Lewis Packwood Spiffing Reads

Spiffing Reads: Final Fantasy XV, Titanfall 2 and the Best Halloween Costume

I ran out of time on Friday, so Spiffing Reads is a bit late this week. But just as packed full of goodness as ever.

Illustration: Sam Woolley
Illustration: Sam Woolley

Why I Play (Kotaku UK)

“Playing video games is, for me, part of a lifelong rejection of boredom.” Keza MacDonald, the chief ed of Kotaku UK, went on maternity leave last week, but she penned a rather brilliant article before she went. Take a look, it’s really rather good.

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20 years on, the Tomb Raider story told by the people who were there (Eurogamer)

This actually came out more than a week ago, but it’s so good I had to include it. It’s incredibly long, but well worth reading – the Tomb Raider saga, with its soaring highs and crushing lows, is emblematic of 90s gaming and the rise of big publishers.

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Finishing Final Fantasy (Eurogamer)

A surprisingly revealing look inside the offices of Square Enix as the developers rush to finish Final Fantasy XV, a game that’s been a decade in the making. I love the huge diorama they’ve made of the game world.

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This working Pokemon Go app costume is the most amazing creation you’ll see this year (Polygon)

Genius. Just genius. Make sure to watch the video.

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Titanfall is a victim of chest-beating pride (GamesIndustry.biz)

Some scathing criticism of EA and Respawn for scheduling Titanfall 2’s release a week after Battlefield 1 and a week before Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare. “Respawn Entertainment, which will likely bear the brunt of any hardship resulting from the now-uncertain status of the Titanfall franchise … likely approved of the release date for reasons that are also more to do with dick-measuring than with commercial good sense; launching a week ahead of the new SF Call of Duty game from their old studio, Infinity Ward, would be a chance to prove that they’d surpassed their old franchise and a final two fingers to the publisher who humiliatingly kicked them out of their old studio six years ago.” Yowch.

Spiffing Reads is a regular feature where we pick out the best gaming articles of the week. If you’ve read anything interesting, please let us know in the comments.