Gonçalo Santos
@mushwrites.bsky.social
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📥 131
📝 50
Freelance writer on all things videogames.
https://buttonmusher.substack.com/
pinned post!
Linked to the wrong piece 😅 here is the right one:
open.substack.com/pub/buttonmu...
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3 days ago
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Good Game Lobby
2 days ago
It was great to have Luna review the game and I loved talking about a review before release! Thanks Luna! I loved her insights into the gameplay and coziness in a survival game. Check out the review!
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Linked to the wrong piece 😅 here is the right one:
open.substack.com/pub/buttonmu...
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3 days ago
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Here is my third and final article (at least for now) covering my time
@devgamm.bsky.social
Lisbon 2025. I muse on what made this conference so cool, why it seemed much more optimistic than the industry as a whole, and highlight the coolest business cards I collected.
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DevGamm Lisbon 2025 Award Winners
Helping smaller game creators reach for the stars.
https://buttonmusher.substack.com/p/devgamm-lisbon-2025-award-winners
3 days ago
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I have a bit of a devil’s advocate take on the Eurogamer review Arc Raiders. Using AI TTS to replacing voice actors is undeniably bad and distopic, but is that really what is happening here? Embark is a studio inserted squarely in the AA scope.
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3 days ago
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Chris Bratt
4 days ago
I went to meet the 'Rockstar 31', the developers who were suddenly fired from their work on GTA 6 for what the studio has described as gross misconduct. That's not what the workers call it though. They have another couple of words they prefer to use: union busting.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9nO...
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The Rockstar Workers Fired Before They Could Finish GTA 6
YouTube video by People Make Games
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c9nOwjeznjI
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Aftermath
5 days ago
For non-subscribers, here's a gift: For the next 30 days, Aftermath subscriptions for new readers are on sale at $1 for your first month:
aftermath.ghost.io/11-06-2025...
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Luke Plunkett
5 days ago
read the site but never subscribed? you can get a month for $1. try it out, read some blogs, support worker-owned media. been hesitant to give us your cc details? fair! we now accept link, google pay and apple pay as well. been a $7 subscriber but wanted to comment? now you can comment!
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Luke Plunkett
5 days ago
WE HAVE A NEW WEBSITE This has consumed around 4 months of my life. We've rebuilt the business from the ground-up. New site, new backend, new customer experience, new platform, new everything. we spent two years flailing, having no idea how to run a business. now...we have more of an idea.
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Here is my second piece covering my time at
@devgamm.bsky.social
Portugal 2025. I go over the 8 most interesting games I played at the event and my experience talking to some of the developers. I challenge you to finish this piece without at least a new game on your Steam Wishlist.
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8 DevGAMM Portugal 2025 Games To Add To Your Wishlist
Here are the most interesting titles I played at the event.
https://open.substack.com/pub/buttonmusher/p/8-devgamm-portugal-2025-games-to?r=25xipc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
6 days ago
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Here is my second piece covering my time at
@devgamm.bsky.social
Portugal 2025. I go over the 8 most interesting games I played at the event and my experience talking to some of the developers. I challenge you to finish this piece without at least a new game on your Steam Wishlist.
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8 DevGAMM Portugal 2025 Games To Add To Your Wishlist
Here are the most interesting titles I played at the event.
https://open.substack.com/pub/buttonmusher/p/8-devgamm-portugal-2025-games-to?r=25xipc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
6 days ago
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Great piece! I spent the last day of Next Fest playing Final Sentence and it was a genuinely stressful experience, loved it.
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6 days ago
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Nicole Carpenter
12 days ago
my first for gamespot, about the typing games that are doing a bunch of fun things with the genre:
www.gamespot.com/articles/typ...
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Typing Games Are Cool Again Thanks To Wildly Unexpected Twists
Typing games have come a long way since Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing.
https://www.gamespot.com/articles/typing-games-are-cool-again-thanks-to-wildly-unexpected-twists/1100-6535830/
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buttonmusher.substack.com/p/devgamm-li...
Here is the first part of my
@devgamm.bsky.social
Lisbon 2025 coverage: Award Winners. I'll recommend games that I played in another piece, but this list is curated by people a lot more qualified than me. Prepare your Wishlists and hide your wallets.
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DevGamm Lisbon 2025 Award Winners
Helping smaller game creators reach for the stars.
https://buttonmusher.substack.com/p/devgamm-lisbon-2025-award-winners
7 days ago
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Blue Prince Out Now!
8 days ago
A plea for help. 🙏 One of the lead playtesters of Blue Prince, Iggy, has polycystic kidney disease and has only a few months to find a living kidney donor. His story, contact and donor information can all be found on
iggyland.org
Please help us in sharing his story and getting the word out.💙
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buttonmusher.substack.com/p/devgamm-li...
Here is the first part of my
@devgamm.bsky.social
Lisbon 2025 coverage: Award Winners. I'll recommend games that I played in another piece, but this list is curated by people a lot more qualified than me. Prepare your Wishlists and hide your wallets.
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DevGamm Lisbon 2025 Award Winners
Helping smaller game creators reach for the stars.
https://buttonmusher.substack.com/p/devgamm-lisbon-2025-award-winners
7 days ago
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Nicole Carpenter
18 days ago
update: 😭😭😭😭
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Exploring A Planet From An ER Waiting Room. ✍️ How a tiny game had the power to transport me from a stressful situation into a small planet where I just had to make five deliveries. Thank you to
@lukeplunkett.com
at
@aftermath.site
for showing me this gem. Go play
messenger.abeto.co
now!
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Exploring A Planet From An ER Waiting Room
"It's a small planet, but someone's gotta make the deliveries."
https://open.substack.com/pub/buttonmusher/p/exploring-a-planet-from-an-er-waiting?r=25xipc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
29 days ago
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Game Developer
about 1 month ago
'Gaming is the new oil:' How the EA buyout 'diverges from the traditional playbook'
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'Gaming is the new oil:' How the EA buyout 'diverges from the traditional playbook'
Analysts explain how the high-risk leveraged buyout will impact Electronic Arts and the video game industry.
https://www.gamedeveloper.com/business/-gaming-is-the-new-oil-how-the-ea-buyout-diverges-from-the-traditional-playbook-?utm_source=dlvr.it&utm_medium=bluesky
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Exploring A Planet From An ER Waiting Room. ✍️ How a tiny game had the power to transport me from a stressful situation into a small planet where I just had to make five deliveries. Thank you to
@lukeplunkett.com
at
@aftermath.site
for showing me this gem. Go play
messenger.abeto.co
now!
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Exploring A Planet From An ER Waiting Room
"It's a small planet, but someone's gotta make the deliveries."
https://open.substack.com/pub/buttonmusher/p/exploring-a-planet-from-an-er-waiting?r=25xipc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true
29 days ago
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Matt Leone
29 days ago
Was great talking about
@designroom.bsky.social
with the Aftermath folks!
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Jason Schreier
29 days ago
In 2021, the makers of the indie classic CrossCode got a grant from the German government to fund half of their next game. They thought it'd take ~$1.5 million and 3.5 years. Things didn't go quite as planned. Here's the story behind the follow-up to a masterpiece:
www.bloomberg.com/news/newslet...
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'CrossCode' Makers Look to Follow Up on an Indie Masterpiece
'Alabaster Dawn' will build on the combat and puzzles of 'CrossCode' but present an entirely new setting
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-10-17/with-alabaster-dawn-the-makers-of-crosscode-follow-up-on-an-indie-hit?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc2MDcyMTM2OCwiZXhwIjoxNzYxMzI2MTY4LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUNEFDWjVHUFdDSEwwMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJCMUVBQkI5NjQ2QUM0REZFQTJBRkI4MjI1MzgyQTJFQSJ9.3kb9Bl5G2ZEb8-tbVLs2C2VTDGY2YB124LE0bIfxDDw
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Nicole Carpenter
29 days ago
more union news at blizzard this week!
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Joel Burgess
about 1 month ago
With our new demo running during Steam Next Fest, I'm seeing more players discover Ambrosia Sky's immersive sim sensibilities. I thought it might be fun to share a pair of moment from the demo that illustrates this, through the lens of how I do my work as a level designer.
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conputer dipshit
about 1 month ago
really did not expect bloomberg to become the place for detailed reporting on my most anticipated indie games (gift link)
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Why 'Mina the Hollower' Was Delayed
Yacht Club Games hasn't given a new release date, but the delay shouldn’t be more than a few months
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-10-10/why-mina-the-hollower-was-delayed?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc2MDIwNjI5NywiZXhwIjoxNzYwODExMDk3LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUM1hFN1dHUTFZU0owMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiI3QUU4MDkxQ0U5QjY0OTMwOTM1RjkzNkQwQ0MyMzQ0RSJ9.bSZQ5rAHkuNyA_yoP2JOmUfKx0BZJNjNdqnddy_NAUg
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Adventures in Indie Gaming
about 1 month ago
Don't know what to play during
@steampowered.com
Next Fest? AIIG will be publishing email lists of worthy games every day. Subscribe for free and find the best game demos. Past coverage:
indiegames.substack.com/s/steam-next...
#steamnextfest
#nextfest
#gaming
#games
#videogames
#newsletter
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Wrote about the disconnect between critic scores and audience reviews when it comes to the technical aspect of videogames and speculated on why that might be. Give it a read and let me know what your thoughts are on this!
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Are Technical Issues Ignored In Game Reviews?
Would You Give A 10/10 To A Game That Runs Poorly?
https://open.substack.com/pub/buttonmusher/p/are-technical-issues-ignored-in-game?r=25xipc&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
about 1 month ago
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Stephen Totilo
about 1 month ago
SCOOP: Last year, Ubisoft cancelled an Assassin's Creed game set during Reconstruction. Was to feature a Black Assassin who, among other things, fought the rise of the Klan Sources: Leadership nixed it over concerns re: U.S. political climate, backlash to Yasuke
www.gamefile.news/p/scoop-ubis...
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Scoop: Ubisoft cancelled a post-Civil War Assassin’s Creed last year
Company leadership deemed the project too controversial for the moment, sources tell Game File
https://www.gamefile.news/p/scoop-ubisoft-cancelled-a-post-civil
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david goldfarb
about 1 month ago
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Nicole Carpenter
about 1 month ago
i wrote about consume me for
@theverge.com
✨
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Edge
about 1 month ago
Edge 416 is out now, featuring IO Interactive’s 007: First Light. For our 14-page cover story, we visit the studio to discover how its Hitman legacy paved the way, what it’s taking from the rich history of the iconic movie series, and the challenge of creating a new James Bond.
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AmericanTruckSongs10
about 2 months ago
If you work at EA and want to talk privately about your feelings about the sale to Saudi Arabia you can reach me anonymously at
[email protected]
or via Signal/WhatsApp at +12673263042.
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Aftermath
about 2 months ago
Inside the Soulframe scene where you go inside a bear
aftermath.site/soulframe-be...
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Chris Kerr
about 2 months ago
Reminder: Niantic Spatial is the spinoff that emerged after Niantic Inc. sold its video game business—including Pokemon GO et al—to Saudi-owned publisher Scopely. It still operates titles like Ingress Prime and Peridot but is not an out-and-out video game company.
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VGC
2 months ago
VGC met with @HidekiKamiya_X and Kento Koyama at CLOVERS' Osaka studio to discuss their progress on Okami 2, the growth of the studio, and potential future with Capcom.
www.videogameschronicle.com/features/int...
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CLOVERS interview: Kamiya and Koyama talk Okami 2, industry layoffs, and a potential future with Capcom | VGC
VGC visited Hideki Kamiya’s new studio in Osaka, Japan to hear about its progress…
https://www.videogameschronicle.com/features/interviews/clovers-interview-kamiya-and-koyama-talk-okami-2-industry-layoffs-and-a-potential-future-with-capcom/
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Game Developer
2 months ago
What happens when a colossus like Silksong scuppers your launch plans? "Moving [our release date] did require a lot of, shall we say, very high tension, anxious exchanges with the platforms."
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Silksong has ruined your launch plans. Now what?
Publishers explain how they lock down a release date and then pivot on a dime.
https://www.gamedeveloper.com/marketing/what-happens-when-a-colossus-like-silksong-scuppers-your-launch-plans-
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Allison J. James
2 months ago
1,200 fonts + more monthly $19 once unlimited commercial use use for anything support two indie devs!
ci.itch.io/all-fonts-pa...
i'll buy silksong for one reposter within 24 hours at random! engagement bait!
#fonts
#art
#ttrpg
#digitalart
#artist
#oc
#fanart
#dnd
#bluesky
#comics
#fantasy
#drawing
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Joe | The Saved Game
2 months ago
My newest write-up on the game Bramble: The Mountain King went live yesterday on my Substack! Check it out now 👇
open.substack.com/pub/thesaved...
Thanks all, I hope everyone has an awesome Sunday!
#gaming
#Substack
#writing
#TheSavedGame
#Bramble
#BrambleTheMountainKing
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Bramble: The Mountain King | Whimsical Fairy Tales Fused with Moments of Terror
An immersive and compelling indie game that introduced me to a world of new and horrifying fairy tales
https://open.substack.com/pub/thesavedgame/p/bramble-the-mountain-king-tale?r=1r7c39&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false
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Jason Schreier
2 months ago
Inside the making of the new Final Fantasy Tactics remaster: - Why it took so long (it was first conceived in 2018!) - How Kazutoyo Maehiro went from grunt to director - Why they didn't nerf Orlandeau (and the funny original plan for his design) And much more:
www.bloomberg.com/news/newslet...
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Remastering ‘Final Fantasy Tactics’ Was Much Harder Than It Seemed
Engineers at Square Enix had to laboriously recreate the original game’s code over years of development
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-09-05/remastering-final-fantasy-tactics-was-much-harder-than-it-seemed?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc1NzA5MTY3NywiZXhwIjoxNzU3Njk2NDc3LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUMjRLS0lHUFdDTU4wMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJCMUVBQkI5NjQ2QUM0REZFQTJBRkI4MjI1MzgyQTJFQSJ9.CcUatIfiSOm1f0zU9K0w73piyhvdOuSmKm9bsGxspSM
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Alex Donaldson
2 months ago
An extremely fun & imo directorially rich moment in that Bond demo - what appears to be Bond's first on-mission kill being framed like this so it looks like the gun barrel sequence, despite being an in-gameplay, player-in-control moment:
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Alex Donaldson
2 months ago
Here's the game's narrative lead talking about Patrick Gibson and the rest of the cast - including how these iterations of M, Moneypenny, and Q differ from what we've seen before, and why Patrick Gibson was always their man for the role:
www.eurogamer.net/patrick-gibs...
More over the coming days!
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"He's the real deal" - Chatty, energetic, unpolished, but still the same man: Meet gaming’s exclusive James Bond, played by Dexter’s Patrick Gibson
While it admittedly was plainly obvious to anyone who has seen his face on TV or in film, Danish developer IO Interacti…
https://www.eurogamer.net/patrick-gibson-next-james-bond-007-first-light-io-interactive-interview
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Francisco Dominguez
2 months ago
In Cronos: The New Dawn, martial law struggled to maintain its grip on a society falling apart. For many, this would be speculative fiction. For Jacek Zięba and Wojciech Piejko, this was a trip into not-so-distant history.
store.epicgames.com/en-US/news/c...
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Cronos: The New Dawn’s fallen Soviet utopia defies physics and history
With a one-of-a-kind setting and terrifying Orphans, Bloober Team’s time-traveling game has the makings of a survival horror classic.
https://store.epicgames.com/en-US/news/cronos-the-new-dawn-s-fallen-soviet-utopia-defies-physics-and-history
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Wildgate - OUT NOW!
2 months ago
Our first mid-season patch for
#Wildgate
is now live! HIGHLIGHTS: 🤖 Easy and Hard vs. AI modes 👛 Weekly missions to earn credits ⚖️ Lots of balance changes & bug fixes ➕ And more! Check out the full changelog for additional details. 📡
wildgate.gg/Sept2Patch
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Aftermath
3 months ago
Why delay a game that’s nothing like Silksong to avoid its surprise release? Because for indies, there’s just too much riding on each individual launch to chance it. Demonschool creative director
@brandon.insertcredit.com
explains:
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Chris Scullion
2 months ago
I had a great chat with
@atari.com
CEO Wade Rosen at Gamescom. Atari's turnaround in recent years has been huge so I was really keen to chuck a load of questions at him. Here's the full transcript: it's a hefty interview so grab a beverage.
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Wes Fenlon
3 months ago
Until this week, it's been impossible to play the games of the 1993 Pioneer LaserActive without one of the vanishingly rare, disintegrating consoles. Here's the story of the guy who's been trying to fix that for years -- and all the hardware and software he had to build to make it possible.
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"This is the first:" The 16 year odyssey of "time, money, wrong turns and frustration" it took to finally emulate the Pioneer LaserActive
In April 2009, a Sega fan decided to look into emulating the Mega LD, a quirky and little-known hybrid of Genesis and LaserDisc. This week he finished the job.
https://www.readonlymemo.com/this-is-the-first-the-16-year-odyssey-of-time-money-wrong-turns-and-frustration-it-took-to-finally-emulate-the-pioneer-laseractive/
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Jason Schreier
3 months ago
Can Konami bring back Metal Gear without Hideo Kojima? They certainly want to try. I spoke to the producers of the new Metal Gear Solid 3 remake about reviving the franchise, building an internal console game team, and more. This week's column:
www.bloomberg.com/news/newslet...
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Konami Hopes To Revive ‘Metal Gear’ Game Franchise
Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater, a remake of a 2004 entry, came out this week to positive reviews
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-08-29/konami-hopes-to-revive-metal-gear-game-franchise?accessToken=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJzb3VyY2UiOiJTdWJzY3JpYmVyR2lmdGVkQXJ0aWNsZSIsImlhdCI6MTc1NjQ4NjkwNiwiZXhwIjoxNzU3MDkxNzA2LCJhcnRpY2xlSWQiOiJUMVJMV0pHUTdMNjUwMCIsImJjb25uZWN0SWQiOiJCMUVBQkI5NjQ2QUM0REZFQTJBRkI4MjI1MzgyQTJFQSJ9.pqT8p6mMTK7_XBJCqX8zpgfowNGTx6xOnhkfjLV4As8
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Aftermath
3 months ago
Diablo devs unionize following layoffs and dissatisfaction with AI, pay
aftermath.site/diablo-union...
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Cecilia D'Anastasio
3 months ago
New: Blizzard cofounder's Dreamhaven is struggling in today's challenged games market per an internal letter. Its 2 new games sold below expectations. Dreamhaven now seeks funding It's not alone. Some of the most promising new studios are hitting roadblocks. Story:
www.bloomberg.com/news/article...
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Blizzard Co-Founder’s Game Startup Struggles Amid Industry Glut
Mike Morhaime, a co-founder of video-game giant Blizzard Entertainment, sent a letter to staff at his new company Dreamhaven this week that he wished he didn’t have to write.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-22/blizzard-co-founder-s-game-startup-struggles-amid-industry-glut?srnd=undefined
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The Game Business
3 months ago
In today's episode of The Game Business Show, we look at the winners of Gamescom 2025, and interview Bloober Team and discover their secret Nintendo dream
www.thegamebusiness.com/p/lego-batma...
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LEGO Batman: Legacy of the Dark Knight was the biggest announcement of Gamescom 2025
Plus! Horror developer Bloober Team shares its Nintendo dream. And are indies right to flee Hollow Knight: Silksong?
https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/lego-batman-legacy-of-the-dark-knight
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Aftermath
3 months ago
After more layoffs, unionized IGN workers are done picking up the slack
aftermath.site/ign-layoffs-...
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