The VGBees Podcast

This week, John, Niki, and Lotus cover a busy week of games news, including Microsoft offering voluntary layoffs to 60,000, GameMaker going free for commercial use in 2027, and Anthropic's solemn vow not to allow Claude to simply plagiarize a video game idea.
00:00:00 Intros & voting time
00:10:55 Another few thoughts on BioWare's closure
00:18:25 Eric Bauza passes away at the age of 46
00:20:16 GameMaker going free for commercial use
00:25:32 WB Games begins shadow layoff procedures
00:36:10 Microsoft offering voluntary layoffs to 60,000
00:40:52 Sucker Punch lays off 24 after success of Ghost of Yotei
00:49:56 Dark Messiah of Might & Magic getting robust new fan-made edition
00:53:30 Discord now has Discoverable Servers; is bad
00:58:25 Celeste and Towerfall leaving Xbox over BDS concerns
00:59:43 Anthropic's odd, potentially meaningless guardrail for games plagiarists
01:04:30 Is John taking a portable games console on his trip?
01:07:22 When is the VGBees Cheesecake Factory episode coming?
01:09:00 What's the most interesting burger you've ever had?
01:10:49 Vegan dishes posing as non-vegan dishes
01:15:55 What's the worst burger you've ever had?
01:20:22 If all food cost the same, what would you eat more of?
01:21:22 Which has the better vertical slice: cake or lasagna?
01:23:37 What would your Star Wars Galactic Racer identity be?
01:28:00 Which food is worst for eventually leftovers?
01:29:32 What's the biggest audiences you've ever presented to?
01:32:37 What's the best game to play with a partner, both short and long-term?
01:37:56 Excluding AI, name a company that's cooked but doesn't know it yet?
01:39:18 What warning are you slapping on this episode of VGBees?
01:40:25 When is VGBees' Top 100 Games list coming?
01:41:34 Are there any good games based on horror films?
01:48:54 What's the next franchise to torpedo its goodwill with Roblox?
01:51:17 What's the most "of X country's culture" a game has ever been?
01:52:31 VGBees Scary Media & Things Corner
02:00:08 What illegal items have you smuggled onto a plane?
02:01:48 Okay, what is John playing on his AYN Thor?
02:07:25 Outro
Thanks for listening!
Please leave us a review! We'll read it on the show and it helps us out a lot.
VGBees is ad-free, AI-free, and completely supported by you! https://vgbees.com/join
VGBees is a weekly games media podcast hosted by Niki, John, and Lotus.

This week, Lotus and John (complete with the worst sinus infection you've ever heard, sorry) dove right into the biggest news stories of the week, including the closure of BioWare, 350 additional layoffs across EA, and Steam Next Fest demos being removed out of fear of AI cloning (which we have questions about)
00:00:00 Intro & yes, he knows he sounds like Andre the Giant
00:04:32 Steam Next Fest demos removed citing fear of AI cloning
00:14:05 BioWare shut down among many other layoffs at EA
00:24:05 Lost & Found Co. gets new fun updates
00:26:58 Mon Laferte knows how to engage with the drama of stage performance
00:30:50 RADIOSOL creates an unforgettable sense of scale
00:37:20 Lotus went to Spooky Little Craft Fest!
00:46:09 Have you ever been successfully scammed?
00:48:48 Any advice for personal essay writing?
00:51:40 What's the ideal number of pillows on a bed?
00:52:40 Is a remix just music fanfiction?
00:54:18 What's the best thing about Halloween?
00:55:22 How do you pronounce "Whataburger?"
00:59:06 Review & Outro
Thanks for listening!
Please leave us a review! We'll read it on the show and it helps us out a lot.
VGBees is ad-free, AI-free, and completely supported by you! https://vgbees.com/join
VGBees is a weekly games media podcast hosted by Niki, John, and Lotus.

This week, John, Niki, and (for about an hour, at least) Lotus ponder what makes a good games outlet name. Also, perhaps more importantly, Epic's full-throttle commitment to AI game production, Grand Theft Auto VI's potential PC release in Q1 2027, and more Ubisoft studio closures.
00:00:00 Intro & The Pepsi Challenge
00:11:00 Chris Kerr's Vertical Slice launches (and a very, very silly detour about race)
00:25:30 Epic goes all-in on AI; delays Marvel/Star Wars game
00:34:46 Grand Theft Auto VI reported to get Q1 2027 PC release
00:46:43 ESA requests Anbernic to be listed as "superfake;" for some reason tells everyone about FitGirl
00:50:56 More Ubisoft layoffs and studio closures
00:58:22 Why Big Walk isn't on Xbox
01:00:22 Nidhogg, yes Nidhogg, got a big new update this week
01:02:44 How do you deal with feeling deeply responsible for your direct reports at work?
01:09:20 How Fortnite has finally become the parody of itself casual observers have long said it to be
01:36:14 Star Wars Galactic Racer is the perfect size in the perfect form
02:10:50 Why do discussions of systemic issues sometimes get in the way of laying clear individual blame on bad actors?
02:12:42 Why do basketball players seem to be happier than football players?
02:25:45 What would cause this podcast to balloon to four hours?
02:27:28 How would you deal with a sudden shift to the metric system?
02:29:10 Is Biddy Blas a breakout star or an overplayed meme?
02:31:43 How do we feel about little tomatoes?
02:33:35 New review & outro
Thanks for listening!
Please leave us a review! We'll read it on the show and it helps us out a lot.
VGBees is ad-free, AI-free, and completely supported by you! https://vgbees.com/join
VGBees is a weekly games media podcast hosted by Niki, John, and Lotus.

This week, Lotus, Niki, and John dove very deep into the surprisingly busy week of games news, including Kotaku's fascinating report about Double Fine's union misfire, Bobby Kotick joining the Skydance Board, and Star Wars Zero Company dev returning more than have their previously furloughed workers.
00:00:00 Intro & vaccine misinformation
00:12:30 Skydance's new games division
00:20:25 Skydance's new Board includes Bobby Kotick
00:26:59 Kotaku's explosive report about Double Fine's failed unionization attempt
00:58:05 NBA 2K25 to be delisted and servers shut down
01:18:38 Gamestop inflating price of pre-owned PlayStation 5 Pros
01:28:50 Wizards of the Coast union is expanding
01:30:07 Bit Reactor returns more than half of furloughed workers to company
01:33:15 Xbox creates new transmedia division XP
01:40:30 Lego Party is the best one of these around
01:43:40 Skate is even weirder than it was when it launched
01:51:50 Halloween costume plans or ideas this year?
01:53:55 Parking is $2 but validated parking is free...are you getting validated?
01:58:20 What would you change about your kitchen?
02:04:35 Gods With Badges is Strange Scaffold's latest...and it's got an interesting backstory
02:23:45 New AI-powered game demo is running $1000/day token bill
02:30:30 Capcom's new AI initiative deserves some clarification
02:51:37 Onimusha: Way of the Sword isn't that hard...yet
02:56:11 The Witcher 3 Remaster reminds us that being down bad for a beautiful woman is a great plot device
03:00:18 Doggy Don't Care puts you in the paws of a destructive pug
03:02:40 Highlights from Falling Block Jam 2026
03:06:37 Which Final Fantasy wardrobe are you copping?
03:12:10 Which fighting game archetype do you gravitate toward?
03:17:07 Crunchy Cheetos or Cheetos Puffs?
03:19:52 New five star review and Outro
Thanks for listening!
Please leave us a review! We'll read it on the show and it helps us out a lot.
VGBees is ad-free, AI-free, and completely supported by you! https://vgbees.com/join
VGBees is a weekly games media podcast hosted by Niki, John, and Lotus.

On this week's episode, the crew handle a slow news week by going very, very deep on Mike Tomlin's Minecraft city, 2XKO's missed concurrent player target, and impressions of cozy-yet-hardcore Dressmaker.
00:00:00 Intro, John's bad day, pallbearers for hire
00:26:45 2XKO's wild swing and miss for concurrent players
00:41:09 Mike Tomlin's Minecraft city inspired some big, big opinions from the crew
01:25:50 Control Resonant's open world features frustrating barriers
01:29:47 Dressmaker might be "cozy," but it's for the sickos
01:37:50 Niki made a photo zine!
01:43:57 HIVE QUESTIONS BEGIN; which person of the VGBees Zord is the bee's knees?
01:47:18 What were you proud of this week?
01:49:00 Which day is worse for being online: April 1 or May 4?
01:52:34 How long do you have to play a game to say you have played it?
01:55:52 How clean are your floors?
02:00:42 Which bread makes the best toast?
02:08:00 What was the last thing you did that you would consider to be whimsical?
02:10:32 Would you eat a hot dog with nothing else on it?; How big is too big for a Metroidvania?
02:12:00 What's your favorite PAC match?
02:15:20 What's the most centrist RPG?
02:17:40 What switches games journalism to games eschatology?
02:23:57 Is taking a pill that was on the floor safe?
02:26:30 Asha Sharma gives you her personal cell number, what are you doing with it?
02:29:00 Why does VGBees not concern itself with playing every new major release?
02:34:11 Is there a button in your house that is satisfying to push?
02:36:25 Mario and Sonic split; how are they splitting the Olympics games?
02:38:38 What's the dumbest media you've enjoyed lately?
02:39:45 How can someone be redeemed and reenter a community after true harm is done?; HIVE QUESTIONS END
02:51:20 Show Reviews & Outro
Thanks for listening!
Please leave us a review! We'll read it on the show and it helps us out a lot.
VGBees is ad-free, AI-free, and completely supported by you! https://vgbees.com/join
VGBees is a weekly games media podcast hosted by Niki, John, and Lotus.