Industry and creators
Studios, layoffs, streamers, brands and the decisions that explain what happens around games.
The business and its personalities, with context and without pretending every controversy matters equally.READING ROUTE
THE DOSSIER
Start here and follow the story.
01OPENGaming dictionary: the terms everyone uses but nobody explains
From aggro to VRR through meta, proc and roguelite: a living glossary for understanding games and conversations without pretending you already knew.
02OPENWhat SBMM is and why so many players hate it
It is not a machine deciding that you must lose today. It finds roughly similar opponents, bringing genuine benefits at a cost players quickly feel.
03OPENHow to protect your Steam, PSN and Xbox accounts, and recover them if hacked
Secure the linked email account before protecting or recovering Steam, PlayStation or Xbox. If you detect an unfamiliar login, use a trusted device.
04OPENRoguelike or roguelite? The difference is what survives your death
Rogue, The Binding of Isaac and Hades all rebuild themselves after death, but they do not send the player back with the same empty pockets.
05OPENHoYoverse leaves anime behind for Nodusfall, a co-op hunt through broken mythology
HoYoverse switches gears with co-op action, powers taken from bosses and realistic fantasy. Its date, platforms and business model remain unknown.
06OPENVideo games are a money-making machine, but the industry no longer knows how to sell them
€80 games, subscriptions, battle passes and microtransactions. There have never been more ways to pay for gaming, yet none seems enough to sustain the industry that created them.
07OPENEA has Europe's approval: the Saudi-led $55 billion buyout faces one final test
EU regulators found no competition problem with the $55 billion deal. The consortium must still clear a separate review of PIF's state-backed financing.
08OPENThe Gaspi tribute at La Velada: his motto was 'give and don't get hit', and his mother came on stage to correct him
It happened on 25 July at La Cartuja. Ibai halted a show timed to the second so Michelle Díaz, the Argentine YouTuber's mother, could walk on, and while she spoke the gloves he fought in back in 2025 were still sitting on the commentary desk, with never a close-up on them.
09OPENMarta Díaz's sister took her hood off at La Velada and gained 200,000 followers that same night
She made her public debut during the ring walk on July 25, in front of eight million viewers. A day later, hundreds of thousands were following an account with a single post. Nobody has confirmed how old she is. She did nothing strange; the rest of us did.
10OPENLa Velada del Año VI, summed up: TheGrefg wins the main event, eight million watching and not a single record broken
The sixth edition of Ibai Llanos's blockbuster filled Seville's La Cartuja on July 25 with ten fights, concerts from Anuel AA and Bad Gyal, and an eight-million streaming peak. Spectacular, yes, but for the first time without outdoing itself.
11OPENWhat is gacha and why it's got you
Behind Genshin Impact, Star Rail and Wuthering Waves runs the same engine: 0.6% odds, currencies that disguise your euros and psychology tuned to the millimetre. This is how the system that has made billions works, and how to play it without it playing you.
12OPENBaldur's Gate 3 review, the RPG masterpiece that plays slow and remembers every choice
In 2023 Larian made one of the best RPGs ever, and time has only deepened that feeling. It's huge, wildly free and reactive to a frightening degree. It's not for those in a hurry, but give it time and nothing compares. Our first ten, and thoroughly earned.
12 of 21 stories showing