Didcot Magazine

Animal expert Dr Tim Cockerill talks us through the truth about spiders.

Saturday's papers feature a story about the problems caused by unconditional university offers.

Hettie Williams was 23 when an avalanche of coal waste engulfed the village of Aberfan, killing 144 people.

Consumer groups highlight leading student accounts but warn that many undergraduates rely on overdrafts.

Footage of a man injuring police in Newham on Thursday has been widely shared on social media.

Firefighters say one building at the Emma Bridgewater factory in Stoke was "well alight".

Gregory Whitehead and William Lemoyne sold goods from an "Aladdin's cave" warehouse, a court hears.

Further reports of damage to property and a car dissuade police from "racial motive" theory.

Sean Diamond continues to deny the allegation and says he is asking for the decree to be recalled.

Defra proposes phasing out the most polluting wood and coal for burning at home.

Putin orders retaliatory sanctions - Russian President Vladimir Putin bans or limits agricultural imports from countries imposing sanctions on Russia over the crisis in Ukraine. [BBC Business]

WHO starts emergency talks on Ebola - Global experts begin two days of emergency talks at the World Health Organization in Geneva on new measures to tackle the Ebola outbreak. [BBC Health]

Ebola test after passenger death - An Ebola test on a female passenger who died after flying to the UK from West Africa comes back negative, the Department of Health says. [BBC Health]

Ebola spreading too fast - WHO - The Ebola outbreak is spreading faster than efforts to control it, the head of the World Health Organization tells West African leaders. [BBC Health]

UK border staff 'not ready' for Ebola - Immigration and customs staff feel unprepared to deal with people arriving in the UK with suspected cases of the Ebola virus, a union leader warns. [BBC Health]

Migrant benefits to be tightened - The UK is to cut from six to three months the amount of time out-of-work EU migrants can claim benefits without realistic job prospects. [BBC Politics]

China regulators in Microsoft visit - Microsoft confirms that officials from the Chinese regulatory body responsible for enforcing business laws have visited some of its offices. [BBC Business]

Cancer blood test moves step closer - A British team of researchers has developed what might be a simple blood test for cancer, scientists from the University of Bradford say. [BBC Health]

One-shot cancer therapy gets NHS nod - A pioneering breast cancer treatment that replaces weeks of radiotherapy with a single, targeted shot is set to be offered on the NHS. [BBC Health]

UK economy back at pre-crisis level - The UK economy grew 0.8% in the second quarter and has now recovered the ground lost since the downturn began in 2008, according to official figures. [BBC Business]

Despite the cars being the quickest they’ve ever been in the sport’s history, Formula One in 2018 is about much more than pure speed. Impressively, the technical nature of driving the fastest, most advanced cars on the planet is something Codemasters goes to great lengths to portray in F1 2018, and the experience is all the better for it. Behind the wheel, an updated, more intricate tire model and the new Energy Recovery System controls push the game closer to a realistic simulation than the series has ever been before. This shift complements some smart changes to career mode around upgrades and media interaction that expand and broaden the game's appeal beyond a single season.

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Editor's note: The review contains spoilers for The Walking Dead: A New Frontier. Throughout Telltale's The Walking Dead, we have seen what living in a zombified hellscape can do to people. The one perpetual ray of hope was in Clementine, the little girl whose soul you've been trying to protect since the first hour of the first season, and the character you control in Telltale's latest chapter. She was one of the depressingly few children left, now forced to grow up in a hostile world of zombies, desperate survivors, treacherous backcountry, deathtrap cities, and, above all, rampant, indiscriminate, ignoble death.

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It's 1983. The Cold War is underway and there's a global conspiracy being perpetrated by a mysterious organization called Beholder. Fighting against Beholder are you and your rival organization, The Cabal. In Phantom Doctrine, you have the choice of playing as either an American CIA or a Russian KGB agent in charge of their own group of spies, but regardless of your alliance, every move you make needs to be carefully considered or there will be world-ending consequences. This feeling of high stakes strategic decision-making and a constant sense of urgency will become second nature as you progress through this engrossing campaign.

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Despite its focus on death and the afterlife, Flipping Death is a charming and wholesome adventure. Its zany and often eccentric characters bring the well-paced story to life with fantastic voice acting and a gorgeous 2D art style. Despite some frustrating platforming elements, its campy humor and satisfying puzzle mechanics make it a delightful journey throughout.

Flipping Death puts you in the shoes of the recently departed Penny, a young girl who is accidentally thrown into the job of covering for Death. The role turns out to be rather elaborate, and you’re quickly tasked with helping ghosts resolve their unfinished business. In addition, you’ll have to help the wonderfully sassy Penny attempt to figure out how to return to the world of the living.

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Just like the forcibly stretched grins of its inhabitants, the joy found in We Happy Few is a facade. The game's fascinating setting of a drug-fueled society wasting away in fake happiness is squandered on repetitive environments, poorly paced and downright boring quest designs, and a variety of confusing mechanics that never find harmony with each other. Its three individual tales of survival manage to deliver some surprisingly poignant moments, but We Happy Few does its best to dissuade you from wanting to play long enough to see them through.

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Unavowed sounds straightforward on paper. It's a classic-style point-and-click game about demonic possession set in New York City with people to talk to, and puzzles to solve. However, as you get to know its characters and fall further into its mystery, it becomes increasingly clear that Unavowed is much more than it appears: it's a brilliantly written adventure that makes you care deeply about its inhabitants and subverts your expectations.

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While some fans of the series were disappointed when Monster Hunter XX came to the Switch as a Japan-only exclusive, the good news is that we don't have to suffer in region-imposed torture any longer. The latest big fish in the franchise's pond, Monster Hunter World, is finally here, and it blows the previous western releases out of the water.

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