PC Gamer issue 425/413 is out now with a Duke Nukem 30th anniversary special

PC Gamer's latest issue — 425 in the UK, 413 in the US — is on sale now, and the cover story is a full Duke Nukem anniversary celebration. Writer Rick Lane speaks directly to key developers behind both Duke Nukem 3D, which turns 30 this year, and Duke Nukem Forever, hitting its 15th anniversary. The feature includes never-before-seen development images and is exclusive to the magazine until August 26, 2026.

The cover story digs into the making of both games, the people who built them, and the lasting impact Duke Nukem has had on PC gaming and the FPS genre. A second major feature rounds up the best retro-style FPS games available today — the so-called baby boomer shooters that draw on Duke Nukem 3D and its contemporaries. On the preview side, PC Gamer has world-exclusive hands-on time with Soulframe, Digital Extremes' free-to-play fantasy action-RPG follow-up to Warframe, played in a closed pre-alpha and beta build. Other previews cover 1666: Amsterdam, Castlevania: Belmont's Curse, Corsair Cove, Control Resonance, Clutch, and Sin Reloaded. Reviews this issue include Gothic Remake — rebuilt in Unreal Engine 5 and assessed by Jody Macgregor — alongside Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus II, Mina the Hollower, Dave the Diver: In the Jungle, Exo Rally Championship, and more.

Duke Nukem 3D, released in 1996 by 3D Realms, was a defining moment for the FPS genre — brash, irreverent, and technically ambitious for its time. Duke Nukem Forever, on the other hand, became one of gaming's most notorious development sagas, spending over a decade in production before finally shipping in 2011 via Gearbox Software. Both anniversaries landing in the same year makes this a natural moment for a deep retrospective, and PC Gamer's access to the actual developers gives it more weight than a standard anniversary piece.

The issue is available in print and digitally at $4.99 in the US and $16.49 in the UK. For anyone who grew up with Duke or just wants a thorough look at how boomer shooters shaped modern FPS design, this one is worth picking up.