#343 | Codename Trinity

Insomniac Games' co-founder Ted Price is retiring from the company after a storied 30 year career, but it's what he's leaving behind in his stead that's truly curious: A three-person CEO grouping, virtually unheard of in the corporate world, that hopes to leverage the unique skills of each person. When taken into account with PlayStation's new co-CEO structure, it makes us wonder if Sony seeks to spread the field instead of focus decision-making and responsibility on a single person. Is that such a good idea? We discuss. Meanwhile, Xbox had an exceptional press conference, and as Xbox games are now PlayStation games, we have a few titles of import to go over, including the reveal of the Microsoft-published Ninja Gaiden 4 and release dates for both Doom: The Dark Ages and third party RPG Clair Obscur. Other news this week includes chatter of a $100 pricetag for Grand Theft Auto VI, impressive new gameplay footage for Phantom Blade Zero, the commercial bombing of Dragon Age: The Veilguard, and more. We then wrap up with six inquiries from the audience, as is our tradition. Could tariffs on Mexico drive physical game prices higher? Are there more game cancellations than ever, or simply more transparency in the process? Did Xbox miss an opportunity to strike at a vulnerable and underperforming PlayStation? Is Colin over-reliant on email, rendering him an exceptionally old man? Please keep in mind that our timestamps are approximate, and will often be slightly off due to dynamic ad placement. Timestamps: 0:00:00 - Intro 0:15:28 - Staying strong during a breakup 0:23:51 - Colin and email 0:42:15 - Winnie the Pooh style forever sleep 0:53:36 - Colin's thesaurus 0:56:32 - Dustin at the symphony 1:00:53 - GTA VI costing $100? 1:24:17 - Phantom Blade Zero gameplay 1:31:00 - New Astro Bot content 1:33:42 - Dragon Age bombed 1:48:46 - Resident Evil 6 rated for Xbox 1:53:44 - Silent Hill F ESRB rating 1:57:35 - Balatro sells over 5 million 2:00:35 - Civ 7 has gone gold 2:02:11 - What Are We Playing? 2:31:48 - Xbox Developer Direct 2:57:35 - Ted Price is retiring 3:20:07 - New sales data 3:24:16 - Tariff check 3:28:35 - Game cancelations 3:34:27 - Do kids care about PlayStation? 3:41:50 - Is Sony relieved at the state of Xbox? 3:46:01 - "DEI-Woke" games selling softer 4:00:33 - Was Jim Ryan horrible for PlayStation? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices