Discover what tests and treats await in “The Sims 4: Discover University”, be surprised by a traitor in your midst in the instant hit “Secret Neighbor”, find out how a painting becomes a prime suspect in the wonderful “Tangle Tower”, go on a whistlestop tour of Pokémon visual history ahead of “Pokémon Sword & Shield”, and get spooked by the creepy tentacle creatures of “Moons of Madness”.
The Sims 4: Discover University
Continuing a franchise tradition — the little computer people previously went to college in “The Sims 2: University” and “The Sims 3: University Life” — with an expansion pack that brings enrollment, classes, collegiate experiences and extracurricular activities to the University of Britechester or the Foxbury Institute in “The Sims 4: Discover University” .
For Mac and PC from Nov. 15, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One from Dec. 17.
Secret Neighbor
Previous game “Hello Neighbor” had players sneaking into a neighbor’s house to find out the secrets of his basement. This one offers a clever twist — you’re one of six players doing the same, but this time one among your number is picking off everyone else as the Neighbor in disguise!
Out now on PC (Steam, Xbox Store), Xbox One and Xbox Game Pass.
Tangle Tower
Venture into this strange mystery and work out how a painted portrait ended up the prime suspect in a batty murder case if such a thing is possible even in this surprising wonder. From the team behind “Detective Grimoire” (hence the similar quality of presentation).
Out now for iOS (Apple Arcade), PC (Steam), and Nintendo Switch.
Pokémon Sword & Shield
This quick and intense blast of nostalgia and low-key video game tech history is even odder in an age of “Pokémon Go”, where mobile devices literally superimpose Pokémon franchise creatures onto real-world backgrounds. Here, though, it’s in service of emphasizing improvements in graphical wizardry over the course of the franchise’s two-decade term, ahead of “Pokémon Sword and Shield” releasing for Nintendo Switch on Nov. 15.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMjKiC1l_yA
Moons of Madness
Cosmic horror overshadows a Mars research outpost, which has been collecting signals from some sort of intelligent life form, and an isolated engineer tries to survive long enough to find out what is really going on.
Out now on PC, launching on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on Jan. 2020. CL/JB
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