dadnauts

The Big Shakeup — Inside the Gaming Industry’s 2025 Restructure

The gaming industry in 2025 is in the midst of a seismic shift, the likes of which we haven’t seen since the post-dot-com fallout of the early 2000s. Once-bulletproof studios are shuttering, flagship titles are vanishing before release, and even the industry’s titans—Sony and Microsoft—are hitting reset on ambitious projects. But this isn’t a collapse. It’s a recalibration.

The Rise and Fall of Live-Service Dreams

Remember the hype cycle around live-service games in the late 2010s and early 2020s? Battle passes, seasons, loot boxes—it felt like every studio wanted its own Fortnite. Sony bought into the promise in a big way, announcing plans for 12 live-service titles by 2026. That vision, however, hit a wall. Games like Concord, hyped for months, were shut down just 11 days post-launch. Even big-brand multiplayer spins, like the Last of Us online adaptation, were axed before making it out of beta.

Behind the scenes, the problem wasn’t always gameplay—it was economics. Developing AAA games now often costs upwards of £160–200 million, a gamble that live-service returns rarely justified. Despite promising engagement metrics, monetisation floundered, and players baulked at bloated mechanics and grind-heavy reward loops.

Sony’s response? Cut the fat. Refocus. Games like Death Stranding 2 (just released) and Marvel’s Wolverine remain in development, spotlighting the company’s return to its storytelling roots—where it truly shines.

Microsoft’s Quiet Retrenchment

Meanwhile, Microsoft is navigating its storm. After acquiring studios at breakneck speed over the past five years, it’s now consolidating like never before. Recently, they closed:
– The Initiative — once tasked with the Perfect Dark reboot
– ZeniMax Online Studios — MMO project cancelled
– Rare — Everwild shelved indefinitely
– Turn 10 Studios — cuts across the Forza Motorsport team

At first glance, these decisions seem counterintuitive. Microsoft boasted record-breaking revenue from Game Pass and Xbox services in early 2025. So why pull back?

The answer lies in a strategic pivot. Microsoft is focusing on AI infrastructure, cloud services, and modular development. Rather than chase sprawling single titles, they’re investing in frameworks that support smaller, faster releases and scalable platforms. This also includes heavy investment in developer tools, hoping to democratize game creation in the long run.

A Cautionary Tale for Big Studios

The current landscape should serve as a warning for studios who chase trends. Just because AI, live service, and streaming are hot topics doesn’t mean they’ll guarantee results. The over-saturation of these models, without meaningful innovation or player-first design, has driven a wedge between developers and consumers.

More importantly, it’s prompted a re-examination of studio culture. Developers are calling out:
– Unsafe work conditions
– Crunch practices masked as “passion projects”
– Fragile funding pipelines too dependent on hype cycles

With 41% of game developers impacted by layoffs in 2025, morale across the industry is shaken. Talent is migrating toward indie spaces, consulting gigs, and creator-centric platforms that offer more autonomy.

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 Final Thoughts

2025 might look like a year of chaos, but it could just be the inflexion point for long-overdue evolution. As Sony and Microsoft retool, there’s a chance for thoughtful, player-first experiences to rise again. Whether through smart use of AI, streamlined publishing, or a recommitment to narrative depth, the next generation of gaming may be forged in the fires of this year’s upheaval.

What do you think? What are your opinions on why the gaming industry is having a chaotic time? Let us know your thoughts!!

Thursdays: Wands Wookie’s and Wipeout’s 002

🧙 My Lightsaber Is Actually a Remote: The Jedi Arts of Channel Control

In our galaxy, the remote is more than tech—it’s a wand, a peacekeeper, a beacon of compromise. And wielding it? That’s pure Jedi.

I used to think I had control. Then came Bluey marathons and YouTube wormholes. Channel sovereignty became a rare artefact, like the Darksaber—spoken of, seldom seen. But here’s the trick: Jedi don’t dominate. They persuade, guide, and sometimes make room for Ewok dance breaks if it brings balance to the Force.

I’ve learned to rotate screen time like a training regimen—cartoons one day, nature docs the next, with detours through football replays for parental sanity. Sometimes, we co-watch and I sneak in dad jokes that would make Yoda groan.

And when the tiny Padawans clash? That’s when my calm Jedi dad voice comes out: “There is no fight, only sharing.” It doesn’t always work. But neither did Obi-Wan’s first try with Anakin.

Wednesday: Dadnaut Toolkit 002

🛠 Guardsman to Dadnaut: Discipline That Still Works

Before nappies, there were night watches. Before storytime, there were standing orders. I traded a regimented life in uniform for the whirlwind of parenting—and oddly, it didn’t feel all that different.

The discipline drilled into me as a Guardsman didn’t vanish the moment I strapped on a baby carrier. Instead, it evolved. The early routines? Gold. Nap schedules are like operations briefs: don’t overcomplicate, don’t deviate. Gear checks became nappy bag inspections. Early on, I realised that the same calm under pressure I needed in uniform was the very thing that got us through the “poonami” on aisle 7 of Tesco.

But it’s not about barking commands. It’s about presence. A soldier’s presence matters. So does a dad’s. When my kid melts down at bedtime, I channel that same stillness I used to stand ceremonial post. When I say “no,” it’s not sharp—it’s grounded. Confident. Respectful.

Turns out, you can turn a parade square mindset into a playroom strategy. Discipline, done right, isn’t about control—it’s about consistency, compassion, and showing up the same way every time. So while the tools have changed, the mission stays the same: protect, provide, and lead with honour.

🔥 My Top 10 Most Anticipated Releases of the Next 18 Months

There’s something electric about looking ahead—counting down the days to those big moments in gaming, TV, and film that you know are going to leave an impact. Over the next 18 months, we’re getting sequels we never thought we’d see, fresh takes on iconic stories, and a few surprise comebacks that have me genuinely hyped.

Here’s a rundown of the 10 titles that have claimed top spots on my anticipation radar:

🎮 1. GTA VI – May 26, 2026

Vice City returns. Lucia and Jason take the wheel. Rockstar is leveling up with the expansive state of Leonida and a narrative that already feels legendary. It’s been a long wait—but the neon-soaked chaos will be worth it.

🌌 2. The Mandalorian & Grogu – May 22, 2026

Din Djarin and the little green legend make their big-screen debut. Jon Favreau is back in the director’s chair, and if the series was anything to go by, this movie might just leave the whole galaxy buzzing.

🧇 3. Stranger Things Season 5 – Nov 26, Dec 25, Dec 31, 2025

The final chapter arrives in three parts. Hawkins, Eleven, and the Upside Down face off one last time. Emotions? Checked. Flashlights? Charged. Ready to say goodbye? Not remotely.

🧙 4. Harry Potter (HBO Series) – 2026/27

A full reboot of the books, bringing each chapter to life with room to breathe. New cast, same magic. And with Rowling on board as an exec producer, it’ll be fascinating to see what gets reimagined.

🕷️ 5. Wednesday Season 2 – Aug 6 & Sept 3, 2025

Jenna Ortega returns in a season that promises more gothic weirdness, less high school romance, and a deeper dive into Addams family lore. The tone’s getting darker—and I’m here for it.

☢️ 6. Fallout Season 2 – Dec 2025

We’re heading to New Vegas, and the Wasteland just got more chaotic with Macaulay Culkin joining the cast. After the sleeper hit that was Season 1, expectations are sky-high—and radioactive.

🧸 7. Toy Story 5 – June 19, 2026

Just when I thought the toy box was shut for good… Woody and Buzz are back, facing off against a villain named Lily Pad in a tech vs. toy showdown. Bring tissues. Pixar never misses.

🌊 8. Moana (Live-Action) – July 10, 2026

Catherine Laga‘aia teams up with Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson in this reimagining of the oceanic epic. Visuals are expected to be stunning, and if the music hits like the original—we’re in for a wave of nostalgia.

🔫 9. Borderlands 4 – Sept 12, 2025

Vault Hunters, assemble. A new villain, the Timekeeper, sets the tone for a full-throttle co-op experience across a brand-new planet. Get ready for mayhem, loot, and bad jokes aplenty.

🕵️ 10. Mafia: The Old Country – Aug 8, 2025

Step into Sicily, 1900s. Play as Enzo Favara and rise through the Torrisi crime family. It’s giving Godfather meets Red Dead, and every part of that sentence makes me want to pre-order.

🗣️ What Are You Excited For?

That’s my hype list—but what are YOU most looking forward to? Is there an under-the-radar release I should have on my radar? TV, movie, game, anime—I’m open to it all.

Hit me up on socials or drop a comment below. Let’s build the ultimate fandom watchlist together. 👇

⚽ Sunday: The Toonverse Chronicles: 001

Week 1

Why I’m Raising a Black-and-White Wizard

The first item of baby clothing I bought? A mini NUFC shirt. Not a bottle, not a onesie. A Toon top. Because for me, football isn’t just about sport—it’s about belonging.

Welcome to The Toonverse Chronicles, where passion meets parenthood, and raising a Newcastle fan becomes an emotional training montage worthy of the empire strikes back—but with more wafer thins.

🪄 The Magic of It All:
Our bedtime stories alternate between Alan Shearer and Albus Dumbledore. We celebrate goals like spell-casting victories. Somewhere between match replays and wand battles, my little one started to get into it.

⚽ Lessons from the Gallowgate End:
– Loyalty isn’t about never losing—it’s about never walking away.
– Tradition matters—rituals like wearing black and white or doing silly half-time dances are part of family identity.
– Hope, even when we’re 2–0 down in life, makes everything worthwhile.
– Raising the little one like the Carabao Cup whilst she is giggling and I like every other Geordie is on cloud nine – Priceless.

💡 Favourite Moment:
The day I got to put my youngest in her first proper toon top. there is nothing like it.

🏁 Full-Time Thoughts:
It’s not just football. It’s not just parenting. It’s shared belief. And that, to me, is a kind of magic. It is going to be a magic we all feel when we start going to the lasses matches next season as the youngest is just about old enough now.

🚀 Saturday: Mission Logs 001

Log 001: First Contact with Sleep Deprivation

Stardate: Week 3 of parenting my 4-week-early little girl.
Log Entry: Time: 01:13. Status: Half-dressed half-asleep. Tea: Redundant. Partner sleeping, just, waiting for the 3am feed time.

This is the first of my Mission Logs—personal, unfiltered dispatches from the frontlines of dad hood. I’ll be honest: nothing prepared me for the wild silence of a sleeping Mamnaut and baby… except maybe training in sleep deprivation while on guard duty.

💤 The Incident:
It was approaching midnight, and the bottle was prepped there was a sleepy silence throughout the house. It was now time to awaken the shrieking shack!

🔦 My Survival Tips:
– Embrace the behaviour exhibited by the Mamnaut, speak softly cuddle the little one in and slowly wake up the mamnaut. The goal is to head upstairs!
– Accept imperfect wins. There had been screaming and named football chants sung like lullabies but I was now ready to feed the little one.
– Create a sleep pattern that works: Mamnaut slept from 10-12 am on the sofa, we went to bed at midnight and then the Mamnaut had a broken sleep until 2:30 am to prep the 3 am feed, and I slept from 1 am until 5:30 am ready for the 6 am feed! It isn’t perfect but we are getting used to it!

🚀 Status Report:
We made it through. Slightly haunted, heavily caffeinated, and—surprisingly—more connected to my little one than ever. It’s funny how the hardest moments teach us the most about love especially when you are looking down at them having a feed at 12:30 am when everything in the world feels calm again.

🧙‍♂️Thursday: Wands, Wookie’s & Wipeout’s: 001

Choosing Your Hogwarts House as a Parent

If Hogwarts ran a parenting class, I’d have signed up immediately—preferably before I was knee-deep in nappies and explaining why I was shouting “Riddikulus” at my human child hoping I would defeat the boggart!

This is Wands, Wookie’s & Wipeout’s, a Thursday window into parenting through the lens of fandom—because if we’re honest, most days feel like a crossover episode between Star Wars and Bluey.

🏠 What House Are You?

– Gryffinnaut: Bold and big-hearted, you charge in when needed—whether to rescue a biscuit or stop a tantrum mid-nappy change before tea time.

– Slythernaut: Tactician of bedtime battles. If there’s a shortcut, you’ve found it. If there’s a hidden snack stash, it’s yours.

– Hufflenaut: Gentle, dependable, emotional load-bearer. Your hugs are legendary. So are your sleep-deprived pep talks.

– Ravennaut: The planner. The researcher. You’ve got Google Docs for your kid’s toothbrushing strategy.

🧪 My Sorting Moment
I caught myself eating snacks from my newly acquired Dad’s snack tin when everyone else was in bed. Classic Slythernaut. But then I belted out “Accio Pyjamas!” while prepping a bottle and beginning our bed time routine. Bit of Gryffinnaut there too.

My partner is the Hufflenaut for her gentle and dependable nature but dabbles in Ravennaut with her meal prep and laundry schedules!

Turns out, we’re hybrid houses.

🎯 Magic Tip for Each:
– Ravennaut: Try time-blocking your day with rest built in.
– Hufflenaut: Create emotional check-ins at bedtime.
– Slythernaut: Limit chaos by offering two options, not ten.
– Gryffinnaut: Channel your energy into a daily adventure—real or pretend.

🦉 Final Words:
You’re not the same parent every day—and that’s okay. Whether you’re casting spells or just winging it with a smile, there’s room for all kinds of magic in a family.

🔧 Wednesday: Dadnaut Toolkit: 001

Systems Check: Time Management for Dadnauts

When I left the Guards, I thought I’d faced peak chaos—training drills, inspections, tight formations. Turns out, preparing a toddler for nursery with a banana in one hand and a sock on only one foot beats them all.

This post kicks off the Dadnaut Toolkit, your weekly dispatch of practical ideas and helpful strategies from a dad trying to balance parenting, work, hobbies and not completely losing the plot.

⚙️ Systems Check:
Last week, I lost three hours to sleep negotiations, toy troubleshooting, and a failed attempt to “quickly” tidy the Disney princesses. It made me realise I need systems—not to control the chaos, but to surf it. It also helps that my partner (Mamnaut) takes care of cooking and clothes-washing amongst the long list of other activities!

🛠 Tools I’m Using:

Micro Missions: I’ve started setting 15-minute goals—write three blog lines, put away the little people (toys), or just make a cup of tea and drink it hot. Those add up.
Mission Control Board: One Google calendar now organises everything from blog goals to family trips and working patterns to meetings. It’s visual, flexible, and satisfying to tick off—even if it’s “Remember to eat.” This has been a great help in just organising family events, nursery times, work times, nursery parents evening etc. even the occasional wedding or christening, we have all forgot them!
Scheduled Downtime: I now treat breaks like appointments. No guilt. Just recharging our own batteries so I can handle my crew with patience whether that’s Xbox or kindle! early morning, I wake up at 05:30 am everyday. Mondays and Tuesday offer an hour of me time. Wednesday to Friday gives me half an hour before Mamnaut wakes for work. Saturdays and Sundays, I have until the family wakes up time varies. Once the little one is sleeping (from about 20:30)

💬 Final Words:
Time won’t expand, but how you frame it can. Every 10 minutes reclaimed is another LEGO spaceship built, paragraph written, sanity reclaimed or just that much needed quiet. A great partnership developing clear teamwork foundations, that’s time well spent.

Callsign: Dadnaut

From Guardsman to Dadnaut – The Mission Behind the Maker

In another universe, I might have stayed behind the scenes, quietly creating, connecting, and carrying worlds on my shoulders. But in this one? I am all in. Not because I crave attention, but because I believe in building things that matter—stories, brands, moments, and meaning. The Dadnauts project isn’t my first idea, but it will be lasting. It’s the one that fits like a glove, Or a gauntlet.

Dadnaut blends precision with play. There’s a Guardsman’s discipline still beating under the surface: a respect for routine, attention to detail, and a commitment to seeing things through. That part of me shows up every time I draft content plans, build workflows, or break down a complex project into clear steps. However, it’s not all strategy and checklists, I am fuelled by curiosity, story, and connection. I know how to turn a tagline into a touchpoint and a fandom reference into a bridge.

If creativity were a constellation, Dadnaut aims to be its navigator. Whether I am brainstorming blogs that spark self-reflection or remixing Newcastle United chants into bedtime rituals, I strive to bring a unique orbit to everything I touch. I see ideas not just for what they are—but for what they could become, if given the right voice, the right vibe, the right space to grow.

Beyond the blogs, tweets, and branding bursts, there’s someone who simply cares deeply about legacy, about laughter, and about leading with authenticity. I am building something not just for clicks or clout, but for community. For other dads navigating the weird intersection of nappies and fandom. For anyone who’s ever felt torn between who they were and who they’re becoming.

At the heart of this galaxy-spanning operation? The Mamnaut. The partner, the co-pilot, the quiet force that holds the orbit steady when things start to wobble. She’s the one who sees through the mess to the meaning, who tempers the chaos with calm, who reminds Dadnaut, whether with a look, a laugh, or a perfectly timed hug that resets the universe, that this whole mission only flies because it’s a team effort. If Dadnaut is the explorer, Mamnaut is the gravity. Together, they make the stars feel a little more within reach.

The core of Dadnauts mission is this truth: Identity isn’t something you leave behind when you become a parent. It’s like building your own lightsaber. It draws from your past, reflects your essence, and evolves with every choice you make in the galaxy of fatherhood. Like every great Dadnaut before him, I am just getting started.

🚀 Launching Dadnauts

Launching Dadnauts has been less about building a brand and more about capturing a feeling—a mix of chaos, love, curiosity, and creativity that defines my life as a dad. Somewhere between sleep-deprived snack negotiations and late-night idea scribbles, I realised I wanted to share the experience—not just as a diary, but as a creative project. Something that reflects the weird, wonderful balancing act of raising a child while holding on to your own identity. The journey gave shape to four recurring blog series, each a chapter in this ongoing mission.

The Dadnaut Toolkit 🛠 was the first concept that landed. Born out of the deep desire to make sense of the madness, it’s where the Guardsman in me gets to shine. I wanted to share what I’ve learned (and what I’m still figuring out) about time, structure, and staying afloat as a parent. These posts will offer practical strategies for managing the circus of dad life—whether that’s blocking out creative time between nappy changes or building routines that actually leave space for joy. It’s not about being perfect—it’s about having the right tools when the pressure’s on.

Wands, Wookie’s & Wipeout’s 🧙‍♂️🪄 is where the playful side of parenting gets to run wild. I’ve always loved the way stories shape us, and now I’m watching them shape my kids too. Whether we’re pretending to be Jedi on a school run or sorting Hogwarts houses based on snack preferences, this series explores how fandom blends into family life. It’s equal parts chaos and charm—like watching your toddler wield a lightsaber in pyjamas while demanding a snack in Yoda-speak. These posts let me celebrate the magic and madness of building a home full of imagination.

Mission Logs 🚀 are the emotional core of Dadnauts. These weekly dispatches are more reflective and raw—less about tips and more about truths. Sometimes it’s a quiet moment at 3AM, other times it’s a total meltdown (theirs or mine). This series captures the pulse of parenthood as it re1ally happens, offering space for honesty, laughter, frustration, and growth. I hope other dads (and parents) see themselves in these entries—not perfectly polished, but deeply human.

Finally, The Toonverse Chronicles ⚽️🥅 bring my NUFC pride front and centre. Football has always been part of my identity, and now I’m sharing it with my little one. These posts aren’t just about matchdays—they’re about legacy. About building rituals, passing down values, and watching your child fall in love with something you’ve always held dear. Through the Toonverse lens, I explore how family and fandom intertwine—how wearing black and white becomes more than colours; it becomes a connection.

Dadnauts is a creative map of everything I care about—fatherhood, storytelling, structure, silliness, and shared joy. It’s messy, meaningful, and evolving—just like the journey itself.

Stay up-to-date with our future blogs on our X @dadnauts