Review embargoes and next-generation sweat

This week on the podcast, Rebekah, Matt and Brendan are joined by new regular guest Mike Williams, of former GamesIndustry.biz and current USGamer fame.  In lieu of an formal E3 event this year, Electronic Arts went ahead with its own branded online presser, EA Play. Depending on who you ask, the show was either an exciting glimpse into what the publisher has to offer in the coming years, or a lacklustre display will little of note.  But the publisher, which has long held onto dreams of its own highly-lucrative and DRM-riddled digital storefront, announced it was backtracking on the idea and would return to Steam. Combined with a renewed focus on the Nintendo Switch, there’s a lot of change afoot at EA.  Finally, The Last of Us Part may have been met with critical acclaim, but the discussion of the game was tainted somewhat by highly restricted review embargoes.  Sony forced reviewers to remain tight-lipped on certain story elements which turned out to be a controversial move given the content and Sony’s marketing approach.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices