Issy van der Velde

Issy van der Velde focuses on surfacing distinctive PC games and shaping the coverage around the PC Gaming Show, with a strong eye for unusual concepts, inventive mechanics, and representation in the gaming industry.

PC Gaming Show coverage and live showcases

Issy is the deputy editor responsible for the PC Gaming Show, bringing together news, guides, and features around the showcase and its satellite events. He writes practical explainers such as how to watch PC Gaming Show Tokyo Direct 2026, giving clear viewing information and framing what the event offers PC players. He also handles comprehensive recaps like every game, trailer, and announcement in the PC Gaming Show 2026, summarising the full slate of reveals in one place.

Around these tentpole moments, he covers announcement lists such as the nominees for PC Gaming Show: Most Wanted powered by Xbox Game Pass, highlighting upcoming titles the show is spotlighting.

This work places him close to the pipeline of new PC releases, from early teases through to detailed rundowns once showcases air. The coverage favours structured, service-oriented formats that help readers understand what is coming, how to watch it, and which games are most notable within the show.

Indie and offbeat PC games across genres

Beyond showcase coverage, Issy consistently writes about inventive PC games that mix genres or present strong concepts in compact packages.

His recent work includes Farmbotic, described as a cross-platform farming sim that mashes up elements of Stardew Valley and Satisfactory with little robot helpers, signalling his interest in hybrid simulation and cosy management games. He covers bullet hell extraction shooter Gravebound, drawing attention to how its action adds a distinct twist to the genre, which shows an eye for games that bend established formulas.

Puzzle and narrative-led titles are a recurring thread. Issy writes about Mind Diver, a trippy puzzle game set in an ocean of remembrance, and Moomintroll: Winter’s Warmth, a cozy puzzle game where players explore a winter setting while rescuing animals, reflecting his focus on atmospheric, story-tinged experiences. He highlights delightfully weird dream logic RPG Away From Home coming out this week, again pointing to his preference for games with strong conceptual hooks rather than straightforward power fantasies.

He also spends time on darker and higher-intensity experiences. Recent coverage includes Dyping Escape, a horror game pitched with the line “Liars must be punished,” where creeping eyes seem to take over the player’s PC, emphasising unsettling mood and interface-driven horror. In racing and action, he writes about Carmageddon: Rogue Shift as the Death Race game players have always deserved, and about Valheim 1.0 finally getting a release date after half a decade, covering both arcade-leaning combat racing and survival crafting milestones.

Deck-builders and roguelikes appear in pieces such as Doomspire, which he describes as combining deck-builders, roguelikes, and fantasy and being out now, aligning with his stated preference for roguelites and similar genres.

Issy’s work on narrative, character-focused games includes coverage of a hotel-set story featuring a reggae-punk singing police officer with 30 days to live, underlining his interest in character-driven, time-bounded narratives rather than generic action setups. Across these pieces, he tends to frame games through their premise and emotional tone first, then through their mechanics.

Representation and industry perspective

Issy’s career spans around five years of professional games writing, with experience in freelance and editorial roles across news, guides, and features. His work has covered queer, Arab, and women’s representation in the gaming industry, and he has been recognised with an MCV 30 Under 30 award for that coverage. That background positions him to pay close attention to who is visible in games and who is centred in their stories, informing the kinds of projects he chooses to highlight and the angles he takes when discussing industry trends.

He has contributed to major entertainment and games outlets, including Rolling Stone, NME, GamesRadar+, and IGN, alongside his work at PC Gamer. This mix of culture and specialist publications gives him experience writing for both broad audiences and dedicated PC players, which can be seen in the balance between his industry-focused pieces and his more granular coverage of individual titles.

Formats, tone, and beat

Issy’s output covers news posts, guides, feature-style writeups, and complete event rundowns, all within the wider PC gaming beat. Headlines such as “Liars must be punished: Dyping Escape looks creepy as hell, pitting you against a pair of eyes that seem to be taking over your PC” and “Carmageddon: Rogue Shift looks like the Death Race game we’ve always deserved” show a vivid, concept-forward style that quickly communicates what makes a game stand out.

Pieces like “How to watch the PC Gaming Show Tokyo Direct 2026” are more utilitarian, but still framed with enough context to signal why the event matters for PC players.

His stated favourite genres - narrative, story-driven adventures, arcade racers, roguelites, and soulslikes - line up closely with the games he covers, from narrative puzzles and dreamlike RPGs to fast-paced racing and deck-builder roguelikes. Across this work, Issy sits at the point where PC gaming’s showcase ecosystem, indie experimentation, and representation-focused industry coverage meet, making his beat particularly relevant for stories about new PC titles, live showcases, and diversity in games.