☕ The Games Edition

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December 29, 2025 View Online | Sign Up | Shop Howdy, pardners. Not everything can be all fun and games—but this newsletter will be. Welcome to our annual year-end Games edition, where we'll quiz you on the year's news and bring back some of our puzzlemaster Jack's favorites (and don't miss a new Turntable at the bottom). Warning: The answers are located in the same section as the questions, so don't scroll down until you've made your guesses! Happy solving! —Holly Van Leuven, Jack Murtagh, Abby Rubenstein FINANCE Guess the stock chart Here's the stock chart for a company that has outperformed the S&P 500 this year. Can you name it? (Some hints are below the chart.) Google Founded: 1997 Founder: Maxine Clark Went public: 2004 HQ: St. Louis, Missouri Sector: Retail Market cap: $724.7 million (as of December 22) Fun fact: Its valuation is not threatened by any real or imagined AI bubble, but it does rely on fluff. Build-A-Bear Workshop CALENDAR Remember when? Francis Scialabba Check out these news stories and ask yourself, "Did it happen in 2024 or 2025?" Nvidia became the world's most valuable company. The Campbell Soup Company changed its name to The Campbell's Company. Lady Gaga released the song "Abracadabra." The Jo-Ann craft stores went out of business. OpenAI rolled out ChatGPT version GPT-4o. Warner Bros. Discovery stock hit its all-time low. Alex Cooper's Call Her Daddy podcast jumped from Spotify to SiriusXM in a $125 million deal. Charlie Javice, the former CEO of startup Frank, was convicted of conspiracy, wire fraud, bank fraud, and securities fraud. It's gone on to do it several times now, but Nvidia first became the world's most valuable company in June 2024. Out of a desire to be associated with more than soup, Campbell's updated its name in November 2024. "Abracadabra" was Gaga's second single from her Mayhem album, released in March 2025. Jo-Ann announced it was going out of business in February 2025, and most of the stores were closed by May 2025. RIP. GPT-4o rolled out in May 2024, but we aren't surprised if it was on your mind this year. OpenAI released GPT-5 in August 2025, but the backlash to it was fierce enough that OpenAI gave some users the opportunity to revert to 4o. WBD hit its all-time low in June 2024. That feels like ancient history after this year's bidding war to buy the company… Cooper struck a three-year, $125 million deal with SiriusXM in 2024. Javice was convicted in March 2025 and sentenced in September 2025 for defrauding JPMorgan. Together With Cherry Bekaert Modernization matters. Cherry Bekaert's latest CFO survey gathered 200 finance leaders' insights about how modernization is transforming the middle market. Discover where CFOs are investing and what's slowing progress. The report delivers 12 practical actions to help you modernize with impact. Learn how to speed up decision-making without losing control. ENTERTAINMENT 2025 movies by emoji Morning Brew Design Can the essence of some of this year's biggest movies be conveyed in just a few cute icons? Yeah, we think so. Below, you'll find our pictorial representation of 10 flicks of 2025. You have to figure out the titles they represent. 🟦 🟪 🟧 🏽 🪡 🩷 A Minecraft Movie Lilo & Stitch Superman Jurassic World: Rebirth Wicked: For Good Zootopia 2 The Long Walk How to Train Your Dragon Paddington in Peru Marty Supreme Together With 1st Leaf Be-leaf in bettering yourself. 1st Leaf's Microgreens Powder is made from real microgreens—tiny plants packed with natural phytonutrients—grown indoors and freeze-dried to preserve their goodness. One scoop a day helps nourish your gut and fuel smooth, sustained energy. Better greens, better you. SUPERLATIVES Jack's Games of the Year Who knows the Morning Brew puzzles better than the man who makes them? Nobody, we're pretty sure. So, we asked Jack Murtagh to reminisce about some of his favorites from this year. Here's what he selected, and his commentary about them. Have you played them all? Funkiest theme: Brew Mini: Bleep!—"Our April Fool's Mini." Best grid art: Brew Crossword: Halloween—"I have zero artistic talent, but this one is worthy of my parents' fridge." Most frustrating crossword: Brew Crossword: Empty calories—"This puzzle spawned multiple Reddit threads, reader letters, and even a text from Neal's aunt asking if we'd made a mistake." Hardest Mini: Brew Mini: Monster Mini No. 2—"Every clue has a secondary, more informative clue that you can see by clicking 'Assist' - > 'Show a hint.' Try to solve this one using as few hints as possible." Favorite Decipher: Decipher: Song lyrics—"It'll make you smile, trust me." Longest Decipher: Decipher: Movie quote—"Probably the hardest too." Cutest Word Search: Word Search: Dog Halloween costumes Coolest Word Search: Word Search: Close-up photos Jack also said, "I left several of my favorite crosswords off the list because it turns out I love a lot of my babies." We love them, too, Jack. Thanks for all you do. PLAY Turntable: What Monday could be complete without your favorite way to start the week? Play the last Turntable of 2025 here. RECS This week, we're bringing you the most-clicked links from the Recs section across the entire year. Here are some of your faves: Cook: A titanium pan that functions like a cast iron—without the maintenance.** Learn: The difference between jeans that cost $30 and jeans that cost $300. Start fresh: The items in your bathroom you need to clean or throw out. Watch: The best method to crack an egg. Resolutions realized: Forget kale cleanses, counting macros, and gym guilt. Noom helps you rewire habits for lasting change. Get 12 months for the price of six.* Here to make it clear: MFS' portfolio perspectives are key for those seeking investment clarity at the end of a hectic 2025. Read all about it.* *A message from our sponsor. **This is a product recommendation from our writers. When you buy through this link, Morning Brew may earn a commission. SHARE THE BREW Share the Brew, watch your referral count climb, and unlock brag-worthy swag. Your friends get smarter. You get rewarded. Win-win. Your referral count: 0 Click to Share Or copy & paste your referral link to others: morningbrew.com/r/?kid=eaab23a8 Written by Holly Van Leuven , Jack Murtagh, and Abigail Rubenstein Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up here. 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