@taylorbauer.bsky.social
He/Him / Chicagoland nonprofit comms / games and culture writer @PhenixxGaming.bsky.social / prev. SB Nation, NPR
Hope Iβm not the latest in a line of annoying podcast fans to tell you this @jasonsheridan.bsky.social but Epic Mickey for Switch is on sale for Black Friday π«‘
21.11.2025 01:12 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 2 π 0New β While some states have received SNAP benefits for November and USDA is supposedly pushing through all federal payments soon, that doesnβt erase the psychological terror of the last few weeks.
I spoke with 20+ SNAP recipients in 16 states about preparing for a possible future with no food:
There is not a net good that has come from TGA or SGF when you consider that itβs profiting off of whatβs causing a mass exodus of talent from one of the fastest-emerging art forms in entertainment history in the form of brutal layoff announcement after brutal layoff announcement.
07.11.2025 02:35 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0We know what The Game Awards is: a way to keep one foot in the βannouncements as eventsβ past while staring the over-commercialization of the industry that is causing direct harm to those who literally create its content in the face and saying we will ignore the latter for the former.
07.11.2025 02:33 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0Baseball is the greatest sport long live baseball.
02.11.2025 03:18 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0People would rather lob vitriolic comments at journalists online than actually play games nowadays, in no small part because I think their miserable addiction to online outrage has ruined the joy they've gotten from anything they used to really like (games, movies, books, etc.).
22.10.2025 13:53 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Pokemon Z-A is the latest in a string of examples that if you donβt let everyone complaining ruin something for you, you can have a good time. Gripes are valid but you would have thought Game Freak personally harmed from some of these folks online.
20.10.2025 01:48 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0For National Disability Employment Awareness Month at @motherjones.com, I spoke to four disabled federal workers who were laid off about how their old jobs were very accessibleβand what the federal government loses out on by having fewer disabled employees. www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
07.10.2025 18:29 β π 216 π 121 π¬ 2 π 2Hi everyone I paused the cubs game after the top of 1st inning to celebrate the strong start and take the dogs on a walk everything is still all good right π
07.10.2025 01:43 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0I had to write more about Ghost of Yotei because I couldn't stop thinking about ecofeminism, women as a deadly force of nature, and Atsu's love for animals.
www.gamespot.com/articles/gho...
SCOOP β Pennsylvania prosecutors were alerted to possible voting irregularities by one of MAGA's leading voices against voter fraud. A long paper trail shows Jack Posobiec has been living in Maryland but voting using his parents' PA address for years.
From @jsweetli.bsky.social, @slate.com + me:
I let Game Pass Ultimate go in June for the first time since its launch. Canβt say Iβm regretting that after todayβs announcements π
02.10.2025 00:23 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0For me, jumping into play challenges and riding around a bit every night without having to spend a penny unless I want to is exactly what I want from Skate in 2025.
24.09.2025 19:15 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0The best-selling Skate game sold around 4 million copies (Skate 3), and I don't think it sells that again if it's another 10-12 experience akin to the original trilogy.
If you're not feeling the gameplay or art style that's totally fair - as is a distaste for this revenue model.
I'm amazed at how many reviews of #Skate are upset it doesn't feel like the same game. It's been 18 years since the series started, and data points to vast amounts of gamers wanting this sort of "free-to-play with optional cosmetics" model.
24.09.2025 19:11 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 2 π 0My great grandpa used to play solitaire every night before bed on his Gateway PC and I always thought βdoesnβt it ever get boring?β
And here I am, ending every night playing Balatro to wind down. Little pleasures after long days during insane times go a long way.
really loved this review! I was kinda lukewarm on the first few eps of season 2, but lately it's been firing on all cylinders. Too excited to watch the finale tonight!
18.09.2025 20:10 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Check out my interview with three stars from #TwistedMetal that dropped last week! It doesn't read as chaotic as it was, but it was nonetheless a great conversation with these lovely, wonderful actors.
04.09.2025 00:48 β π 3 π 1 π¬ 1 π 0MarCom LinkedIn currently features just 4,000 versions of the same "20 Lessons CEOs Need To Learn from the Cracker Barrel Rebrand Fiasco" post, with every takeaway being "make decisions people will like."
22.08.2025 16:54 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Well youβre in luck because all he ever wants is attention π
06.08.2025 01:54 β π 2 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0A photo of me in a Chicago bulls hat with my dog sitting behind me. We are both serving face but kindly and respectfully.
Keep forgetting to post here but please accept me and my son making intense but kind eye contact with all of you and wishing you a happy Tuesday. #dogsky #australianshepherd
05.08.2025 23:27 β π 7 π 0 π¬ 1 π 0A new Jay Som album announcement today really carried me through a lot of nonsense.
10.07.2025 03:01 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0As someone who bought the OG Switch on day one and never upgraded, the Switch 2 is really checking every box for me. Even without an OLED screen, handheld mode is gorgeous.
06.06.2025 14:30 β π 0 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Whenever weβre all not at a Rainforest Cafe, all of us should be asking, βwhere is the nearest Rainforest Cafe?β
17.05.2025 22:29 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0NEW: Women across the country are victims of whatβs called coerced debtβand it is ridiculously hard to crack down on.
For @motherjones.com, I spent a year+ looking at what happens when an abuser buries someone in debt as a form of domestic violence.
www.motherjones.com/politics/202...
Just finished up an article about the Switch 2 User Agreement and without shilling for corporations, tried to explore why I think our concept of consuming media is broken. Might be a series!
15.05.2025 01:22 β π 1 π 0 π¬ 0 π 0Thereβs so much bad chaos in this world.
@kindafunnyvids.bsky.social is good chaos. The best, in fact.