Two things:

1. Does "Things Dan Ryckert didn't know until today" deserve its own thread? (I need to know where to add "did not know about Android's dessert-based naming scheme")

2. I think we shouldn't discount the possibility that Dan is a time traveler from circa 1994. This would explain a lot -- not everything -- but a lot.

Not unless the person speaking were incredibly immature, anyway. There are people on forums, even these very forums, that have made such comments with complete sincerity in their beliefs.

He's going on about how all music post 70's is horrible except for a select few bands.

I didn't really care about what he was saying before, but this... It gets under my skin when people think this about music (and a lot of people share this sentiment). The sad thing is he probably doesn't actually give most modern music a chance; he sees whats on the billboard top 200 and comes to the conclusion that all modern music sucks. Is there a phobia of trying new things? Because I'm pretty sure he has it.

Either that, or he really is a master troll.... It just doesn't seem possible for 1 human to be ignorant about so many things.

Also, hopefully this doesn't come off as me hating him. I like Dan and I like his output as a content creator for this site. He just says a lot of dumb shit.

Edit: he said pink floyd is shit... There is nothing left. All that remains is dread.

Dan is an entertaining guy. If, in the process of enjoying that entertainment, you still take his opinions about anything to heart, I am as confused by you as you are confused by Dan.

@rongalaxy:

and I made the mistake of taking the bait.

Haha Dan should grow a mullet to reflect his taste in music.

Dan is a cool person and all but he really seems to lack the ability to go at all outside his comfort zone and try things. There is tons of new music that is awesome i constantly roll my eyes at people who do the "rawr rawr music is no good these days" shtick

@demoskinos:

People who say that are often looking in the wrong places.

Totally, and Dan's assumption that all "good" bands are financially successful ones is just so... absurd. There are tons of great unsigned artists on soundcloud and even spotify where you can listen to their shit for free. There is tons of stuff for everyone with all tastes of music out there. You just have to be willing to look for it a bit.

Funny thing is that none of the bands he mentioned made Dark Side of the Moon, or Animals, or Wish You Were Here, or The Wall, or A Momentary Lapse in Reason, or The Division Bell, or the amazing Pulse live album.

Hell, none of those bands can even get on the level of The Final Cut, and that album is shit.

EDIT because someone said something worth responding to:

I think the misconception whenever this argument or statement comes around is that people misconstrue "good" music with "special" music. Nothing at the age of say, 33, is going to sound quite as memorable, or special, as the music you heard when you were 14. There's something special about music at that age that winds up informing our tastes through the rest of our lives. That's not to say nobody will discover new, good music, but certainly nothing that will leave quite the impression of music from that time.

This whole music thing has been another one of those moments where I shake my head, mutter "I hate you Dan Ryckert", and then move on. In the end, I really don't hate him for long, but I've hated him briefly many times. In the end though, his enthusiasm and love for certain dumb things I also enjoy bring me back. Watching Game Informer Super Replays will show you what I mean. He didn't become this way suddenly when he came to GB.

I have no tolerance for him, I can't actually watch videos he's involved with.

DAN RYCKERT I WILL KNIFE FIGHT YOU

It seems to me that more and more Dan just likes stirring up people. He knows what will get under people skins and runs with it. While he may in fact not like Pink Floyd or believe that only good bands are commercially successful, they are still opinions and should be taken as such. He seems to love the attention his opinions get him and since it does anger the masses he continues to do it.

@mortuss_zero:

I'll no doubt feel the same way. Usually I find the silly things he says to be quite entertaining and funny. But this particular thing momentarily got under my skin haha.

That's a perfect way of looking at the enigma that is Dan Rykert. He is pretty much captain marvel.

Dan. Stop. Stop it Dan.

@oldirtybearon: I'd help.

The music you choose to listen to and find enjoyment in is intensely personal and subjective. Getting mad at someone else's musical tastes makes about as much sense as getting mad about what food they think tastes good.

I mean hell, listen to what he did to Jeff, he couldn't even speak.

I bet Dan has at least a couple of Grand Funk Railroad albums and has probably never even heard one Pavement song, so don't worry about what he has to say about your favorite music.

The music thing just made me realize that Dan must just love trolling the internet.

Dan is Patrick's Arch-demon of internet behavior. .

Dan Ryckert is a shitty, shitty band!

Dan Trollert.

I don't know if I like Dan anymore...

Dan Ryckert is Dark Souls in human form. He does so many things that should make you hate him, but you end up loving him anyway. He could give you a wet willy and make fun of your mom and you'd still like him. He's just that type of dude.

A very, very good friend of mine listens to the following on a regular basis (completely un-ironically).

Miley Cyrus

Macklemore

All that other stuff that sounds like either of these, a combiniation of both, or like neither but still the same.

I love him regardless. But I never skip a chance to make fun of his terrible taste in music.

Having polar opposite views on entertainment does not hinder our friendship, in fact it makes it stronger. I get to abuse his terrible taste, he gets to concede I am right but "What does it really matter?". I get to agree and say "You really are the worst human being to have ever existed, though, and you should die in a fire." Then he gets to say "At least I will die happy in your Mother's bed."

And so on.

I love that guy.

@ashkev:

He's a Zeppelin and Queens of the Stone Age fan. He's met my qualifications for being a good person.

Oh jesus that is the greatest thing I have ever seen.

UPDATE

...The way Dan acts on twitter will sometimes go over the threshold for me. I enjoy him a lot in video features and the bombcast, but on twitter it just seems like he goes too far for me to find it funny anymore. His trollish behaviour just comes across as childish, but not the endearing kind. The way he talks to that Jose Canseco in particular seems really harsh. Has that guy done anything to deserve it in anyway? Like, is he a real piece of shit or something? Or is Dan also just joking around? The way he's talked about in the past would suggest not, though.

They have a history. It's a feud of sorts.

I think you just have to go with it. Dan seems to be one of those folks who just is who he is, warts and feuds with Jose Conseco and all.

Pretty much sums it up for me. I always drew an instant association with the iconography of this particular poster whenever trying to categorize the wonder and majesty that is Dan Ryckert.

Erm; one of the features is him playing WoW for the first time as he has never played a MMORPG. He's going outside of his comfort zone there. I think he's extremely willing to do things he hasn't done before, actually.

Also, looking at that Jose Canseco's wiki; he deserves anything he gets;

On February 10, 1989, Canseco was arrested for reckless driving after allegedly leading an officer on a 15-mile chase. He was found guilty and fined $500.[40]

Canseco was arrested in November 1997 for hitting his then-wife, Jessica. In January 1998, he pled no contest and was sentenced to one year probation and required to attend counseling.[45]

In October 2001, Canseco and his brother, Ozzie, got into a fight with two California tourists at a Miami Beach nightclub that left one man with a broken nose and another needing 20 stitches in his lip; both were charged with two counts of aggravated battery. The brothers both pleaded guilty and received both probation and community service.[46]

In March 2003, Canseco missed a court appearance while in California working out a custody dispute over his 6-year-old. The judge revoked his probation and sentenced him to two years under house arrest followed by three years probation.[47]

In June 2003, Canseco was arrested at his home for probation violation after he tested positive for steroids. Canseco spent a month in jail without bail.[48]

In May 2008, Canseco revealed that he had lost his house in Encino, California to foreclosure saying his two divorces had cost him $7 to $8 million each.[49]

On October 10, 2008, Canseco was detained by immigration officials at a San Diego border crossing as he tried to bring a fertility drug from Mexico. He stated the drug was to help with his hormone replacement therapy, needed due to his use of steroids.[50] On November 4, 2008, Canseco pled guilty in Federal court and was sentenced to 12 months' unsupervised probation by U.S. Magistrate Judge Ruben B. Brooks.[51]

The 2008 A&E Network documentary Jose Canseco: Last Shot chronicles Canseco's attempts to end his steroid use.[52]

On May 22, 2013, Canseco was named as a suspect in a rape allegation in Las Vegas. He broke the news himself on twitter, denying the allegations and posting pictures and defamatory information about his accuser. On June 7, 2013, Canseco was cleared of any wrongdoing following an investigation. He was never charged.[53]

On April 11, 1989, Canseco was arrested in California for carrying a loaded semi-automatic pistol in his car.[41] He was released on $2,500 bail and pled no contest.[42][43]

On February 13, 1992, he was charged with aggravated battery for allegedly ramming his then-wife Esther's BMW with his Porsche.[41] On March 19, 1992, Canseco pled not guilty to charges of aggravated assault and later underwent counseling and fulfilled a community-service requirement.[44]

Yeah, this, really. He has (what I would consider) some pretty dogshit opinions and he clings to them pretty tightly, but most people cling to their opinions tightly and everyone has a few shitty things they'll never give up on. I mean, come on, Brad was almost willing to physically punch someone to have Dota2 included on the top ten games of the year list.

I think the Bombcast has done a good job of pushing Dan Ryckert to analyze or explain upon his own positions while acknowledging other peoples' feelings. He HAS also said that when he says 'x is great, y sucks' he almost always implies the modifier 'It is my opinion...' so it's fine to take anything he says with a grain of salt, if you want.

...But then again, his statement about music includes the condition 'post-1978,' meaning most of The Band, Bob Dylan and King Crimson's volumes of work are largely untouched. My stake in this is relatively minor, as a result.

@valeo: Well then... Though still at the same time, Dan's behaviour on twitter is the sorta stuff that would get someone banned on here, and I'm not just referring to his dispute with Canseco. Just seems sort of at odds a little is all. But yeah, as far as Jose Canseco is concerned, he doesn't seem to be the sorta guy who deserves much sympathy.

I love that he just straight up says what he thinks and does not give a shit. I don't agree with him on 90% of the stuff he says. But I am mature enough to recognize that people with entirely different opinions on things can get along very well. Hell, I would have no friends at all if I instigated a pick and choose policy based on my friends tastes compared to mine.

@crembaw: Every time I think about The Band I am happy because the band that got "The Band" deserves the name.

Also, I think Pink Floyd is dope and Dan seems OK even though I rarely agree with him.

Dan apparently is r/lewronggeneration the person.

Music is more diverse and creative then it's been in years.

Dan is super interesting to listen to and I'm glad he's here.

Dan is a professional troll. I love it.

He does not only say what he thinks, he says it in the most bold and statement-y way possible.

Best Tumble blog ever. Thanks for everyone involved.

This is amazing. Dan is amazing.

You must've had a field day during UPF, he was on fire! 'Are figs like sticks'

I disagree with almost every single opinion Dan Ryckert has and it makes me so, so, soooo happy. I am like so many people in "game journalism" and like so many who follow games at this level. I'm a self-important white liberal. I believe that my beliefs are important, so I have to curate them carefully and check them against ideological/class/race/academic conflicts before allowing them to thrive. I am a child of the 90s, so ethical and personal sincerity flow through my veins like a virus that I can never eradicate.

Dan holds a mirror up to the world and those who get angry are seeing their own reflections.

If you are mad because someone doesn't eat the right foods, think about yourself for a moment as someone that would be upset by someone else's diet.

Even this post... I'm navel-gazing like all the navel-gazers while Dan is probably drunk, watching wrestling, playing Pogs and absolutely loving life.

Who is the dumbass? WHO!?

Almost every word Dan said on this past UPF should be on this tumblr.

Also, that header gif makes my day.

I've come to accept Dan Ryckert for the harbinger of chaos that he is and enjoy it when there's someone there to balance him out but I'll always draw the line at deliberately getting a rise out of people on the internet. Any moment where he decides, "I'm going to write this because it's going to get people mad" is of little value to me and has always been disappointing to see.

@groverat: I felt the same way initially: that while I didn't agree with a lot of what he was saying I could respect his opinion and his perspective. But eventually he'll say something so absurd and you'll bare witness to it. And it will get under your skin. You'll do a double take at what you heard/read. It'll confuse you. And you'll come to the conclusion that Daniel Ryckert is human only through flesh and bone. His perspective is that he has no perspective. He's a specter that drifts through the night inflicting disarray upon the world.

And it won't matter. His charms will have already gotten to you by then; his claws buried deep. You --we-- will love him, and he will destroy us all.

(heavy joking aside, I think dan is funny/cool regardless of what he says. I know a lot of it really is just to get under peoples skin. He's the heel of Giant Bomb).

Dan says a lot of needlessly cruel stuff about things just because he doesn't like them. He doesn't offer any creative argument for his opinions and blindly rants off insults like a 13-year-old who just discovered the internet. In every piece of content he's in, he serves to be a great source of negativity; one that saps any fun that may otherwise have been found. His abrasively ignorant persona holds no amusement or interest to me. The only subject he seems to be knowledgeable about is wrestling and even in this his baseless harshness is onerously off-putting.

I am not mad or upset, I am just sad, as giantbomb content was one of the very few things I still found enjoyment in. I have seen every Quick Look more than once, every podcast, every live show, etc.Hopefully Dan will attract a lot more people to the website. I think acting that stupid all the time is great since most people love nothing more than feeling smarter than someone. Especially if that someone is bombastic and inconsiderate, it gets people talking.