This Week in Games

Tariff Woes and A New Splatoon

Welcome back, folks! I got blindsided by Speed Racer's 4K remaster being released in theaters this week. I'm long overdue for a rewatch of that movie; it's wild and a billion miles a minute, but a phenomenal example of a live-action cartoon and a visual masterpiece otherwise. It makes me happy to live in a time where people have come around on Speed Racer, and I hope to live in an era where IMAGI Studios' Astro Boy gets similarly re-evaluated (its depiction of Dr. Tenma has only been surpassed by the Pluto anime, in my opinion).

Shūhei Yoshida Says He Was "Fired," Implicates Jim Ryan

Shūhei Yoshida's name is a big deal within Sony, considering he has been with the company since they started the PlayStation project back in 1993. His name is in the credits as Producer or Executive Producer for many of the PlayStation's biggest and earliest hits like Spyro the Dragon, Gran Turismo, Crash Bandicoot, and Legend of Dragoon. And he abruptly left the company as of 2025. We've discussed Yoshida's relationship with Sony in the past; he had previously said that his transition to Sony's Indies section was a matter of "had no choice," and that it was either "do [the indie job] or leave the company." But it looks like it came to that anyway, in the end; at the recent Australian game festival ALT:GAMES, he confirmed he was fired from Sony by then-president Jim Ryan.

Said Yoshida, "Jim Ryan wanted to remove me from first-party because I didn't listen to him. He asked to do some ridiculous things, and I said 'No.'" Ryan didn't specify what those ridiculous things were, but the wake of Ryan's term as CEO of Sony Entertainment Interactive paints a... well, I can't call it a "pretty" picture, but it paints a picture. Ryan's term as CEO was one where Sony didn't put out a lot of games; while there were a handful of major tentpole releases, like the God of War duology, the Spider-Man games, and the two Horizon games, there were also a slew of live-service games (no fewer than twelve) being worked on. And many of them never even made it to market. And Yoshida has commented before on his resistance to Sony's push for live-service games. Most damning of all was the runaway success of Astro Bot on the PlayStation 5; outside of a DLC pack, the game hasn't seen a follow-up in any meaningful capacity, leaving people with a mostly abandoned PlayStation 5. And folks weighing the purchase are only finding the prospect even harder, what with the PlayStation 5 getting a price hike.

What hurts about this is how much of a slap to the face it feels like, not just towards someone who's been vouching for your work and your company literally since Day 1, but for people invested in your output and in the stuff you make. I hate the console wars (as much as I sound like I cheerlead for Nintendo, I have my issues with some of their decisions, and I absolutely loathe glazing them blindly). With that said, I understand the sentiment that leads people to be so emotionally attached to these consoles and their parent companies, and I don't think it's entirely a result of having spent money on consoles. It's because their games matter to people, man. I can joke about the Xbox being the Halo machine all day; some people grew up playing Halo with their close buddies. I look at people like James Caddick (alias Caddicarus) and how they grew up with the Crash Bandicoot games or with European exclusives like Nightmare Creatures, and I get it. And part of loving these games is loving the folks behind them; Oddworld is Lorne Lanning's baby. Soul Reaver and Uncharted are nothing without Amy Hennig's writing. So when you've got a guy like Yoshida, and you learn that they got the boot not just for taking a moral stance but for taking a stance in the name of pride in what they do, it's plain heartbreaking.

I can't doom-and-gloom over Sony; their gaming wing is just a small part of a much larger multinational corporation. And interesting projects are coming in through the pipes, many of them from Hideo Kojima. But I hope that ship gets righted. I can't help but feel that someone like Yoshida at the helm could've helped. Hopefully, Sony can find someone like that in their ranks.

Toei Establishes Gaming Studio

Toei has been a major name in Japanese entertainment for a very, very long time. They handle many major anime licenses that you have heard of (Dragon Ball, One Piece, Pretty Cure, to name a few), in addition to live-action stuff like Kamen Rider. So the news that they're finally breaking into games might be surprising, but it's also been a long time coming. If anyone had the resources to do so, it's them.

Their press release is fairly standard, detailing Toei's long history of storytelling and their desire to push storytelling into other media. Toei Games will start small, releasing new IP on Steam and eventually moving onto consoles. There's also a great deal of pride put into the logo—but then again, it's Toei. Their traditional logo is as embedded in Japanese culture as the Warner Bros. shield or the 20th Century Fox fanfare is in the United States. (Or, if we wanted to be cool, Bandai EMOTION's logo.) At the time of writing, Toei Games hasn't announced its first project; that will come this April 24th, so we'll have news of that by the time this column goes live.

There's a bit of trepidation over this, since all of the many IP Toei licenses are ripe for game adaptations—and mostly get games produced by Bandai Namco, the other massive juggernaut in Japanese entertainment. So far, there's nothing to report on that front; Toei Games insists that they'll be focusing on "new IP" for the time being. While I can definitely see Toei handling their own games without Bandai in the future, that's contingent on Toei getting the developers, personnel, supply chains, and public support that could rival Bandai. Granted, there's a ton of talent in Japan that is currently unemployed, courtesy of Tencent and NetEase cutting off so many of their Japanese studios. But in the meantime, I don't expect, say, a new Kamen Rider game or a new Pretty Cure game to come out for a bit. (More's the pity...)

Hopefully, they remember to actually release this stuff outside of Japan. That they have their press release translated into so many languages inspires hope (nothing in French or Spanish, though). More to follow.

Nintendo Finally Unveils Splatoon Raiders

It's been a bit since Nintendo last made their announcement of Splatoon Raiders, their upcoming Splatoon spin-off. Then again, it's been a while since Nintendo has said much of anything—in a Nintendo Direct, that is. A lot of people were sure we'd get a Direct in January, then February, then March... and they're still waiting, because while Nintendo has held a Partners Showcase, a Pokémon Presents, and a short Direct for the final Super Mario Bros. Galaxy Movie, they haven't had a "proper" Nintendo Direct since September of last year. Much of their news has simply been released piecemeal on their Nintendo Today app on Tuesday mornings, to the absolute surprise of everyone. This suits me just fine. Nintendo Directs used to be fun, but between people on the Internet doing everything they could to leak info early to the absolutely pants-on-head way people acted about Directs, the whole thing became a pain in the butt. People don't want a Direct because they want announcements; they want a Direct because "Nintendo always hosts a Direct on [insert month here]." They're not watching for the myriad games being announced, be they ports of cult-classics like Legend of Mana or Panzer Dragoon or new titles like Triangle Strategy or Farmagia, they're fast-forwarding to the ending to see if the "one last surprise" is a new Mario, Metroid, or Zelda game being announced—and then complaining when it's not because "nothing got announced." The "surprise" inherent to the format went completely to pot when people would throw tantrums at Nintendo because an Animal Crossing Direct wouldn't reveal a new Smash Bros. character, or a Zelda Direct wouldn't reveal any info on Metroid Prime 4: Beyond, leading to every announcement of a Direct needing to be punctuated with the disclaimer of what wouldn't be discussed. Nintendo Directs stopped being about what they actually announced; they became lightning rods for complaints on what wasn't announced. That, and Nintendo's few livestreams getting inundated with angry chatters spamming "DROP THE PRICE" at them from people who thought every Nintendo Switch 2 title going forward was going to cost US$90, likely left them wanting to insulate themselves as much as possible. I miss Nintendo Directs, but I don't blame Nintendo for not returning to the format. It was fun until it wasn't, and the plainly weird reactions Nintendo elicits in so many vocal gamers online (dubbed "Nintendo Derangement Syndrome") didn't help, especially with how bad it got once the Switch 2 was announced and released. Maybe we'll get a Zelda Direct this Summer, maybe it'll rain this weekend.

So, yeah, Splatoon Raiders.

We already knew Splatoon Raiders would be a single-player game, and that's been doubly confirmed; while later announcements revealed it would have both online and local co-op, the bulk of the experience is single-player. You'll play as an Inkling of your own design, using typical Splatoon-style ink-based weapons (squirt guns, giant paint rollers, and so on) as you explore a chain of islands overrun by the Salmonids. You'll hunt for treasure, as well as components that can be used to craft a variety of weapons; the trailer shows us an ink-powered axe that can be charged up for massive vertical or horizontal slashes, as well as a set of ink-powered tops that spin around you to deal damage-over-time to enemies. You also earn skills that you can equip to modify the properties of your attacks. This being Splatoon, your ink is still a major mechanic; as you mow down Salmonids, your ink colors the surrounding surfaces, which denote places you can sink into for easy traversal in your Squid form—or places where you can quickly recharge your ink.

A new twist revealed in the trailer is that the members of Deep Cut are also around to accompany you on your travels; Shiver, Frye, and Big Man will hop into a legged submersible to lend you back-up on your adventure. As fans have pointed out, the game appears to be a cross of the Splatoon modes Side Order and Salmon Run expanded into a full game, which is a neat idea—especially if you're someone who's been interested in Splatoon for a long time but turned away by the game's inherent multiplayer format.

We also have a release date announced for the game: July 23. Splatoon Raiders will also launch exclusively on the Switch 2, though I have to wonder if its co-op mode will allow for the Game Share function with a Switch 1, like Donkey Kong Bananza. According to the eShop page, Splatoon Raiders also has variable pricing: the physical version of the game will retail for US$60, while digital copies will retail for US$50. This is a new pricing scheme that Nintendo is trying out. We know that Yoshi and the Mysterious Book will also try it out. I know some folks see the pricing scheme as incentivizing digital copies over physical copies. I've always believed that digital copies should be cheaper in principle, given the lack of manufacturing. So this suits me just fine. We'll also get Amiibo of the Deep Cut crew; no word yet on what they unlock, but folks who love the Splatoon singers will likely want them to go alongside the Squid Sisters and Off The Hook.

Nintendo Sued for Tariff Refund

A few weeks ago, we reported on how Nintendo is suing the United States government (along with many other companies). Specifically, due to the United States Supreme Court finding President Trump's tariffs to be illegal, Nintendo (and other companies) are suing to be repaid what they have paid to satisfy the tariffs. News on that front is so far slow, as it would be; such cases don't resolve quickly. But they've now gotten a strange pseudosequel: now Nintendo is getting sued by two people from Washington, demanding that Nintendo return its earnings from the tariffs to its clientele.

The case being made by joint plaintiffs Gregory Hoffert and Parshant Sharan, as compiled by Nicole Carpenter writing for Aftermath, is that Nintendo's response to the tariffs was to increase the prices of its goods, which were then paid by people who bought Nintendo's products. With Nintendo suing the government, the plaintiffs argue that Nintendo stands to profit twice. As they argue in their suit, "The economic reality [...] is that importers like Nintendo did not ultimately bear all the costs of the tariffs. Instead, importers passed the elevated costs on to consumers in the form of higher retail prices." With Nintendo not making any motion to refund the public, the plaintiffs move to initiate a class-action suit to rectify that.

To be clear, I think this lawsuit is fair. Hoffert and Sharan are dead-on about the money; it'd be a nice show of goodwill on Nintendo's behalf to offer a rebate to its consumers who, say, bought Switch 2s during the tariffs. And I think that every company that had to struggle under the tariffs should also do that... which is where I frown because this feels like another weird case where Nintendo is getting singled out for something that Sony and Microsoft also did, to no criticism. Heck, if we want to get really pedantic, you can point to Nintendo doing everything they could to not raise prices on their flagship Switch 2, including raising the prices on Switch 2 accessories or raising prices on the Switch 1 variants. The case from Hoffert and Sharan argues that Nintendo in no way suffered from the tariffs... but considering Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa also underlined the global tariffs had impacted the first half of their fiscal years' earnings, plus the global RAM shortage being a potential issue, I don't think it's quite so cut-and-dry. I mean, sure, the multinational billion-dollar company ought to be nicer to the people buying its goods; people who have to pay US$340 for a Switch deserve something for their trouble. But I'd like to know what makes Nintendo so unique in this situation as opposed to Sony and Microsoft, who've also hiked the prices of their gaming consoles and gaming services (in addition to all of their other consumer goods not related to gaming).

Because Nintendo is getting singled out for this lawsuit, it feels like the ultimate extension of the aforementioned "DROP THE PRICE" madness that went on when the Switch 2's prices were revealed. And make no mistake: I hate Mario Kart World being worth US$80 as much as the next person. But also, note how Mario Kart World is the only Switch 2 game with that price. The hyperbole surrounding the Switch 2's price also made a lot of folks act like US$450 for the console was an outrage when the ballpark of US$400 had been floated for a theoretical Switch Pro for the preceding decade, and a not insignificant number of people were expecting, if not demanding, a 3DS-style price drop for the console upon release. Any of this could've been cheaper. I'm not a mark; I don't take pride in paying more money for stuff. But between Nintendo relocating much of its supply chain to Vietnam and Cambodia or Nintendo holding back the Switch 2 from release for a few months, you could make a solid argument that Nintendo acted in good faith to avoid raising its prices for a good chunk.

This feels like one of those weird bits where I genuinely worry if my wires are crossed because, at the heart of the matter, I think Hoffert and Sharan are on the money and in the right, but I also think every other major publisher should be held to task the same way, but aren't—especially since Sony and Microsoft hold sway over so many other markets. It's like how the topic of studios patenting game mechanics being a cardinal sin only ever gets brought up when it's revealed that Nintendo patented a mechanic, and not for the myriad times Bandai Namco, CAPCOM, Konami, or Sony, or Sega patent some specific mechanic. But I'm interested in seeing where the case goes.

Let's wrap up with some quick tidbits:

That'll do it for this week, I think. Projecting this now, so I can remember to do this next week (and you folks can hold me to it): I'll be discussing the Steam Deck! I got mine a few months back and have incorporated it into my gaming rotation, duties permitting. I'll report back with my findings... though to be honest, it took me entirely too long to figure out how to take screenshots on the blasted thing. Also, I'm feeling the itch in my palms, so expect some musings on the passage of fate in the near future—it won't take me nearly as long as my other trials have! Be good to each other. I'll see you in seven.

This Week In Games! is written from idyllic Portland by Jean-Karlo Lemus. When not collaborating with Anime News Network, Jean-Karlo can be found playing Japanese RPGs, eating popcorn, watching VTuber content, and watching tokusatsu. You can keep up with him at @ventcard.bsky.social.