#43: Microsoft x Bethesda, Naughty Dog Rumors, and Activision-Blizzard Layoffs

The Mash Those Buttons Show

Jarret and Nick are back after an unexpected week off (sorry about that!) to talk about the latest video game news! First, Nick talks about how he busted open his PS4 and cleaned out some dust for the first time in years. Meanwhile, Jarret has been addicted to Mini-Metro and moving people around that subway line.
Microsoft's acquisition of Bethesda was finally approved and to celebrate the two (one?) companies put several Bethesda games on XBox GamePass as well as updated several games to take advantage of the XBox Series X. It was also revealed that some games would be held as Xbox/PC exclusives, a move which shocked some people but not Nick. The duo debate which games could be held as exclusives and Nick argues this could be a larger chip in Microsoft's negotiating with Sony to get xCloud on the Playstation platform. Jarret is concerned that the costs would be too high.
Several games including Overwatch were updated to allow for better performance on the XBox Series X/S, but not on the Playstation 5. Jarret points out that the XBox platform is easier to develop for, and this could lead to more games for the XBox to come, while Nick talks about how developers may be planning for updates and refreshes in the future.
Some Naughty Dog rumors were recently making the rounds. The Uncharted: Chronicle Edition will expand on Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection by including Uncharted: Golden Abyss which was a PS Vita only game. Also, The Last of Us 2 will be getting Abby focused DLC and multiplayer.
Halo Infinite is coming and several details about the game were announced. Jarret runs through them and why he is concerned that the arena-shooter qualities that made Halo such a great franchise are being lost.
The Last of Us tv show is coming and the guys talk about how the show will differ in some ways greatly from the game. They talk about how content doesn't necessarily transfer across media, and that the game's focus on action would need to change for a multi-episode tv show.
FInally, they get into the recent Activision-Blizzard layoffs. They talk about the company changing to meet different market demands, and while they are sympathetic towards the employees laid off, they acknowledge that this is normal for a company to do. They discuss the timing of Bobby Kotick's $200 million bonus and admit that the timing of the bonus is bad.
Episode URL: https://mtb.gg/2px
Show Twitter: twitter.com/themashnetwork

Hosts:
Jarret Redding
twitter.com/jaastradamus
Nick Zielenkievicz
twitter.com/WookieeBH

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