Voice Mimicry Show review – a gloriously ridiculous party game
Recreate the bleat of a sheep, a gust of wind or even the sound of anxiety in this riotously lo-fi, low-cost game that unites everyone with its sheer daftness
July 2024
Summer games previews
Black Myth: Wukong – the summer’s most exciting, and most controversial, video game
High scores
The Last of Us has three main characters: Ellie, Joel and Gustavo Santaolalla’s music
June 2024
Cheap AI voice clones may wipe out jobs of 5,000 Australian actors
Industry group says rise of vocal technology could upend many creative fields, including audiobooks – the canary in the coalmine for voice actors
‘I have always felt the world was a harsh place’: Elden Ring’s Hidetaka Miyazaki on why he may never stop making games
As Elden Ring’s much-anticipated final expansion is released, its designer gives a glimpse into how he crafts his harsh, beautiful, rewarding gameworlds
14 unusual video games to discover in 2024
We pick through the best of the summer showcases to find interesting games to look out for in the near future
May 2024
Canada legalizes it
I tried playing video games stoned for the first time in my 50s – and I have some thoughts
Dominik Diamond
Marijuana is legal where I live in Canada, so I decided to give it a try and see whether it would improve my gaming experience – or just end in a panic attack
March 2024
South Park: Snow Day! review – a crude, enjoyable playground tussle
‘Theatre of the mind’: celebrating 50 years of Dungeons & Dragons
Pushing Buttons newsletter
The surreal, colourful Katamari Damacy is 20 – and still the weirdest game I have ever loved
Dragon’s Dogma 2 review – chaotic, unpredictable fantasy fun
February 2024
Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League review – straddles the brilliant and the banal
This fourth adaptation of DC’s least-likely heroes combines an inspired storyline with some very pedestrian combat
January 2024
Pushing Buttons newsletter
Pushing Buttons: I hated going back to games – until The Last of Us Part II Remastered came along
The Last of Us Part II Remastered review – unmissable repacking of modern classic
December 2023
2024 culture preview
The best games to look forward to in 2024
A first open-world Star Wars saga, something lurks beneath a North Sea oil rig and Tekken 8 continues to blend stylish and ridiculous – the hotly anticipated games of the year to come
Observer critics' review of 2023
Games: Simon Parkin’s five best of 2023
From the all-action thrills of Zelda to catching your own sushi, immersive worlds captivated
2023 in Culture
The 20 best video games of 2023
Doom at 30: what it means, by the people who made it
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora review - welcome to the jungle, it’s yours to reclaim
October 2023
Pushing Buttons newsletter
Pushing Buttons: Why Alan Wake 2 will be the most talked-about game this Halloween
In this week’s newsletter: The chilling genius of horror games like Remedy Entertainment’s Stephen King-inspired sequel is what their warped heroes tell us about our own neuroses
