DomsPlaying

Here's a couple articles I'm referencing that talk about the marketing kicking off in a few months.

www.ign.com/articles/gta...

www.gamespot.com/articles/gta...

In today's financial report, Take-Two reiterated Grand Theft Auto VI's date of Nov 19th.

There's also media reports its marketing push will start in the summer.

Personally, I'm betting it hits this date, just in time for year-end awards & holiday sales.

www.take2games.com/ir/quarterly...

Fantastic reporting from VGC, as always.

Some standout items:

Quick Switch 2 pace even with slower holiday.
Switch 2 FY unit target unchanged.
MKW > 14M. 80% attach.
Kirby Air Riders 1.76M. Nice!
MP4 < 1M during Dec.
Switch OG now #2 on all-time HW list.

Great 9-month result.

Xbox revenue is down in Q2.

Overall: -9%
Content & Services: -5%
Hardware: -32%

Its broader More Personal Computing business unit even saw a 3% revenue decline, the only segment without growth, with gaming being a main reason mentioned in slides.

www.microsoft.com/en-us/Invest...

Call of Duty and Battlefield "struggled to stand out" over Christmas period, according to analyst Revenue from new releases grew 21.5% in December 2025, driven by major launches including Arc Raiders

Some quick thoughts on this:

BF > CoD in 2026 is more monumental than it sounds.

New release growth required Arc Raiders boost, i.e. a fresh breakout IP.

Total market revenue still lackluster. Even with Switch 2. Tangible impact from cost pressures.

www.gamesindustry.biz/call-of-duty...

And so, as anticipated, here come Ubisoft layoffs.

Sending my best to those impacted. Unfortunately, this is the beginning.

(Sorry for the bummer news.)

www.videogameschronicle.com/news/ubisoft...

Investors | Ubisoft Investor Center

Source:

www.ubisoft.com/en-us/compan...

Huge news out of Ubisoft today.

Accelerated cost reductions.

6 games canceled, inc Prince of Persia Sands of Time remake.

7 delays, with Black Flag remake reportedly among them.

I don't think it's a question of whether layoffs will happen; it's a matter of how many. Not good.

Marathon Releases March 5, 2026: New Trailer & More Collector’s Edition, English voice cast, and more revealed. Pre-orders available now.

Source:

www.bungie.net/7/en/News/Ar...

Not quite sure what took Bungie so long to announce Marathon is out on March 5th.

One of those games I really can't predict how it will sell. I'm cautious. An appealing price in that Helldivers II/ARC Raiders range. But can it overcome the art scandal & early impressions? 🤔

Nintendo’s share price has dropped 33% in the last five months in Japan | VGC Uncertainty over potential price increases may have contributed to the decline…

This sounds like a buying opportunity to me, more than anything.

Sure, uncertainty can spook investors. I believe the Switch 2 life cycle is going to be quite lucrative for Nintendo, especially with multiple movies in the works.

www.videogameschronicle.com/news/nintend...

Ah.

Some sort of surprise, indeed.

www.videogameschronicle.com/news/the-xbo...

Developer_Direct Returns January 22: Watch Fable, Forza Horizon 6, and Beast of Reincarnation Gameplay, Direct from the Studios - Xbox Wire We're kicking off 2026 with the fourth installment of Developer_Direct on January 22 – bringing you new gameplay and insights for Fable, Forza Horizon 6, and Beast of Reincarnation.

I was really hoping we'd see something from Clockwork Revolution during this year's direct, if it's still out in 2026.

(Is it possible there might be a surprise?)

That said, Playground carrying here 💪

news.xbox.com/en-us/2026/0...

Machine Games is reportedly working on Wolfenstein 3 and a ‘Rainbow Six Siege-style’ multiplayer title | VGC The Bethesda studio has previously expressed interest in a third Wolfenstein…

Wolfenstein 3? Let's gooo 👏

Multiplayer title? Hmm I dunno 🤔

www.videogameschronicle.com/news/machine...

Yo, 2026. Where's that Steam Deck 2 at?

🤔

(Main caveat being I'm currently playing KC: DII, and it very well might actually end up among my Top 10 when all is said and done.

What a year for releases. Props to everyone who shipped a game in 2025.)

Here are my 10 Honorable Mentions for Best Games of 2025 (Alphabetical Order):

And Roger
Ball x Pit
Blade Chimera
Doom: The Dark Ages
Dying Light: The Beast
Eternal Strands
Kingdom Come: Deliverance II
Mario Kart World
Monster Hunter Wilds
My Friendly Neighborhood

Here are my Top 10 Favorite Games of 2025:

1. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33
2. Ghost of Yotei
3. Dispatch
4. Avowed
5. Hollow Knight: Silksong
6. Donkey Kong Bananza
7. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance
8. Hades 2
9. Death Stranding 2: On the Beach
10. South of Midnight

Wishing everyone a Happy New Year. Be safe & well 🎉

Source:

www.gamesindustry.biz/gamesindustr...

I love GI Biz's annual Year in Numbers post!

For 2025, standouts include:

Spending +8% (above my target).
Total value nearing $200B.
Double digit PC gains.
BF6 out-performance.

Note this data is thru Nov.
Quite curious how BO7 is trending.

Will know the full story soon! 📈

Horrible, sad news. RIP.

www.videogameschronicle.com/news/battlef...

GTA 6 delayed again, AI impacts hardware, and Half-Life 3: Analyst predictions for 2026 | Year in Review Predictions for the year ahead, and judging the accuracy of the predictions we made last year.

Some of mine:

GTA VI hits Nov. Unsure if a popular opinion?
Mid to high single-digit global growth.
Still, notable layoffs & closures.
MS shutters 2 studios & cancels a big project.
Steam Deck 2 reveal. No HL3.
Switch 2 momentum continues as top seller.

www.gamesindustry.biz/gta-6-delaye...

Xbox is losing the console race by miles. It's part of Microsoft's big gaming pivot Sales of Microsoft's Xbox Series S and Series X are even behind the original Nintendo Switch, which launched in 2017.

A lot to digest in this piece, a great summation of where MS is, and is trying to go, in games.

What stands out to me, as always, is what a company doesn't say.

Here it's the lack of transparency on Xbox sales & profit targets.

We'll see how it goes.

www.cnbc.com/2025/12/21/x...

Games industry layoff figures were down slightly in 2025 – but it was still horrendous | Year in Review Although layoffs were down by around a third, studios in the US and Western Europe may have been hit by the trend for jobs moving to emerging markets

Hearing news this week around Naughty Dog's crunch & layoffs being "horrendous" in 2025 (even if improved from 2024) makes me double-down on giving kudos to all the devs that can even ship a game in this environment.

So: massive props. You are amazing.

www.gamesindustry.biz/games-indust...

I need to get thru the first dungeon then reassess. Something about the early linearity & lack of meaningful exploration is really putting me to sleep. Nearly literally.

(For context, I've played thru the original when it was remastered and liked it a lot, especially its general vibes and level design.

I haven't played a substantial amount of 2 or 3.)

Two of my early thoughts on Metroid Prime 4: Beyond would be as follows:

1. Miles Mackenzie is the homie. He's pretty damn funny & adds value to the game as an initial sidekick.

2. The first couple hours are boooring. I almost fell asleep last night while playing.

We'll see 🤷

Newzoo predicts global games market to reach $197bn in 2025, exceeding prior expectations Data firm suggests 7.5% revenue increase driven by "stronger-than-expected performance" on PC and mobile

Global games industry growth > 7% certainly beat my expectations too.

My estimate was flat-to-up slightly YoY, based on pricing challenges & market pressures.

For SW, Battlefield 6 stands out. Clair Obscur the big surprise. Switch 2 boosted HW to gains.

www.gamesindustry.biz/newzoo-predi...

Video Game Physical Software and Hardware Sales Just Had the Worst November in the U.S. Since 1995 - IGN Last month, November, was a shockingly terrible month for video game sales in the U.S. While we traditionally think of November as a huge sales month what with Black Friday and all, November 2025 was ...

Rough November report, including all HW declines & Switch 2 + Switch down vs Switch alone.

Xbox is in free fall.

It's almost as if raising prices amidst a tough consumer environment where demand is shaky enough isn't the path to sales. It's a dilemma.

www.ign.com/articles/vid...