dystopian Archives

AppWizard

July 27, 2026

This week in PC games: a battle royale detective game, a broken Y2K metaverse, a laptop tycoon sim, and a new Company of Heroes RTS

- Endacopia: A point-and-click horror game inspired by 90s edutainment software. - Broken Reality 2000: A first-person puzzle-platforming adventure set in a Y2K-themed metaverse. - Plum Road Tea Dream: A semi-autobiographical journey of a queer POC developer through seven distinct graphical worlds. - Moon Crashers: A game where players gather resources to build an escape rocket after crash-landing on the moon. - Forsaken Realms: Vahrin's Call: A third-person fantasy adventure set in a beleaguered city. - Kinny and the Cosmic Cauldron: A roguelike deckbuilder where players create soups for eldritch clientele. - Dissolution of the Silent Union: A narrative with gloomy anime aesthetics and themes of decay. - Orbital Hell: A hallucinatory score-attacker game battling geometric boglins. - Désorienté: A narrative-driven experience set in a violent world with intestines as currency. - CipherMind: A battle royale detective game for eight players in a concrete labyrinth. - Lunarium: An action-RPG featuring a knight and a floating sorceress. - Company of Heroes 3: Final Stand: A strategic spin-off involving tactical gameplay against waves of enemies. - Joy Malignant: A dice-based RPG set in a city filled with despair. - Truck-kun is Supporting Me from Another World?!: A humorous isekai game featuring a truck driver. - Outfield: An exploration of agricultural growth and its implications. - Olga: A cozy adventure game without combat. - Legacy of Sail: A nostalgic real-time naval tactics game. - Culdcept The First: A modern adaptation of a board/card game fusion. - Mistfall Hunter: A PvPvE extraction RPG. - Turnip Mountain: A 2D climbing simulator in a whimsical world. - Signy & Mino: Against All Gods: A side-scrolling RPG featuring a girl and her dog. - Devil's Hand: A card game where players form poker hands on a grid. - Parkside: Decayed Soul Manipulation: A sim shooter set in a dystopian California. - Cloud Sculptor: A 3D puzzle-platformer where players create sculptures for ghosts.

AppWizard

July 12, 2026

Tempest Rising’s elusive third faction will get its own singleplayer campaign as a paid expansion, and you can play the demo right now

Tempest Rising, a successor to the Command & Conquer series, features three factions: the Global Defense Force (GDF), the Tempest Dynasty, and the Veti. The Veti faction, previously AI-controlled, will receive its own campaign in a paid expansion titled The Veti's Wrath, which includes 11 new campaign missions. The Veti are inspired by Ancient Egyptian aesthetics and have unique gameplay mechanics focused on conversion and sacrifice, allowing players to resurrect fallen enemy soldiers as "enlightened" units. A demo is currently available, featuring the first two missions of the Veti campaign. The Veti will be a free multiplayer faction, while single-player gameplay will require a purchase. Tempest Rising is currently available at a 30% discount, retailing for £21, with the promotion ending tomorrow.

AppWizard

July 7, 2026

How do you reconcile your lore-heavy, dark sci-fi MMO with mod tools that might let people get way too goofy? ‘Everything’s canon,’ say the developers of EVE Frontier

EVE Frontier is an early access space survival MMO that features a contrast between its dystopian narrative and a vibrant modding ecosystem. Players inhabit cloned bodies known as "shells," which can be traded, upgraded, or sacrificed, adding strategic layers to gameplay. The origins of these consciousnesses are mysterious, possibly containing remnants of human culture. The game embraces player creativity, with everything created by players considered canon within the universe. The latest cycle of EVE Frontier launched on June 25, introducing fully modular ship building, an enhanced new player experience, a five-day free trial, and innovative gamepad controls.

AppWizard

June 29, 2026

After a 4-year wait, Netflix announces Cyberpunk: Edgerunners 2 is coming this fall

The second season of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners is set to premiere this fall. The upcoming season will adopt an anthology format, introducing a new ensemble of characters in the world of Night City. The creators plan to explore themes and stories within the Cyberpunk genre.

AppWizard

May 23, 2026

14 years ago we published our Elder Scrolls 6 wishlist, and honestly? It still holds up

The February 2012 "Armchair Designer" column in PC Gamer highlighted ten desired features for Elder Scrolls VI, shortly after Skyrim's release. The game is now projected for a 2026 release. Bethesda has since developed Fallout 4 and Starfield, incorporating new systems like settlement management. Fans hope for a return to Morrowind's flexibility and improved stealth mechanics, influenced by design director Emil Pagliarulo's background. The column proposed exploring Akavir, introducing colonial themes and diverse factions, with a narrative that allows for complex interactions between Tamriel and Akavir's cultures. The vision for TES 6 aims to blend nostalgia with innovative storytelling, enhancing player choices and consequences.

AppWizard

May 18, 2026

The time to replace your current Xbox / PC game with ‘REPLACED’ is now | All sci-fi fans get on deck for this stunning experience.

REPLACED is a 2.5D platformer and side-scroller developed by Sad Cat Studios, set to be released on April 14, 2026. It will be available on Xbox Play Anywhere and Xbox Game Pass for a price of .99. The game features an AI named R.E.A.C.H. that leaves its host, Warren, trapped in his body, leading to a quest for assistance while evading the Phoenix Corporation in a dystopian setting. The game is noted for its vibrant pixel art, dynamic gameplay mechanics, and a rhythm-based combat system. Players will experience Warren's memories through R.E.A.C.H.'s connection to his body as they uncover secrets of the Phoenix Corporation.

AppWizard

May 13, 2026

This brutal ’80s-inspired FPS and its expansion have dropped to 80% off on Fanatical

RoboCop: Rogue City is a first-person shooter game released in late 2023, inspired by a nearly 40-year-old sci-fi film series. Set in a dystopian Detroit, players assume the role of Alex Murphy, who becomes RoboCop after a life-altering accident. The game emphasizes a slower, more deliberate experience, focusing on the character's strength and resilience. It features darker themes and a brutal world while maintaining an engaging gameplay experience. RoboCop: Rogue City and its expansion, Unfinished Business, are available for .87 / £8.43 on Fanatical, representing an 80% discount. The combined content offers around 20 hours of gameplay.

AppWizard

May 4, 2026

5 Best Video Games Like Half-Life

The absence of "Half-Life 3" is felt by fans of first-person sci-fi gaming, but there are alternative titles that capture similar gameplay experiences. "System Shock 2," released in 1999, is set aboard a starship in the 22nd century where players awaken from cryogenic sleep to find the crew transformed by alien parasites, featuring a partnership with the AI SHODAN. A remaster was released in 2025. "Deus Ex," launched in 2000, places players in a dystopian future as JC Denton, a cybernetically enhanced agent navigating conspiracies and making choices that affect humanity's future. "Quake 4," released in 2005, is a sequel to "Quake II," where players control Matthew Kane during an invasion of the Strogg home planet, focusing on single-player storytelling and refined gameplay. "Crysis," released in 2007, is set in 2020, where a Delta Force unit investigates an archaeological discovery and faces aliens and North Korean forces, emphasizing action and an engaging storyline. A remaster was released in 2020. "Metro 2033," based on Dmitry Glukhovsky's novel, immerses players in post-apocalyptic Moscow, where survivors live in the subway system and face hostile factions and mutated creatures, presenting a survival horror experience.

AppWizard

May 1, 2026

Indie dev apologizes for rough game launch, commits to turning it around: ‘The critique is fair … we got work to do’

Industria 2, a narrative first-person shooter developed by Bleakmill, was released in 2024 and is set in a dystopian parallel dimension after the original game. The game has received only 48% positive ratings, prompting the developer to apologize and acknowledge the need for improvements. Bleakmill has implemented two patches to address critical issues and plans further updates. Many players view the game as having potential despite its rocky launch, and support from other developers suggests a possibility for recovery.

AppWizard

April 30, 2026

Cyberpunk bartending sim VA-11 Hall-A devs’ first game in 10 years finally launches this summer

Sukeban Games has released a new trailer for their upcoming game, .45 Parabellum Bloodhound, set to launch this summer, coinciding with the 10-year anniversary of their previous game, VA-11 Hall-A, on June 21. The development team plans to return to their roots with a project called NIRV Ann-A after completing Bloodhound. Players can wishlist .45 Parabellum Bloodhound on Steam.