote for yes isn’t the end of the affair, says Inman. “Importantly, this vote is just the first step in claiming back ownership of our bodies in Ireland. Now that the Eighth has been repealed it is important that safe, fair legislation is implemented as swiftly as possible to fully institute change.”

Flicker @ William Murphy
Flicker @ William Murphy

Kira Kalsi, a politics and modern history undergraduate at the University of Manchester, originally from Ennis, Ireland, told me that she has had nightmares of pregnancy since being a teenager. “I can’t impress upon anyone the fear that we’ve lived under: an unplanned pregnancy is scary for anyone, never mind the added complications of restricted health care, and lack of options” Kalsi states.

“I really hope this, coupled with the marriage vote three years ago is the beginning of Ireland shedding its traditions of state-sanctioned abuse and oppression. Even though I no longer live in the country, I’m still incredibly invested in its social progress!”

The landslide victory for the Together For Yes campaign has put extra pressure on the UK government to address abortion in Northern Ireland, where the UK 1967 Abortion Act establishing legal abortion was never applied. In February earlier this year, a United Nations committee found that “the UK violates the rights of women in Northern Ireland by unduly restricting their access to abortion.”

Dawn Butler, the Labour party’s shadow women and equalities secretary, tweeted: “The government must act to ensure that women in Northern Ireland have the same rights as women across the rest of the UK.

https://twitter.com/DawnButlerBrent/status/1001039888236666881

“Labour is calling for the government immediately to begin negotiations with political parties in Northern Ireland about legislation to extend abortion rights.”

Labour’s shadow attorney general Baroness Chakrabarti has dubbed the vote for “yes” in the republic of Ireland as a “feminist test” for the UK government.

Catherine O’Kane, a third year Manchester Metropolitan Student studying Mathematics and Education Studies, originally from Northern Ireland says: “It’s time for Northern Ireland to change too, the South have seen to do the right thing so Northern Ireland should do the same.”

To purchase an e-copy of Autonomy, click here.