Reconnect Recap - w/e 7th December

A weekly recap of some of the best video game articles to feature on Reconnect.

Kia Ora folks

Well I went out and bought the ROG Ally Xbox handheld and I’m loving it as a great upgrade to the Steam Deck. Being able to play games like Destiny 2 and Outer Worlds 2 has really transformed my gaming experience. Sure Windows is horrible, but the work they have done to hide that garbage OS is very welcome and I’m really enjoying being able to play these more demanding games, and has me convinced I can now sell my rarely-used gaming laptop. I think I’m a handheld gamer for life now.

As always this is the Reconnect Recap, your weekly newsletter that aggregates all the amazing article to feature on Reconnect over the past week.

This week we’re….. ⚠️

Lets dig in.

Holiday Note: I’ll be taking a month off over the Xmas / New Year period and so the last Recap of the year will go out on the 16th of December, the first one of the 2026 will go out on the 20th of January.

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Great Write Ups

• Could have been the Game Boy killer: Time Extension has the story on how SEGA looked to dethrone the Game Boy with a planned follow up to the Game Gear.

• November Numbers: The GameDiscoverCo newsletter has the industry sales and play numbers for November.

• Tokyo Game Dungeon: Indie Tsushin visited Tokyo Game Dungeon 10 and has a great write up on some of the new indie titles shown off at the event.

• Girl Gamer: Atelier Gaming Verse has been diving into Women in gaming lately, and has given us her thoughts on the moniker of ‘Girl Gamer’.

• Back to Jak: The Video Game Storyteller has an existential crisis about LinkedIn messages and getting older whilst they reminisce about Jak II.

• Standing Alone: Super Jump Magazine gives their review of Ghost of Yotei and marvels at how it’s not trying to be the sequel to Tsushima.

• Getting Frosty: Frosty Game Fest is a dedicated space for Australian and Kiwi developers to showcase their games during the Summer Games Festival, let’s ignore the fact that it really doesn’t get frosty here. Multiplier has an interview with Amy Potter-Jarman, the founder of the Fest to learn more about the initiative.

• Dispatching some thoughts: Cat gives us their very in depth thoughts on Dispatch, a game I have heard so many things about. I think after reading Cats thoughts you can tell it was originally meant to be a show, and not a game.

• But do they get it?: It’s been six months since the Switch 2 launched, and as far as Nintendo is concerned, it’s a successful launch, but Infinite Lives muses on the future, as Nintendo still struggles with some core elements of being an ecosystem owner.

• AI AI OH: Trip Harrison says they stay clear of talking about AI, but 2000 words later they have put together quite a level headed explanation of how AI is impacting games.

• Bungie in trouble: I’ve written extensively over the years about Bungie, they have such an unfortunate run of bad luck marred with bad decisions, but as they struggle to keep Destiny 2 afloat (that Star Wars season is fun though) and ramp up towards Marathon, TWIV writes about how the writing may already be on the wall.

• Indie Christmas: Thinking of buying your loved ones some video games this year? Brando Calrissian has a indie xmas buying guide.

• Conquering Brazil: Many aren’t aware just how weird a gaming history Brazil has due to tariffs and certain laws. Time Extension has the story about how a small local toy company made SEGA a massive success in Brazil.

• Princess of the Night: For their final retro review of 2025, Scanlines dives back into Twilight Princess and explores that nostalgic feeling.

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Fun Tidbits

• N64 Cult Classic Body Harvest Is Now Available On Polymega

• “AI Is Gonna Eventually Eat Itself... Like When We Fed Cows With Cows And Got Mad Cow Disease”

• “I Do Have Some Regrets” - How The Creator Of Counter-Strike Gave Up A Money-Making Behemoth

• Pocket Codex Will Change The Way You Use Game Guides Forever

• The Modern FPS Classic ‘Dusk’ Is Getting A Retro-Inspired RPG Spin-Off

• The First Demo Of Pokémon New Frontiers Is Now Playable

• Turrican And Taito Collections Are Coming To Evercade

• I Waited Over A Year For These Dreamcast Trading Cards

• ModRetro’s M64 Console (& Controllers) Will Have Replaceable Shells

• A Fan Translation Patch Is In The Works For ‘Gunslinger Girl’, A PS2 Rail Shooter Based On The Popular Anime

• One Of The Rarest Sonic Arcade Cabinets In The World Is Going Up For Auction This Month

• GAMEKIDDY’s Next Handheld Could Be A GKD350H Remake

• Former Rare Designer Pranks Everyone With Doctored Fax From Miyamoto On Banjo-Tooie

• Sony to publish Bad Robot Games four-player shooter from Left 4 Dead creator

• Speculation For A New Chrono Trigger Game Rises After An Elusive Developer Interview

• Now You Can Smell As “Good” As Snake With These Official Metal Gear Solid Delta Toiletries

• Cancelled RPG Splatterworld Discovered After 32 Years & Now Has An English Translation

• Artist who had work “lifted” by Bungie for Marathon says matter is “resolved”

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