Virtue and a Sledgehammer announces October 27 release date with another banger of a trailer

"A machine will never hate itself enough to become better." That's the unbelievably metal quote we just saw in the latest Virtue and a Sledgehammer trailer, revealed on the PC Gaming Show Tokyo Direct alongside the game's launch date: October 27.

We showed off some of the hammer-wielding action in our June show, so we already knew this was going to be a bizarre descent into the human psyche, as well as a game about smashing robots to bits. I love destructible environments, and I'm getting serious Red Faction: Guerrilla vibes from the carnage on offer here. What's more, these new words tell us a lot about developer Selkie Harbour's and Deconstructeam's views on self-improvement: it is fuelled by hatred, not love.

In hindsight, that's pretty obvious when you consider the premise of Virtue and a Sledgehammer. You're returning to your hometown and tearing it down brick by brick, all while smashing through the androids that have digitised your once-neighbours.

There's something therapeutic going on too, though. In the last trailer we aired, we see flashbacks of moments from our protagonist's life. Visiting a grave, hanging out with friends in the woods, strangling a woman in the woods. Add to that the therapy-esque questions that get more and more deranged as the trailer goes on, and there's clearly a lot to unpack here.

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I love videogames that offer deep, emotionally nuanced storytelling. I also adore ones where you can relish in the act of playing, either through sheer destruction or systems that let you interact with the world in creative ways. Virtue and a Sledgehammer is doing both. October 27 can't come soon enough.

If you also can't wait, head over to Steam and check out Virtue and a Sledgehammer's demo or wishlist the game ahead of launch. Get a feel for that sweet, sweet, stylish sledgehammer-swinging action.