This was supposed to be the magnum opus for Sports Interactive; the moment Football Manager finally took a huge step forward as the definitive sports management simulation. Instead, it’s turned into the studio’s most damaging PR disaster in its 30-year history. Continue reading FM26 One step forward, a dozen steps back
I remember cold Saturday nights when I’d have to sit through Strictly Come Dancing because my mum wanted to watch it, and then she’d have to sit through Doctor Who because I wanted to watch that.
That kind of dynamic now feels almost foreign to those growing up today, and that’s really because the way we consume content has changed. Continue reading The death of the ‘family show’
Netflix expects to spend $18 billion on content in 2025, while Disney spent around $27 billion across all content in 2023, yet Netflix still maintains its streaming market leadership. Why? Continue reading How Netflix stays ahead| An introduction to G.S.M
On the weekend of the 6th, I travelled to Birmingham for the second edition of Vexpo, not just as a developing voice in the industry, but also as a fan. This was my first time attending and given how hard it’s been to find VTubing content or communities at other UK conventions, I wasn’t sure what to expect. Since returning from Japan, I hadn’t actually met any other VTubing fans in person. That’s why I was genuinely surprised and a little overwhelmed by the sheer turnout, with fans travelling from across the world to celebrate their favourite VTubers. The excitement started even before the con itself: on Friday night I met up with a group of fans, and although we didn’t have concert tickets, we crammed into a hotel room to watch it together. I ended up on the bathroom floor, but I wouldn’t have traded that moment for anything. Continue reading Vexpo 2025 – The current state of the Vtuber industry
The rise of AI was always going to bring fear over its potential to replace jobs ,but few expected creatives to be first on the menu. Yet here we are. Companies like Activision have openly admitted to using AI-generated content, chasing cheaper alternatives without realising that any money saved is dwarfed by the long-term damage being done to the industry. Continue reading Stop Replacing Creatives with AI. You’re Killing the Industry You Profit From.
It’s hard for anyone in the VTubing world to miss the recent collapse of VShojo, arguably the biggest story in the industry’s history. In the span of a single day, an entire agency was effectively wiped out, a fallout so severe it eclipsed even the damage caused by Selen Tatsuki’s termination from Nijisanji.
Of course, this didn’t happen overnight. The cracks have been showing for some time. Allegations have surfaced that prominent talents like Kson and Henya hadn’t been paid in nearly a year, and the company reportedly failed to deliver a promised $500,000 donation to Ironmouse’s iron deficiency charity.
So how did one of the most promising VTuber agencies end up imploding so dramatically? Continue reading The Collapse of VShojo
Star Wars Battlefront II had a rough launch in 2017. The game was heavily criticised for tying core gameplay progression to loot boxes and quickly became the industry’s tipping point for backlash against microtransactions.
Developer DICE eventually overhauled the progression system, making everything unlockable through gameplay. But the damage was done. EA’s reputation took a massive hit, and for many players, trust was broken.
It wasn’t until 2020 that Battlefront II ended its live service run not with a whimper, but with a final update that was widely praised by its community. In 2021, the game saw a surprising resurgence in players. Even more impressively, it broke its own peak player count twice in 2025.
So that begs the question: has EA earned back the goodwill and is it finally time for a Battlefront III?
Continue reading No, EA Probably Won’t Make Battlefront 3
If you’ve ever played a game that looked great on paper but just didn’t hit right, you’re not alone. Behind the scenes, game development teams use project management tools to plan and deliver games. One of the oldest and most common is the Iron Triangle a model that balances Time, Cost, and Scope (or sometimes Quality, depending on who you ask). Continue reading Why the “Iron Triangle” Doesn’t Work for Video Games
May marked a bit of a quiet period for Hololive, with a noticeable drop in both viewership and Super Chat revenue across the board. While the numbers dipped slightly, there were still some noteworthy moments, including Houshou Marine reaching 4 million YouTube subscribers, and the second chapter of Enigmatic Recollection continuing to build interest. Continue reading Holo Stats – May 2025
Age of Empires II has been a cornerstone of my gaming life.
It was a crucial part of my childhood and remains a title I keep coming back to, even decades later. Since the release of the Definitive Edition in 2019, we’ve seen several expansions breathe new life into this classic but the recent release of The Three Kingdoms promises to be the biggest update since The Conquerors, which came out over twenty five years ago.
As someone who plays Age of Empires II regularly and follows the game’s evolution closely, I wanted to share my thoughts on this new expansion, how it compares to those that came before, and whether it’s worth the £15 price tag. Continue reading Age of Empires 2: The Three Kingdoms, First Impressions
Tim Browne - Consultant and Researcher for Creatives 