Sacred Symbols, Episode 390 | But Without Me, You're Only You (Patreon)

Let's be honest: This whole Light of Motiram thing was shady from the get-go. A game that blatantly rips off Guerrilla's Horizon franchise, created by the publisher-and-developer combo that was later revealed to have unsuccessfully pitched Sony a Horizon spin-off beforehand? They call that 'dead to rights.' And now it's official, because Sony's lawsuit against Tencent over this facsimile has been dropped with prejudice, and the game has been delisted from Steam. That's a win for PlayStation, and an even bigger win for creativity in the AAA space. We discuss. Plus: Sucker Punch co-founder, long-time producer, and studio lead Brian Fleming is officially retiring from the team after 28 years, Bungie's Marathon is slated to come to PS5 in March, Hollow Knight: Silksong is getting a free nautical expansion in '26, and more. Then: Listener inquiries! Should we expect devs to lean more deeply into attractive characters? Do we think "made using AI" warnings will appear on games at some point in the near future? Who's to blame for Highguard's tepid response at The Game Awards? Is it strange if a wheelchair-bound listener wants to proudly wear a Stand Down shirt?

Timestamps:
0:00:00 - Intro

0:37:46 - A nice note from William

0:43:47 - Andrew and Steven

0:52:25 - Ratchet & Clank: Ranger Rumble is out in some European countries

0:53:55 - Light of Motiram case dropped

1:02:24 - Sucker Punch's co-founder is leaving

1:15:19 - Marathon gets a release month

1:28:21 - Silksong sells 7 million with an expansion on the way

1:31:05 - Ubisoft acquires an Amazon team

1:32:32 - Mega Man Star Force Legacy collection announced

1:35:14 - US sales data

1:47:35 - What We’re Playing (Terminator 2D: NO FATE, Dying Light: The Beast, Marvel Cosmic Invasion, The Outer Worlds 2, Destiny 2: Renegades (The Star Wars Expansion), Skate Story, Tomba 2, Metroid Prime 4)

2:11:17 - Featuring "attractive female characters"

2:27:14 - Game studios and AI

2:45:51 - Will the DRAM shortage effect consoles?

2:53:46 - One handed gaming

2:57:39 - Highguard

3:08:25 - Games that will never get revived