Clandestine: asymmetrical espionage co-op, coming to PC next year

A thing that most co-op games don't understand is that people aren't gruff identikit badasses, happy to brofist their way through an AI genocide. People are complicated, with different skills, tastes and beliefs. Some may like violence, others might be more interested in twerking. That's why Clandestine, an asymmetrical co-op game, sounds like such an interesting prospect. Er, because of how it caters to different tastes. I don't think there'll be twerking.

Other reasons to pay attention include its use of phrases like "post-Cold War spy conspiracy", "tactical stealth", and "set in the mid-1990s". To throw an extra EMP on this espionage topping, it's being made by Logic Artists, the people behind the warmly received Expeditions: Conquistador.

Here's the set-up, courtesy of the press release:

"The year is 1996, five years after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, a string of accidents and murders have gone unnoticed by the public, but have put the world of espionage on high alert. Former Cold War operatives, believing their cover intact, are being assassinated around the globe. Soviet and NATO spies are being targeted indiscriminately, causing turmoil and suspicion on all sides."

From the little that's been revealed so far, you and your co-op buddy will take the role of field agent and hacker, who would appear to have more situational awareness through each building's security cameras. The game is promising to take you through various hideouts, safehouses, and HQs in an attempt to uncover the culprit behind a series of murders.

Clandestine is due out on PC next year.

Phil Savage
Editor-in-Chief

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.

Latest in Action
A long bendy arm stealing money from people in a subway car
'You're a very long arm. You steal things. It's a comedy game,' explains developer of comedy game where you steal things with a very long arm
The First Berserker: Khazan review - Blade Phantom
How to claim The First Berserker: Khazan pre-order bonus and deluxe edition DLC
gta 6 trailer
Publishers 'don't want to be anywhere near' Grand Theft Auto 6 when it launches: 'It's proving to be very stressful'
An image of a Helldiver from Helldivers 2 shooting at a red dragon from Dungeons & Dragons.
'Ok, so dragon builds are a thing now': galaxy-brained Helldivers 2 player incinerates a bile titan with a hover pack and a flamethrower
Assassin's Creed Shadows promo image
Ubisoft scores a legendary ratio against Elon Musk on his own platform—which hopefully marks a final end to all the Assassin's Creed Shadows' culture war nonsense
Assassin's Creed Shadows immersive mode - Naoe holding a tanto in her hand as two guards fall to the ground behind her.
Assassin's Creed Shadows' first hotfix addresses stability issues and a photo mode crash
Latest in News
Two brightly colored stormtroopers dressed like Run-DMC stand in front of PAX Australia's WELCOME HOME banner.
Tickets for PAX Australia 2025 are on sale now
An Enshrouded player in a recreation of Erebor from The Lord of the Rings
Kings under the Mountain! 33 Enshrouded players spent 10,000 hours to recreate this iconic location from The Lord of the Rings
A mech awakens.
Mecha Break developer is considering unlocking all mechs following open beta feedback
Lara Croft Unified Art
Tomb Raider developer Crystal Dynamics lays off 17 employees 'to better align our current business needs and the studio's future success'
A long bendy arm stealing money from people in a subway car
'You're a very long arm. You steal things. It's a comedy game,' explains developer of comedy game where you steal things with a very long arm
The heroes are attacked by monsters
Pillars of Eternity is getting turn-based combat to mark its 10th anniversary, and that means PC Gamer editors will soon be arguing about combat mechanics again