This week, Zak and Aaron sit down to chat with Ashley Ruhl, the Narrative Director at Broadsword Online Games, currently in charge of Star Wars: The Old Republic! She was kind enough to tell us a little bit about her role working on SWTOR before moving on to the... ahem, meat of the conversation: romance! Specifically, romance in video games, how it can be approached thoughtfully, and where we'd like to see it go in the future.

Please, enjoy.

Check out Ashley's recommended reading!

Digital Love: Romance and Sexuality in Games - Heidi McDonald

Passion and Play: A Guide to Designing Sexual Content in Games - Michelle Clough

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This week, Zak and Aaron sit down to discuss yet another curious case of misguided marketing — this time with fewer questionable hats. Highguard, which secured the headlining spot at The Game Awards 2025 thanks to Geoff Keighley's personal fondness for the title, launched last week to overwhelmingly negative reviews on Steam and a rapidly dwindling player count.

How did this happen? Who's to blame? Does the game deserve all of this hate, and will it ever be able to overcome it?

Please, enjoy.

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This week, Zak and Aaron sit down to discuss how a series of PR... er, let's call them "miscalculations," arguably torpedoed Splitgate: Arena Reloaded (formerly Splitgate 2) before it even had a chance. This story has it all: politically-charged headware choices, petty Twitter arguments, $100 million investments, off-putting apology videos, and much, much more!

Please, enjoy.

Sources:

Splitgate 2 Live Service Relaunches, Immediately Dies A Second Time…
Splitgate Dev Insists Steam Charts Aren't Important As Player Numbers Plummet…
This CEO Burned $500k To Humiliate His Own Game
I’ve Never Seen A Studio Fumble $100m This Hard

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This week, Zak and Aaron are back in hell to discuss the pending acquisition of Warner Bros. by Netflix. They touch on what the merger could mean for the future of movie theaters before diving into the main topic at hand: the fate of WB Games and its treasure trove of IP. Spoiler alert: things are looking bleak.

Please, enjoy.

P.S. Aaron recorded a portion of this episode while holding a sick pupper, so if you hear any coughing, please be kind to Louie.

Sources:

The Battle for Control of Warner Bros.: A Timeline of Key Developments

What Happens to Warner Bros. Games Under Netflix?

Netflix Considers Warner Bros. Games To Be Worthless

Netflix Closes Its All-Star AAA Video Game Studio, Which Made Zero Games

Netflix acquires games avatar firm Ready Player Me

The Netflix Gaming Deal Is A Match Made In Hell

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This week, Zak and Aaron sit down to discuss Valve's new, ambitious hardware plans, especially the announcement's headliner: the brand-new Steam Machine. With the form-factor and convenience of a console and the hardware heft of a gaming PC, the cutely nicknamed "Gabe Cube" seems poised to disrupt the market as we know it... but will it? A better question may be, is it even meant to?

Please, enjoy.

Episode References:

Linus Tech Tips - The STEAM Machine Won't Cost What You Think

YongYea: Valve Drop Moe Hints On Machine Price, And...

Bellular News: Valve's on the Warpath

GameSpot: The Steam Machine Doesn't Even Have To Try

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This week, Zak and Aaron sit down to chat about another (increasingly rare) industry success story: the brand-new Telltale-style adventure Dispatch! How, despite facing doubt from publishers over the game's fairly niche genre and episodic release structure, did AdHoc Studio's debut title release to rousing numbers and enviable review scores? Only one way to find out...

Please, enjoy.

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This week, Zak and Aaron finally get around to discussing one of the most significant events in the recent history of the games industry — the $55 billion purchase of Electronic Arts by a consortium of private investors, including the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund and Jared Kushner's Affinity Partners, among others.

In addition to running through the myriad issues tied to such politically troubling hands meddling with one of the world's largest publishers, there is one significant question at hand: what happens to the veritable mountain of IP under EA's control?

Please, enjoy.

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This week, Zak and Aaron are delighted to present a conversation with Chris Knight, a 2D artist based in Austin, TX. Chris was kind enough to share some insights from his career, some funny (and not-so-funny) stories, and his frank opinion on what it takes to succeed in the games industry – especially in an incredibly crowded field.

Please, enjoy.

Check Out Chris' ArtStation!

Take a Look at PolyCarp!

Have a Gander at Good Knight Art!

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