What Are You Playing This Weekend?

Good Saturday morning to you, RPS, you're looking especially nice in your new dressing gown. While Sundays have long been for the reading of articles, the weekend in general is for games. Playing games, watching games, thinking about games. GAMES.

So a few questions for the RPS massive. What are you playing this weekend, and what do you think of it? Plus, what game streams are you watching this weekend? I'll get us started below.

My main plan this weekend is to give Alien: Isolation another shot. I bounced straight off it during the week, finding its stealth impenetrable and its saving frustrating. I'll be completely restarting and switching control schemes in an attempt to conquer it. Previously I'd dragged my sofa up to the PC and grabbed a 360 controller, but I think the deviation from my normal chair'n'mouse'n'keyboard was part of the reason for my confusion. I really do want to like it, not least because it's ever so pretty but I'm a big fan of one of the lead writers, Dan Abnett. His contributions to the Warhammer 40,000 universe, particularly the Horus Heresy series, are absolutely superb.

Failing that, Hearthstone has its hooks in me. I've tired of the heartbreak rollercoaster that is Arena, but find the constant improvement and gradual increase in understanding of the constructed play mode great. I never give it my full attention, always it's accompanied by a TV show, movie or stream on my second monitor (did you know Alec hasn't had a second monitor for months? I don't know how he's survived). It's perfect for that, requiring just the right level of strategic planning and interaction to keep my brain and hands busy while another episode of Arrow, the best-worst show on television, filters by.

When I'm not gorging myself on America's greatest export, I expect the Magic: The Gathering Pro Tour will be getting my Twitch-balls this week. I've been playing the game for four years now and the pro scene and its coverage has been getting better and better throughout. It's unlikely to be particularly understandable to the totally uninitiated, but those who've given a round or two to Duels of the Planeswalkers should make some sense of it. If you've never touched the game, well, honestly I recommend you keep your bank balance intact and leave it that way, but last year's Duels game was pretty great.

If that's not your bag, I expect the League of Legends World Championships semi-finals will also be getting a look in. I don't follow the game in general, taking a natural path of progression from enjoying DotA to playing Dota 2, but Riot put on a helluva show and I like to keep up with the big happenings. Not least so I actually understand what all my friends are talking about more than 3% of the time. If you missed it, the World Championships trailer is probably going to take my coveted "games-related media of the year" prize for a great portrayal of just how seriously competitive gaming takes itself.

Which just about does it - and you, fair reader? What's entertaining you this weekend?