1 June 2026 By James Wood Balatro publisher Playstack to be sold to Fandom and GameSpot parent company. In brief: * Indie publisher Playstack will be sold to Fandom owner Integrated Media Company * The USD $151 million sale is awaiting shareholder approval * Playstack would become majority owned by the same investment group that owns entertainment outlets such as GameSpot, and Metacritic TruFin, owner of the videogame publisher Playstack, has announced its intent to sell a majority ownership stake to investment group Integrated Media Company (IMC). Under the proposed sale, which is subject to shareholder approval, Playstack would be majority owned by Integrated Media Company alongside its other entertainment brands collected under the Fandom subsidiary. This includes the videogame media outlet GameSpot, review aggregate website Metacritic, and digital distribution company Fanatical. The sale was announced to TruFin investors on 21 May 2026 and would see an 84.5 per cent interest in the company sold to IMC via its subsidiary VantageCo for £112.4 million (approximately US $151 million). According to the announcement, Playstack generated £55.3 million (US $74.3 million) revenue as of December 2025. The statement goes on to say that the publisher's games, including Balatro, accounted for 20 million unit sales and over 150 million hours played. TruFin CEO James van den Bergh commented, "We believe the disposal of Playstack represents a milestone for TruFin and a clear demonstration of our disciplined approach to capital allocation and value creation. We've thoroughly enjoyed working with the Playstack team over the last few years and look forward to them achieving future success." Founder and CEO of Playstack Harvey Elliot published a short statement on the sale via the Playstack website in which he notes that business will continue as usual. "I'm excited to share that Playstack is entering its next chapter with a new investment partner," the statement reads. "In practical terms, this is a change in ownership rather than a change in who we are." "Our team, our strategy, and our commitment to publishing premium indie games remain exactly the same. For now, it's business as usual." This Week in Videogames is funded entirely by readers, which lets Thisweekinvideogames resist advertising and commercial interests. Become a paid supporter today and get access to original feature articles, comments, newsletters, and more while backing truly independent games coverage. Image courtesy of PlayStack

All The Game Awards 2025 winners revealed, including game of the Year. By Eddie Makuch on December 11, 2025 at 8:19PM PST GameSpot may receive revenue from affiliate and advertising partnerships for sharing this content and from purchases through links. Expedition 33 wins big. The Game Awards took place tonight in Los Angeles. Geoff Keighley and other presenters handed out awards for numerous categories, leading up to the big moment of the night: the Game of the Year award. Sandfall Interactive's first-ever game, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, won Game of the Year, along with numerous other awards. In fact, Expedition 33 won the most awards ever at The Game Awards. It was nominated for 12 (or 13 if you count both actors nominated for Best Performance) and won nine total awards. Beyond Game of the Year, Expedition 33 won awards for Best Game Direction, Best Narrative, Best Art Direction, Best Performance (Jennifer English as Maelle), Best Debut Indie Game, Best Independent Game, and Best RPG. That is the most ever for a game, surpassing The Last of Us: Part II, which had seven wins. Read on to see all the categories and winners. For more on the show past and present, check out Fandom's Game Awards coverage. Game of the Year. * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Death Stranding 2: On the Beach * Donkey Kong Bananza * Hades II * Hollow Knight: Silksong * Kingdom Come: Deliverance II Best Game Direction. * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Death Stranding 2: On The Beach * Ghost of Yōtei * Hades II * Split Fiction Best adaptation. * A Minecraft Movie * Devil May Cry * The Last of Us: Season 2 * Splinter Cell: Deathwatch * Until Dawn Best Narrative. * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Death Stranding 2: On The Beach * Ghost of Yōtei * Kingdom Come: Deliverance II * Silent Hill f Best Art Direction. * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Death Stranding 2: On The Beach * Ghost of Yōtei * Hades II * Hollow Knight: Silksong Best score and music. * Hollow Knight: Silksong * Hades II * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Ghost of Yōtei * Death Stranding 2: On the Beach Best audio design. * Battlefield 6 * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Death Stranding 2: On the Beach * Ghost of Yōtei * Silent Hill f Best Performance. * Ben Starr * Charlie Cox * Erika Ishii * Jennifer English (Expedition 33) * Konatsu Kato * Troy Baker Innovation in accessibility. * Assassin's Creed Shadows * Atomfall * Doom: The Dark Ages * EA Sports FC 26 * South of Midnight Games for Impact. * Consume Me * Despelote * Lost Records: Bloom & Rage * South of Midnight * Wanderstop Best ongoing game. * Final Fantasy XIV * Fortnite * Helldivers 2 * Marvel Rivals * No Man's Sky Best community support. * Baldur's Gate 3 * Final Fantasy XIV * Fortnite * Helldivers 2 * No Man's Sky Best Independent Game. * Absolum * Ball x Pit * Blue Prince * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Hades II * Hollow Knight: Silksong Best Debut Indie Game. * Blue Prince * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Despelote * Dispatch * Megabonk (the game's developer withdrew the game from consideration-here's why.) Best Mobile game. * Destiny: Rising * Persona 5: The Phantom X * Sonic Rumble * Umamusume: Pretty Derby * Wuthering Waves Best VR/AR game. * Alien: Rogue Incursion * Arken Age * Ghost Town * Marvel's Deadpool VR * The Midnight Walk Best action game. * Battlefield 6 * Doom: The Dark Ages * Hades II * Ninja Gaiden 4 * Shinobi: Art of Vengeance Best action adventure game. * Death Stranding 2: On the Beach * Ghost of Yōtei * Indiana Jones and the Great Circle * Hollow Knight: Silksong * Split Fiction Best RPG. * Avowed * Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 * Kingdom Come: Deliverance II * The Outer Worlds 2 * Monster Hunter Wilds Best Fighting game. * 2XKO * Capcom Fighting Collection 2 * Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves * Mortal Kombat: Legacy Kollection * Virtua Fighter 5 R.E.V.O. World Stage Best family game. * Donkey Kong Bananza * LEGO Party! * LEGO Voyagers * Mario Kart World * Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds * Split Fiction Best sim/strategy game. * The Alters * FINAL FANTASY TACTICS - The Ivalice Chronicles * Jurassic World Evolution 3 * Sid Meier's Civilization VII * Tempest Rising * Two Point Museum Best sports/racing. * EA Sports FC 26 * F1 25 * Mario Kart World * Rematch * Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds Best multiplayer. * Arc Raiders * Battlefield 6 * Elden Ring Nightreign * Peak * Split Fiction Most anticipated game. * 007 First Light * Grand Theft Auto VI * Marvel's Wolverine * Resident Evil Requiem * The Witcher IV Content creator of the Year. * Caedrel * Kai Cenat * MoistCr1TiKaL * Sakura Miko * The Burnt Peanut Best esports game. * Counter-Strike 2 * Dota 2 * League of Legends * Mobile Legends: Bang Bang * Valorant Best esports athlete. * brawk * Chovy * f0rsakeN * Kakeru * MenaRD * Zyw0o Best esports Team. * Gen.G - League of Legends * NRG - Valorant * Team Falcons - DOTA 2 * Team Liquid PH - Mobile Legends: Bang Bang * Team Vitality - Counter-Strike 2 As posted on The Game Awards website, there were 30 games up for consideration for the players' voice award. On December 4, the list was whittled down to 10. On December 8, the list was again brought down to the five ultimate finalists. * Expedition 33 * Dispatch * Genshin Impact * Hollow Knight: Silksong * Wuthering Waves Game changer. Girls Make Games is a group that offers summer camps, workshops, and game jams that aim to "inspire the next generation of designers, creators, and engineers."