Voluntarily Surrendering Your License To Print Money w/ Michael Higham

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.

This week, Lotus, John, and Niki tackle a very busy week of games news, including a new round of Xbox layoffs, Xbox studio consolidation, Activision making the next Halo game, and Bungie's unvaulting of Destiny 2 content. 00:00:00 Intro & Niki's big trip 00:14:30 Xbox's latest layoffs and consolidations 00:50:42 Undead Labs goes independent; State of Decay 3 still aiming for 2027 release 00:56:55 World's Edge loses half staff and one upcoming project 00:58:34 King union wins their collective bargaining agreement; will avoid strike 01:01:11 A sudden discussion about cigarettes and food waste 01:09:25 The People Make Games Bobby Kotick story 01:17:30 Tim Schafer opens up a bit about Microsoft turmoil 01:21:35 Bungie isn't done with Desinty after all 01:41:40 Lotus finished Roman Sands RE:Build 01:47:47 How Niki made their Annie's Mac n Cheese 01:50:32 Niki played Control Resonant and loves that it is divisive 02:05:45 The Travis Scott track on the GTA6 soundtrack is pretty good 02:07:00 HIVE QUESTIONS 02:46:30 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, Niki, John, and Lotus discussed the biggest news stories of the week, including a look at Zach Cregger's Resident Evil, numerous head-scratching announcements from BlizzCon, and the news that Roblox is working toward a future providing standalone games to multiple platforms. 00:00:00 Intro & sorting through John's will 00:11:30 BlizzCon 2026: games that might not come out and what will we do with three World of Warcraft SKUs? 00:25:30 King's unionized workers are about to strike, which prompted a very deep conversation about the nature of monetized free to play mobile games 01:00:00 Roblox is going to release standalone games among other worrisome updates 01:04:40 Hyper Light Drifter's Heart Machine is facing closure after publishing pull 01:08:55 Game Developer dot com facing staff shakeup; IGN lays off many long-tenured staff 01:12:25 Resident Evil solidifies Zach Cregger as one of horror's best active directors 01:26:42 Niki bought a PlayStation Portal 01:37:40 Lotus' time so far with Roman Sands RE:Build 01:50:35 Carly Rae Jepsen's new double album is out; John watches the Barenaked Ladies rendition of "O Canada" 02:00:00 HIVE QUESTIONS 02:42:42 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.