✈️ Tarmac Trouble (But We’ll Be Back Soon!)
🛩️ UNBOXING is grounded this week––literally. Joost got stuck on the tarmac and couldn’t make it to the recording session. But don’t worry, we’ll be back next week ready to make up for lost time with a brand-new edition of Pod Friends! 🫂
In the meantime, enjoy our Greatest Hits of 2025 playlist to keep you company while we’re (briefly) taxiing 🛬
Greatest Hits of 2025 includes:
Oct. 17, 2025 - ESA’s Global Games Report Gets Graded
The ESA’s 2025 Global Games Report drops, and Laine + Joost have some thoughts.
Oct. 3, 2025 - The $55 Billion Question
EA acquired in a $55B Saudi-backed buyout––what this means both for the gay couple in The Sims and for our geopolitical landscape. PLUS: Xbox’s $1K handheld + what’s new at the Video Game History Foundation.
Sept. 19, 2025 - Back to School Pt. 2
The long awaited student gameplay survey results revealed. PLUS: WNBA playoffs & Mario turns 40!
Aug. 15, 2025 - More Game Gains and Platform Pains!
EA, Take-Two & Krafton earnings decoded. Updates on this summer’s top stories. PLUS: Find out who is throwing dildos at WNBA games and why!
July 25, 2025 - Do All Games Go to Heaven?
Apple delists a classic while the Stop Killing Games campaign returns. PLUS: Laine talks with Phil Salvador from the Video Game History Foundation.
June 13, 2025 - We’re Back, Baby
Laine & Joost are back—older, wiser, and slightly more disillusioned. They’re unpacking mass layoffs, market decline, & the end of the forever-growth fantasy. PLUS: Apple loses, Steam gets sued (again), and its another round of Laine vs. the ESA