YoVideogames!

Did I make the title a joke about a game from 2005? Yes. Will anyone get it/see it/care? No. But you gotta do what brings you joy. Sometimes that's about making a little joke for you. Sometimes it's about rippin' lines in a grungy club bathroom while kids in bad fashion call you chopped.
You do you. I'm not here to judge.
I am here to tell you that the industry continues its march through rough times. In this week's episode we talk about EA going private. We wonder if that will lead to a bigger trend of publishers taking themselves private, or perhaps new publishers staying private. Matt seems to think so. I'm not so sure. The temptations and benefits of going public are too great for the corporate stooge.
What does it mean for gamers if there are more private publishers?
Smaller games. Less triple A hyper realism. Maybe cheaper games. Definitely more digital releases and less physical releases moving forward (and that is a good thing for smaller companies). A future populated with private companies also means more competition, and thus more effort to grab our attention and dollars.
Hell, we could even see a return of E3 or similar events. Though likely smaller in scale.

For me? Nothing, honestly. Well, okay... A launch line up of epic proportions would be hard to deny, but I can't honestly tell you what that would be at this point. Sony specifically? Is there any one franchise that makes it a lock? Any three? Hard to say.
Given that this generation has been underwhelming (in terms of hardware performance), would we feel the upgrade to a new console anyway?
Why would Nintendo be the safest bet in that world? Will Xbox continue to exist as we know it by then?

This episode is mostly about EVO, and what we expect coming for fighting games. There is a furry/waifu subplot though and you should be prepared for it.
So, we didn't hit EVO this year and it sounds like we weren't alone. Do we think this is linked to there being multiple EVOs on multiple continents now? And... Wait... Are they already walking back how many countries that will have tournaments? And wait, did they already drop Invincible VS from future events?
We got questions!

This episode is a discussion inspired by Mystic on Youtube. He recently made a video about why Sony can't/won't delay the release of the PS6. You can watch that video, here.
What's it boil down to? Sunk cost. They already spent all the time and money to bring it to market, stopping now won't actually save them anything and can only cost them more. Personally, I think that's a fallacy, but Matt sees the logic of the argument. Additionally, we talk the steam machine, Xbox next gen, and more!

More layoffs. The pendulum always swings.
We just had maybe the best not-E3 in close to a decade. Excitement is in the air for anyone that is a fan of games. So, naturally, Microsoft would go ahead and try to scuttle any good will by closing multiple studios. Including one that had a game announced at their event.
So, who's getting the axe? Why? And what does it mean for the industry at large? Because while we had an incredible summer announcement season, the industry itself is still contracting. Not because it isn't profitable. It very much still is.