Farewell and best wishes to Dan!

@hughj: I dunno about this to be honest. Burgle My Bananas, Goldeneye, Steal My Sunshine, B-Games, the short-lived 4th of July series are all pretty prominent series that I associate with Dan after he moved East. Before that about the only Dan-specific things I can think of out West were.... Mario Party Party and the one-off roller coaster thing.

Dan's best work was absolutely after he moved East imo.

Love you and miss you, Dan. Godspeed!

Also... Man, this hit me right in the gut for some reason. Been a fan of the crew since the Gamespot days but Dan felt like he's been around forever from the day he started. This feels like one of the original crew leaving :(

Here since the start and Dan had become my favorite part of the site now so I feel you man. Bummer he won't be there and there's a lot he brings to the table that will be missed.

He had the same energy and vibe to him as Ryan had. It was always a shame to me they never got more time to work together. I feel some of that energy has been carried by him on the site for a while.

Love you Dan, you will be missed on GB! Great sendoff stream!

I'm sad, not gonna lie. All the best to you, Dan! A force to be reckoned with, that's for sure. Thank you for your energy!

Dan you brought a spark to this site that it truly needed. I'm so happy for you, but so sad to see you go.

@sa_drone: Dan is the mind behind Mario Party Party, Metal Gear Scanlon, and Demo Derby

Best of luck Dan! Hopefully now though you can keep those wrestlers from leaking announcements though lol:

https://www.newsweek.com/kofi-kingston-day-feel-power-podcast-interview-contract-extension-retirement-1478277

"We had a producer, which was Emilio Sparks, but it's now Dan Ryckert going forward." 12/19/19

Farewell Dan! You were an amazing person to listen to, learn from and come to adore. Your open mindedness and willing to admit when you don't know something is truly admirable. It allowed myself to let my gaurd down more and admit in my own life when i was in the wrong.

Without getting too corny....

This is good... isn't it?

It makes me so sad. I really got hooked on Giant Bomb during the early Dan days. If Dan was on a podcast or video I always went into thinking this is going to be good content. I so wish his new WWE job was on screen because Dan really makes anything better. I am sure he is going to kill it as a producer and I will follow his podcasts.

I hope 1 day we get a WWE Network Dan Ryckert show/podcast. And knowing Dan I wouldn't be surprised if that happened.

Good luck Dan. You deserve it.

How much heartbreak must one Giant Bomb fan endure?

What an incredible life journey he has been on. Only inevitable that he will end up on WWE TV at some point. Man just keeps climbing.

@sa_drone: Best work, I'd agree. But I think in terms of the raw number of hours he was on-camera per week on average, it's not even close.

Damn am I sad! It was basically impossible for me to get any work done today. It is always sad when one of the GB staff leaves. It feels like a good friend is moving away. The genuine enthusiasm for the work he does and games overall was so cool to see, and no one will be able to duplicate that.

Even though his new job is supposed to be more behind the scenes, I doubt a personality like Dan will stay in the background for long. We'll see more of him in due time.

While it seems on the nose, good luck in your future endeavors, Dan. The Giant Bomb community will miss you!

o7

Dan always stuck out during the old E3 livestreams in the house, and when he came on board I was very happy to learn more about him over the years. Wish him all the best. :)

Best work is tough to say. He was great in both coasts. I will say the most memorable and fun Dan times I remember were Dan's interactions with Jeff. They were always great together.

Good luck Dan, Really going to miss you on Giantbomb.

Best of luck Dan, Waluigi...... always number 1

This was pretty sudden, was this announced earlier or just today? Also, surprised he went to the WWE with how much shit they talk about it lol.

Anyway, Good luck Dan!

I'm so happy for Dan and him getting a job that seems like it was made just for him. That said, his presence and the energy he brought to GB content will be a major loss for the website as a whole and I can only hope they find a way to fill his shoes. Also, knowing how shitty and evil the WWE is makes it hard to get too excited for this career move.

Regardless, congratulations and best of luck moving forward.

Bye, Dan! You always brought energy to whatever you did. I forgive you for the Metro Redux quick look.

@eureca: No argument there - 'best' is totally subjective. I was more coming from the angle that on the West coast they never felt cramped for production time. Dan, Drew, (and Jason) were able to churn through the full Metal Gear series in a year and a half, and it never felt like the rest of the West's weekly production ground to a halt while that was happening. I can't imagine Dan and Abby replicating that (as Dan once jokingly proposed) while still having time for weekly playdates, podcasts, and regular video segments from Vinny and Alex.

Good luck, Dan! You came on to GB around the same time I did and everything about you makes me smile. Dirty Dan will be booking WWE in 6 months

It's sad to see Dan head out, but hopefully he'll still drop in for podcasts or streams now and then. He's been a part of, if not the driving force behind, some of my favorite GB content in recent years. Best of luck to him!

This sounds almost impossible to the point where I was wondering is he doing ok considering how he has always been so passionate about getting into the video games press industry...but then I find out he is getting into wrestling and it all makes sense!

P.S.: The rotating chair claims another!

Good luck, Dan! You came on to GB around the same time I did and everything about you makes me smile. Dirty Dan will be booking WWE in 6 months.

All the best, Dan! Will miss your energy and enthusiasm.

Thanks for the (many) laughs!

That's it. 2020 is cancelled.

I'm starting a petition to make wrestling a federal crime.

It's a bummer, but I wish him luck. It's hard to stick around any work for as long as he did. I still remember where I was when I heard the first Dan episode on the Bombcast and it was amazing. When you think about how long it's been, we're really lucky.

I'm still stoked for 2020 though, I really enjoy every one of the remaining crew. Initially listening to Jeff, Ryan, Vinny, Brad, Drew, and Patrick got me through some pretty rough times, and at times it was the only thing I looked forward to. Thats all changed now thankfully (I mean when a podcast is keeping you going...), but I don't think I'll ever feel tired about the site. I'm sure Jeff will make moves to get another personality on the site if it really requires it. I mean think about how critical and like objective Jeff is, if we think we care more about this than him we're out of our minds. I mean he showed us Dan haha. I think we should trust that it'll all be ok.

Another thing I'm thinking now is that the end of year videos being different this year makes a little more sense if Dan was leaving. Maybe those are related directly.

@zombiepenguin9: I don’t see him being on many shows/podcasts since he is moving out of the state. Also sounds like he will be traveling with the WwE which is like a different city every week.

Although I wish Dan the best, I'm excited for some more new blood on the staff.

In Dan's articulation of his opinions and own interests, I feel like he would often disparage the thoughts and opinions of others in the room. I recall Alex calling him out on this on the Beast Cast a year or so ago. I don't think he was exactly intentionally trying to hurt anyone or anything like that, but he could just have a way about his delivery that I found really off-putting much of the time.

My own opinion aside, I do wish Dan the best with his new opportunity.

I feel like Dan, over time, replaced his dumb declarative statements with more wrestling references. I don't think this .... is a change for the better but it was a change ... of sorts.

He is Homer Simpson to someone's Frank Grimes. It won't be the same without him.

I'll miss Dan a ton on the site, but I'm super excited for him. Weirdly enough, I'm a little excited for wrestling too; as someone who never followed it too closely but did enjoy the loving ridiculousness of it, seeing the wrestling industry take an increasing interest in creative, energetic, and passionate people like Dan and Xavier definitely gets me interested.

As for GB... I've been a premium member through the loss of a fair amount of people on the site, first (and of course most tragically) Ryan. It felt like GB would never be the same without him- And it wasn't. Each person that is part of GB and then not- Ryan, Austin, Dan, Drew- leaves behind a unique them-shaped imprint that can never be replicated.

But every time GB has changed, it's changed into something I loved just as much as the GB before. Nobody who leaves the crew can truly be replaced, but every new person that comes in is a chance for us to see new perspectives, watch new connections form, and get to know them in the way we know the rest of the crew.

Dan, you are awesome! Will miss your enthusiasm and conviction. Loved the crazy ideas you forced on your colleagues. I hope you can make guest appearances from time to time. This site will be much different without you.

Oh man! You will be missed indeed.

Thanks for years of great work on GB. You came in at a tough time and really made postive contribution. I will always be grateful. Best of luck!

I'm glad I'm not the only one this is hitting hard. I have been a major fan of his ever since I heard him on the very first Powerbomb Cast. I remember being ecstatic when he joined GB proper. He made each coast he was on better and when he wasn't there you could feel the loss. As silly as this may sound to some Dan has inspired me greatly especially now with his leaving to follow his dreams. It makes me want to do the same. I am so extremely sad and and extremely happy that Dan gets to continue doing what he loves. Big Boss Salute to you Dan.

One of the reasons I went premium. thanks for all the laughs Dan and follow your dream

I actually found Dan to be exceedingly smart when it comes to sense of comedic timing and quick comments. It was many of his offhanded remarks I found myself laughing at the hardest throughout his time at GB. His sense of humor is really going to be missed, even though the rest of GB all bring some serious heat in that department, none do it like Dan did it.

So many Dan quotes roll through my mind all the time. It's going to be hard for me not having him in my ears. I'll move on, and I'm happy for his new career move, but I just didn't see it coming. Not long ago, I think it was on Kinda Funny he was speaking with Greg Miller who asked him about his future plans and he seemed to be pretty certain. "I'd be a fool to leave." I thought he was more or less a permanent fixture... But I was wrong. And that's ok. He was ready to go, but I wasn't.

The last GB clip I made was of Dan, it's of Abby's scream overlaid on Dan screaming.

It was good Dan. It was good.

Dan, thank you for making me laugh, and being part of Giant Bomb, which has helped me through the hardest year of my life. Good luck in WWE! Looking forward to your work!

Thank you Dan for all the laughs, for all the ideas and for all of you. You are truly a inspiration for making your dreams come true.

Good luck with everything!

I am deeply saddened by this news. I’ve followed Dan since his days a GI and when he came to Giant Bomb it was a match made in heaven for me as GB is and always will be my favorite gaming site. Good luck with WWE! You will be sorely missed.

Shout outs to Dirty Dan Ryckert the failed musician. I'm giving you some of my energy to take forward with you when you go and work at that Carny company.

Thanks for the laughs Dan!

He did an interview with Minnmax.

The MinnMax interview Dan did really shed a lot of light on it. It seems like Dan has been disenchanted with being on camera and trying to be wacky and get attention, he feels like he has done everything new he could in games, and he doesn't like online debate and discourse in 2019. I understand it all. He's so good at this that I really selfishly wish he'd just keep going but I really respect it.

Dan really is an inspiration in a lot of ways, as silly as he can be. I wish he was staying but I respect him a lot.

For completely selfish reasons; this is some bullshit and I hate it. That aside, best wishes Dan! Hope you prosper at your new gig and that life continues to be awesome for you post GB! Thanks for all the laughs and not to mention your inspiration as far as dealing with anxiety! I’ll keep an eye on you over twitter. Again, thank you for everything!

that interview is really great! makes me want to check out more of minnmax- i've never really checked out GI or any of their alums, but every time dan brought tim turi or whomever onto the UPF couch they seemed like a good crew...besides, i kinda wanna keep an eye on ryckert and i feel like that's where his gaming-thoughts are most likely to appear on.

Dan, you will be missed! Good luck with your new venture it sounds awesome! Please stop by the beast crew every once in a while. You really were a breath of fresh air when you started as it was a dark time for the crew. Thanks for helping everyone through that rough patch Dan it has been a journey with you.

Metal Gear Scanlon got me to subscribe to premium. I also suffer from tremendous anxiety and seeing you conquer and constantly battle it is very inspirational. Godspeed and I wish you the very best Dan. Thanks.