Live Magazine September 2014 Volume 9/2014 | Page 3

INSIDE 18 42 100 118 WELCOME TO LIVE! I’ve never been a Top Gun pilot but every September it seems retailers get set for that Christmas rush that’s a bit like afterburners kicking in. We go through the relatively quiet middle of the year and look forward to the rush of pre Christmas releases. Seems an interesting problem for publishers when you think about it. You have the Christmas shopping period not too far away and that means people buying gifts and for some of us we’re hoping for games and fun stuff to turn up in our Christmas stocking. But therein lies the challenge. How many new games can a gamer afford? After all if there is a dozen great titles headed our way in a 2-3 month time slot will the average gamer pick and choose? Likely yes. So some games won’t be bought, they’ll go on the wish list for later. Likely when the price drops in February or March. But the AAA titles are the ones that sell, as long as they are good. The challenge for publishers is to produce another in the series of a popular game that excites fans and doesn’t disappoint by being a simple re-skin of last years title. With that in mind, we decided to look at the AAA titles that come out almost yearly and see just how good they really are. Plus we preview Halo 5 Guardians and Master Chief Collection and the exciting new Nintendo Amiibo. There’s plenty more to read so strap in and kick in the afterburners, it’s going to be a heck of a ride into Christmas 2014! Feature: “AAA games” Previews & Reviews Retro Cosplay THE LIVE TEAM Publisher: Rob Jenkins (Gametraders Operations Centre) Art Director: Giselle Capozza (Gametraders Operations Centre) Game Review & Preview Editors: Nick Getley & Kylie Tuttle (Sticky Trigger) Retro Writer: Paul Monopoli UK Writer: Elliott Buddo US Writer: Serwa Aboagye Sticky Trigger Writers: Kylie Tuttle Nick Getley Alex Holmes Sam Babu Nick Pearce Aaron Milligan Ben Rachow Elliott Buddo Bridget Sweeney Sean Fox Miranda Nelson Tim Arnold Matthew Raspe Sasha Karen