
Joshua Wolens
One of Josh's first memories is of playing Quake 2 on the family computer when he was much too young to be doing that, and he's been irreparably game-brained ever since. His writing has been featured in Vice, Fanbyte, and the Financial Times. He'll play pretty much anything, and has written far too much on everything from visual novels to Assassin's Creed. His most profound loves are for CRPGs, immersive sims, and any game whose ambition outstrips its budget. He thinks you're all far too mean about Deus Ex: Invisible War.
Latest articles by Joshua Wolens

This XCOM-style strategy game dares to ask: What if Napoleon Bonaparte was a woman who had an army of battlemechs?
By Joshua Wolens published
News I've long wondered this myself.

'They listened! They listened!': Stalker restores Soviet monument after angry fans tanked its Steam reviews, and they couldn't be happier
By Joshua Wolens published
News I guess he really will live again.

This hacking sim is like if Uplink was more of a puzzle game, and if you live for snooping through other people's emails you're going to be well-served
By Joshua Wolens published
News Do you think Bureau 121 ever has to go on mandatory team-building retreats?

CDPR boss says Witcher author Sapkowski's grumpiness is a 'persona,' he's actually lovely and the studio's 'updating everything' to make sure they respect his lore
By Joshua Wolens published
News A cranky old guy with a heart of gold? Why, that sounds just like this witcher I know.

The Witcher 3's development took CDPR from 'How do we escape annihilation?' to having Sony on speed-dial
By Joshua Wolens published
News A meteoric rise with, uh, a few bumps along the way.

Doug Cockle wasn't the 'obvious' choice for Geralt in The Witcher—but he kept winning out because he was 'the best at being normal'
By Harvey Randall published
News "There were some who would have preferred him to have sort of a Texan accent."

Stalker remaster reviews crater to 'Mostly Negative' as players lament deleted Soviet monuments, yanked Russian language, and blurry graphics that I didn't notice in 23 hours playing
By Joshua Wolens published
Such is life in the Zone.

'You guys are not Bethesda': During development, The Witcher 3 devs were told by a Walmart rep 'I like you guys, but it's just not gonna happen'
By Harvey Randall published
News "I made a bet with him … he still kinda owes me that dinner."

I accidentally forgot to start the Soviet Union in this excellent free game about the Russian Revolution
By Joshua Wolens published
News Lenin must have written it on a post-it note.

The legend who made Oblivion's Dark Brotherhood infinite has made its Thieves' Guild go on forever as well
By Joshua Wolens published
News Plus the Fighter's Guild and Arena. There's a lot of stuff to do for the rest of your life, basically.

The PC Gaming Show returns June 8 with great hosts, amazing games, and a live on-air PC build and giveaway
By Joshua Wolens published
News Now I have to what all these motherboard headers are for.

The best free games on Steam
By Joshua Wolens last updated
Updated! Nothing but the best free Steam games you can play right now.

I did Liberation Day tariffs in Victoria 3, and it all went well until the famine in Colorado, the 2 lost wars with Canada, and the president beating a man to death with a stick
By Joshua Wolens published
Big, Beautiful But apart from that, would recommend.

Kojima has a mind tomb: a USB stick filled with ideas for his staff to use after he dies 'kind of like a will'
By Joshua Wolens published
News Watch out for Kojima Productions to split into two warring factions over competing definitions of Kojima's Will.

Oblivion guru found a way to save the Emperor and his bodyguard in the original game, getting the drop on his assassin like the fantasy secret service
By Joshua Wolens published
News If only Bacon had been around in 1963.

YouTube's top brains crack making its ads even worse: Using AI to insert commercials at moments you're 'most engaged' with its videos
By Joshua Wolens published
News I love the future.

Incredible news: Stalker 2 fixes corpse-eating and sausage blood in big ol' patch which also gives enemies less of a death wish
By Joshua Wolens published
News No more sniping with shotguns or infini-grenades, a lot more cover-taking.

Kingdom Come 2's first expansion feels like the base game's best parts distilled, but don't expect a game-changer
By Joshua Wolens published
Brushing Up Also, rocket cat.

I don't want a Morrowind remaster, I want Bethesda to write a fat cheque for the OpenMW team
By Joshua Wolens published
Open m' wallet What if the true Morrowind remaster was the open-source engine reimplementations we made along the way?

Stonking Half-Life remake Black Mesa is the cheapest it's ever been on Steam, offering Barney Calhoun in glorious 4K for a mere 2 bucks
By Joshua Wolens published
News What more could you ask for?

Oblivion Remastered mod makes its best part last forever: A Dark Brotherhood freelancer mode with infinite contracts and a gacha-style reward system
By Joshua Wolens published
News I will kill again. And again. And again. And again.

All 3 original Stalker games get 'fully remastered and optimized' versions next week, free for OG owners, and I can't wait to get shredded by an anomaly from the comfort of my sofa
By Joshua Wolens published
Something to enjoy while GSC keeps tinkering with Stalker 2.

This Factorio-ish sim is threatening to devour hours of my time, and I haven't even gotten to the part where I make my own starships yet
By Joshua Wolens published
News The station must grow.
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