And Now... The Rest Of The Story

@Deusx said:

I just wished you guys would actually do some kind of video to explain EVERYTHING. The answers to many questions have been all over the place. For example what is going to happen to screened and anime vice? What are the new offices like? Why didn't you guys make a goodbye video? What do you guys get from all this? Money and tech? New editorial staff? Is someone going to join Vinny and Drew on the editing side of things? Why exactly did you do this? What do WE get from this? What do the Gamespot guys get from all this besides a way of making more ads money? What do Gamespot users and community gain from all of this? What is going to happen to Rorie? Aren't you sad the Whiskey Media family is splitting up? Are you actually happy to be on cubicles again? I can keep going...

1. Screened and Anime Vice were bought by a different company. They, more than likely, have no idea what's happening to them.

2. They shot tours of the new office today and we're probably going to get a new Building A Bomb type video.

3. Goodbye? They're not going anyway. Also, they said they weren't sure when the deal was going to be finalized.

4. More money and resources to do what they've been doing.

5. Not sure but I'm sure if they need some help, GameSpot has plenty of video editors.

6. See number 4.

7. Better and more content, most likely.

8. Occasional teaming up with the Giant Bomb guys? Other than that, not much changes for them either.

9. Introduced to Giant Bomb? Other than that, not much changes for them either.

10. See number 1.

11. I'm sure it's a little bittersweet but nothing's stopping Will and Norm from coming to GameSpot/Giant Bomb office time to time.

12. Who said they're in cubicles?

Got any more?

@SpicyRichter: This site was formed on journalist integrity. I'm sure if that was being compromised, Jeff wouldn't do it.

Awesome

Now they've got a bit more cash, they should think about doing the World Tour.

I just wished you guys would actually do some kind of video to explain EVERYTHING. The answers to many questions have been all over the place. For example what is going to happen to screened and anime vice? What are the new offices like? Why didn't you guys make a goodbye video? What do you guys get from all this? Money and tech? New editorial staff? Is someone going to join Vinny and Drew on the editing side of things? Why exactly did you do this? What do WE get from this? What do the Gamespot guys get from all this besides a way of making more ads money? What do Gamespot users and community gain from all of this? What is going to happen to Rorie? Aren't you sad the Whiskey Media family is splitting up? Are you actually happy to be on cubicles again? I can keep going...

Move the desks back.

well if its a good thing..thats good answered my question about E3 and the podcasts love those even though i am never home with time difference and all. But good they are going to plough their own road still in a good unique way.

@Milkman said:

@SpicyRichter: This site was formed on journalist integrity. I'm sure if that was being compromised, Jeff wouldn't do it.

I'm not sure I come to GB completely for integrity, I come for NSFW style zany humor. Not sure that's this guys style:

Although, that smile does look a little crazy..

no more cable alchemy!

This makes me feel better.

Nice. The recent lack of content gave me an opportunity to catch up on a growing backlog.

Take your time getting adjusted to the sweet new digs! Also videotape them for us.

I am excited about where Giant Bomb is going, but...

I feel like Jeff really didn't address anything in this video. I recall that part of the reason his firing was such a big deal at the time was because of the way his written review of the game in question was taken down and significantly edited after he had left.

I also recall that a lot of other people in the gaming press community felt that it wasn't just an issue about this one review, but that Jeff was being made an example of. There was the concern that his firing was essentially a warning to other editors at the time that if you are going to write for a larger corporate site the tone of gaming press coverage would have to be more respectful of the advertising sponsors, in the same way that radio and television have always bent over backwards for their advertising partners.

If Jeff thinks Giant Bomb can partner with CBS and still maintain the independence that has made this site great, well, I wish him the best.

This is actually just a first draft for the new Mass Effect 3 epilogue with Jeff playing Shepard and John playing the Elusive Man.

@Homeslice: Shut up. Not going to comment on your stupid response. Everyone has their own issues.

@Milkman: That doesn't fully answer the questions. I already knew most of that.

Also, check twitter. Cubicles confirmed for the staff.

Whenever I've Googled video games in the past, I've always actively avoided the Gamespot results.

That inherent dislike hasn't abated over time, and I doubt it'll change now.

That said, I have faith in the Gentlemen to continue as they have, and unless my deepest trepidations are realized, my subscription isn't going anywhere.

Now all we have to do is get Greg Kasavin to renounce his new career of making critically acclaimed indie games and getting Rich Gallup to admit that the game he is working doesn't exist and it will be just like old times. Except John Davidson is there, which I am not opposed to.

This video stinks without the NWO music/old picture of Jeff intro that was originally there.

If you missed it... http://www.twitch.tv/gamespot/b/311783658

Do love the freeze frame used in the Youtube video above though. "Awww shucks."

@SpicyRichter: That's the idea behind growing a business.. A company's culture and structure change when it grows, there's no way around it. Greiner's famous article about this sums it up perfectly.

However, GB is a bit different in that respect. While company cultures and structures change when they transform from start-up to the second stage, their product stays the same. For GB, acting like idiots while talking about video games is the product. Therefore, I only expect good things coming from this, at least in the short run.

In the long run, they will probably shift a bit more towards CBS, in the very least because they're around these guys all the time. People that hang out together tend to start to see things more in the same way. But doesn't necessarily have to be a bad thing.

Next to this, change will always happen, and part of the community will always complain. That's just human. People in general do not like change, and will usually try to resist it. Eventually, if the change is good for the company (not all change is good, of course), most of them will stop complaining. And then, when there's a new change, the whole things starts over again.

Getting Patrick on the team is a classic example of this. Quite a few people complained about this because it in their minds changed the original concept of GB. However, recently, more and more people started to accept Patrick for who he is and what he does. Sure, all of them will have their own reasons for this, but if you look at it from a helicopter view, this is nothing different from any other sort of change resistance.

Anyway, GB is going in this direction now, so just try to enjoy it. It won't make your life easier if you keep on comlaining in advance without actually knowing what's going to happen.

As long as you felt cozy in that green-wrap-around-screen, it's all good

This was a good move for all involved.

Clears up the misguided friction between the two sites, tells us what actually happened, and reassures people that both GB and GS will be completely separate entities.

I hope it'll work out that way, because GiantBomb has come this far purely because of their editorial freedom, and the power of the individual personalities running the site.

This site captured the magic of a group of tight-knit friends doing what they love, and there is no other website that ever did that before. Diluting this with "random" Gamespot staffmembers all the time would effectively take away the things that I love so much about the site.

Not to say that there aren't great people at Gamespot too, but you know, I'd hate to see the personality-driven vibe of the site go to waste just for the sake of pushing more content.

Still, I am convinced Jeff and the crew all realize this too, and will make the right decisions in the end.

I'm on-board either way.

I really love the thumbnail that the youtube video uses. Classy angle of Jeff.

The one thing that I don't think was covered was what the fate of the new management folks that made the call to fire Jeff and are no longer there anymore. I think most people would appreciate knowing they got canned for making a really dumb decision and costing the site a ton of readership.

I think that would satisfy everyone that wanted some sort of justice on Jeff's behalf and would make this reunion with GS make a ton more sense.

(Realistically, having seen the inside of large organizations, execs like that rarely hang around for more than a few years, tending to try to parlay their positions into higher-paying, bigger-titled ones elsewhere before the paint is even dry on their office walls. One can hope.)

@SoothsayerGB: Jon's a good dude. He and Garnett Lee used to do 1up Yours back with they both worked for Ziff. I'm really optimistic about this whole thing. I hope Jon guests on some Bombcasts.

You know... I believe in these guys. I can almost say, they can't do wrong. It's like that thing Allen Ginsberg said about William Burroughs, regarding his appearance on a Nike comercial: Bill Burroughs is not endorsing Nike-- Nike is endorsing Bill Burroughs.

I like John Davison for what he's done in the past but this whole interview came off a little sleazy for my liking. Not meaning to reflect on either Jeff or John I just think it's sort of unavoidable given the situation.

This has been a crazy day, Giant Bomb and Tested are both a big part of my time spent on the internet and it's kind of bizarre how personal this feels for me. I guess it's a sign of the times.

Are you guys still putting that Brad Phone video up?

I hated this move by Giant Bomb until I saw this video. I'm excited and hopefully it will just be business as usual on the site coming up.

JOHN DAVISON WORKS AT GAMESPOT!? WHAT THE HELL...

I am afraid. I don't like change.

@onan: I'm pretty sure during the video Jeff mentions it isn't the same people running the show anymore. It's not explicit like "oh yeah after they fired Jeff they all lost their jobs too because of it", but one of them definitely mentions it.

After watching this i feel much better about this now.

OH CAPTAIN MY CAPTAIN

@Switchthemunky said:

Now they've got a bit more cash, they should think about doing the World Tour.

That's exactly the sort of crazy homegrown spirit I feel will disappear with this move though... I mean think about it, that whole thing came about because of some drunk shit that was said on the street by the staff after spending the whole day livestreaming about topics as high brow as the best way to microwave bacon.

I can't see that taking place in this new office space. This really is an "office space" as well, a lot of that video stuff which organically developed in the WM open plan office and their original basement office just isn't going to happen on the 3rd floor of CBS towers...

I wouldn't want to hold them back and I'm happy the website is growing up but it's still sad to see.

A better title would of been meanwhile at the legion of doom. But joking aside congrats to all involved glad to see this has worked out for everyone involved.

Going to miss the hell out the Will Smith Interaction tho :(

Congrats guys. Thanks for being such great Duders can't wait to see whats next. And Jeff keep dropin that Knowledge, the people need it. stay positive.

I haven't watched it yet but I get the feeling that after all these years Jeff just wants to go back home, in an office, with other random dudes.

I don't like Gamespot/CBS's policies about their editorial staff not being allowed to socialize with other media outlet writers.

I don't think I've ever touched Gamespot since the debacle, and maybe that's not fair since the "evil" ones have long since moved on (though I don't exactly frequent much else than giantbomb for gaming stuff anyways).

I'm sure almost everyone else is the same way. This might be a good thing for gamespot to close the gap and "come clean" about past misgivings. People might be more willing to give them a chance and maybe they'll be able to make their own content better.

Whether this is a good thing for GB remains to be seen though. It's clear that there's some things we will be losing, but I do hope that it will all work itself out to something better in the end.

Good luck guys, thanks for being honest and transparent about the whole thing today. It feels like it's crazy for us, but it's much more crazy for you.

You know... I believe in these guys. I can almost say, they can't do wrong. It's like that thing Allen Ginsberg said about William Burroughs, regarding his appearance on a Nike comercial: Bill Burroughs is not endorsing Nike-- Nike is endorsing Bill Burroughs.

Good Luck, guys. I can understand why people are weirded out, but this is really exciting. Looking forward to being along for the ride.

@SpicyRichter: @selbie said:

LOL at all the pessimists saying this is the end of Giantbomb. Let's remember Jeff and the rest of them made Gamespot what it is. Then they made Giantbomb what it is, and now BOTH of them are back together!

I always thought the Gamespot staff could use some decent humor once in a while. Those guys have gone stale as fuck since Jeff and the others left.

It's worth pointing out that the GB crew isn't on the Gamespot staff now.. They are just owned by the same company and will share a workspace. I wouldn't expect Jeff to start showing up in GameSpot stuff, and thus the humour will remain stale.

I just hope giantbomb doesn't look like this next week:

Okay, thanks for the video guys. I don't go to Gamespot as much since the GB crew left, but I do miss a lot of those guys so visit from time to time. Great to hear you clearing things up - and if Jeff is okay with it, then we should have no problems.

Also I'm very excited about the prospect of seeing John Davison pop up in content with the GB crew. One of my absolute favourite journalists outside of GB from back in his 1up days.

Jeff and Jon. Double J. New endurance run with those two? Obviously.

@SpicyRichter said:

@Milkman said:

@SpicyRichter said:

I enjoyed this site because it is unleashed and the guys will say anything they feel because there's no 'big brother' paying the bills.

This has now changed. There is NO WAY this will continue under the heavy hands of a company like CBS. No matter what anyone says, the bombcast will change tone, quick looks will change tone, etc. Whenever management gets involved, creativity gets stifled. This always happens no matter WHAT people 'expect'.

When you get bigger you are expected to cater to a larger audience. This isn't really what giantbomb is about now is it?

I knew something bad was going on this week :( The changes at tested really excite me though!!

Oh, you know all this huh? It's good thing we have Giant Bomb's resident soothsayer to break this news to us.

Seriously, just shut the hell up. They haven't even been in the office for a day. The sky isn't falling. Not everything on the internet has to be some corporate conspiracy keeping the little guys down. Nothing is changing.

I'm a business man, I've seen entrepreneurs bought by conglomerates and have seen them lose their charm.

You sound like a really bad business man.

Rather horrifying that there are people out there that do what they can to scare others from doing their work and lie about bad products. I'm glad that jeff is one of them that sems to never fall for that.

@SpicyRichter said:

I just hope giantbomb doesn't look like this next week:

Ahhhhhhhh... it just screams "we have no respect for you or what we are doing."

Times change and let's hope it's for the best. The Giant Bomb move to Gamespot is kinda like Lebron James going to the Heat....But this GB move is a better idea. Jeff who's your Dwayne Wade? Anyways this is big news and I hope for all of the GB crew the best!

Ok I feel "a little" better now after watching this. ;P