{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Episode 208: GameStop is Neither Credible nor Attractive (News Show)","description":"Between GameStop and Ryan Cohen\u2019s clownery and new Xbox leadership\u2019s 100-day death march, it\u2019s another grim moment for the game industry. Former OpenAI head (now Xbox CEO) Asha Sharma laments the hardware crisis caused by\u2026 AI. We\u2019re all trying to find the guy that did this, after all. Look\u2026 Sharma is no doubt a sin eater, but as she perches herself on the glass cliff, how many people will suffer? Also: Ubisoft attempts to embargo news of studio closures and layoffs, Destiny 2 rides into the sunset, and\u2026 it\u2019s earnings time, so we get to talk about why profits don\u2019t save jobs. You can support Virtual Economy\u2019s growth via our&amp;nbsp;Ko-Fi&amp;nbsp;and also purchase&amp;nbsp;Virtual Economy merchandise! TIME STAMPS  [00:10:24] - Circana Report on U.S. Video Game Spending for April 2026 [00:21:33] - Sony FY2025 Consolidated Financial Results&amp;nbsp; [00:27:34] - Sega Consolidated Financial Results for FY2025-26 [00:31:20] - Nintendo Consolidated Financial Results for FY2025-26 [00:39:02] - Nintendo\u2019s Ongoing Patent Lawsuit Hits Another Snag [00:42:17] - Square Enix Consolidated Financial Results for FY2025-26 [00:45:37] - Capcom Consolidated Financial Results for FY2025-26 [00:51:01] - Embracer Group Financial Results for Q4 and Full Year FY2025-26 [00:53:21] - Take Two Financial Results for Q4 and Full Year FY2025-26 [01:05:52] - Investment Interlude [01:16:21] - Quick Hits [01:35:24] - Labor Report    SOURCES   FY2025 Consolidated Financial Results | Sony Sony raising prices on PS Plus | PlayStation on Twitter  Sony Is Being Sued For Allegedly Retaining \u2018Substantial Windfall\u2019 Generated By \u2018Illegal\u2019 Tariffs | Kotaku Consolidated Results for the Years Ended March 31, 2025 and 2026 | Nintendo Notice Regarding Price Revisions for Nintendo Products and Services | Nintendo  Nintendo\u2019s Ongoing Pok\u00e9mon Patent Lawsuit Takes Another Hit | Kotaku  Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2026 | Sega Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2026 | Square Enix Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended March 31, 2026 | Capcom  Embracer Group publishes Interim Report Q4 | Embracer Group  Opinion: Lars Wingefors is out of his mind | Game Developer  Take-Two Interactive Software, Inc. Reports Results for Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2026 | Take-Two  INVESTMENT INTERLUDE   eBay Rejects Unsolicited Proposal from GameStop | eBay  GameStop increases stake in eBay to more than 6% | Reuters Sensor Tower acquires AppMagic | GamesIndustry Tekken director Katsuhiro Harada is back, but this time at his own studio backed by old fighting game rival SNK | Eurogamer  Indika dev Odd Meter raises $5m to fund next project | GamesIndustry  LABOR REPORT   Xbox Plans Significant Layoffs as It Transforms Under New CEO | Bloomberg (Paywall)  Bungie Plans Layoffs After Ending \u2018Destiny 2\u2019 Development | Bloomberg (Paywall)  2K lays off staff working on free-to-play shooter Project Ethos, while hinting at &quot;new direction and focus&quot; | GamesIndustry  Report: WWE 2K26 dev Visual Concepts is laying off staff | Game Developer  Last Flag studio lays off staff as game from Imagine Dragons brothers misses targets | GamesBeat  MercurySteam &quot;initiates a workforce adjustment process&quot; | GamesIndustry  Alliance Studios to close after 7 years of creating branded experiences within Fortnite | GamesBeat  Team17 has laid off members of its marketing and communications department | Game Developer  Merge Mansion dev Metacore lays off 159 employees, closes studios in Germany and Sweden | GamesIndustry  Embracer-owned VR developer Vertigo Games closes Amsterdam studio | Game Developer  Ubisoft is shutting down its Winnipeg studio | Mobile Syrup  Ubisoft closing Winnipeg and Belgrade studios and making further layoffs | Game Developer  Pok\u00e9mon Go Scans Quietly Trained the Navigation Tech Now Headed Into Military Drones | Drone XL  Double Fine is the latest team at Microsoft to unionize | PC Gamer  ","author_name":"Virtual Economy","author_url":"https:\/\/www.virtualeconcast.com","html":"<iframe title=\"Libsyn Player\" style=\"border: none\" src=\"\/\/html5-player.libsyn.com\/embed\/episode\/id\/41625475\/height\/90\/theme\/custom\/thumbnail\/yes\/direction\/forward\/render-playlist\/no\/custom-color\/88AA3C\/\" height=\"90\" width=\"600\" scrolling=\"no\"  allowfullscreen webkitallowfullscreen mozallowfullscreen oallowfullscreen msallowfullscreen><\/iframe>","thumbnail_url":"https:\/\/assets.libsyn.com\/secure\/content\/202914090"}