Elden Ring sits atop the throne of PLAY’s new cover

(Image credit: Future)

The new year is already looking like it’ll be off to a huge start as we dig into some of Elden Ring early. It sits upon the throne that is PLAY #10, out today. There’s not much need to wait around in 2022, as when February arrives it’ll be all systems go for PlayStation. There’s plenty of support for PS4 in the year ahead, but PS5 enhancements are proving it’s already the place to be gaming as we enter this chocka year.

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Elden Ring

The Golden Joysticks may have crowned Dark Souls as the best game of all time at the end of last year… but it’s looking like it might need an update. After many hours hands-on with Elden Ring we detail exactly why it has enthralled us, and is giving FromSoftware’s back catalogue a run for its money. A detailed world to explore, combat with more options than ever, and new and intriguing lore (partially created by Game Of Thrones’ George RR Martin) – your next obsession is almost here.

FromSoftware's greatest bosses

FromSoftware's best bosses — (Image credit: Future)

But, when do we ever drool exclusively over the new in PLAY? You know we love to go back to old flames. Quite literally, in this case, as we take on the Dark Souls of lists – a ‘best of’ ranking of FromSoftware’s greatest foes. Highlights of any Soulsborne game, there’s plenty to dig into (and some smaller lists for those that didn’t quite make the cut onto the big one).

Games Of The Year 2021

2022 is here, but there’s still time to celebrate 2021. We run-down the 10 best PlayStation games of the year-that-was, as voted by our dear readers (which hopefully means you – if not, there’s always next year). We won’t spoil it for you but… oh heck, okay, take a look at the spread above. You happy now? It was a great year for gaming on PlayStation, whether on PS5 or PS4, and these 10 all deserve a spot in your library.

Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League

We finally know how Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League will play. This Arkham universe successor from Rocksteady is open world, but takes a different approach than Arkham Knight. Not only do you have four villains-turned-heroes-for-the-day to play as (in co-op too if you want), but they’re hecking mobile – jetting, grappling, leaping, and even teleporting all over the place.

Solar Ash (and other reviews)

Between the last issue and this one there was just enough time for some final 2021 favourites to sneak in. Solar Ash leads the reviews section this issue, and it’s a marvel to play on PS5 (seriously, the DualSense adds a real tactility). It’s like someone finally made a good 3D Sonic game again. Plus, the verdict on Final Fantasy 14: Endwalker, Chorus, After The Fall, and more!

RetroStation gets... Obscure

The highlight of this month’s retro throwback is a hefty deep dive into the obscure survival horror series, um, Obscure. We speak to the developers behind the game about the unique school-set nightmare. That’s not all, we also dust off the PS Vita for some Gravity Rush in its intended original form, reminiscence about Final Fantasy 7 (well, when don’t we think about FF7 to be fair), ponder the long history of zombie games, and un-live it up in Darksiders 2.

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