iiinova — where your digital self keeps evolving

Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

What we need is more people with influence (say and Australian YouTuber/games writer with a decent following for instance) to push for EU and UK gamers to request their parliaments discuss Digital Ownership. This is different from Stop Killing Games and will effect any digital media including gaming

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

As with every outrage before it people will fold when GTA6 or the next PlayStation game comes out digital. What we should be focussing on is Digital Ownership laws. This is where we rely on our EU gamers as here in the UK they might do something but it is highly unlikely in the US but they do follow

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 01/08/2026

As to the discs being removed absolutely and when you put your video out you said exactly what I have been saying, that they have done the numbers and for them it makes sense. Again they are right most people will just go digital. It has been about the numbers for decades people just didn't notice

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

This is not to say stop fighting for physical, but realise that Sony do not care and have data to support their actions. Digital ownership is in tandem with the physical media fight not instead of it. We need to ensure that everyone gets the government involved even if they are not directly effected

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

Unfortunately that means relying on our EU friends again as the US and UK governments are unlikely to do anything to sort this out. Get hold of your senators in the US, MPs in the UK but EU residence need to contact their MEPs as realistically we will once again rely on the EU to set the standard.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 22/07/2026

It is convenience but also a more willingness to trust Valve in general. Gabe Newell has created a platform that seems to value the consumer (for now). Console stores deleting your purchased content on a frequent basis is eroding trust. Essentially what we need is better digital ownership.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 20/07/2026

I have kept hearing about gamers suggestions to developers to 'Just make better games'. Simple right. I have gone through my thoughts on this in a (somewhat lengthy) post on Substack. Feel free to comment as I would love to hear other peoples take on this.

open.substack.com

Just make better games, or variations of that idea

Probably the most common critique of the gaming industry as a whole, but what does it actually mean?

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 19/07/2026

@matpiscatella.bsky.social I was wondering if you data about people outside the western markets feelings about @grandtheftautoiv.bsky.social. We are quite isolated in our western bubble. I was interested if it was as big in other markets. I was thinking about GTA6 effecting Eastern titles releasing

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 09/07/2026

Was ActivisionBlizzard bought by @microsoft.com and @xbox.com or was it the other way around? The current moves seem extremely ABK-like. It seems kind of like in Diablo where taking the crystal into you turned you into the monster. Or has Bobby Kotick been taken on as a advisor to Asha Sharma?

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

You only need to look back at Lionhead, Bullfrog and Blizzard. The built themselves up and felt they couldn't fail. Interest in their games has waned as has peoples interest in Bethesda's games. I do wonder what will happen when Elder Scrolls 6 comes out as I don't see the formula changing that much

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

This tracks with Moon Studios, Team Cherry and others. They created fun games (as many others have such as Double Fine, Compulsion and so on) and didn't expect masisve sales. If Larian now expects their next game to sell 30M copies because of Baldur's Gate they are setting themselves up for disaster

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

This is why developers need to find ways to have realistic sales numbers and find a way to fit those into a realistic budget. If Larian expected to sell 20mil copies of Divinity but sold 1M they would be done, but instead they were the other way around.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

This means there is only a small increase in gamers who would buy your game and they are seeing 21K games that released on Steam last year. You have to find them all, sell 10mil copies and make back your $200mil budget. The gaming industry needs to learn to be realistic about what they can achieve

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 08/07/2026

This is what I keep saying. We have a supply and demand problem. These companies think that the increase in gamers=increase in game sales, but the massive increase in games being made and released and the fact most of these 'new' gamers are playing forever games like Fortnite

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

COD and the games as a service games just dominate. The games industry will survive but it will return to smaller dev teams making more focussed games (Expedition 33) kind of like before. We just need to support the dev teams who's games we enjoy. Fingers crossed for teams like @doublefine.com

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

much time. Even if you play one game a day that's 365 games a year. take the 2000 games that have a significant amount of reviews (based on Steam's metrics) and you can see that we cannot get anywhere near them. Yes there are more players but as per reports they are buying 1-4games a yr on average

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

I agree with you but the sheer number of games coming out is staggering. Just look at the number of games released on Steam over the last 10yrs. I agree better wages=more sales but there is no way gamers can keep up. wages are certainly a factor (I know I could do with more) but we only have so

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 03/07/2026

Oversaturation is the main issue in the industry. All the other stuff (layoffs, AI usage, studio closures, etc.) are symptoms of the fact that there are not enough possible sales to cover the number of games they need us to buy. 20K on Steam last year alone, 2000 of which have over 500 reviews.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 02/07/2026

An Article I wrote in February about the retirement of Phil Spencer and after reading it I kind of feel a little bit like Nostradamus. I know it was only 4 months ago but the speed of the changes in the industry lately, it really feels like 4yrs ago.

open.substack.com

Phil Spencer leaving Xbox an article from my website written on the 22nd February 2026

This is an article I wrote when Phil Spencer left XBOX. I randomly read through it and it made me feel a bit like Nostradamus.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

All the other concerns people have around gaming are valid but it stems from the fact that there are too many games to play and not enough money or time in the industry to play them. Corporate greed, shareholder value, dev time, players not buying games all stem from this.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 23/06/2026

There has been much conversation around the state of the gaming industry and I would love to speak to Matthew Ball and @matpiscatella.bsky.social because I feel they have being telling people about this for ages. We have a supply and demand issue in gaming.

oldmangaming.org.uk

The state of the gaming industry — OldManGaming

Why is the gaming industry in the state it is in? As gamers we are in the best state we have been in ever with more games to play than ever and the sheer vastness and selection of games. Why then is t...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 08/06/2026

I was not planning on watching @geoffkeighley.bsky.social Summer Games Fest this year but rather just catch up on the news the following day but I ended up watching it. It was only OK for various reasons but still well produced. Here are my thoughts on the games

oldmangaming.org.uk

Not E3…. Part one SGF — OldManGaming

My plan was to not watch the Geoff Keighley Summer Games Fest as it was on late and is known for time wasting and ads, and I would rather catch up on all the reveals, release dates and new games (the ...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

I was more impressed with the way you personally dealt with the hype of the game & tempered expectations while bigging the game up. Your honesty & openness should be standard. You guys have rightly received all recognition you deserve. I hope that all developers and community managers learn from you

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

My handhelds (Steam Deck and Xbox Ally X) can be a little ropey but that is kind of expected. I have praised the game to the few gamers I know directly. I did a review not sure if you saw it.. It is old compared to the girth of content you have added.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

The game was well optimised as promised but I have a 4090 so don't usually have many issues. The main thing you can pass on to the devs is how impressed I am with their speed & effectiveness at patching. The load times drastically improved to beyond my expectations. I hope they aren't overworking.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 05/06/2026

I have 100hrs in the game which should say everything really. I had to stop mainly because of other games and time constraints (full time dad job and dad) but I dip in again often. I am keep to see the new stuff but it will have to wait until I am off in a couple of weeks.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 21/05/2026

@lunaabyssgame.bsky.social isGame is a great game. I've played 4hrs & it is pulling me in. An interesting world & characters. The combat on normal difficulty is not difficult at the moment but it is a lot of fun. Kind of a mix between Returnal & Remnant. Enjoying it far more than I thought I would

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 20/04/2026

I finally managed to play @REPLACEDGame. The demo really added to my hype for this game. The game is good and I have really enjoyed my time so far. I have posted a review in progress as I do feel this game deserves the attention

oldmangaming.org.uk

Replaced — OldManGaming

I have been looking forward to this game since the first time I saw the trailer. When I played the demo during Steam’s Next Fest, I really enjoyed the small slice of the game they showed. What I playe...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

This is a great game and I do hope that they continue to patch and work on the game and more importantly I hope they iterate on this. This game was made by people with a 6yr old's imagination and their inability to see that doing certain things is a bad idea. This is a compliment by the way.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 30/03/2026

Pretty everyone has had their say about @CrimsonDesert_ and from my experience they are all correct, whether they like or loathe the game. I have my issues with this game but I do find most are issues that can and are being fixed with patches.

oldmangaming.org.uk

Crimson Desert — OldManGaming

By now, everyone and their uncle have had something to say about Crimson Desert. The consensus that I have seen is that people will either love it or hate it. I don’t hold to this opinion as I feel th...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 28/03/2026

I have a genuine question. What do @xbox.com need to do to get us PC gamers to buy games from them instead of Steam? It hit while watching the partner preview that if the game wasn’t on @gamepass.xbox.com I immediately thought of Steam as my go to for the game. We want options but.....

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 23/03/2026

If any game deserves a remake it is this one. One of the best games that I am not sure enough people have played. The controls are appalling! They could do wit updating so more people can enjoy this amazing game.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 21/03/2026

I was thinking about Xbox and what I would like from them as a PC gamer and what I feel Xbox console gamers would benefit from. Then what I felt that Xbox needs to do in order to overcome the huge deficit they have in reputation and player trust

oldmangaming.org.uk

What do Xbox need to do — OldManGaming

Before I start anything I want to make very clear that I am not an Xbox fanboy. I play on PC. That does mean that my experience is generally more Xbox focussed than PlayStation, but I don’t play on co...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

I also liked the narrator and cannot find out who it was but they sound extremely familiar. Anybody know who it is?

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 14/03/2026

I finally finished Voidtrain on @gamepass.xbox.com and did really enjoy it. I has a kind of quirky humour to it and the game play loop was interesting. I did get bogged down in the resource collection which was unnecessary in the long-term. www.oldmangaming.org.uk/games-i-have-played/voidtrain

oldmangaming.org.uk

Voidtrain — OldManGaming

It took me a while to finish this game mainly due to other things coming up. I spent around 37hr in the game (way above the How Long to Beat numbers) but that was due to my insatiable need to loot eve...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Sorry you have had to join us. Unfortunately there is no going back but it is better over here, I promise. I didn't see the base PS5 or Xbox Series X/S results but I imagine we can have a decent guess based on these findings. Pretty much what they were saying and what others had guessed. Good job

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

Now @digitalfoundry.bsky.social have done the PS5 Pro benchmarks for Crimson Dessert hopefully people will now feel better about buying it on console. As a PC gamer I remember having discussions about FPS with console gamers and the repeated assertion from them 30FPS is fine.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

The other point to take into consideration is that if they are leaving PC behind they will need to compensate for the lost revenue somehow and have confidence that an increase in console sales and first party titles will do this. $1.2bil after platform fees, from what I can find, is a lot of money

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

The thing that gives me pause is all this talk of Sony pulling back from PC is just that talk. There is nothing from Sony direct all 'insiders' and people who have thoughts. Not saying that they aren't just there isn't anything concrete. If it is so then I imagine it is due to many factors.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

As someone who prefers to play a magic user in games, I was wondering what is everyone's favourite magic system in games? I really enjoyed Avowed's magic combat, really hated that you had to chug mana potions. I feel it would have been better if it was similar to a stamina system

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

I don't think gamers killed Highgaurd, but the Concorde 2 label before anyone had played it and the snowballing negativity that follows games in a genre where they need to stand out was a unhelpful factor. I would love to know what people feel could have save Highgaurd?

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 12/03/2026

I watched a video concerned that gamers are blamed when games fail. I feel many points were valid but there are sometimes when we as gamers have a role to play in a games demise. Highgaurd is an example of a game that wasn't helped by negative impression

oldmangaming.org.uk

Gamers want games to fail — OldManGaming

I watched a video by a creator on YouTube I don’t follow but have seen before. He is generally very good and although I don’t always watch his content, when I do watch him I find that he is usually ve...

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

Also a strong suggestion to anyone playing for the first time or returning and having not played Phantom Liberty, play the game for a while and if you are enjoying it buy the expansion. It’s £25 but it will be worth it as it is a great addition to the base game.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 11/03/2026

@cyberpunk.net on @gamepass.xbox.com is a great addition. I have played since release (was lucky enough not to have issues) and played again with the release of Phantom Liberty. Fantastic game but @cdprojektred.com and @xbox.com PC game pass would be a nice addition.

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

I am really looking forward to @replacedgame.bsky.social , then I find out it is coming out 14 April and then it is on @gamepass.xbox.com This was definitely one of the standout demos from @steampowered.com Next Fest, a example of the effect a good demo can have. I hope this is trend that returns

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Old Man Gaming @oldmangaming76.bsky.social · 10/03/2026

I wrote a basic synopsis of the story and laid out reasons I feel it deserves a fair opportunity, they are truly unique, dense and immersive games that have a heap of content that you do or do not need to engage with as you see fit although I personally suggest you get lost in it

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