Wireframe Magazine

When there are no more rules to break, what kind of person will you become? It’s the question at the heart of every dystopia – each a highly politicised space, existing at the extremity of either authoritarian control or total societal collapse. There’s really little room for neutrality in a zombie apocalypse and cyberpunk technofuture. We must all make our choice, with only our own moral compass to guide us. In Fallout 4, nuclear war leaves behind a parched and radiated Earth in which its few survivors must lay their claim, by any means necessary. The Institute, and its synthetic humanoids, promises a better world, but at what cost? Or would you be willing to sacrifice the most important thing in your life in order to ensure humanity can carve…

Crikey, this is harder to write than I thought it would be. In fact, I’ve deleted several versions of this editorial before finally settling on the one you’re reading here, and look – I’m still waffling without getting to the actual point. Long story short: this is the final edition of Wireframe in its printed form. Yes, after 70 issues, over four years, and copious cups of coffee, a confluence of factors mean it’s time to wind the magazine to a close. A big thank you, first of all, to everybody who’s helped us make Wireframe what it is. From our amazing contributors to our designers to our sharp-eyed sub-editors, there have been all kinds of talented, clever people helping to make every edition a polished gem. Then there’s Eben…

More than just a useful parental tool to get kids in bed at a reasonable hour, the old adage “watch too much TV and you’ll get square eyes” also has a degree of truth to it. Particularly in the case of reality shows, where viewers who get drawn in are constantly being blindsided by the producers, editors, and script doctors who chop it up in the edit, doing their best to fool the audience into thinking that a world they know deep down to be false is somehow genuine. Or worse, perfect. Someone who isn’t fooled, however, is Trevor Hills, one of the ordinary-seeming stars at the centre of Earth’s most-watched TV show: American Arcadia. At first this seventies-inspired metropolis looks like the perfect utopia in which to make a…

In the midst of the global pandemic in 2020, Animal Crossing: New Horizons provided a cosy escape route for many. But as well as a distraction from the isolation and stress of lockdown, Nintendo’s life sim also helped bring together Jasper Oprel and Indiana-Jonas Sundberg, the creators of Surmount. “We met over Animal Crossing just as the pandemic was getting started,” says Oprel, the game’s programmer and co-designer. “And through a mutual friend, we started visiting each other’s towns and started talking from there.” At the time, Sundberg had a prototype for a climbing game intended for mobile devices; taking its cue from Donkey Kong: Jungle Climber, it had the player swipe the left- and right-hand sides of the screen to propel their character up a procedurally generated mountain. As…

Whether we’re feeling overwhelmed by work or bewildered by crises at home or abroad, it’s probably safe to say that many of us can identify with the torpid protagonist in Exhausted Man. Certainly, this curious puzzle game, in which players flex, guide, and corral a flaccid human figure around a series of domestic environments, has captured the attention of such outlets as Kotaku and Rock Paper Shotgun since its announcement in late 2021. “Yes, I think most players and press are interested in Exhausted Man because the theme’s so universal,” agrees developer Gao Ming, founder of Beijing’s Candleman Games. “The reasons for feeling exhausted may vary, but the result is the same. Maybe it’s related to the high competition in modern society, or the explosion of information.” Exhausted Man first…

01. Business blocked Microsoft’s long-drawn-out pursuit to have its Activision purchase cleared by global industry regulators has hit its biggest roadblock yet, as the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) announced plans to sue and block the acquisition after fears it would cause a monopoly. “Microsoft has already shown that it can and will withhold content from its gaming rivals,” the FTC’s Holly Vedova said in a statement. “Today we seek to stop Microsoft from gaining control over a leading independent game studio and using it to harm competition in multiple dynamic and fast-growing gaming markets.” Condolences to anyone hoping Diablo 4 would hit Game Pass at launch. 02. Elden king As if it were ever in doubt, the winner of the biggest award at the annual Geoff Keighley extravaganza was none…