TWIG #377: Epic for Sale, Unity Cuts Deep, and Merge Keeps Printing

The industry isn’t slowing down. This week, we break down the biggest shifts across games.Topics Covered:● Disney and Epic: Why the speculation is picking up and what a bigger Disney move into games could look like● Unity’s latest shift: A strong earnings beat, the shutdown of Ironsource, and the sale of Supersonic● Studio closures and shutdowns: What the latest cuts across VR, live service, and Embracer say about the market● The Merge 2 rise: Why the category keeps growing and the debate over what’s really driving the revenue● Cookie Run’s next step: Franchise expansion and the challenge of turning one hit into something bigger● New soft-launch shooters: Ex-Supercell teams, familiar patterns, and questions about where action games fit on mobilePlus ++We also get into Tim Sweeney’s role in Epic’s future, Unity versus AppLovin in ad tech, card systems, soft-launch design, and Kress’s latest reality check on mobile.CHAPTERS: 01:14 Mario Movie Backlash03:45 Leroy Jenkins Capital06:52 Housekeeping And Corrections09:10 Disney Buying Epic Rumor12:12 Tim Sweeney Control Fight14:55 Entertainment Gaming Graveyard17:46 Unity Dumps IronSource23:22 Vector Versus AppLovin Scale26:35 Shutdowns And VR Reality Check30:46 Matthew Ball Metaverse Spat33:38 Embracer Wildland Canceled36:50 Merge Two Boom Explained42:29 Cards Drive Revenue Debate50:48 Cookie Run Franchise Bet56:50 Soft Launch Shooter Doubts01:00:22 Field Day Hands On Review01:06:06 Kress's Mobile Reality Rant01:10:16 Episode Wrap Up