Highs & Lows

“PLACES TO LOSE YOURSELF IN AND FORGET THE WORLD”

If the past few months of self-isolation, political unrest, division

BLACK LIVES MATTER

Many developers and publishers have expressed their support for the

WHOLESOME GAMES

The indie collective Wholesome Games hosted its first ‘Wholesome Direct’

PHANTASY STAR ONLINE 2

The Japanese MMO’s western launch was a mess, mostly due

KINGDOMS OF AMALUR

The cult sort-of classic action-RPG - and prelude to an

The Spy

Fields of pristine, jagged glass stretch kaleidoscopic into infinity -

This month in… 2010

1 It’s something of an MMO special this month, as

POST-OFFICE

I thought I was an introverted person before this,” says

WIZARD’S CHESS

When games journalists outline the problems with a game, they’re

GRINDING GEARS

An enormous caterpillar has taken up residence in the waste

EVERSPACE 2

Space is mostly bleak and empty,” says S Michael Schade,

A TOTAL WAR SAGA: TROY

Two armies hold opposing ends of a battlefield. The sun’s

PROJECT CARS 3

Project Cars has amassed a large, loyal following of virtual

TRAIN STATION RENOVATION

In this unusual sim, you play as a one-person restoration

TITAN CHASER

The night fog is thick as I drive towards T

ESCAPE YOUR WORLD

Sometimes the real world S weighs heavy on us all

Real Magical

The scene before me is unfathomably ghastly. Charred limbs and

Peak Performance

Hereby, I offer my apology to every environment artist working

Community Service

The reason space sim MMO EVE Online’s universe is so

Diving In

Underwater levels in games can make you flounder. Weird water

Rising Sun

It’s interesting how two of the most atmospheric, detailed and

New Tricks

When it comes to virtual tourism, it’s hard to beat

Extra, Extra,

The most compelling open worlds are the ones that feel

Grimdark Goofs

Many fervent Dark Souls fans have written off Dark Souls

Road Trip

When you think about open world games, your mind tends

Take it Slow

Fast travel is ubiquitous in open F world games. I

REVIEW

We review each game on its own merits, and try

BREEZE BLOCK

I’m in a dark crypt, surrounded by skeletons and creepers

SHARK WEAK

I’ve lost track of how many people I’ve eaten. My

LIGHT MY PYRE

Hell is empty and all the devils are here. By

SUB-PRIME

Checking all of the boxes needed to fit into the

DIGGING FOR VICTORY

You’ve no doubt heard that Deep Rock Galactic is like

COUNTER-SPIKE

It’s wild how quickly Valorant has captured the collective consciousness

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

To Sebastian, the singing crab from The Little Mermaid: I

HEART TO HEART

After playing this post-apocalyptic train sim, I have new sympathy

CUBISM

Should you ever need to feel bad (or just worse)

SUPLEX SHITTY

Professional wrestling is fascinating, isn’t it? First you think it’s

ORC SPORT

Just because this month’s theme is sport, it doesn’t mean

ROCKET LEAGUE

You remember that bit in The Shining when Jack typed

CRICKET 19

When searching for a cricket tie-in, it’s tempting to go

OLLIOLLI

This skateboarding game’s presentation really appeals to me. Or, rather,

GRAPHICS CARDS

There’s no component more crucial to a gaming PC than

LONELY PLANET

You’re trapped in something the size of a camper van

BUYER’S GUIDE

PC gaming is for everyone. Pick the parts you want

“I just got revived, and for the briefest of moments so too is the magic”

Regrettably I wasn’t lucky enough to get my hair cut

“Messiness is its greatest strength”

There’s a strange idea in PC gaming that all games

“You can still appreciate the art design and the lighting tech with dead guys”

After upgrading my GPU to an RTX 2070 Super, I

“The half-day gap between trial and error makes it an infuriating process”

Here in the real world, it’s Saturday. In the eternal

EVE ONLINE

Last July, EVE Online players fell victim to an alien

GRAND THEFT AUTO V

Los Santos has a massive crime problem, and no one

CONQUER MINECRAFT DUNGEONS

Every weapon and armour set has up to three slots

THE COIN GAME’S ENDLESS ROBOT BIRTHDAY PARTY

It’s my birthday and my uncle is footing the bill

ALIEN: ISOLATION

Alien’s Xenomorph is one of cinema’s best known monsters, but

MUST PLAY

It’s the 14th remote meeting of the day, and on