Spin the (pottery) wheel

1

THE WEEK IN REVIEW

Egypt hikes gasoline prices + Central Bank of Egypt hold rates + US one of 14 countries who objected to a ceasefire during the last UN General Assembly

Good morning friends, and welcome to the weekend. We have a busy issue lined up for you with updates on our fuel prices and the CBE’s decision regarding the interest rates alongside a stream of news on Israel’s assault on Gaza.

In this week’s Enterprise Guide: Pottery has since ancient times been an art form that transcends time and place. Not only for its aesthetic value, but for its creative appeal. Molding something using your bare hands is both therapeutic and rewarding, and today, we have the lowdown on the places where you can go to do just that.

Enterprise Weekend comes out each Friday at 9:00am CLT. We’ll be back on Sunday at 6am with EnterpriseAM. Until then: Enjoy the weekend.

HELP SUPPORT GAZANS-

Want to support relief efforts in Gaza, but don’t know where to start? We’ve got you. More than 1 mn people in Gaza have been thrown from their homes and every human being there lacks access to food, water, and fuel amid the most intense bombardment any population has endured this century. The charities we’re listing below are Egyptian organizations working on Gaza relief that we think you can trust if you want to make a donation.

#1- Egyptian Red Crescent Society is one of the nation’s leading providers of humanitarian and emergency medical services. The Egypt Red Crescent accepts donations in EGP online and is on Fawry with the service code 99981. You can also donate to the organization through this Banque du Caire account: 49/403/30 (EGP) or 1065/601/30 (USD — code: BCAIEGCX030).

#2- Egyptian Food Bank: The food bank has launched “Aid Gaza,” a hunger-relief campaign to supply essential food items to the people of Gaza. You can make an online donation through EFB’s website or the unified bank account number 888777 at every bank in Egypt. Do you live abroad? The EFB has a list of its verified accounts at major institutions (along with account numbers) here.

#3- The Mersal Foundation is a non-profit medical organization running medical aid convoys to Gaza. It is on Fawry using service code 9200 or you can donate through its EGP accounts at major national banks including CIB (100034654454), Banque Misr (5450001000003297), Emirates NBD (1019409332701), National Bank of Egypt (1953071376769426268), AAIB (1015996610010201), QNB (7352031181714268). The group lists other ways you can donate on its Facebook page.

#4- Lifemakers: The NGO, which has a record of providing medical, educational and social care services to Palestinians, has been helping to prepare aid convoys ahead of dispatch to deliver food, medical supplies, water, blankets, clothing, and other essentials to the besieged Gaza strip since the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war. Donate through the foundation’s website or use Fawry code 950. Lifemakers also accepts donations for Gaza relief in EGP via CIB (account 100034226827) and NBE (0773070478998401017).

Some BREAKING NEWS before we get on to our three-minute guide to the week that was:

Gov’t hikes fuel prices: Your commute has become pricier, as the Oil Ministry raises gasoline prices by 9-14%, it said in a statement last night. The price of diesel and natgas fuel were kept unchanged.

Gasoline prices as of 8am CLT this morning:

95-Octane is EGP 12.50 per liter, up 8.7% from the previous EGP 11.50;
92-Octane is EGP 11.50 per liter, up 12.2% from the previous EGP 10.25;
80-Octane is EGP 10.0 per liter, up 14% from the previous EGP 8.75.

The Central Bank of Egypt left interest rates unchanged yesterday,it said in a statement, citing the easing of inflationary pressures worldwide as one of the factors behind its decision.

Where rates stand: The overnight deposit rate is at 19.25%, the overnight lending rate is at 20.25%, while the main operation and disc. rates are both at 19.75%.

LAST WEEK IN 3 MINS-

The story of the week: Israel stepped up its war on Gaza. Nearly half of the nearly 9k Palestinians killed are children, according to data from the Gaza Health Ministry. The IDF assault, which has broadened to add troops alongside fixed and rotary-wing aircraft and drones, has damaged or flattened more than one out of every four buildings in Gaza, including some 260 healthcare facilities and 42 UN buildings. Israel’s attack is now in its fourth week.

In business news: It was a big week for manufacturing and energy news — and the Madbouly government made important progress on the privatization front, locking in USD 800 mn from UAE wealth fund ADQ even as it built a new pipeline of investments that appears to have caught the eye of the the UAE’s investment minister. (And yes, it’s totally fine if you feel half-hearted about economic news right now.)

KEY EVENTS IN ISRAEL’S WAR ON GAZA-

#1- Two drones crashed in Taba and Nuweiba last Friday, causing explosions and injuring six people. The Egyptian military said the drones had been launched from the south of the Red Sea. The incident prompted President Abel Fattah El Sisi to warn against the potential widening of the conflict.

#2- Israel and the US were among just 14 countries that voted against a resolution calling for a ceasefire at the UN General Assembly on Friday — while 121 countries voted in favor of the Jordan-led resolution for an “immediate, durable” humanitarian truce and 44 abstained.

#3- Israel plunged Gaza into a communications blackout on Friday as it stepped up its bombardment of the strip and began its ground invasion. Communications were restored two days later to parts of Gaza, though coverage over the north of the territory remained out.

#4- Hamas fighters battled Israeli soldiers and tanks in northern Gaza as the IDF pushed deeper into the besieged enclave.

#5- Just 272 trucks have made it from Egypt into Gaza since the conflict began on 7 October, the Palestinian Red Crescent said earlier this week. Israel is preventing fuel from entering the strip in addition to demanding that all cargo entering the strip be searched.

Prior to the war, Gaza was receiving 450 trucks daily through the Rafah crossing, shared Lynn Hastings, United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, in a press briefing last week.

#7- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu continued to lobby for resettling displaced Palestinian refugees in Sinai. Israeli intelligence officials have reportedly drawn up a plan to forcibly transfer the Gaza Strip’s 2.3 mn population to the Sinai peninsula.

#8- Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly on Tuesday raised the threat of hostilities if the Israeli government tries to push ahead with the plan. “We are prepared to sacrifice mns of lives to ensure that no one encroaches upon [Sinai],” Madbouly said in a speech in North Sinai on Tuesday.

#9- More than 1k people were “killed, injured or missing” after two days of Israeli attacks on the densely-populated Jabalia refugee camp in north Gaza, according to figures from the Gaza Health Ministry released yesterday. The neighborhood was assaulted on Tuesday and Wednesday.

WE HAD SOME ECONOMY NEWS-

#1- The private-sector minimum wage will rise by 17% starting January 2024:Private-sector firms will have to pay their employees a gross wage of at least EGP 3.5k a month from January, up from EGP 3k currently.

#2- Our net foreign assets gap widened in September to negative USD 26.8 bn from negative USD 25.9 bn the month prior. This marks the first jump in net foreign liabilities since June, when they hit a record high of USD 27.1 bn.

#3- We lined up some more debt with a facility worth nearly USD 1 bn from the Chinese Development Bank hitting the CBE’s coffers earlier this week. The funding is earmarked for unspecified projects under the umbrella of China’s infrastructure-focused “belt and road” program. The news came the same week as the House of Representatives voted to allow the Finance Ministry to conclude a USD 500 mn loan from Deutsche Bank and the Arab Banking Corporation.

A SPATTERING OF ENERGY UPDATES-

#1- Israel has sharply cut back natural gas exports to Egypt earlier as the war in Gaza disrupts production in the Eastern Mediterranean. The Madbouly cabinet said that the country’s gas imports have fallen to a fraction of the previous 800 mn cubic feet of gas per day — and named it as one of the main reasons for the worsening blackouts that began last week.

Energy-intensive industries have seen their gas supplies cut as a consequence. Fertilizer companies have reportedly seen supplies reduced by 30%. Separate reports indicate that other industries — including iron and aluminum — are also experiencing temporary supply cuts.

#2- The Electricity Ministry has reportedly extended the duration of daily power cuts to 90 minutes from one hour. It isn’t clear whether this is a change in policy or a one-off prompted by halted gas exports from Israel.

#3- Italian energy giant Eni expects to resume LNG exports from Egypt when seasonal demand eases even as Israel’s war in Gaza curbs our imports of Israeli gas.

A USD 800 MN PRIVATIZATION STORY-

ADQ snapped up a minority stake in Elab, Ethydco, and EDC: Abu Dhabi’s sovereign wealth fund ADQ signed contracts with the Sovereign Fund of Egypt to finalize its acquisition of minority stakes in three state-owned oil and petrochemical companies in a transaction worth USD 800 mn.

What did they get? ADQ acquired a 35% stake in Egyptian Linear Alkyl Benzene (Elab), 30% of Egyptian Ethylene and Derivatives Company (Ethydco), and 25% of the Egyptian Drilling Company (EDC).

WATCH THIS SPACE-

Are we lining up a bolus of investment from the UAE? That was the suggestion following Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly’s meeting this week with UAE Investment Minister Mohamed Alsuwaidi (who also serves as CEO of sovereign wealth fund ADQ). There’s been no word on the sectors or companies in which ADQ or other Emirati investors might be interested.

WHEREAS IN MANUFACTURING-

#1- The investment regulator-cum-promotion-agency GAFI handed out four golden licensesthis week to Samsung, GASCO, Fayoum Storage and Warehouses Company, and EgyptSat Auto:

South Korean electronics giant Samsung will invest USD 55 mn in its new mobile phone assembly facility at its industrial complex in Beni Suef.

Local EV manufacturer EgyptSat Auto will build a EGP 300 mn factory in Tenth of Ramadan
State-owned Egyptian Natural Gas Company (GASCO) will invest USD 380 mn to expand its gas complex in Alexandria.
The Fayoum Company for Storage and Warehouses will work on a EGP 1.3 bn project to establish new strategic warehouses in Fayoum.

#2- French electrical equipment manufacturer Schneider Electric plans to invest EUR 30 mn into its Badr City factory until 2025. The fresh capital will increase the production capacity of low- and medium-voltage electrical panels and the company’s smart ring connection units.

AND FINALLY SOME LEGISLATION WENT THROUGH-

Foreign investors can now become importers for a ten-year period that can be renewed once. President Abdel Fattah El Sisi this week signed into law a bill that will allow foreign investors to hold stakes of up to 49% in trading companies that import into Egypt. The next step: We will need to see the executive regulations to the bill to understand how it will come into effect.

The second iteration of the government’s car import scheme was also signed into law, allowing expats to import new cars tax- and customs-free provided they pay the fees in FX.

WHAT’S HAPPENING NEXT WEEK-

The Senate will be back in session on Sunday, 5 November following a two week recess.

The Turkish-Arab Economic Forum takes place on Wednesday, 8 November in Istanbul. Arab and Turkish business leaders, investors and government officials are expected to be in attendance.

The Intra-African Trade Fairwill run from 9-15 November (Thursday-Wednesday) at the Egypt International Exhibition Center and Al Manara International Conference Center.

ALSO- Investors will be able to submit offers for Wataniya next week. Investors that have completed due diligence on military-owned filling station operator Wataniya will be able to submit final offers for a stake in the company next week when the state re-opens the bidding process. Bidders will have two weeks to get offers in.

Check out our full calendar on the web for a comprehensive listing of upcoming news events, national holidays and news triggers.

YOUR MOST CLICKED LINKS-

We are blessed to have good and generous readers: The two most-clicked links this week were to sites where readers can make donations to help civilians in Gaza suffering under a brutal Israeli assault:

Egyptian Red Crescent Society (online donations page) and the Egyptian Food Bank (donations page)
A “textbook case of genocide”: UN rights official Craig Mohkiber letter of resignation letter. A textbook case of genocide.” (On the platform formerly known as Twitter)
Confirmation that we now have two-hour power outages. (Al Mal)
Egyptian Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly’s speech at Rafah’s border crossing was also popular. (Cabinet Facebook page)

AROUND THE WORLD IN SEVEN DAYS-

Israel’s war in Gaza has the international business press asking what could be in store for the global economy. “The higher the risk of escalation [in Gaza], the higher the risk of contagion to the rest of the world in terms of economics and finance,” always-on-point markets sage Mohamed El Erian said, according to CNBC.

We’re already seeing some volatility in oil and gas markets: European gas prices have already risen some 40% since the war on Gaza broke out on 7 October, Euronews reported. Meanwhile, the World Bank sees oil prices soaring as high as USD 140-157 a barrel if the war escalates to cause “large disruptions,” which would shrink global oil supply by 6-8 mn bbl / day. Prices have so far risen 6% since the start of the conflict in Gaza.

The US’ continued build up of troops in the region also got some attention: The Pentagon said that the US is deploying another 300 troops to the region, in addition to the two aircraft carrier strike groups, several thousand troops, fighter jets, and missile batteries it has already deployed to the region since 7 October as a deterrent to other regional actors from entering the conflict.

Elsewhere in the region, Sudan’s warring parties’ meeting in Riyadh got some coverage: Thegeneral Abdel Fattah Al Burhan-led Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) resumed the latest round of Saudi and US-mediated peace talks in Jeddah “in partnership” with the African Union and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development. Saudi Arabia called for the parties to abide by the Jeddah Declaration to protect civilians and a short-term ceasefire agreement.

ALSO- FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried’s court testimony in New York generated some buzz: Bankman-Fried alleged that he had little to no information regarding the financial relationship between the collapsed crypto exchange and its affiliated hedge fund Alameda Research.

HAPPENING THIS WEEKEND-

The exhibition Forever Is Now is back again at the Pyramids, open 9am until 4pm daily through 18 November. Book your ticket here or buy one on arrival.

Music enthusiasts, this one’s for you: The annual Cairo International Jazz Festival is still going at AUC’s Tahrir campus and will continue until Friday, 3 November. More here.

Looking for adventure? Get into the spooky spirit with night hiking in Wadi Degla with the Egyptian Wild Animals Service (EWAS) on Friday, 3 November.

Cairocomix festival is back, kicking off today, and running through Sunday, 5 November, at the Mahmoud Mokhtar Cultural Center. There is no admission fee. You can explore the program here.

Great Symphonies III x Cairo Opera House. The Cairo Symphony Orchestra headed by the maestro Ahmed El Saedi will be performing at the Main Hall, Cairo Opera House tomorrow. The concert will start at 8pm sharp. Book your ticket here.

Mahmoud Saad will also host comedian Ahmed Helmy tomorrow, followed by a concert featuring Wust El Balad, also at Theatro Arkan. Click here to reserve your tickets.

☀️ THE WEATHER THIS WEEKEND- The weather will continue to be hot today, with the temperature rising to a high of 31°C and drop to a cooler 21°C. Tomorrow offers much of the same, with the mercury rising to 33°C at its peak during the daytime and dropping to a cooler 20°C in the evening, according to our favorite weather app.

Ground yourself with some clay

Can a spinning pottery wheel help you clear your mind of worries? An art form, a way to relax, and a form of connection, pottery-making has been a mainstay of human practice for centuries.

BACK IN THE DAY- Molding clay into bowls, pots, and plates for both functional and decorative purposes used to be the task of dedicated artisans with years of training — and to a large extent still is. But workshops and courses across the capital city have made the artform accessible to anyone interested in exploring the craft.

Pottery can be great for your mental health: Beyond the inherent satisfaction of bringing your own creation to life, some studies have found that interacting with clay can help treat depression and boost overall well-being. Working with clay, like a number of other forms of art, has shown some promise in reducing symptoms of PTSD when combined with traditional therapy.

Pottery wheels to try out in the Greater Cairo Area:

#1- Fokhara Studiooffers a variety of courses geared towards teaching adults and kids everything they need to know to channel their creativity into making the ceramic objects of their dreams. A full 36-hour-long crash course teaches students the fundamentals of handbuilding and wheel throwing — including specific instructions on how to design, shape and glaze ceramic objects. If you want to dabble before committing to a 12-week program, Fokhara also offers single-day weekend workshops where students can expect to get a taste of basic handbuilding techniques.

WHERE- Villa 313, Yasmin 1, First Settlement, New Cairo.

THE PRICE TAG- Full, 12 week long courses (divided into a single three hour session each week) will run you EGP 7.7k to 9k. Shorter, single-day courses will cost you about EGP 750 per person.

#2- Abuzeid Ceramics: Head down to the epicenter of Cairo pottery-making in Al Fustat and try out a workshop with seasoned pottery maker Mohamed Abuzeid at Abuzeid Ceramics. The Tunis Village-raised pottery-maker teaches beginner workshops at his studio where you can expect to be introduced to learn about the history of our varied local pottery styles, handbuilding, and throwing clay as well as glazing and firing techniques.

WHERE -Potter’s Village, Old Cairo.

THE PRICE TAG- The beginner’s ceramics course will run you EGP 3k for four, three-hour sessions.

#3- Darb1718: Among the many workshops on offer atmultidisciplinary arts and culture center Darb1718 is a recurring single-day pottery workshop hosted by Hakeem Sayed, a ceramics veteran and general manager of the Traditional Crafts Center at the Culture Ministry. At Sayed’s workshop you’ll get to learn things like how to mold clay forms, create new shapes and make engravings. Expect to take home at least seven pottery pieces of your own creation by the end of the workshop (just as you prepare for the Christmas / holiday season).

WHERE- 159 Kasr Al Shama'e, Kom Ghorab, Old Cairo.

THE PRICE TAG- Sayed’s workshops run once a week on either Saturday or Wednesdays from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm and will cost you EGP 400 per session.

#4- Pottery Art Zone: This Zamalek-based art space offers workshops for kids and adults in a variety of artistic disciplines but their most frequent offerings focus on pottery.

Pottery Art Zone’s Level one bilingual beginner’s workshop teaches students the basics of hand-building items like plates and mugs. Students will also learn about tools and materials used in the hand building process. Level two courses at Pottery Art Zone focus on reliefs and how to decorate your pottery, while level three dives into manual glazing techniques.

WHERE- 2A Taha Hussein Street, Zamalek, Nile Towers, second floor.

THE PRICE TAG- Their most basic one day pottery workshop, which focuses on basic hand-building techniques, will run you EGP 500. A full 10-hour level one beginner’s course is EGP 2.5k, while a level three beginner’s course costs some EGP 2.8k.

#5- Ibrahim Samir Pottery: If you’re looking to get out of the city, check out veteran potter Ibrahim Samir’s workshop in Tunis Village, where one of the country’s most distinct ceramics styles was born.

Samir offers flexible workshops that can be tailored to your availability and needs. Here you can find quick 30-minute sessions where you get to mold your own bowl or box or you can also bump it up a notch and come back for an additional session where you get color and decorate your creation.

There’s also the option of taking longer six-hour sessions where you’ll learn about materials, throwing, glazing and shaping techniques. Samir recommends at least a couple of 6 hour sessions per month (in addition to practice at home) for the aspiring potter to really shine.

WHERE- Tunis Village, Fayoum.

THE PRICE TAG- A single 20-30 minute session will run you about EGP 100. Two sessions will cost you EGP 250 and a more comprehensive 6-hour session is EGP 600.

The Kill Room could have been a series + 57 Seconds’ concept has potential but could have been executed better

? AT THE MOVIES-

Crime is art and art is criminal in The Kill Room. The movie reunites Uma Thurman and Samuel L. Jackson on the big screen (though if you pay close attention, you’ll realize that they never shared a scene in Pulp Fiction), as a struggling art gallerist and a baker with ties to the mob. Gordon (Jackson) approaches Patrice (Thurman) with an enticing money laundering scheme. The morally upright but cash-strapped gallerist, who refuses to even pay critics for art reviews, reluctantly agrees.

The plan is simple: The mob’s assassin, Reggie (Joe Manganiello), will manufacture paintings to be “sold” at a high valuation. All Patrice has to do is make sure they aren’t actually sold. But after her intern shares photos of Reggie’s work, he becomes an overnight sensation in the art world. The kicker? The material used for his paintings and sculptures are evidence of the murders he commits.

But the film has its drawbacks. The first is that it is a film: The scope of the premise is large and convoluted enough to span several episodes, and we can’t help but feel like some breathing room might have helped the writers develop better dialogue and flesh out the criminal underworld that kicks off the plot.

The key cast members save the day, delivering fantastic performances (though they do start out a little shaky), and the finale is a satisfying piece of performance art.

WHERE TO WATCH- Catch The Kill Room at Cairo Festival City’s Galaxy Cinemas, Citystars’ Golden Stars cinema, and Arkan Cinema. Watch the trailer here(watch, runtime: 2:34).

57 Seconds is (another) time travel sci-fi thriller. Directed by Rusty Cundieff, the film takes inspiration from the book Lucifer, written by E.C. Tubb, a British science fiction author. The movie stars Josh Hutcherson (known for his role in The Hunger Games) and Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman. Some pundits aren’t sure the film lives up to standards set by the comedy-romance About Time or The Terminator.

The narrative relies on a familiar “good vs evil” storyline. It centers around Franklin Fox (Hutcherson), a tech blogger who wanted to conduct a groundbreaking interview with Anton Burell, a renowned tech guru (Freeman). While observing Burell deliver a high-profile presentation, Fox manages to prevent an attack on Burell’s life. In the process, he discovers a ring that grants him the ability to travel back in time, by precisely 57 seconds.

Fox decides to use the ring’s power to infiltrate the inner circle of Sig Thorenson (Greg Germann), the CEO of a powerful pharmaceutical corporation responsible for his sister’s tragic death. A light romance plays along in a second story line between Fox and Jala (Lovie Simone).

The film falls short on plot, predictability, and character development. Viewers are told from the outset that Fox will gain time-travel abilities and target the pharmaceutical firm — meaning later scenes play out in a predictable fashion with few surprises. Even the moments where Fox uncovers information about Thorenson feel lackluster and fail to captivate.

Hutcherson acting is basic, and Freeman’s appearance is limited and not as impactful as you would expect. The film also leaves some basics unanswered: Why 57 seconds? Why not 60 or 70 seconds? What motivated Fox’s decision to rescue Thorenson, the very person against whom he originally sought revenge?

WHERE TO WATCH-57 Seconds is playing at Vox Cinemas. Catch the trailer here (watch, runtime: 2:14).

? FROM THE BOOKSTORE-

Suleiman’s Ring is a refreshing novel that blends unexpected elements. Translated by Raymond Stock, a senior Arabic instructor at Louisiana State University and 20-year veteran of Egypt, the book is written by medical doctor, author, and Alexandria native-turned-US-resident Sherif Meleka.

It started in 1952. It follows the story of Daoud Abdel-Malek, an Egyptian Jew on the eve of the 1952 Revolution in Egypt. After visiting with Gamal Abdel Nasser along with his friend Sheikh Hassanein, Daoud gives the future president a silver ring to bring him good luck — and soon enough, the Free Officers’ plan succeeds.

While the book includes elements of magical realism, it is also heavily entrenched in reality through the politically-loaded backdrop against which it is set. The combination of these two seemingly antithetical aspects is what allows for a rich and nuanced story.

The novel also sheds light on the unpredictable situation of Jews in Egypt and the early days of the Muslim Brotherhood among other socio-political shifts taking place in the country at the time.

Stock has talent bringing Arabic into English and knows the rhythms, sounds, smells, and people of our country almost as well as a native. He has previously translated works by Naguib Mahfouz and has been working for some time on a much-anticipated biography of the author.

WHERE TO FIND IT- Meleka’s novel is available at AUC Bookstores and on Amazon.

? HOT AND FRESH OUT OF THE KITCHEN-

Anakota (a Nubian word meaning home) offers Egyptian dishes with a view. If you want to have your favorite local meals outside of your home then head to the Open Air Mall in Madinaty.

The venue is vast and cozy, with outdoor and indoors seating options overlooking the Open Air Mall’s lake. The menu features a variety of items including hot and cold appetizers, tajins, chicken and meat dishes, and food fresh off the grill.

The classic Egyptian appetizers were of good quality and filling. The mombar and meat rokak were just right — crunchy on the outside and their filling spiced without going overboard. Aside from the usual baba ganoush, hummus, tahini offered, their fresh backed baladi bread had us whipping our hands out for more.

The tajins and mixed grills carry a fusion of flavors. Tajins such as the muammar rice with pigeon were good: The delicate flavored meat played off the creamy gratin rice beautifully. From their meat items, the mix grill was our choice and it truly included a bit of everything, but their kebab stood out: The flavor of the grilled meat was everything promised on the menu.

The chicken sharkaseya tasted like tetah made it: The chicken pieces set on a layer of rice were lightly marinated and the creamy walnut emulsion was rich and not too heavy and took us back to family lunches at home.

? Per person: EGP 500-600

? Outdoor seating: Yes

? Alcohol: No

? Accessibility friendly: Yes

Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 is a solid installment after Miles Morales

Great news, web slingers: Marvel’s Spider-Man 2 sticks the landing. Insomniac had the difficult task of developing a followup to two pretty-much-perfect Spider-Man games (Marvel’s Spider-Man and Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales), and they took the number in Spider-Man 2 seriously. They doubled the amount of Spider-Men, doubled the size of the map, and doubled the action sequences, creating an amazing whirlwind of a game. Catch the trailer here (watch, runtime: 1:57).

The premise is simple: Swing through New York as Peter Parker or Miles Morales and try to defeat Kraven the Hunter and Venom, who are threatening to destroy your lives, your city, and everyone you love. Easy, right? The plot is intricate without being complicated, and there are enough emotional gut-punches to keep you sufficiently hooked.

The gameplay is familiar … but has a couple of new tricks up its sleeve. The foundational combat mechanics are pretty much the same, but they switched the emphasis on stealth encounters to louder, more exciting action sequences…

…this gives you the option to fight groups of enemies rather than picking them off one-by-one. The more “aggressive” you are, the more you are rewarded. In fact, the only way to heal is by increasing your focus bar, which can be done by landing hits and dodging attacks. Does that sound like foreshadowing to you?

⌛ Hours of gameplay: 15 hours for the main story, 5 additional hours for side quests, and 25 hours to hit 100% completion

? Price: USD 69.99

? Platforms: Playstation 5

THE ENTERPRISE ENTERTAINMENT CALENDAR

NOVEMBER

26 October - 18 November: Forever Is Now Exhibition, Pyramids of Giza.

12 October-5 November: D-CAF (Downtown Contemporary Arts Festival), Downtown, Cairo.

26 October - 3 November (Thursday-Friday): The 15th Annual Cairo International Jazz Festival at AUC’s Tahrir campus.

26 October-5 November (Thursday-Sunday): Cairo Jazz Festival at AUC Tahrir.

2 November (Thursday): Sayed Ragab x Lina Chamamyan x “El hekaya b aswatna, Theatro Arkan, Sheikh Zayed.

3-5 November (Friday- Sunday): Cairocomix Festival, Mahmoud Mokhtar Cultural Center, Zamalek.

4 November (Saturday): Edward Said Memorial Lecture at AUC Tahrir.

4 November (Saturday): Ahmed Helmy interview, Theatro Arkan, Sheikh Zayed.

4 November (Saturday): Great Symphonies III concert, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

5-6 November (Sunday-Monday): The Russian Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra concerts, Cairo Opera House, Zamalek.

7 November (Tuesday): The Russian Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra concert, Sayed Darwish Theatre.

10 November (Friday): Tamer Ashour’s concert, Zed Park Sheikh Zayed.

11 November (Saturday): El Gouna Half Marathon 2023, El Gouna.

11 November (Saturday): Russell Peters stand-up comedy show, The Marquee Theatre, Cairo Festival City Mall.

14-15 November (Tuesday-Wednesday): Destination Africa Expo at Royal Maxim Palace Kempinski.

15-24 November (Wednesday-Friday): Cairo International Film Festival (CIFF).

16 November (Thursday): ELFIT Sports and Fitness Games at New Capital Sports City.

25 November (Saturday): Masr El Gedida Carnival at Maryland.

26 November (Sunday): Souad Massi concert at Tap East.

DECEMBER

1 December (Friday): Cairo Fun Festival by Bike Zone Egypt in Heliopolis.

1 December (Friday): The Christmas Charity Bazaar, All Saints’ Cathedral, Zamalek.

EVENTS WITH NO SET DATE

2023: The inauguration of the Grand Egyptian Museum.

Q1 2024: Opening of the newly developed Pyramids Plateau in Giza.

2024

JANUARY

7 January (Sunday): Coptic Christmas.

25 January (Thursday): Revolution Day.

APRIL

9 April (Tuesday): Eid El Fitr (TBC).

25 April (Thursday): National holiday in observance of Sinai Liberation Day (TBC).

MAY

1 May (Wednesday): National holiday in observance of Labor Day (TBC).

5 May (Sunday): Coptic Easter.

6 May (Monday): Sham El Nessim (TBC).

JUNE

15-19 June (Saturday-Wednesday): Eid El Adha (TBC).

30 June (Sunday): June 30 Revolution Day (TBC).

JULY

7 July (Sunday): National holiday in observance of Islamic New Year (TBC).

23 July (Tuesday): Revolution Day (TBC).

SEPTEMBER

15 September (Sunday): National holiday in observance of Prophet Muhammad’s birthday (TBC).

OCTOBER

6 October (Sunday): Armed Forces Day.

Sections

About

Privacy & Support

Get EnterpriseAM daily