522: Two Halo Chiefs

Nintendo game sales surge thanks to Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream and Switch 2 hardware suffers big decline, Ubisoft reportedly seeking to acquire Arkane Lyon from Xbox, Sony is releasing a black PlayStation Portal in Japan with extra internal storage ‘for future functionality’, Arc Raiders devs say that using generative AI voice acting was necessary as actors "would just go crazy if they had to read all of that", and Zelda: Ocarina of Time Switch 2 could be getting Master Quest DLC. Also: NPC routines, boss battles, tricky recipes and more! Games Discussed: The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Big Walk, Schrödinger's Call. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong

All the news from last week’s Nintendo Indie World presentation, Gang of Dragon developer Nagoshi Studio shutters months after NetEase cut funding, BioWare was shut down because EA chose Star Wars over Mass Effect, and GTA 6 dog poop gameplay premieres in the latest episode of South Park. Also: Artisanal games, Robocop vs Terminator, and more! Games Discussed: Mouthwashing, Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, Car Park Capital, Virtue and a Sledgehammer SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong

EA shuts down BioWare and the next Mass Effect has been canceled, layoffs at Sucker Punch, Xbox's first chief operating officer Helen Chiang leaves Microsoft just three months into the job, Project Helix reportedly launching in late 2028 (projected to cost between $1,200 and $1,800 lolol), Xbox also reveals new pricing plans for cloud gaming, and a Valve employee accidentally mentions a Half-Life 3 codename in public. Games Discussed: Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen, DEADLINE: Afterlife Processing, There Are No Ghosts At The Grand, Gears of War: E-Day, Star Wars Galactic Racer, Call of Duty Modern Warfare 4, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong

We’re back after TCGS London, and talking about Epic and its ‘vibe coded’ Epic Games Launcher, Asha Sharma telling rattled Xbox employees "We have to find new ways, and courage, to have invention on new IP", Big Walk developer explaining the lack of Xbox version is due to Microsoft's place on the BDS boycott, PS6's memory and storage alone reportedly costing more than $680, and the US government told to flag retro handhelds loaded with pirated games as a ‘notorious market’. Also: TCGS London debrief, poorly received games, games we love to hate, post-pod routines, ramjets and more. Games Discussed: Gears of War: E-Day, Star Wars: Galactic Racer, Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse, Well Dweller, Dragon’s Dogma 2: Dark Arisen, Echo Weaver, 1000 Offline Games. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong

This week: Sony agrees to transfer over 400 global VR patents to Meta following December 2025 agreement, Xbox restates plans for next-gen Project Helix to be a "family of devices" and announces plans to get back into TV (plus movies and theme parks), GTA 6 leaker threatens to release build with full story mode while tying lucia's clothing to crypto scheme, Nintendo executive confirms company has "no plans to ditch physical games", and Sony is reportedly plotting to revive classic PlayStation games. Also: live show plans, video game food, being late, and more! Games Discussed: Star Wars: Galactic Racer, Well Dweller SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong

James returns to Blighty, for good! This week: Xbox CEO Asha Sharma insists "Xbox is not for sale", Halo's new steward Activision reportedly considering rebooting the series, Sony reveals new PS5 upscaler tech, Naughty Dog is reportedly working on a new Uncharted game, and Mario Kart Tour has shut down after earning Nintendo an estimated $270 million. Also: bad theme park rides, diegetics, weird things we’ve eaten, mispronunciations and more. Games Discussed: Well Dweller, Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, Resonance: A Plague Tale Legacy, TOEM 2, Nivalis Nights, Ace Combat 8: Wings of Theve, Normal Golf Game. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong  

James is away this week, so we’re joined by none other than Ellie Gibson! This week: The XBOX reset continues, while Minecraft still gets 300k new players a day, Bungie says it’s “not done with Destiny” and is looking to restore vaulted content, ARC Raiders is getting a PvE test, and Sony is allegedly surveying devs about disc support. Also: reckless driving, the TCGS band, Mario recommendations, football knowledge, TCGS lore and more. Games Discussed: Well Dweller, EA Sports FC 27, 007 First Light, Meccha Chameleon, Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave, Star Wars: Zero Company. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong  

Hideo Kojima responds to accusations of PhysInt being over budget and late on deadline, more mass layoffs, Wolverine fart gas updates, more Game Pass changes are rumoured, Jonathan Blow, and more. Also: game furniture, James’ hollywood big break, and more. Games Discussed: Fire Emblem: Fortunes Weave, EA Sports FC 27, Orbitals, Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Star Wars: Zero Company, Islands of Insight. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong  

Sean’s away, so it’s left to David, James and Mat to do what’s necessary. This week: everything announced at last week’s Nintendo Direct and special Legend of Zelda 40th Anniversary Direct, Sony reportedly ditched Hideo Kojima's Physint following missed deadlines and Death Stranding 1&2 missing sales expectations, and Nintendo of America thanks fans for dealing with tariff-related price hikes by encouraging them to spend more money. Also: Life-improving games, lifetime expenditure on video games, folding iPhones and more. Games Discussed: Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Orbitals, Pragmata. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong

Xbox is capping cloud gaming to 15 hours and charging for extra playtime, everything announced at last week’s State of Play, Nintendo confirms two Nintendo Directs, UK PS5 and Xbox sales jumped by a third following GTA 6’s Netflix reveal, and Mario Kart 8 Deluxe gets a surprise Switch 2 update. Also: gut health, binoculars in games, pudding resources, pronunciation fun, and more. Games Discussed: Onimusha: Way of the Sword, Orbitals, Star Wars: Zero Company, The Artisan of Glimmith. SUPPORT Patreon CONTACT Website Discord Bluesky Threads Instagram Facebook FOLLOW TCGS on Bluesky David on Bluesky Sean on Bluesky Mat on Bluesky James on Bluesky WATCH Twitch YouTube LISTEN Spotify Apple Podcasts Pocket Casts CREDITS Music by Nick Parton Art by Dave Chong