It is once again, depending on who you ask, the most wonderful time of the year. Presents are under trees, lights are looking downright strewn, and snow is on the ground where climate change still permits that to happen. To celebrate the occasion, we got ourselves a little gift: two weeks of blissful (mostly) rest.
From now until January 4 or so, things are going to be a little quieter than usual around here. We’ll still be running the odd blog, but it’s been a long – and for Aftermath, eventful! – year, and we’re planning to recharge so we can come out swinging in 2026.
Thank you to everyone reading for making all of this possible! We literally could not be here without you, nor would we want to. We had no idea what to expect when we kicked off this experiment what feels like two eternities ago, but against all odds in an era of layoffs and site closures, our little slice of internet persists – and continues to grow! This year we brought on two regular contributors, Isaiah and Nicole, and in the coming weeks we’ll be welcoming a regular columnist into our ranks as well. We even threw a party! It ruled. We’ve published numerous stories of which we are immensely proud – which you enabled by subscribing, thereby ensuring that we were significantly less subject to the fickle whims of SEO and algorithms than others.
Speaking of, here’s some reading material to keep you vaguely conscious while you digest an entire gingerbread village and all its residents:
‘Lay Off CEOs Instead’: Game Awards Protesters Fed Up With The Show And The State Of The Industry
The Rise And Fall of Queer Cartoons
A Digital Audio Player Renewed My Love Of Music
What Cyberpunk 2077 Can Teach Real-World Cities
The Art Of Playing The Damn Video Game
How Fortnite Friday Grew From A Bit Into An Institution That Could Pull Gavin Newsom
AI Is The Ultimate "Forced Meme"
Hades 2's Story Doesn't Change The Status Quo
What’s Harder To Draw: Horses Or Kisses? We Asked An Expert
OK, But Who Is Inverting Their Horizontal Controls?
We also have podcasts you can listen to: Aftermath Hours and the very good, soon-to-be-concluded 52 Pickup. (You Are Error will finally return sometime in the new year, I promise.) There’s no better time to catch up than now. And if you’re looking to grab a last-second gift, we’ve got gift subscriptions and some pretty cool merch for the AI hater in your life.
I think that’s pretty much everything, which is good, because I can feel the long, dark sleep beginning to take me. Have a restful holiday, unless you’re a video game executive, in which case I hope you are kept from slumber by the weight of your sins, and you spend every waking moment tormented by ghouls.
