This month, PC Gamer delivers a kick-ass Duke Nukem special issue. On the landmark 30th anniversary of the now legendary Duke Nukem 3D, and the 15th anniversary of its more infamous follow-up, Duke Nukem Forever, PC Gamer speaks directly to many of the key people who made both games happen. Seriously, this is a must-read for both Duke fans and FPS nuts alike. And, with our awesome lead feature delivering never-before-seen development images, too, this is truly a Duke party that is not to be missed. Hail to the king, baby!
There's another awesome feature in this issue of PC Gamer, too, one that pays homage to the huge impact that Duke Nukem 3D and other boomer shooters had on the FPS genre. This feature surfaces what we consider to be the finest retro-style FPS games on the market today. The baby boomer shooters, if you will, that look to recreate and build on the legendary originals. As such, if you like retro-style shooting action, punchy low-fi visuals, and tons of larger-than-life characters, this is a must-read.
In terms of previews this issue, PC Gamer gets world-exclusive access to the hot new free-to-play action-role-playing MMO, Soulframe, Digital Extremes' much-anticipated follow-up to Warframe. In addition, we go hands-on with 1666: Amsterdam, Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, Corsair Cove, Control Resonance, Clutch and Sin Reloaded.
Meanwhile, in review land, we judge Gothic Remake, Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus II, Exo Rally Championship, Mina the Hollower, The Adventures of Elliot, Dave the Diver: In the Jungle and Derelict Star, among others.
Cover feature: Duke Nukem special anniversary celebration
Written by: Rick Lane
Magazine exclusive: Until August 26th, 2026
What's in this month's cover story: On the 30th anniversary of Duke Nukem 3D, and the 15th anniversary of Duke Nukem Forever, PC Gamer speaks directly to many of the key players who made these games a reality, telling their story as well as exploring the impact and legacy that Duke Nukem has had on the PC gaming industry. For Duke and FPS fans in general, this is a must-read feature. Hail to the king, baby!
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PC gaming's best retro FPS
Written by: PC Gamer
What's in this feature: Boomer shooters not only defined the FPS genre in the 1990s, but they also left a huge lasting legacy, much of which can still be felt today in 2026. Here, we celebrate the best new retro-style FPS shooters made in the boomer shooter mold. Just like the 1990s classics, too, many of these baby boomer shooters are made by small studios and indie developers. Well worth checking out.
Additional content in this month's issue
LEAD PREVIEW
Soulframe
Our lead preview this issue sees PC Gamer go hands-on with Soulframe, the much-anticipated new free-to-play fantasy action-RPG from Digital Extremes. Is it a worthy follow-up to Warframe? We play the game for several hours to find out how it's currently shaping up in a closed pre-alpha and beta environment.
LEAD REVIEW
Gothic Remake
Our lead review this issue sees the PC Gamer reviews machine process the remake of cult classic action-RPG, Gothic, which has been remade in Unreal Engine 5. Does new game retain the crustiness and charm of the original? PC Gamer's own Jody Macgregor passes judgement.
MOD SPOTLIGHT
Valheim Adventure Map
Valheim is great and all, with its procedurally generated maps, but what if Valheim actually had a human do all that world-shaping for you in advance? Enter the ambitious Adventure Map mod by talented modders Ninebyte and Dhakhar, who have done just that, transforming the game into an RPG with pre-made locations/quests.
REINSTALL
Unreal
The original Unreal was absolutely groundbreaking in its day, but today it is not really held in such high esteem as other classic FPS games, such as Half-Life or Doom. In this issue, we reinstall Unreal and discover a game that feels very much stuck between two eras of shooter design, albeit with plenty of entertainment still to offer.
DIARY
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
This issue of PC Gamer magazine sees us start a new diary in which we try to live as naught but a humble woodsman, eschewing the clothes, armour, and civilisation that defines most normal medieval humans. Can our reclusive woodsman survive in the wilderness? As you might expect, shenanigans and outright nonsense ensue.
SPECIAL REPORT
Moon Child
This month's special report explores why the ancient and obscure platformer Moon Child, which barely released for Windows 95 in 1997, has suddenly been lighting up gaming socials. We speak to Mors, a game dev who released an updated source port of the game, to find out.
HARDWARE GROUP TEST
Gamepads
While the mouse and keyboard will always be the PC gamer's peripherals of choice, there's no doubting that owning a gamepad for use in certain titles can be very beneficial. In this issue, the PC Gamer hardware team tests out six of the best PC gamepads on the market today.
...and more!
Now Playing: The PC Gamer team writes about their adventures in Destiny 2, Wax Heads, Star Trek Online, and Batman: Arkham Asylum.
They're Back: Matthew Elliott re-reviews Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, Braid, and The Sexy Brutale.
Making of: Rick Lane speaks to the developer of Total Chaos to find out how the psychological horror game grew out of a mod.
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Rob is editor of PC Gamer magazine and has been PC gaming since the early 1990s, an experience that has left him with a life-long passion for first person shooters, isometric RPGs and point and click adventures. Professionally Rob has written about games, gaming hardware and consumer technology for almost twenty years, and before joining the PC Gamer team was deputy editor of T3.com, where he oversaw the website's gaming and tech content as well its news and ecommerce teams. You can also find Rob's words in a series of other gaming magazines and books such as Future Publishing's own Retro Gamer magazine and numerous titles from Bitmap Books. In addition, he is the author of Super Red Green Blue, a semi-autobiographical novel about games and gaming culture. Rob loves riding motorbikes, too.
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