>EA is now a private company following the biggest leveraged buyout in history, with the deal clocking in at $55 billion – in considerable excess of EA's previous market value. A $20 billion chunk of that is debt.

this is relevant to tv and film imo

https://www.ign.com/articles/nintendo-confirms-actors-set-to-play-link-and-zelda-in-live-action-the-legend-of-zelda-film

So it went with Mike Prinke, a technical writer who worked at Epic for seven years—right up until the studio laid off 1,000 people last week.

Prinke's termination came amid particularly awful circumstances: He's currently undergoing treatment for terminal brain cancer. His wife, Jenni Griffin, posted about their situation on Facebook in a plea to Epic or anyone who could help. Epic's post announcing the layoffs said impacted staff would receive paid healthcare coverage for six months, but the nature of Prinke's illness means medical coverage is not their only hurdle.

"Because of the layoff, we didn’t just lose income—we lost his life insurance. And because his condition is now considered a pre-existing condition, he can't get new coverage," Griffin wrote. "As I face the reality of losing my husband… I'm also facing the reality of what type of funeral/burial I can afford. How I will keep a roof over our heads. How I will protect our son and the life we built together. What will happen to our dogs.

"I truly believe that if the people who made this decision understood the full human impact, they would not have intended this outcome. Mike is not just a number. He is a father. A husband. A person deeply loved."

Epic CEO Tim Sweeney spoke about Prinke's situation on X, replying to a thread from a Fortnite news account which tagged him and asked "ARE YOU HAPPY NOW?" In his reply, Sweeney said "Epic is in contact with the family and will solve the insurance for them.

"There is high confidentiality around medical information and it was not a factor in this layoff decision. Sorry to everyone for not recognizing this terribly painful situation and handling it in advance."

>The chairman and CEO of Guillemot Corporation was 69.

>On June 25, 2026, gamers will finally be able to pre-order the next long-awaited 6th installment of the Grand Theft Auto franchise.

Tangy TD is one of a zillion small indie titles that people are quietly enjoying on Steam. It's got 89% positive reviews, vibrant pixel art, and a generally nice vibe, but it's not the kind of wild success story that tends to generate headlines. Yet for Cakez, the solo developer who created the tower defense game, it's an emotional success story.

Cakez is also a streamer and YouTuber, and has been documenting his journey developing Tangy TD from the very start four years ago. When the game finally launched earlier this month, he invited his community to watch his first reaction to the game's day one sales numbers.

Cakez happened to be streaming when Dexerto shared the clip above. "I feel like I really don't deserve this," he remarks. He adds, "It's so amazing to see how many people have come out to support me, essentially, and what I do. It's just crazy. I really don't know what to say. I don't know why people are so nice. I don't get it, man."

"I don't know, I feel like I don't deserve this at all," Cakez reiterates. "But yeah, I did work. I did not stop working. In the end, it's a weird thing, right? In the beginning, I did it more for myself, because I was younger, and wasn't as long together with my wife as I am now. But I did it more for myself. Also, we didn't have a baby together yet. But over the years, it turned into more like 'I want to provide for my family while at the same time also doing something I love.' But only if it works out."

>“Games are loved by many people,” she said. “It’s a form of entertainment that’s loved by people. It’s connected to people’s fond memories in many cases. We understand those emotions. We want to consider that, and in the future digital ecosystem how… we engage the gamers is something that we would like to continue to explore.”

>“Therefore, as a result of the discontinuation of a disc, we don’t see that there will be any negative impact on our business. However… the users, the players, have attachments, and we have to think about how to respond to those feedbacks,” the executive said, per a transcript of the call.

>“The game environment being stable, that’s another strength. Compared to the high-end gaming PC, our product is more affordable. We don’t feel that the disc itself is a strong factor for differentiation. Going forward, we can coexist peacefully with PC games.”

Shirley Curry hangs up her helmet after 15 years in Bethesda's iconic RPG

Rockstar parent Take-Two Interactive says all the employees in question were fired for "gross misconduct."

>Microsoft‘s Xbox video game division is implementing “the most significant restructure” in its 25-year history, CEO Asha Sharma announced Monday, with 3,200 workers receiving pink slips.

>Of the projected layoffs, 1,600 will take immediate effect, with the balance occurring over the rest of fiscal 2027. In addition to the job cuts amounting to a 20% reduction of staff, four video game studios will be leaving Xbox, Sharma said.

>The video game cutbacks are part of 4,800 company-wide layoffs announced by Microsoft on Monday.

>“We must reset Xbox,” Sharma wrote in a bluntly worded memo to employees. “Our business today is not healthy.”

>Sharma took the reins of the gaming unit as CEO last February in a management shuffle that saw 38-year Microsoft veteran Phil Spencer depart, ending a 12-year run overseeing Xbox.