Aftermath

To celebrate Woke Week we’ve released an entire line of new merch devoted to the comeback. The line includes a t-shirt in two colours, a hoodie, a mug and a hat, all featuring ‘Woke 2’ as a familiar but legally distinct logo. Our shirts and hoodies are made by AS Colour, and for those wondering about global shipping rates, times and tariffs, each item ships from whichever warehouse is closest to you: T-Shirts: USA Hoodie: USA, UK & EU Mug: USA, UK, EU, Canada, Japan & Australia Hat: USA, UK, EU & Canada The proceeds of every sale go towards the running of this worker-owned website, so even if you’re not a reader or subscriber, buying a shirt or hat here really helps us out. Link in bio.

New website = sale time. New subscribers get their first month for just $1. Head to the link in bio to sign up!

#Games #journalism isn’t in trouble because of what websites like #Kotaku choose to publish. The problem is greedy, clueless bosses who meddle and lay people off even as sites succeed from a numbers standpoint. Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

Everyone is talking about Mixtape, an ode to the idea of nostalgia that nonetheless feels rooted in a very specific kind of white guy’s teenage experience. To many, this discourse seems like it came out of nowhere, but in truth, it’s a continuation of several interminable cycles that, by being in the wrong place at the wrong time, this game just happened to serve as a lightning rod for. There are multiple separate but overlapping Mixtape discourses unfolding, but at the risk of flattening the broader landscape, they break down more or less as follows: -Glowing reviews of the game and its Gen X-friendly soundtrack on traditional websites like IGN and GameSpot. -In reaction to those reviews, a series of wildly divorced-from-reality conspiracy theories on Twitter and YouTube about how Mixtape is an “industry plant” that sprang from the scheming hands of Megan Ellison, daughter of hyper-conservative multibillionaire tech and media magnate Larry Ellison. -Game critics and game developers debating the game’s merits via blogs and Bluesky, often with a focus on the role of games criticism and Mixtape’s universalization of what largely turns out to be the wistful sights and sounds of a specific race/class background. -Players of Mixtape reviewing it on platforms like Steam, where 89 percent of user reviews are currently positive despite all the noise surrounding it. Drive-by arguments around the game and the ills it supposedly represents have given rise to posts and videos with millions of views. Mixtape is, against all odds—given that it’s an indie-coded game that aspires more to vibes than groundbreaking mechanics or any sort of genre-redefining experience—the talk of the town. But today’s internet is more fragmented than ever, so the Mixtape discourse is really more like dozens of towns, each with their own dialects steeped in unspoken histories, screaming past each other in an attempt to finally pin down Where It All Went Wrong. In other words, it’s another week in the video game industry. Link to full story in bio.

Double Fine, the #Microsoft-owned studio behind #Psychonauts and, more recently, experimental fare like Keeper and Kiln, is set to #unionize, per a petition filed to the National Labor Relations Board. The petition, filed May 7, says that like other Microsoft games division studios that have unionized to date, Double Fine workers are making their unionization push in conjunction with Communications Workers of America (CWA). The union will include all “regular part-time and full-time employees”—a total of 42. Link to full story in bio.

#StarFox looks weird in the new #Switch2 game #Nintendo surprise-announced this week. That’s indisputable. But maybe he’s… always looked kinda funky? Maybe that’s just part of who he is Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

For those still waiting to get a #SteamController of their own—which is probably a lot of you, considering how quickly it sold out—here’s some #Steam Controller ASMR. Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

After years of big spending, #Saudi money is suddenly leaving sports like #golf, and with a deal to purchase #EA still not finalized, the #games industry seems likely to feel the impact as well. How bad could things get? Really bad. Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

The discourse around #Capcom’s #Pragmata has taken a turn for the bizarre, with some deeming it “pro-natalist propaganda.” This is comically wrong on multiple counts. For one, the game is about being an uncle, not a dad. Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

Thank you @eyezehuhh and @aftermathdotsite for this incredible article. I answer questions and always worry that I won’t be able to get exactly what I want to say from my brain to my mouth. It was great talking to you, and I appreciate you listening and giving me the chance to voice my thoughts on my characters’ storyline and perspective in both my and @drono ’s book, Oh Tal! not Today., and on The Pitt. I appreciate it so much.

People often say they want shorter games, but do they really? After all, games cost money, and when push comes to shove, many prefer maximum bang for their buck. This is a dilemma for modern game developers like #DosaDivas director @ekanaut , who aren’t just competing with other games, but also #Netflix, #TikTok, streamers, and numerous other entertainment options. Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.

What’s the point of politicians amassing power if they’re never gonna spend it, asks @kabughazaleh . Why aren’t they the ones putting their reputations and, if need be, bodies on the line? Why claim to represent your constituents if you’re not willing to stick your neck out for them? Aftermath Hours is the weekly podcast of Aftermath, a worker-owned, reader-supported website about games and the internet. You can listen to the full episode on Apple, Spotify, or wherever else you get your podcasts.