Grab your Ouija board: behind Fear the Spotlight’s 90s-inspired horror
When two horror movie fans took the leap into game development, the last thing they expected was for an actual movie production company to want to get involved
July 2024
Summer games previews
Star Wars Outlaws: what to expect from Ubisoft’s galactic adventure
Set in the year between Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi, Outlaws follows Kay, an ambitious street thief as she plots a giant heist. We meet the gang behind the gang
Flock review – chill creature-collecting flying game is shear bliss
Filling a field guide is the simple goal of this endearingly strange game, in which you float on a giant bird, collect gently surreal sea life, and shave sheep
Zenless Zone Zero review – stylish, enchanting and seductive
In this free-to-play gacha game, Earth is invaded and survivors living in a neo-city balance dystopian alien battles with cute, fluffy moments such as helping locals find love and taking photos of local cats
June 2024
‘It’s important for us to be happy’: Astro Bot, the most joyous game on PlayStation 5
Team Asobi’s Nicolas Doucet on creating PlayStation 5’s next big game – and, he hopes, its next big mascot
Still Wakes the Deep review – The Thing, but on a Scottish oil rig in the 1970s
This horror game creates great atmosphere with its acting and visual design, but is regularly brought to its knees by uninspiring gameplay
Civilization 7 and more announced at Summer Game Fest
The latest title in the long-running strategy series was the biggest reveal at an event that celebrated small indie titles as much as big hitters
May 2024
XDefiant review – Overwatch meets Call of Duty in an Ubisoft theme park
Sea of Thieves on PlayStation 5 review – you’ll laugh, you’ll sail, you’ll drink grog until you’re sick
April 2024
TopSpin 2K25 review – game, set and match to an engrossing tennis sim
Whether you’re playing as a real-life pro or your own wacky avatar, this subtly calibrated title will have you perfecting your lobs and dropshots for hours
March 2024
Alone in the Dark review – Jodie Comer and David Harbour can’t save this soporific horror
The stars are lost in a swamp of poor writing and buggy combat in this wearisome reimagining of the 1992 survival classic
PlayStation, ahoy! How Rare’s pirate adventure Sea of Thieves set sail for a new platform
Six years since its voyage began, the oceanic co-op is landing on PS5 – and the team behind the game can’t wait to empower the creativity of a whole new community of players
WWE 2K24 review - arcade fighter celebrates 40 years of Wrestlemania with slapstick spectacle
Visual Concepts pulls off an incredible reversal on this formerly beleaguered series, just in time for Wrestlemania’s big 4-0
February 2024
Pushing Buttons newsletter
Pushing Buttons: When even PlayStation is cutting jobs, something is seriously wrong with games
Helldivers 2 review – the most fun I’ve had with a co-op shooter since Left 4 Dead
January 2024
Tekken 8 review – 3D fighter packs more punch than ever
Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth review – happy yakuza holiday
The Last of Us Part II Remastered review – unmissable repacking of modern classic
Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown review – a new gaming kingdom awaits
December 2023
‘Like an unnecessarily horny seaside postcard’: Yorkshire comedy game Thank Goodness You’re Here!
In a sea of Portakabins in Shoreditch, a pair of best friends are making a very British surreal comedy game based on their northern home town
