The Games Press

Keza MacDonald is the video games editor for The Guardian and most recently, she's also the author of 'Super Nintendo: How One Japanese Company Helped the World Have Fun', a deep dive into the rich, creative history of one of gaming's most important companies.We recorded today's episode in front of a live audience as part of Keza's book tour which happened to swing through Brighton last month and if you can forgive some dodgy audio, I think there's a lot to get out of this conversation as we examine Nintendo and why it's lasted the test of time in this particular moment, as much of the Western games industry is on its knees.Support the show

Maddy Myers & Zoë Hannah just launched Mothership, a brand new site all about games, gender and identity. Their initial pitch promises a different kind of gaming publication "for her, them, and yes, him too", which feels surprisingly radical given the state of games coverage and, erm, the world, in 2026.In today's episode we discuss the retreat of feminist writing across the mainstream games media, whether "subscription fatigue" is a real concern for this new wave of independent outlets and how the pair feel about what happened to them at Polygon, a site they both quit following the mass layoffs that hit its editorial team after it was acquired by Valnet.Chris/Keza Interview in Brighton: https://luma.com/mkp59tcaSupport the show

Wesley Yin-Poole is in charge of the news desk over at IGN and has been reporting on the games industry for almost two decades at this point.He's also been a mentor of mine ever since our days working together at Eurogamer where he helped shape some of my very first stories, while he himself published some incredible work on the rise and fall of Lionhead Studios and its notorious co-founder, Peter Molyneux.Wes is one of the best games reporters in the business and I'm so happy to finally have him on the show.Support the show

Jason Schreier is a games reporter for Bloomberg, best known for his extensive reporting on the volatile reality of AAA game development.On today's episode we'll be talking about his latest book, Play Nice: The Rise, Fall, And Future of Blizzard Entertainment and the frankly horrifying number of interviews he needed to complete over the course of his reporting.Despite having a young baby to look after and exactly two and a half hours of free time each day (when said baby is soundly asleep upstairs), I devoured Jason's book in less than a week. It's very, very good. Let's talk about it!Support the show

Nicole Carpenter has been reporting on the games industry at Polygon for the last five years, where she's perhaps best known for her coverage of unions and the increasingly vital role they're playing in shaping the future of video game development.In fact, not only has she reported on this subject diligently over the last few years, she also wrote what is perhaps the defining piece of journalism on the subject: The Rise of the Video Game Union."....the type of journalism we're doing impacts people's lives in really tangible ways. And, you know, whether that's somebody we're writing about who did something bad, or people who are unionizing, or people who have been laid off. And that is a huge responsibility. And so it needs a certain level of investment and dedication and sometimes sacrifice to make sure you're doing your job, treating the work you're putting out, with the respect and care and responsibility it needs."Support the show

Grant Stoner is a freelance reporter who specializes in covering accessibility and disability across the games industry in his work.Among other work, he writes a monthly column for IGN where he recently examined how the mass layoffs ripping through the games industry have affected disabled game workers, in particular. This is a great example of why Grant's perspective is so necessary in the games media right now, shining a spotlight on an often overlooked area of games and the people who play and make them."They can't afford their medications, they've had to stop procedures, some person can't afford life-saving medication that they were only able to afford because of their insurance... So often, with accessibility, we see that 'oh, these studios are great, they really care about us', but this is the reality of being disabled, especially if you're in this industry."Support the show

Sarah Parvini was a games reporter at the LA Times until just a few months ago, having been among those who were hit by a staggering round of layoffs at the paper earlier this year. In fact, the publication is meant to have shed around 20% of its newsroom in one fell swoop. Journalism is in a rough state, folks.In this episode you'll hear guest host Nicole Carpenter talk with Sarah about what it's like reporting on the games industry for such an established publication and how she managed to approach her stories through the lens of California and Los Angeles in order to appeal to a regional audience."So, the video game industry layoffs, that's not something that is unique to California, but given the nature of California's importance to the video game industry it's something that I felt like we should be covering. And, it wasn't hard to find companies, unfortunately, that had laid people off here in California. And it's only getting easier everyday, right?"Support the show

Chelsea Reed Miller is a video editor for IGN and a spokesperson for the IGN Creators Guild, a brand spanking new union that's been officially recognized by IGN's parent company just a couple of months ago.In today's episode, you'll hear guest host Nicole Carpenter talk to Chelsea about what that means for people working at one of the biggest publications in the games media and why it's important to think about collective action before things start falling apart, if possible."The best time to unionize is when things are good. You want to unionize when you love your job, so you can make sure that those things that you really love about your job are codified. So that you can make sure that those things that you love are going to stay."Support the show

Exploring the career shifts of Quintin Smith from board games to TTRPGs, discussing the importance of understanding community passions. Delving into the creative process and challenges of video production, balancing humor and technical skills. Reflecting on the evolution of tabletop gaming media brands and the journey of authenticity in content creation. Expressing gratitude for opportunities and growth in the industry.

Stephen Totilo has been a games journalist for two decades now, making him one of the most experienced people in the field. His career spans a stint at MTV News as its first ever games reporter, nine years as Kotaku's Editor-in-Chief and until recently, he wrote a twice-weekly gaming newsletter for Axios.Today, Stephen is looking to strike out on his own with Game File, an independent newsletter published on Substack and funded directly by his audience."I have concerns about a younger generation of reporters finding a footing, coming up, because we are seeing in the elimination of a lot of these jobs, lesser opportunity for people who are still trying to make a name for themselves and do it in a way that is sustainable. But, what I see in aggregate is more outlets, right now, committed to covering games than I saw several years ago."Support the show