Jeff statement on the future of the site

Excited to see what GB becomes. It's silly to think the site will remain exactly as it is just with new staff. This is going to be a big shift for Giantbomb, and I trust Jeff knows what's important.

@glik:I hope this isn't true. I hope GB doesn't go the soulless corporate way. What made GB special is that it wasn't a soulless corporate gaming site, but a site where genuine gaming journalist created a community for gamers to feel at home.

This shake up does remind me of the website InnerFidelity. InnerFidelity was a very popular website for audiophiles, and it had likeable personalities who ran the site, with Tyler being the Jeff of the bunch. However, after Tyler left, which happened nearly 5 years ago, the site got taken over by a corporate head and turned it into an advertising site disguised as the old InnerFidelity. Many of the loyal members left, and the site was eventually shutdown and replaced. There youtube page is still up however for archive reasons, which is better than nothing. The one good thing about GB, is that Jeff the main guy is still going to be here.

There is not a LOT to go on at the moment and most of this will become irrelevant as soon as actual information goes public. So with that being said, here‘s my „2 cents“:

1. I would have assumed from the general appearance, that Alex, Brad and Vinny are leaving of their own volition.

2. Vinny‘s twitter statement about his need to be with friends and family at the moment and having to figure out what he will be doing in the future to me means that this has been done in a way that did not provide the three of them with sufficient time to line up a new job.

3. IF that is the case, this whole episode leaves an incredibly sour taste in my mouth. No matter your allegiances in a situation like this. This site owes EVERYTHING to those three. For them to be released like „employees“ is beyond farcical and to ME feels like an insult.

4. OF COURSE, I wish all the best to Jeff and the remaining crew. But I don‘t see how they are going to keep a steady stream of content without the three main, remaining content creators.

5. I understand that there are lives at stake and livelyhoods and families tied into this situation. So TO A DEGREE, you do what you gotta do.

6. Seeing how this whole thing got started, how the media-landscape has changed, I still don‘t see why (apart from possible contractual obligations) Jeff ties himself to this sinking ship. From statements made during the last podcast it sounds like there have always been problems with management-interference. No offense intended, but GiantBomb is nothing without Jeff, Vinny, Brad, Alex! They are the brand and they can simply GTFO and KindaFunnyGames that shit? GiantBomb was never the greatest name? Come up with something else. Wholesale own the shebang this time and F*** corporate?

Sorry, just had to get this off my chest. I wish everyone involved the VERY BEST. And no matter what happened, these guys need to know that there are a huge number of people who are rooting for them and are forever grateful for all the blood sweat and tears that went into this.

I am closing with the sincere hope that this will lead to something better.

Evolution or Revolution. Please keep talking about videogames like you have been for the past 12+ years. The industry and your audience need you! Don‘t make rash decisions that can not be undone. You are all very special and very good at what you were/are doing.

P.S.: Just ask Phil Spencer to bankroll your new venture, that would forever cement Microsofts “gamer-credentials“. (only joking… or am I?)

this is literally all i can see it becoming

@mitalis: yeah man, it really sucks

For all the speculation about Red Ventures, its also entirely possible that they are being overall supportive of the site and giving Jeff the resources he needs to make something cool and new. However, at the same time, maybe they said they weren't going to open a new East coast office, so Alex and Vinny would need to either stream from home forever or move back West and neither wanted that. And Brad, feeling kinda burned out about games the past few years, decided that if Alex and Vinny were leaving this would be a good chance for him to go too.

That's all baseless speculation of course. But to me it seems just as likely as any speculation about Red Ventures trying to destroy their own assets.

@yalbit: exactly. Right there with you

I feel like it needs to be said that there's a whole bunch of folks in here who seem to have built a really unhealthy parasocial relationship with the duders. It's okay to feel bummed that the thing you like is ending as you know it, but the level of gamer entitlement I see in these comments is frankly gross.

I find it odd that people need to find someone to blame.

Not sure it makes sense that Jeff would sit idly by while RV screwed his friends out of the business they helped build or that those leaving would be putting on happy faces speaking about the old days. (If you look into how GB got started/Jeff's leaving GS you'll better understand why that doesn't make sense) As far as the RV as a company are concerned, it doesn't seem like they're the EA of the media world as many have implied.

All things considered there seems little to gain from popping out conspiracy theories at this point. Jeff has said he'll let us know what's going on and the others have stated they're leaving of their own volition, for their own reasons. I think it'd be respectable to accept that at face value until more is known.

Haven't logged in for a long while. I love this site and all the people who were ever on it. This really is the end of an era, for many many things.

Haven't felt like this since Ryan passed, you guys really did touch peoples lives beyond just games thanks for all the good times.

Like the rest of us, I'm obviously bummed out that Vinny, Alex, and Brad are leaving. I agree that OG Giant Bomb is basically gone for good.

That being said, OG Giant Bomb has been slowly moving in a different direction for many years now. Like others have said before my comment, each new hire added their own thing to the site, like Dan's game show aesthetic or Austin's stint where the home page started featuring more op-ed type content. Granted, this will likely be a bigger change than ever before, but Giant Bomb has proven itself to be quite elastic.

With Jeff at the helm, I have no doubt the site will continue to sustain itself. I get the impression that Jeff is ready to put a lot into building something new and cool and fun. As much as I love the old standards, there have been more than a few instances on this site where people questioned whether everybody's heart was in it (the biggest offender being GOTY the two years before last). Maybe this will be chance for everybody, those going and those leaving, to find new passion in their work and evolve that work into something greater.

I am excited to see what is next for the site, I am upset to see the 3 of them leave and wish them the best of luck. I would assume that they all decided it was time to move on around the same time and as opposed to them leaving one at a time and it was better to have the 3 of them to leave on the same day. Over the past year with the work from home stuff I wasn't excited for the premium content that they had going. Minecraft was fun for me to have going in the background and I enjoy the Unprofessional Fridays is back! But definitely felt a little stale and nothing that made me go watch and watch and archive. I can't wait to see what Jeff and the other guys are going to make in terms of the premium content and see some new faces and ideas come to the table. I have seen too many dismiss the site due to the 3 of them leaving and canceling subscriptions which is I understand but find a bit harsh since if this is the site they followed for years without even taking into consideration that Jeff is still here and is going to shake things up . I don't see much excitement of what is too come and I just want to add that so that the GB community can be excited for the future of their site. I also know that the time now is to be sadden with the new of the 3 leaving more than it is about the future until later this week. But we need to remain positive even with them leaving.

I loved the past. I am eager to see what is in the future. I will love to see where everyone lands. People are going their own way by their own choice, I don't see a reason to be sad for my part.

This is not the first or last online video game community I have seen grow and change. I'm guessing most people here were not a part of Next Generation magazine online. There were of course other websites, that era was the golden age -the heroes age - of online video gaming news; but Next Gen 1996-2001 was huge. And, 1UP/UGO took the mantel in many ways, the era UnderGround Online was a mecca for gaming news & pop culture mixing.I think we can agree the 1UP pretty much set the framework for all modern video game podcasts. The modern landscape of video game news, views, and punditry is built on the ruins of many old empires. I think Vinny pointed out that so much of teh work that built those past empires was built by teh people few people knew.

“Well, here at last, dear friends, on the shores of the Sea comes the end of out fellowship in Middle-earth. Go in peace! I will not say: do not weep; for not all tears are an evil.” ~ J.R.R. Tolkien, The Return of the King

Ozymandias
BY Percy Bysshe Shelley

I met a traveller from an antique land,
Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone
Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,
Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,
And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,
Tell that its sculptor well those passions read
Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,
The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;
And on the pedestal, these words appear:
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
Nothing beside remains. Round the decay
Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare
The lone and level sands stretch far away.”

I say the above not to be sad or say thing are destroyed, but rather to say things change. New thing that are great grow for what came before, the world and its people go on. As everyone on the podcast repeated, this is about people not the place.

Best of luck to Jeff and the rest of the crew still with GB, 'cause they're all amazing, but the only thing on my mind right now is whether or not I will get to see Alex, Brad and Vinny do something together in the future. If they were to start a project together I would be all over that shit. Even if it would be them watching mayonnaise go bad in real time.

Not sure what is next for Giant Bomb, but I'm also not sure I care. It's a horrible feeling.

It's hard for me to not read into the statement and come to some wild conclusions about the future of the site and how Red Ventures plays into everything. But, ultimately, people leave sites and sites change over time. Alex, Vinny, and Brad were here a long time and it would make sense for them to move on and for the site to change at some point.

@davesavedtheday: same here brother

Whatever take you want to make from this. I personally find it very telling that the only quotes through Gamespot. That the only notification for hours yesterday was a thread in the forums and even now the only reference is a link to the Bombcast which reads as more of the 'Brad's leaving' meme.

I found out about all this because I follow Patrick on Twitter and he posted about it. I don't listen to the Bombcast so this could have passed me by otherwise given this is the only gaming site I visit.

That the site itself can barely acknowledge what is happening does not fill me with confidence for the future and is completly indicitive of the complaints people have had for a while now that 'content' is often in third-party places and not here on the site.

@nicolasvh: @nezza: Did y'all forget about this already?

https://twitter.com/jeffgerstmann/status/1389650808401063939?s=20

They will only be hiring people with "J" names going forward. Rorie is cool enough to not need the J. The site is rebranded Jiant Bomb.

Talking with creators, huh. Jeff has beaten the odds before but I can’t help but let my pessimistic attitude get in the way of the massive incoming bummer on Friday.

My sub expires at the end of next year so I’m willing to ride this transition period out to see if GB brand finds its footing but as things stand today it sorts feels (to me) like GB was waning for a while and this is the massive gut punch it didn’t need.

I personally would have been more than happy to support Patreon style approach towards supporting their current slate of podcasts but if the duders leaving are wanting a clean break then I can’t expect them to be on board with that idea either.

:(

@fugoy On Twitter. Kinda proving the point that was being made.

@nezza:

So you didn't read that tweet got it. Just making sure.

I don't know their unique situations and obviously can't speak for them, but I do want to say that leaving a job without having a new job lined up yet actually happens a lot, especially for people in or closer to middle age (as Vinny, Brad and Alex are). At that point you've probably got at least a bit of a safety net under you, you might have a spouse/partner that works, you have connections you know you can leverage, etc. There's also a possibility that Red Ventures has offered buyouts or something that would give the departing staff a runway to work with. I have seen multiple colleagues of my own leave a job of their own volition and say, literally, "I'm going to take some time off to figure out what's next."

You can't always really take that necessary time for reflection while you're worried about your existing 9-5. So sometimes people take the leap of faith and say, "I know I need to move on, but I'm not yet sure what the next step for me should be."

All that to say that you probably shouldn't take this situation as any sort of insult when I don't believe there's any evidence to back up that sentiment. Whatever the duders' reasons for leaving, there doesn't seem to be ill will, and it sounds like this move has been anticipated for weeks at this point.

I can already think of some ideas that I'm sure have gone through Jeff's mind as well as to what the future of the site will look like. I'm also very excited for the last line of the statement "It's a chance to introduce new personalities from different backgrounds and explore categories and topics that we never have before"

The site has needed something new for a bit and I obviously wish Vinny, Alex, and Brad would be here for it, but since they will not, I am still hopeful for what comes next.

I'm going to be optimistic here. We don't know close to enough as to why they are leaving and frankly it's not my business as to know why. If Jeff is staying behind and has a positive attitude about moving forward then I'm fine with everything. Sure I will miss the guys, but nothing ever stays the same. I can very much relate to what these guys have been going through the last year so, and maybe I just am a bit more understanding because I very much in the same boat of what I want in my life. My sub ends in 2022 so I'll be sticking around til at least then. I am willing to give whatever the new version of GB a chance. Change can be scary especially when there is a lot of unknowns. Still it is inevitable and often for the better to grow and move forward.

I'm going to miss the guys that are leaving. They've been companions in my ears and on my screen for over a decade. I won't speculate as to why these three are leaving, it's not constructive. I'll just wish them and those staying all the best of luck and happiness.

Change is inevitable. GB was created when the media landscape was in a major state of flux, and it really hasn't calmed down since. Twitch and its ilk have moved into a lot of the spaces GB created and excelled at. It's hardly surprising they'll have to adjust the brand and site in response to those forces. There's a ton of talent in Jeff and the other's staying on. I know they'll do their best to create a site and content that is relevant and entertaining.

Pour one out of what's lost and those that are moving on. Mourning a loss is healthy. An important part of mourning is to remember the good times. Take this chance to remember all the joy and laughs the GB has provided. The future is unknown, but there's every reason to believe there's plenty of good to come.

I'm not concerned about the money (sub). There was always a loyalty I had of sorts toward a site that has now decided to amicably (I believe) come apart. This site has been an incredible source of entertainment, and my favorite thing besides pure video games, humor. Nor will I project on any of the Three leaving what I want their lives to be. We will see if we meet again in this kind of context! Personally, that would be great. All four are people I have seen and heard five days a week since probably a year after GB formed.

As for Jeff and remaining company, I of course will give him and them a full chance. I follow the line that Giant Bomb was created because Jeff was a straight shooter. The actual how it performs is a bit less important to me, again because of loyalty, and also, as odd as it sounds, I have fallen off some anyways. Age, I believe.

That statement is encouraging... but holy crap... that Podcast was like a punch in the gut. I joined the site in 2012, but I've been listening to the podcast since beginning. I feel like... some good friends are moving out of town or something. Any one of those three announcements would have been devastating.. all three at the same time... wow. Man, end of an era. I'll be around for whatever is next, but it will never be the same. I'm still a bit shocked, I listen to the Bombcast on Wednesdays normally.. so I just finished it.

Yeah... for me it was pretty much Idle Thumbs... 1up... Bombcast... when the first two went away, I just stuck with GB and the Bombcast. I don't know if I'd still follow games without the Bombast. I've been really into board games lately.. so I might just give up on paying attention after following the industry non-stop and daily for 20+ years.

This.... kind of sucks.

The heart and soul of Giant Bomb is leaving. It seems almost disrespectful to do a hard pivot without them and still try to call it the same thing.

I can respect Jeff trying to make the best of the situation. He's always seemed very eager to dive head first into whatever new social media thing is in the spotlight. His recent effusive praise of TikTok, algorithmic feeds, and his 3-hour? weekly Clubhouse streams are prime examples. It seems natural that if RV isn't interested in letting Giant Bomb continue with what they do best -- studios with a group of charismatic people hanging out and having fun -- then it's time for the founders to move on to greener pastures elsewhere. It's a painful realization but it's a sign of maturity that they're ready to make the hard choice for their own growth.

Good luck to whatever Jeff has in mind. My interest in video games was already waning so I don't think I will stick around. I am, however, very excited to hear what Brad, Vinny, and Alex decide to do. I could listen to them do anything.

@darkfiber: Funny, this is exactly the same journey I've been on.

@sargus: 100%, leaving without a next job lined up is not uncommon at all, especially if you need time to think and explore possibilities.

I think it is kind of odd people trying to figure out some ulterior motive for them to leave while I think they were super transparent during the past months about not feeling it, I think there were one hotspot where it was said something along "Oh boy, here we go again, rebuild the site one more time" when commenting the mood with the company sell while Jeff tried to put a positive spin on it. And I totally get it, sometimes is just time to move on, it is a better move for those who want to leave and those who want to stay.

My feeling is that they are leaving with their heart in peace and I'm sure it will not be the last time we will see them at the site, be it as a guest for some of the podcasts or a joyful playdate (or whatever comes after playdate).

Man... Alex, Brad and Vinny.

I cannot imagine not having these guys in my life, and I don't have to because there's an absolute shitload of content on the site I haven't watched yet. It won't feel the same and might take a while to enjoy in the same way, if that's possible, but as long as it's available I'll be watching still. Mass Effect doesn't get old yo! Maybe that's an emotional reaction but I've never stayed current before and continuing to watch random GB stuff seems a good way to go right now, I dunno. Archive that shit!

The Bombcast, while it having more playtime for me than any (?) game, has only been the tip of the iceberg when it comes to how the guys have been there for me. To the point where I could safely say that I regularly 'feel in the mood for a *add a GB member* video'. That's really weird and creepy lol. Well, you know...there's a lot to choose from.

I realised recently that the Bombcast theme tune is *probably* the song that I have listened to the most times, if you include the times I skip it. Most skipped song, by miles.

Fuck!

I am not envious of anyone trying to figure out what is next for a site like giant bomb. The games media space at this point is so incredibly crowded... traditional coverage sites, youtube video essays, twitch streamers, patreons, lets plays, on and on. The landscape is so different now from 13, hell even 5 years ago. GB always felt secure in the face of all that since they were talented, established voices with (usually) enough support from a parent company to do the kind of stuff they wanted to do, whether that was the more traditional coverage or the wackier stuff. But without those voices and with new expectations from a different company, I can't imagine trying to steer a ship like a website with this with all its history towards some new horizons.

Some people are saying that the spirit of GB can't be captured again, but I am here for it as long as they are trying, incorporating/highlighting personalities that have the same energy that GB always has had in the formats they have succeeded at, instead of trying to... I don't know, create some collective of twitch streamers or something?

I want to believe.

@ghost_cat:

Replying to you because you're the first one to mention them, but I would totally be okay with QLs going away or at least becoming much more scarce.

They had definitely become my least consumed content on the site. I might watch the QL for a game I had interest in to help me make a decision, but they mostly felt antiquated at this point. Seemed like a lot of the crew more and more had to sort of analytically force their way deep into some games they didn't even enjoy all that much just because QLs were expected. Honestly, with twitch and YouTube, it's pretty easy to find live gameplay of games I may be interested in. It may not be as in-depth as a QL, and there's a ton of performative enthusiasm on twitch in particular, but it's still an effective way to see people actually playing the games.

Hoping whatever is next focuses on people and them having fun in equal measures.

The difference in tone between Jeff statement and RV’s statement speaks volumes. Literally like Umbridge in Harry Potter.... The daffing thing might have well had said “progress for progress’ sake”

When you choose to leave a company you don’t ‘leave this Friday’ - That twinned with RV’s gleeful statement that they’re “already in talks with new creators from different backgrounds” ... the whole thing saddens me greatly.

@ludovicoheard:

I don't know how you got that the second part of the quote was from RV. As well as I don't know why that phrase is so bad when that basically describes most of the new hires since Austin.

Furthermore these 3 have been on camera for over a decade. Why should they stick around more when they've made the decision? You want them for the rest of the month to do more bombcasts and upfs to talk about how they're leaving?

Who is "the Giant Bomb team as a whole"?

Business Dave? Idk who else would put out a statement like that with that moniker. Otherwise if it was Red Ventures they would just say it was Red Ventures.

IDK, it's not exactly much different than what they normally do. UPF is basically that in appetizer form. They've done longplay formats in many different flavors and since they've moved on from the Endurance Run those are mostly with chat open and folks watching live. Maybe Brad's dabbling with being an animated fox-man or sentient hamburger has awakened Vtuber life for the boys.

I think we all know where this is going...

@berserk007:

Yep.

At the very least the connsolidation of the GB skeleton crew and gamespot into the new "games group".

RV as a company makes money through co-marketing deals that funnel website users to third party companies, mainly financial services companies.

I also agree with the sentiment that "we are all leaving this Friday and don't have jobs lined up" is telling.

@ludovicoheard said:

Just because they didn't publicly announce their departure doesn't mean it wasn't planned internally. Consider a couple of the GameSpot After Dark crew also left recently, I wouldn't be surprised if RV was looking at making a leaner company and offered severance packages; when that happens it gives people runway if they want to move onto something new.

@luthair: or they all wanted to leave right away and stayed on for a bit to help out, bridge the gap, and be compensated for doing so. End point being, seems like none of them or Abby or Ben wanted to work for RV.

I feel you guys too. I mean I play games, but I feel the same way about games media in general.

I have tried to dip into some other stuff again too lately since I personally felt like GB has been kind of on its last legs for a bit, and nothing still has grabbed me, streamer wise for reasons and then even the old media guys still around in whatever new form.

So many games come out and they are so diverse too. The whole following games media thing feels like a waste now and GB was kind of keeping me in that at all too.

When I was younger I was hugely into more of it, then just GB as we are saying, and now with that ending its kind of a cap on the whole of it perhaps. Really an end an era.

Definitely a bummer. helping a bit seeing so many feeling the same but still sad to think about the great times being past with all this. You wish it could go on in its best moments and to live some of those again.

@deeds: same. I feel like the quality in AAA games has dipped so much in recent years too that I'm kind of just losing interest in games as a hobby. I stopped following games news daily completely when both kotaku and waypoint were hollowed out and now GB will be operating on a skeleton crew for who knows how long and for a venture capital company to boot. I hope Jeff knows what he's in for.

Apart from Vin, Brad and Alex all roughly saying something along the lines of "I don't know what I'm going to do now... Will have to think"

Jeff had to offer a free month of Premium to everyone because this has been sprung on him and he recognises he won't be able to produce content. A graceful departure offers much more of a transition period.

And if they wanted a leaner outfit they wouldn't announce that they're looking to replace them. (which honestly as they haven't even left yet is gross)

I've seen when people choose to leave GB, this isn't it. Clearly RV want to gut the outfit and rebuild it in their own image, which they have a right to do, but it's still heartbreaking. Why most people are quick to defend this corporation as if they're on Jeff's or The Fan's side seems very naive.