What will happen when the original GB crew retire

The New Adventures of Giant Bomb!

It'll run for a year, but they'll have a breakout character in "L'il Pepito", who will become popular enough to replace Giant Bomb with a spinoff site.

@Branthog said:

@notdavid said:

Am I the only one that would be fine with Giant Bomb: The Next Generation? Same personality-driven site, same stupid memes, but a fresh new cast. Not that I'd prefer that over the current Bomb Squad, but I'd rather see them pass the torch to a new crew than let the site die.

No, because I'm old and fuck young people.

Erm. Let me clarify that I meant I am old, so to hell with young people. I did not mean that I'm an old person who fucks young people.

Ill be too old to give a shit when that happens.

@Devil240Z said:

Ill be too old to give a shit when that happens.

Jeff is already almost 40.

@Branthog said:

@Devil240Z said:

Ill be too old to give a shit when that happens.

Jeff is already almost 40.

I would be shocked if I give a fuck when I'm 30. if giant bomb is still around in 5 years it will be an antiquity. Ill be telling my kids of the good old days by then.

These guys aren't pro athletes. They play video games for a living, for fuck's sake.

Seriously, though, only thing that will cause a "retirement" for anyone in the foreseeable future would be family-related stuff, me thinks. And at least so far, that hasn't stopped anyone. People may move on from this site, but no one's gonna retire from PLAYING VIDEO GAMES FOR A LIVING -- again, not for the foreseeable future at least. Ten years? Sure. Maybe.

The site will go under before anyone retires.

For me its hard to imagine that the site will be alive long enough to see them retire. In the internet age even the brightest stars fade away pretty quickly. I imagine that in couple years there will be some young guns taking over this business with their crazy holographic videos and podcast about Martian drinks.

@Willtron said:

These guys aren't pro athletes. They play video games for a living, for fuck's sake.

Seriously, though, only thing that will cause a "retirement" for anyone would be family-related stuff, me thinks. And at least so far, that hasn't stopped anyone. People may move on from this site, but no one's gonna retire from PLAYING VIDEO GAMES FOR A LIVING.

The site will go under before anyone retires.

Yes, but your capacity to play whole swaths of popular genres goes away with age. Athlete or not, you still need eyes, reaction time, and fast critical thinking for whole chunks of the gaming library. Compound that with the possibility that young people may have no interest in hearing some old man critique new games, put out funny videos, or talk about games in a historical "back in my day" context and a limited lifespan of viability in this career is a very relevant concern. And even if there is still a space for some of this as a niche, is there enough for all of the big names in gaming coverage to still have a place in the business in five, ten, or fifteen years?

Four clones of Patrick they extracted the DNA from a mosquito trapped in amber.

That's why Vinny, Will, and Gary had kids.

People move on and things change. At some point, one of the current staff will decide to leave, and someone will inevitably take his place. Eventually, Giant Bomb will be staffed and run by an entirely new crew, unless the site goes under before then. That's just the way that these things work. It's inevitable, just as it's inevitable that any new staff member that comes on board will become the target of forum bitch fits by users that can't stomach the thought of anyone but the original crew running the site.

i imagine they'll slowly get new members and the original bombcrew will retire one by one rather than all at once.

or perhaps they'll sell the site.

GameBomb.ru will take over when Giant Bomb is over.

The site will be run by Max Caravella, Willow Smith, Floppy Rocket Whitta and Mordecai Snider.

We of the cult shall travel to the Chosen Lands and one by one burn our China Don't Care shirts in the rising flame.

I heard Brad was leaving at the end of the month.

They're old as shit now, they ain't quitting anytime soon. Old ass fuckers, still playing games. They'll be here long after you young ass fuckers are gone.

I foresee most of us having moved on with our lives families, careers, etc... and not really give to much of a shit. But there is a certain type of fan on this site who will take it way to seriously and become emotionally distraught.

That is something I don't want to think about. I rather they leave on their own terms than being forced out like other publications or websites. I hope Giant Bomb lasts as long as it can.

@dungbootle said:

Patrick's 27 dude and I'm sure Drew isn't too far off from there

Yeah, how can he think they're below 22? Especially Drew. Not that he looks old, but less than 22?

Also Giant Bomb doesn't have interns right now.

I imagine the current staff have at least ten/fifteen more years in them and I hope by then I've moved on. I'm 24 this month and unless I really screw my life up in ten years I want to have a family and more important things to do than browse video game websites. =S

Vinny, Ryan, Jeff, Brad, Drew and Dave are the reason why I like the site. So in other words when they leave I leave.

This site needs more Dave Snider though.

@Vanek said:

I imagine the current staff have at least ten/fifteen more years in them and I hope by then I've moved on. I'm 24 this month and unless I really screw my life up in ten years I want to have a family and more important things to do than browse video game websites. =S

Why not both?

or, as a meme site may put it: "Porque no los dos?"

Impossible to tell. None of us have any idea what the internet will be like. Whose to say that a website like this even makes sense at that point.

That's a sad thought that I didn't really think about before.

@Milkman said:

The site will be run by Max Caravella, Willow Smith, Floppy Rocket Whitta and Mordecai Snider.

And it will be called Giant Bomb: The Next Generation.

I've thought about it before. As much as they occasionally come across like jaded veterans, I think they really do like their job, and they have quite a bit of freedom where they work, and seem to be a tight knit group, so honestly I think this is a very long way off. Though I do hope they gradually inject some new blood over the years so that we have time to get used to new people before they retire. They should hire Kessler.

Seeing as how the gaming journalism industry is so young it has yet to really a full generation retire and another take its place, this is an interesting historical question. Will Jeff Gerstmann be remembered or revered as a journalist to look up to in 50 years? Will Giant Bomb be like the New York Times of video game journal/blog sites? Maybe...

I'm curious whether Giant Bomb will still be around in 10-15 years time but i hope it will be.

They all seem pretty young to be retiring anytime soon. They have a pretty good thing going on and many people would kill to do what they do for a living.

My advice to them is to do it until it feels stale, then do something else.

If the site ends in 10 years I wouldn't be upset. All good things end, it would be better if it ended at the top of it's game instead of growing stale and just repeating the same shit.

Vinny's spirit will continue living on in the Tricaster and everyone else will go full cyborg so no one retires.

@GreggD said:

@Milkman said:

The site will be run by Max Caravella, Willow Smith, Floppy Rocket Whitta and Mordecai Snider.

And it will be called Giant Bomb: The Next Generation.

I can read the Kotaku headline now. RUMOR: Is the Giantbomb staff developing the next generation? Vinny Caravella, Dave Snider confirmed procreation. Ryan Davis contemplating kids? Jeff Gerstmann investigating cloning? What about Brad and Patrick? Can Drew really live forever?

(Yes, it's an overlong headline joke.)

@GreggD said:

@Milkman said:

The site will be run by Max Caravella, Willow Smith, Floppy Rocket Whitta and Mordecai Snider.

And it will be called Giant Bomb: The Next Generation.

I can't wait for the parallel universe reboot by JJ Abrams. I wonder what the point of divergence will be.

@Claude said:

They're old as shit now, they ain't quitting anytime soon. Old ass fuckers, still playing games. They'll be here long after you young ass fuckers are gone.

Indeed.

@Akyho said:

I find this conversation uncomfortable. Mainly the fact that Patrick has been singled out from the start (not in a bad way, still singled out) that leaves it open for this thread to turn into a Bitch about Patrick thread. Something we have had enough of lately.

Secondly, GB is still young and small. I expect another 10 years if the site is still going that it will have pulled more cycles of people on board if they were ever going to grow bigger.

If not and GB continues to pride itself on being small while the fanbase isnt. (the more likely outcome) Then the GB crew will only retire when GB isnt popular any more and cant make a decent living from it..

I DID NOT intend for this to turn into a bitch rant. I have nothing against Patrick. Sure I can find him marginally annoying, and much less of a staple character, but thats MY opinion. I mentioned him specifically as he is the youngest.

@ShadowConqueror said:

If they were to retire and Giant Bomb still existed, we should be thankful for everything the crew has done to entertain us over the several decades of its existence.

Touche bro.

I really have no idea if this site will still be popular or relevant or if the current crowd will just stick around and get worn away over time. I guess it depends on how well the guys can keep their appeal to new, young viewers. I'm 20, but 4 years ago I fell in love with the site and that's what they need to be able to hit, because 16 year olds have way too much time on their hands and will spend a lot of time on a video game website.

On the other hand, as the age of the average video games man/woman keeps increasing I'm sure there is still going to be a large audience that will be around. I guess it just depends on how much the site changes as the guys do.

I've had this question on my mind for a while now. I don't think there's ever been something quite like Giant Bomb. I do go to other sites and listen to other podcasts, but I always seem to end up back here. GB will always hold a special place in my heart. The crew here have provided countless hours of fun and smiles for me over the past five, six years. The whole crew is something very special. They could never be replaced. I hope the site stays in tact for the next ten or more years, but if it doesn't, then I'll always have the memories.

Enough of that sappy shit. Let's all be excited because there's so much to look forward to this year. We may finally get an announcement of a new console soon and there's a ton of great games on the horizon. There will definitely be another year of awesome content to look forward to this year from Giant Bomb. Fuck Yeah!!!

I'd be dead by then.

@zudthespud said:

I really have no idea if this site will still be popular or relevant or if the current crowd will just stick around and get worn away over time. I guess it depends on how well the guys can keep their appeal to new, young viewers. I'm 20, but 4 years ago I fell in love with the site and that's what they need to be able to hit, because 16 year olds have way too much time on their hands and will spend a lot of time on a video game website.

On the other hand, as the age of the average video games man/woman keeps increasing I'm sure there is still going to be a large audience that will be around. I guess it just depends on how much the site changes as the guys do.

I was obsessed with games when I was 13-17, then I had school and worked super hard so games took a back seat. In Law School I only played games year 1 and 2, and after that had to stop. HOWEVER, now I have a job I'm back. Living abroad away from the parents, so I play a lot, and therefore this site and community is a part of my life.

I didn't fall in love with this site, I just really enjoyed the individuals back in the Gamespot days. Then as they moved I followed them. This is my definitive gaming website. If Jeff, Brad, Ryan and Vinny left it would have an impact on me. Hell, I get pissed off if one of them miss the bombcast

@Feanor said:

I foresee most of us having moved on with our lives families, careers, etc... and not really give to much of a shit. But there is a certain type of fan on this site who will take it way to seriously and become emotionally distraught.

Uh. The older you get, the more you need to get away to places like GB and things like video games. I can tell you that the older I get (mid thirties, now) the more games I play and the more time I set aside from recreation and general bullshitting. It's when you're young that you have all the time in the world for dating and shitting around the place and and busting your ass in thankless 120hr weeks where you live in your office at work. When you're older, you start to be like "holy shit, if I don't force myself to cool it and spend more time on myself other than working and doing chores, I'm not going to make it to 40 or 50". And if you've done it right, you have established a situation for yourself where you can focus on things you are interested in for your own sake by those ages.

If getting older meant having less time and focusing less on yourself and giving everything up, then I'd have fucking killed myself at thirty. :)

@dungbootle said:

Patrick's 27 dude and I'm sure Drew isn't too far off from there

I don't get it. What does that mean? You say that like "wow, he's so old". 27 is young. He's not on the edge of 40 like Jeff and gang. That's the difference between prime activity age and the age where your eyesight, reaction time, and bladder (okay, maybe I'm exaggerating on the last one there) start to impact you. Patrick may not quite be a spring chicken, but he is still young enough that he has that glimmer in his eye and all the ambition in the world before him. He hasn't been worn down by reality into a little nubby pencil of a person that is just hoping to make it another year without major medical incidents, death, or being layed off like the rest of us geezers. :P

Hey, you guys just need to live and enjoy today.

That will be sad day, a day im not prepared for.

I think they've created a niche for Giant Bomb-like sites at very least to spring up after theirs is done. Otherwise, what you get is Corporate Communications Conglomerate X puts up a gaming site, fills it with 23 year old yes men shills, and you end up with an IGN. There will be a place for the "basement" group of dudes with an independent take that have access to cameras, the internet and that have wacky personalities.

EDIT: It may be more important what happens with the games themselves in the coming years.

By that time we will have personality ROM constructs like in Neuromancer and you can just jack into the net and watch those 4 AI's talk about games..for eternity..

Blow up the site, it's called Giant Bomb after all.

I refuse to believe the OP seriously thought Drew was 22 or younger.

If this happens, I personally wouldn't be going to GiantBomb for my Gaming news.

What will we play on once the PS4 is 20 years old? I mean sure it's going to be pretty good once it releases this year, but what about 20 years from now?

Patrick would of turned 18 by then. Given the site a new pink reskin and taken it in a new direction where it only covers video games with females as there lead.