What to play in August: the best games of the month

Since August, the gaming industry has begun to drive players home again, offering to fight as part of a brave squad with xenomorphs, become the head of an underground gangster empire or even an entire civilization, join an organization of psychonauts, or try to get out of the time loop under the voice of Willem Dafoe.

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City of gangsters 

Release date: August 9 Platforms: PC Developer: SomaSim

1920, the US Congress passes Prohibition, which made thousands of businesses illegal and tens of thousands of people unemployed. A new era is dawning in which wealth and power are in the hands of bandits and smugglers. 

The player will be at the head of a growing criminal empire. You will have to organize the supply of illegal products, control financial flows, bribe the police and officials so that they turn a blind eye to your dirty deeds. A small group of people with a moonshine still in the basement under the tight control of the boss will quickly grow into a powerful organization that controls an entire city. 

Road 96 

Release date: August 16 Platforms: PC, Switch Developer: DigiXart

A procedurally generated road trip from the small French team behind Valiant Hearts and 11-11: Memories Retold .  

Players will have to go on an exciting journey, meet many memorable characters and influence many destinies in an attempt to escape from the bustle of the city and information garbage, which the government literally filled up ordinary people with. The developers promise thousands of routes, a pleasant soundtrack, dashingly twisted storylines and stunning landscapes. 

Humankind 

Release date: August 17 Platforms: PC Developer: Amplitude

In this global strategy, players will control the development of civilization and lead it through six key eras of development, starting with wild nomads on creaky wooden carts. Neighboring civilizations and the map are generated randomly each time. 

Similar to the Civilization games , in Humankind, territorial disputes with neighbors can be resolved both by diplomacy and by force, arranging a parade of military equipment at local attractions. The key feature of Humankind is that starting from each era, players can choose one of ten types of society, each of which has advantages and disadvantages. 

12 Minutes 

Release date: August 19 

Platforms: PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X / S  

Developer: Luis Antonio

An ambitious interactive thriller starring James McAvoy , Daisy Ridley and Willem Dafoe . The game tells the story of a person stuck in a twelve minute time loop. He is forced to endlessly relive the nightmarish events of one ill-fated evening. You can escape, but you need to competently use the knowledge of how events will develop, the hero should act differently. 

The developers argue that Twelve Minutes combines the tension of The Shining, the claustrophobic feel of A Window to the Courtyard, and the fragmented structure of Christopher Nolan 's Remember.

 

Aliens: Fireteam Elite 

Release date: August 24 

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X / S  

Developer: Cold Iron

A cooperative third-person shooter in which players become part of a gallant squad of warriors sent to respond to a distress call from one of the space colonies. The plot of the game is presented as a continuation of the second part of the film "Aliens", the action of which for some reason develops 23 years after the original trilogy.

In Fireteam Elite provides several gaming classes - arrows bomber, a medical technician and intelligence - as well as an arsenal of futuristic firearms. Aliens also have in their ranks unique samples of alien evolution.

King's Bounty 2 

Release date: August 24 

Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One, Switch Developer: 1C Entertainment

A tactical RPG set in the world of Antar. Local states are torn apart by internecine problems and troubles with refugees. Choosing one of three heroes, players will have to go on a dangerous adventure to bring order to this troubled world. 

According to the developers, the role-playing system in the second part has undergone some changes and is now called "Ideals", in which all the abilities and skills of the protagonist are tied to one of four worldview systems. Depending on, so to speak, the political views of the hero, the ways of solving the problems that arise will also change. 

We were recently able to play King's Bounty 2 a month before release. This is a very promising game, but a lot of it is still unclear. Read more in our preview.

Psychonauts 2

Release date: August 25 

Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X Developer: Double Fine

In terms of gameplay, the second part is practically no different from the original Psychonauts. This is the same platformer in which players are assigned the role of the psychonaut Raza, using his newly acquired abilities to plunge into other people's minds. 

Action Psychonauts 2 will open out after the events of Psychonauts Rhombus of Ruin. Once he learns that the organization is not at all what he imagined, and with the new leadership, its peacemaking endeavors are replaced by much more orthodox studies, including even necromancy. 

The developers also claim that the second part will answer many of the questions of the original game. 

No More Heroes 3

Release date: August 27 Platforms: Switch Developer: Grasshopper Manufacture

After nine years of lull, the main series of No More Heroes will still receive a sequel. In the center of events is the otaku killer Travis Touchdown, who will have to arm himself with a light katana and save the world from an alien invasion, destroying the leader of the invaders and ten assassins. 

In between missions to save the planet, Travis can idly wander or ride a motorcycle around the town of Santa Destroy, performing additional assignments, such as mowing the lawn, fighting in the alleyway with hooligans and fighting an alligator. Yes, that's right, the third part has become a sandbox again, like the original No More Heroes .

New World

Release date: August 31 Platforms: PC Developer: Amazon Game Studios

Massively multiplayer role-playing game about the exploration of new lands, developed by the studio of the richest astronaut in the world, Jeff Bezos, and managed to attract the attention of tens of thousands of people during the beta test.

The project is really large-scale, and if New World does not burn your video card (at risk are the RTX 3090 graphics accelerators from EVGA), it will give you tens of hours of travel around the colorful world of Aethernum as a shipwrecked adventurer. Players will experience spectacular battles with monsters and bosses using various weapons and magic, as well as an advanced crafting system and a branchy skill tree. 

And something else:

Black Book (August 10 on Switch, PC , PS4 and Xbox One) is a mixture of card and role-playing games from a Russian studio in the setting of Russian fairy tales.

Godfall (August 10 on PS4) - The former PlayStation 5 exclusive, which was supposedly only possible on the super-fast SSD of Sony's new console , will be released on the old PS4 . These are the things, little kids.

Hades (August 13th on PS4, PS5 and Xbox Series X | S) One of the best roguelikes in recent years is coming outside Switch and PC . For Xbox Game Pass subscribers, the game will be available on launch day. 

Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut (August 20 on PS4 and PS5) In the Director's Cut, the difficulty level has been slightly changed, a whole new island has been added in a 20-hour storyline, and other joys of technological progress have become available only on the PS5.

Madden NFL 22 (August 20 on PC, consoles of two generations and Stadia) another year, another simulator of American football. Players are just waiting for a rearrangement in the national teams and a little prettier graphics. Everything. 

Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 (August 24 on PS5) The developers have nevertheless coped with the optimization and will release the game on the new Sony console .