About this episode
EA sold to Saudi Arabia & Jared Kushner, to owe $20 BILLION in debt
Link: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250929186526/en/EA-Announces-Agreement-to-be-Acquired-by-PIF-Silver-Lake-and-Affinity-Partners-for-%2455-Billion
https://news.ea.com/press-releases/press-releases-details/2025/EA-Announces-Agreement-to-be-Acquired-by-PIF-Silver-Lake-and-Affinity-Partners-for-55-Billion/default.aspx
https://steamcommunity.com/id/Abdullah_Al_Saud
We usually espouse the benefits and virtues of being privately owned… and in a sense EA is privately owned… by Saudi Arabia’s Private Investment Firm and Jared Kushner’s Affinity Partners. The reason why these two in particular are so important is due to the governmental ties. Saudi Arabia is obvious, yes, but for those who may not know Jared Kushner has ties to El Presidente due to being married to his daughter, Ivanka. This should raise serious red flags, regardless of what political party owns EA.
Xbox Game Pass Price Increase
Link: https://news.xbox.com/en-us/2025/10/01/xbox-game-pass-ultimate-premium-essential-plans/
https://x.com/Wario64/status/1973423496610124281
Xbox Game Pass was once touted as the best value in gaming… but that value diminishes as time goes on. The price of Game Pass Ultimate has gone up from $20/Month to $30/Month, a 50% increase in price. And previously they raised the prices from $17 to $20 a month as is. Compare that to the highest end PlayStation subscription, PlayStation Plus Premium, which is currently $160. Microsoft however has added benefits, such as Ubisoft+ (which by itself is $16/Month) and Fortnite Crew (which by itself is $12/Month) and that you can earn $100 in points a year by gaming. But gamers are furious and have been attempting to cancel Game Pass subs in droves, with Wario64 on Twitter commenting that the page for cancelling Game Pass subs has been overloaded.
ROG Xbox Ally / ROG Xbox Ally X ships early due to Amazon France blunder
Link: https://xboxera.com/2025/09/30/amazon-france-ships-xbox-ally-x-units-over-two-weeks-early-user-impressions-posted-on-reddit/
Over in the US, the Xbox A