"They fucks!" — A podcast episode about GTA 6 pricing, Steam Deck hype, and the state of gaming

The episode opens with a confession: the hosts are hungover after a late night at a Chinese restaurant, where one of them ordered a large portion just so he could complain about getting a large when he wanted a small. This sets the tone for a loose, rambling conversation that touches on several major gaming news stories from the past week, held together by a shared sense that the industry is in a strange, expensive, and slightly alienating moment.

The GTA 6 pre-order circus

The conversation starts with the announcement of GTA 6 pre-orders. The base price is set at $99 for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S, with an "Ultimate Edition" at $119. The hosts are surprisingly measured about the price. One argues that "it's inflation and it's the world's biggest company making the world's biggest game — it will cost a bit." He points out that people pay 200 kronor for a two-hour movie without complaint, so a game offering hundreds of hours of content at 990 kronor is not unreasonable. The other host agrees, noting that games have been priced at 500–600 kronor for major releases since the 1970s, and that in 1992, games cost $74 for just five hours of content.