Book now: Play Expo – Massive video gaming event

The North of England’s biggest video gaming event, Play Expo, returns to EventCity in October. The weekend-long digital ‘do’ will present E-Sport tournaments galore, for you to play in or spectate, whilst a ‘Next-Gen Zone’ will present upcoming AAA titles from several publishers, for you to enjoy before the release date. In ‘The Indie Zone’, you can try out quirkier, less mainstream titles, and then chat to the developers. Virtual Reality is coming to the Expo this year too, in the shape of PlayStation VR, Oculus Rift, and HTC Vive headsets – each with a selection of full games and demos. If that’s all a bit too modern for you, there will be over 100 classic arcade cabinets, and a retro lounge full of old-school consoles. And for the complete luddites, there will be table top gaming and pinball machines. A dedicated cosplay stage will host shows throughout the event, including masquerades on both evenings.

Sat 14 – Sun 15 Oct, EventCity, Phoenix Way, Stretford, Manchester, M41 7TB, Tel: 0161 870 9800, 10am – 6pm, £20 (one day)/£34 (weekend), www.playexpomanchester.com