Reconnect Recap, w/e 4th May - Pokemon Zoo meets NMS.

Connecting you to incredible games writing.

May 05, 2025

Kia Ora folks!

Welcome to another issue of the Reconnect Recap, the companion newsletter to the games writing discovery platform Reconnect. Here, I show off some of the coolest games articles to have been featured on the website in the past week.

It’s extremely important to be championing games writers during these very trying times. The situation with Polygon and Giant Bomb this week has many of the industry questioning, who's left? And where to next?

The answer is, independently funded media. No need for a big conglomerate to be running games writing, demanding that every article be viral. Instead we should be finding the voices that speak to us and listening.

If that author happens to have a paywall, consider subscribing at a paid tier, while it may feel weird to be paying for writing, when for the past twenty years its been mostly free, but for some of these writers its helping pay bills, put food on the table, or further their art form. If you believe in the written word, I strongly urge you, if you can afford it, to pass a couple of bucks to those whose words you love the most.

On a more personal note, If you like the website, Reconnect, can I ask that you share it in your social media circles? There has been a lot of chatter this week about how is games writing going to survive with all these layoffs and closures and whilst Reconnect isn’t the final answer, its a step in the right direction and despite all my efforts to advertise it, i’m not having the best of luck! Many thanks in advance!

Now, let’s get to the recap!

If you’re on Bluesky, I’ve made a starter pack so that you can follow all the Reconnect writers in one spot. Not 100% complete yet but I’ll keep adding to it.

The Recap

Thrilling Tales of Old Video Games has a fun article about a very-not-well-known character that has been showing up in multiple Nintendo titles.
Really enjoyed this weeks Newsletter from
The Video Game Library’s Substack
which featured a plethora of eye-catching literature, I don’t even know what Shinkigensha is, but these books look cool.
RetroDodo brings us another new Game Boy Color game, a pirate RPG with rhythm game elements, compatible with original hardware or any of those new fan dangled devices.
Big Nerd Gaming gives us their thoughts on last week’s release of Clair Obscur: Expedition 33.
Good Game Lobby
walks us through a different kind of game, a world-sim where all you do is visit awesome places and learn to take better photos. Like Pokemon Zoo but in No Mans Sky.
According to Time Extension, a fan has taken it upon themselves to make their own Altered Beast sequel.
SuperJoost Playlist
explains why AAA development budgets are spiralling out of control.
Console Creatures uncover which anime heavily inspired Yoko Taro’s Nier series of games.
The Boss Level
explains why a certain Street Fighter character is the perfect embodiment of Stoicism.
Game Wisdom imparts some wisdom I definitely wasn’t going to try to understand by myself, how rare CS:Go skins work and their impact on the games economy.
GameDev Reports
has the mobile numbers for April, and just one look at the amount of downloads these games get should be enough to explain why mobile gaming is such a juggernaut.
Super Jump Magazine gives us their thoughts on a new point-and-click time travel game.
The Video Game Storyteller
talks about their favourite story in Live-A-Live, which is a game I adored, primarily because it was a handful of short games. Felt like an indie bundle pack.
Push to Talk
walks us through the hilarity of the Blue Prince’s steam reviews.
Ramin Shokrizade’s Game and Dating App Economics Substack
explains why game design is worsening in quality in the AAA space, and when that’s expected to change.

Something Extra

Whilst reading this weeks edition of Installer, by the Verge, they mentioned this four player co-op RPG where you and your friends can play from your phones. It’s called Sunderfolk and I’m always on the lookout for a fun game to play co-op with my partner and so i’ve filed this away for a future gaming session with my partner in crime.