Game Buoy Podcast Episode 174 – Digital Love: Game Buoy Remake Project Episode 1

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Ahoy, mateys, and welcome to the GAMEBUOY.ORG video game podcast – your port of call for gaming news and views that maybe aren’t on your radar, but most definitely should be! On this episode, recorded Sunday, May 11, 2025, Captain Spike and First Mate Slaggy McWaggy discuss the changing landscape of games distribution!

This episode is part of the Game Buoy Remake Project, a series of themed episodes revisiting previously discussed topics. This week, the Podcast Pirates follow up on Game Buoy Podcast Episode 3 – Digital Distribution and DLC, originally published May 8, 2012.

HOT TOPIC IS THE WAY THAT WE RHYME [3:35]

– Polygon was sold to Valnet and hit with layoffs on the same day that Jeff Grubb announced he was leaving Giant Bomb.
– The news of Polygon’s sale to Valnet was first reported by Kotaku.
– Per Aftermath, at least 25 Polygon employees were laid off.
– However, Fandom sold Giant Bomb to its staff, and Giant Bomb will now be a fully independent, creator owned, and reader supported side.
– Microsoft has raised Xbox console and game prices in the US.
– The Overwatch 2 team at Blizzard has fully unionized.
– Nintendo Switch system software Version 20.0 includes the new virtual game card feature, which has changed the way players can share games.
– Fortnite has returned to the iOS App Store.
– 8bitdo is currently not shipping to the US from China due to Trump’s tariffs.
– Anbernic has suspended all shipments to the US from China as well.
– The Wii Homebrew Channel’s GitHub repository has been archived due to the discovery that one of its toolkits utilizes stolen Nintendo and open source code.
– Wholesome Direct will take place on Saturday, June 7 at 9 AM Pacific, with proceeds from merchandise sales supporting Point of Pride, a nonprofit that provides gender affirming care and financial support to trans people.
– Wolf Hawkfield will be a playable character in the new Virtua Fighter game.

RELEASE UPDATES [31:29]

– Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. is coming to PS5, Xbox Series, and Switch 2.
– Grand Theft Auto 6 has been delayed until May 26, 2026.
– The release date of Borderlands 4 has been moved up two weeks earlier, to September 23.
– Sonic Rumble has been indefinitely delayed.
– Balatro, Ark: Survival Ascended, and Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun are free on PlayStation Plus for May 2025.
– Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter will release on September 19 for PS5, Switch, and PC via Steam.
– GEX Trilogy launches digitally June 16 for PS5, Xbox Series, Switch, and PC via Steam, with a limited physical release shipping later in 2025.
– Gears of War: Reloaded is out on August 26 for PS5, Xbox Series, and PC.
– Shantae Advance: Risky Revolution will launch for PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series, Switch, and PC via Steam this summer.

CULTURE CLUB [37:52]

– Somebody beat the Breath of the Wild Switch 2 demo at a Nintendo event with a naked Link.
– World of Warcraft is adding an optional one-button rotation assist mode.
– Renowned Japanese TV drama actor Shinya Owada shared the sad news that his original Pokemon Red game save data from 1996 has been lost.
– The new Star Wars animated series Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld premiered on Fortnite before Disney+.
– In a recent interview with Brazilian newspaper Folha de S. Paolo, Nintendo of America president Doug Bowser stated that Nintendo had been committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion long before the term DEI came into common usage, and will remain committed.
– The Nintendo Today app featured a video showing the Joy-Con 2’s mouse functionality in the system menu.

MY OWN PRIVATE IDAHO [53:57]

– Kazutaka Kodaka stated that he is glad he made The Hundred Line – Last Defense Academy, even if it doesn’t sell well.
– Unika from the Guilty Gear Strive: Dual Rulers anime will be a new DLC character for Guilty Gear: Strive, coming May 27.
– A demo for Hunter x Hunter: Nen x Impact is coming to PS5 and PC via Steam this month.

SO CONTROVERSIAL [59:49]

– Sackboy has been quietly removed from PlayStation Productions marketing material.
– Grant Kirkhope reveals why he was not credited for the DK Rap in The Super Mario Bros. Movie.
– Nintendo is suing accessory maker Genki after it used a 3D-printed mockup of the Switch 2 earlier this year.

DOOM AND GLOOM [1:09:20]

– Respawn has laid off an unspecified number of employees and canceled two early in-development projects.
– EA laid off a narrative designer on Apex Legends the same day her new character was revealed.
– Evil Dead: The Game has been removed from digital storefronts.

SMASH HIT [1:16:11]

– Elijah Gonzalez at Paste discusses how Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is a great game that is tainted by its controversy.
– Alanah Pearce, formerly of IGN and Sony Santa Monica, investigated the current state of the games industry, and things are “uh, not great.”

RUMOR HAS IT [1:24:00]

– Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero is likely coming to Switch 2, per a rating from the Saudi Arabia ratings board.
– Valve watchers say that Half-Life 3 is “playable end-to-end” and has a definitive ending.
– Yuji Horii clarifies his comments about a Chrono Trigger HD-2D remake, stating that nothing is in the works, but many people are asking about it, and he is looking into it.

DISCUSSION TOPIC [1:28:33]

This week, Captain Spike and First Mate Slaggy McWaggy discuss the changing landscape of games distribution! As part of the Game Buoy Remake Project initiative, they take a look back at Game Buoy Podcast Episode 3 – Digital Distribution and DLC. Back in 2012, the idea of digital distribution was a new concept – but now it’s so widespread that the majority of new games on home consoles are purchased digitally. The Podcast Pirates discuss how their games consumption habits and preferences have changed since 2012, how comfortable they are with digital purchases in 2025, as well as the Game Key Card kerfuffle. Finally, they wrap up the discussion by discussing the outlook for the future of digital distribution and whether their current digital purchases will remain playable.

Resources discussed:

– How digital is the video games market in 2024? (GamesIndustry.biz)
– “Nintendo Switch’s digital sales ratio has now, for the first time, surpassed 50% globally” (Christopher Dring via X)
– Nightdive Studios’ CEO Says That Game-Key Cards On Switch 2 Is “Disheartening” (Nintendo Life)
– Doom: The Dark Ages Disc Is Pretty Much Useless Because You’ll Need An Internet Connection To Download The Full Game Anyway (TheGamer)
– DoesItPlay?

WHAT’S UP [2:03:47]

Captain Spike has been playing Assassin’s Creed Shadows and Fortnite. First Mate Slaggy McWaggy has been playing Final Fantasy IV Pixel Remaster, Blue Prince, Sonic x Shadow Generations, and Link’s Awakening HD.

SOCIAL LINKS QUESTION OF THE WEEK [2:22:23]

Hello folks, this week we’re talking about the changing conditions of games distribution! Are you a physical copy adherent, do you prefer digital, or are you somewhere in between?

BONUS QUESTION

How do you feel about Nintendo’s controversial Game Key Card approach, particularly compared to download codes?

EXITLUDE [2:29:26]

SHOUT OUTS – “FRIENDS OF BUOY”

– Orange Lounge Radio, where every gamer has a voice
– Aftermath, an independent, worker-owned website about video games, other media and internet culture
– The Bobby Blackwolf Show, a weekly internet radio show and podcast discussing the latest news in gaming as well as sometimes reminiscing about gaming’s history
– Video Game Realness, a dose of gaming chit chat among friends
– Nintendo Pow Block, a dive into the week that was in the world of Nintendo
– Standard Issue Computing, retro and modern computer games, hardware, software, and history
– Sasha’s Retrobytes, “bytes” of vintage gaming including magazine scans and photographs
– Defunct Games, your daily source for modern video game reviews, exciting trivia competitions and old school magazine analysis
– Craig, Slaggy McWaggy’s robot boyfriend a multi-track voice channel recording bot for Discord

Also, our theme music was done by the late, great Zelda Reorchestrated, which lives on in the form of ZREO: Second Quest!