136: Secret Swifties

Will Smith (of game development and Fortnite-streaming fame) joins us this week to unpack the mass Xbox/Activision/Blizzard layoffs and the general state of the games business, plus Tekken 8, more with Prince of Persia and Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth, the secret language of grade schoolers, Taylor Swift's nation-state status, and more.Advertise on The Nextlander Podcast at Audioboom, or support us on Patreon!CHAPTERS(00:00:00) NOTE: Some timecodes may be inaccurate for versions other than the ad-free Patreon version due to dynamic ad insertions. Please use caution if skipping around to avoid spoilers. Thanks for listening.(00:00:10) Intro(00:00:56) Welcome Will Smith to the show!(00:03:09) What is Taylor's Version?(00:13:37) Tekken 8 [PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S] on Jan 26, 2024(00:34:33) Fortnite and Lego Fortnite(00:39:43) Tunic [Xbox Series X|S, PC (Microsoft Windows), Mac, Xbox One] on Mar 16, 2022(00:44:07) Rounds [PC (Microsoft Windows)] on Apr 01, 2021(00:48:20) Palworld [PC (Microsoft Windows), Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S] on Jan 19, 2024(00:59:37) Sea of Stars [Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S] on Aug 29, 2023(01:02:49) Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth [PC (Microsoft Windows), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S] on Jan 26, 2024(01:07:05) [SPOILERS] Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown [PC (Microsoft Windows), Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5] on Jan 18, 2024(01:25:18) The state of video games(01:25:50) Microsoft layoffs and cancellations(02:05:50) Is the end near for physical releases?(02:12:02) Eidos layoffs and cancellations(02:12:50) Sega also has layoffs(02:17:54) Suicide Squad giving in-game currency to early access players(02:25:26) Switch 2 updates(02:39:37) Emails(02:43:27) Wrapping up and thanks(02:44:24) Mysterious Benefactor Shoutouts(02:46:04) Thanks Will Smith!(02:47:37) See ya!