It's still downtime for the industry at large, but we've finally got the new shiny toy of the summer!

Games

• 4:45 I Got A Nintendo Switch 2! (First Impressions)

• 22:10 Donkey Kong: Bananza (Nintendo Switch 2)

• 38:06 Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (PS5)

• 59:22 Deltarune Chapter 3 + 4 (PC, PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2)

News

• 1:08:43 Microsoft concedes that 'The Outer Worlds 2' retail price was too high — Xbox says it "will keep our full priced holiday releases at $69.99," with refunds incoming - https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/microsoft-concedes-that-the-outer-worlds-2-retail-price-was-too-high

• 1;16:30 Itch.io Deindexes Adult NSFW Content For Audit, Following Payment Processor Pressure - https://thisweekinvideogames.com/news/itch-io-adult-nsfw-content-audit-payment-processor-pressure/

ACLU Petition - https://action.aclu.org/petition/mastercard-sex-work-work-end-your-unjust-policy

Change Petition - https://www.change.org/p/tell-mastercard-visa-activist-groups-stop-controlling-what-we-can-watch-read-or-play?recruiter=534283124&recruited_by_id=f5e897e0-0dbd-11e6-b2f9-87759c39a558&utm_source=share_petition&utm_campaign=share_petition&utm_term=psf_combo_share_initial&utm_medium=copylink&utm_content=cl_sharecopy_490659394_en-US%3A8

• 1:24:12 Let’s All Read A Shitty Video Game Press Release Together - https://aftermath.site/lollipop-chainsaw-game-reboot-anime-woke-nonsense-dei-back-in-my-day

Star Picks

• Superman (2025)

• Exit 8 | Official Trailer - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=emZZexEJO8c

My Bluesky: ⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/daraaraa.bsky.social⁠⁠

Star Post Bluesky: ⁠⁠https://bsky.app/profile/starpost.bsky.social⁠⁠

Learn More About the BDS Boycott of Xbox: ⁠⁠https://www.bdsmovement.net/microsoft⁠⁠

Rollin at 5 Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License⁠⁠http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

After all of the negative news last week, it's time to celebrate the best that the industry has had to offer this year so far

News

• 5:40 A Quick Mention of the Krafton and Unknown Worlds Controversy

• 10:29 Lobbying Group Says Stop Killing Games' Petition Would Make Games "Prohibitively Expensive To Create" - https://www.gamespot.com/articles/lobbying-group-says-stop-killing-games-petition-would-make-games-prohibitively-expensive-to-create/1100-6532989/

• 20:03 Circana Report for May 2025 - https://bsky.app/profile/matpiscatella.bsky.social/post/3ltjuopr2jc2j

• 29:44 Ghost Of Yōtei Has New Director Modes Inspired By Miike And Watanabe And Lots, Lots More - https://www.gameinformer.com/2025/07/10/ghost-of-yotei-has-new-director-modes-inspired-by-miike-and-watanabe-and-lots-lots-more

Games

• 40:42 Games I haven’t gotten to/ played enough of 

• 46:00 Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

• 53:30 Fantasy Life i: The Girl Who Steals Time (PC, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

• 1:00:58 Formless Star (PC)

• 1:05:19 The Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy (PC, Nintendo Switch)

• 1:17:37 Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii (PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

• 1:23:00 Lost Records: Bloom & Rage (PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

• 1:33:26 Promise Mascot Agency (PC, Nintendo Switch, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

• 1:40:07 South of Midnight (PC, Xbox Series X/S)

• 1:44:39 Split Fiction (PC, Nintendo Switch 2, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

Star Picks:

Summer Games Done Quick (forgot this one last week) - https://gamesdonequick.com/

PlayStation Needs Ghost of Yōtei - Delayed Input - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZyzsUwfPqM

 FORMLESS STAR is a Weird & Tender Creature Collector - Quick Look https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HYbUeCKk5RU

My Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/daraaraa.bsky.social⁠

Star Post Bluesky: ⁠https://bsky.app/profile/starpost.bsky.social⁠

Learn More About the BDS Boycott of Xbox: ⁠https://www.bdsmovement.net/microsoft⁠

Rollin at 5 Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License⁠http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

It's a bad week for the industry as Xbox lays off employees, cancels projects, and closes studios run by industry veterans.

News

• 2:46 Switch price increase announced for Canada - https://www.gematsu.com/2025/06/switch-price-increase-announced-for-canada

• 7:54 Nintendo confirms Donkey Kong Bananza is being made by the Mario Odyssey team - https://www.eurogamer.net/nintendo-confirms-donkey-kong-bananza-is-being-made-by-the-mario-odyssey-team

• 14:55 Phil Spencer’s Memo to Staff About Upcoming Microsoft and Xbox Layoffs - https://insider-gaming.com/phil-spencer-message-to-staff/#:~:text=Insider%20Gaming%20has%20been%20provided,impact%20colleagues%20across%20our%20organization

• 23:22 Sources: Everwild has been cancelled as Xbox layoffs hit Rare - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/sources-everwild-has-been-cancelled-as-xbox-layoffs-hit-rare/

• 27:13 Microsoft is closing down Xbox studio The Initiative, with Perfect Dark killed as well — joining Everwild and ZeniMax's new IP, and other unannounced projects - https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/microsoft-is-closing-down-xbox-studio-the-initiative

• 31:44 Xbox Executives Were Blown Away by an Upcoming Game. Then They Canceled It - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/newsletters/2025-07-03/microsoft-s-xbox-cancels-blackbird-an-upcoming-game-that-impressed-executives

• 38:01 John Romero’s next FPS has lost funding in the wake of the Microsoft cuts - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/john-romeros-next-fps-has-lost-funding-in-the-wake-of-the-microsoft-cuts/

• 50:47 Hideo Kojima's "OD" is still in development with Xbox, at least for today - https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/hideo-kojimas-od-is-still-in-development-with-xbox-at-least-for-today

• 55:47 Halo Studios teases fans ‘won’t want to miss’ upcoming game event - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/halo-studios-teases-fans-wont-want-to-miss-upcoming-game-event/

• 1:01:14 PlayStation hit Helldivers 2 is officially coming Xbox with crossplay - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/playstation-hit-helldivers-2-is-officially-coming-xbox-with-crossplay/

  
  

  My Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/daraaraa.bsky.social

  Star Post Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/starpost.bsky.social

  BDS Movement: https://www.bdsmovement.net/microsoft

  Rollin at 5 Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Death Stranding 2 is finally here! Yet the horrors of industry layoffs persist...3:05 Little Nightmares III adds Switch 2 version, launches October 10 - https://www.gematsu.com/2025/06/little-nightmares-iii-adds-switch-2-version-launches-october-1011:22 Persona 4 Revival and STRANGER THAN HEAVEN due out after April 1, 2026 - https://www.gematsu.com/2025/06/persona-4-revival-and-stranger-than-heaven-due-out-after-april-1-202618:55 Brief Look at Resident Evil Requiem Gameplay Reveals First- and Third-Person Footage - https://www.ign.com/articles/brief-look-at-resident-evil-requiem-gameplay-reveals-first-person-footage28:27 Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds – SpongeBob SquarePants, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem, and Avatar Legends DLC announced - https://www.gematsu.com/2025/06/sonic-racing-crossworlds-spongebob-squarepants-teenage-mutant-ninja-turtles-mutant-mayhem-and-avatar-legends-dlc-announced34:36 Square Enix Will Make More Turn-Based Games and Recognizes Success of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 - https://insider-gaming.com/square-enix-will-make-more-turn-based-games-clair-obscur-expedition-33/’48:22 Microsoft planning ‘major’ Xbox layoffs next week - https://www.theverge.com/microsoft-xbox/691967/microsoft-xbox-layoffs-job-cuts-rumorAdditionally - https://bsky.app/profile/georgebsocial.bsky.social/post/3lsi27oqdos2f56:51 Nintendo-owned company worked on Death Stranding 2 - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/nintendo-owned-company-worked-on-death-stranding-2/1:00:11 Death Stranding 2: On the Beach Review Roundup - https://opencritic.com/game/18226/death-stranding-2-on-the-beach1:01:21 Death Stranding 2: On the Beach (PS5)1:19:39 Star PicksThe impossible (true) stories behind the making of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 (SkillUp) - https://youtu.be/mXLOLgC2V2Q?si=9PH-p6iK0rCzjb_bMy Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/daraaraa.bsky.socialStar Post Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/starpost.bsky.socialBDS Movement: https://www.bdsmovement.net/microsoftRollin at 5 Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 Licensehttp://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

Welcome to episode 1 of Star Post! Thank you for listening and for baring with me as we overcome some technical difficulties while the show begins.

• 3:49 Donkey Kong Bananza Direct: Every Announcement - https://www.nintendolife.com/guides/donkey-kong-bananza-direct-every-announcement-how-would-you-rate-it

• 10:35 It was the biggest console launch of all time, but was Nintendo Switch 2 a success for third-parties? - https://www.thegamebusiness.com/p/it-was-the-biggest-console-launch

Additionally - https://bsky.app/profile/kelslewin.bsky.social/post/3lrxrv3h7h222

https://bsky.app/profile/matpiscatella.bsky.social/post/3lrxzjgdngs2t

• 31:00 Prince Of Persia: The Sands Of Time Remake Shows Signs Of Life With Small Update - https://www.gameinformer.com/2025/06/16/prince-of-persia-the-sands-of-time-remake-shows-signs-of-life-with-small-update

• 36:06 So, how much will the Xbox Ally cost? Here are some thoughts on the rumors, and what I know so far. - https://www.windowscentral.com/gaming/xbox/so-just-how-much-will-the-xbox-ally-cost-heres-what-we-know-s

• 40:50 Microsoft’s next-gen Xbox has an AMD chip inside and is ‘not locked to a single store’ - https://www.theverge.com/news/688407/microsoft-next-gen-xbox-cloud-amd

• 45:40 Bungie has officially delayed Marathon: ‘Your voice has been strong and clear’ - https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/bungie-has-officially-delayed-marathon-your-voice-has-been-strong-and-clear/

Games

• 52:55 FBC: Firebreak (PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

• 1:06:56 Still Wakes the Deep: Siren’s Rest (PC, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

  1:13:46 Shadow Labyrinth Demo (PC)

• 1:20:40 Raidou Remastered: The Mystery of the Soulless Army (PC, Nintendo Switch, Nintendo Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S)

  
  

  My Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/daraaraa.bsky.social

  
  

  Star Post Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/starpost.bsky.social

  
  

  BDS Movement: https://www.bdsmovement.net/microsoft

  
  

  Rollin at 5 Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)
  Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License
  http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/