July 18, 2026

Ep. 019: Do Subscriptions Kill Sequels?

33 minutes

This week, we discuss the brutal reality of how Xbox Game Pass metrics might be quietly killing some of our favorite game sequels, using Avowed 2 as the prime example. Plus we'll take a look at the price jump expected for the Meta Quest 4, and dive into why the PS1 beat the N64 at courting developers!

Chapter Markers:

[00:00] - Cold Open Hook

[00:32] - Welcome to The Game Adventure

[01:21] - Industry News: PlayStation & Physical Media

[03:21] - Industry News: Xbox Restructuring & Layoffs

[04:21] - Industry News: Obsidian Shelves Avowed 2

[05:11] - Industry News: Microsoft Account Hack

[07:38] - Tech Update: Meta Quest 4 Rumors

[08:59] - Tech Update: NVIDIA RTX 5080 Slimline

[11:03] - Tech Update: Switch 2 Backwards Compatible Docks

[12:10] - Retro Rerun: New Handhelds & "Konkr"

[14:16] - Retro Rerun: PS1 vs N64 Capabilities

[16:30] - Retro Rerun: The 20-Year Retro Rule

[17:53] - Retro Rerun: Xbox Summer Sale & Sims 4 Autosaves

[19:36] - Dan's Cutscene Soapbox: Game Pass & Sequel Greenlights

[24:16] - The Game List: AAA Games (Halo, Star Wars, MGS)

[26:12] - The Game List: Subscription Additions (Game Pass & PS Plus)

[28:48] - The Game List: The Indie Minute (Big Walk)

[30:05] - The Game List: Family Games (Power Rangers)

[30:47] - The Game List: Parental Advisory (Dispatch)

[31:49] - The Game List: Castlevania Belmont's Curse Update

[32:18] - Outro & CTA

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