Premium Members FAQ

Jeff back to gamespot? Really?

Giantbomb is more about the people making the content rather than who's owning it, I believe. Good luck, will of course be staying as a premium member.

Good luck! Hope all this works out! Long Live Giant Bomb!

What will happen to Anime Vice and Screened? I don't have any fondness for Anime Vice, but I wanna know where Screened is going! Now might not be the time with Rorie's post coming up soon, but any info you can give will be welcome!

I trust the entire Whiskey Media team 100%, it's all the other guys I don't trust. I used to trust Gamespot too until shit got real then I left never to look back.

Edit: Also, looking over the Total Access stuff there really isn't anything that excites me. All the bonus videos and features on the WM sites was good, but the real reason I subscribed was because I wanted to support Giant Bomb and the other sites, NOT Gamespot, CBS or any of their subsidiaries. I cancelled my Gamespot Total Access subscription for the same reason right after Jeff was fired.

I'm out. I'm happy for your guys to get a big check, but I'm not interested in Gamespot or CBS.

@BNB82 said:

I'm out. I'm happy for your guys to get a big check, but I'm not interested in Gamespot or CBS.

Bye bye. If you watched the video then you would know that they have no intention of changing the site, merging with gamespot or stop doing anything that they already do, but anyway later's bro.

@Sinful said:

Peace out and good luck. The reason I came to Whiskey is to avoid places like Gamespot.

EXACTLY! :\

I for one am totally pumped, change is scary but this has potential to really drive more amazing content.

Giant Bomb is dead. Long live Giant Bomb.

My biggest concern with premium subscribers would be that it is critical to me that I can continue to download your videos for use offline. I download videos and watch them while working out, and I wouldn't be able to stream them where I work out.

On a funnier note, my workouts vary in length based upon the length of your quicklooks!

A secondary concern is I wonder how long you will hold out on showing ads to premium members. It's nice not to see those ads filling my screen. Although I could live with the ads returning, I wouldn't like it. The same goes for the downloaded videos above, I don't want my downloaded videos to have ads in them.

@Jackel2072 said:

@MrWiggles said:

@Jackel2072 said:

im also extremely worried about the site being owned by CBS. by no means am i saying the gang is going to sell out. im more worried that at some point the corporate stooges will look at something like the 10 min plus shit throwing discussion on the bombcast this week and decide it time to change somethings. regardless of what kind of deal they made, they are still owned by a company and all the red tape that comes with it. i guess really all we can do is "hold on to our butts" and see what happens. I was a GS member back in the day and when Jeff got fired i left ( like a lot of people) to come to Jeff's blog, then Arrow pointing down and finally now Giant Bomb. what im really trying to say is, i'll keep rolling with you guys and if shit goes bad, well guess we'll have to make a new site =)

I think you need to remember companys are run by people too, just because they're part of a bigger group now doesn't mean "The man" is going to come ruin everything. Its like minded people coming together, joining forces to make something more epic.

i hope so my friend. i will remain optimistic, but i also know their has been more bad with stuff like this then good. it's really just going to come down to time in the end. i hope a year from now when we're all watching the big live live show live taking place in downtown San Francisco With Jeff and Ryan making kessler eat something even more bizarre, all this worrying was for nothing.

Well i don't know if the interns will be coming, but i'm sure they're find some more participants of forced feeding.

Lots of feelings are percolating right about now. Fear, rage, excitement, Love, pride, confusion, disappointment, and most all anticipation to see where this set of sites, partnered or not, goes next.

My one thought whilst feeling all of the above is please don't change how you guys make content or what you've all been about since the inception of WhiskeyMedia/Giantbomb. You've come far and I've been proud to watch it happen, but sometimes success can make a creature become stagnant and lazy. You guys have never seemed the sort to let that happen but this is still valid.

My questions:

I wonder what will happen to the GB community?

Communities from both sites won't be merged will they?(Please NO!)

Will GS have any influence on how GB works(In all ways I could ask about)?

Will GB have any influence on how GS works(as I don't like GS all that much and would like them more if they changed their direction somewhat)?

Which staff members of GS are coming over to GB?

Which GB staff members are leaving?

Where did Daniel Miesner go and why did he decide to leave all of a sudden (Please don't give me the everything's happy "greener pastures" answer)?

Please don't be offended by my possibly bad tone, I've loved all WM websites from the very inception of finding the WM websites, starting with GB, and understandably I've become very attached to the site and you guys as a direct and completely honest loving consequence. I do, and have always, wish/ed you guys much success, but with change comes the unknown and a possible future where the site I've come to love is no longer a site I frequent and pridefully watch shine. It may even become one I hate for what it no longer is in the future. I really, really hope not.

My tone is such because I'm feeling a lot right now and I'm scared.

Forgive me.

GB isn't my life, as this comment may seem to portray, but I'm a dedicated fan none the less. Please don't betray that loyalty.

I've been a paying member since the first minute it was possible to be one, and also followed Jeff and Ryan here (simplified but you know what I mean) from Gamespot, but I have a nasty feeling in my gut... Not about content, I have no doubt Vinny wont let anything leave the editing room without being batshit bonkers, but at my premium membership. I had no qualms at all about my Premium Membership when the site went the independent direction that it did, I felt like I was helping preserve something that I loved, but now it doesn't need preserving. It is preserved. The guys get a secure wage, which is AWESOME, and will retain their original content and style, which is the best news ever, but they don't need my money any more, and I kinda do. I really think they should scrap their whole premium member service... unless the revenue it generates is the reason for the buyout in the first place? I dunno, no need for me to start conspiracy theorising.

I'll still come to Giantbomb, and still buy good merch when it pops up, but I hope they do away with the premium-only videos, they're not necessary any more.

Questions to Dave:

If I'm a member of both Giantbomb and Gamespot, do those accounts stay separate (achievements/lists/stats/profile pages/etc) or will there be a merger of sorts sooner or later that will dictate one over the other? That and if you're a paid subscriber on one but a free member on the other what if any impact . . . just wondering if there will be much lost or nothing changes?

Thanks for the headsup and best wishes. I've been a fan of both sites for very long times and the reunion makes talking about either much less awkward. I'm iffy on the breaking of Whiskey Media family of sites, so I'm not sure how I feel about Tested and Screened elsewhere . . .

how will event coverage happen? will it be the same as it was in the last few years? like E3 from the house? with cool video streaming and podcasts that are up later?

a bit worried, a bit excited. Want to see where this is going and sincerely hope that everything will turn out to be more awesome instead of more corporate...

Does that mean Jeff can get double fired?

I hope GiantBomb will stay same way as they were from the very beginning and I wish them good luck. I will support you until I die, or you die, or something else dies, dunno, like die.
 
Now to you haters... remember when they "merged" with...  whiskey media? Nothing really happened. Oh sorry I meant it changed into whole new, better experience ( Whiskey Fridays, podcasts with other people, etc. ). I don't know how to fill about whole Gamespot. They are pretty normal... hey, you know what? Look at gametrailers.com and what happened to them. In a past they had really fantastic way of showing trailers, now it is all downhill. I will give you a small example what I mean. Every time I want to play a trailer there is always THE same ad. before main trailer. For the sake of my mom, why would you put an ad. in every trailer... well ok, I don't really mind ads. you can mute them, or your speakers, but what I really hate is when I see always the same ad. and it always sucks balls. I would talk about my disliking of GT for another 320 lines, but I will leave it. You can hate me or not, I give a shit. I love you GiantBomb (s)crew.

When I get some cash I will surely buy premium account to support you even further.
 
Piece of Cake... good work guys...

@snide Will any of the Giant Bomb "Kingterns" be making the jump to hyperspace?

I, for one, would love to see Kessler/Steve/Ben moderate a My Brother, My Brother and Me-esque podcast around inane GameSpot forum discussions/threads that get sent to them. Preferably, from the Final Fantasy VII or Twilight Princess boards.

What is the benefit of having two video game editorial sites in one family? Seems like it would make more sense to merge the two. Not saying I necessarily want that, but I'm confused as to how this benefits the Giant Bomb community.

But WHY!? Aren't you guys making a lot of money with the subscriptions? Why sell like this?

Hey CBS was the company that bought the rights to Twin Peaks after ABC cancelled it. thats got to count for something! 

Hey Dave, will we still get Random PC game, load our last save, and the occasional endurance run with this shift? My worry is that everyone will be so excited about the new content, that they'll stop producing the current content we know and love. Much respect Hardcore Dave!!!

So I won't be a tested premium member?

Cautiously optimistic. But I gotta say, the breaking up of the Whiskey Media family sucks and I am not to stoked on joining GameSpot.

@AuthenticM said:

But WHY!? Aren't you guys making a lot of money with the subscriptions? Why sell like this?

The subscriptions are what kept the site running. Everyone needs to be paid, everything needs to be paid for. Subscriptions got the site where it is today, but to expand, get better they need more. I bet they don't make a fortune in wage from this site, and they put a lot of work in as well.

we need to make a T-shirt that reads. 8.8 RETURNS!  
 
someone else has to get that. 

@superscatman: Clearly that's what I said....verbatim...*clap clap*

@Sinful: What exactly are you avoiding about Gamespot?

"Giant Bomb will continue to operate as its own unique site."

thats all I needed to hear :)

@Metal_Mills said:

So I won't be a tested premium member?

This is what i want to know, tested haven't said anything about subscriptions going forwards but did say they will be opening up all previous subscription videos to everyone, which makes me think they will become a fully free site going forwards.

I would say Tested won out of all of this.

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US" people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

"Giant Bomb and Comic Vine are now in the same family as GameSpot and GameFAQs."

Haha, just reading this straight up makes it sound like the worst thing that could happen. I still have faith that the duders will keep the quality up though.

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

No, seriously, I just want specifics about the yearly subscription that I already paid for. Specifics. That's all.

@StriderNo9: Reviewers...reviews..articles..news. so on and so on.

*Edit* oh yeah...CBS who owns Gamespot is for SOPA...there you go...my reasons.

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US" people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Agreed. Its like CBS are going to implant different personalty's into the Bombcrew.

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

You aren't concerned about what value you'll be getting out of the remainder of your premium membership? Oh wait...

All I know is since things went all "premium" it seems the site has significantly less content that interests me than it did before, and lost a lot of its charm. The Bombcast is still excellent as always, but what happened to TANG, consistent video reviews, general shenanigans, and news that's on par with other gaming sites(a lot of important stories never even get posted on GB anymore - instead it's a lot of indie stuff/fighting game updates)?

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US" people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Couldn't agree more. To even consider that they have 'sold out' or are going to become some sort of IGN knock-off is frankly being extremely disrespectful to Jeff and everyone involved in this decision.

@snide What about those of us with more then a years sub? I got two years of subscription on my account. It's not set to run out until Sept. 9, 2013.

@snide So, in the announcement ala pancakes you admitted that the new things you were trying to do in terms of advertising hadn't worked out how you wanted. That a new model with less anti-social ads just wasn't possible right now?

My impression was that this was one of the big goals for Whiskey Media and Jeff and the crew. To pioneer a new way of keeping a business funded with these better ads and maybe to make up the difference with dedicated subscribers and a smaller leaner team. Am I to take it from this news that the books just didn't end up balancing when all was told? Did the experiment fail, with the conclusion that that's just not quite possible right now? The other implied question from that is, could GB or WM together not have remained independent and financially solvent or is it rather the case that what has now happened just offers a better deal for everyone?

While I'm asking all that, a bonus question depending on the answers to the above, which I would understand if you didn't answer, is if it had worked financially, would you rather that WM had stayed independent? Thank you if you're able to answer these questions.

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US" people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Um, okay.

Yaaay! They're gonna have ads blasted all over the site! Jeff's gonna go back to reviewing 500 handheld games a year! No more Quick Looks/Endurance Runs! Yaaay! This is great news!

@ChrisInCali said:

All I know is since things went all "premium" it seems the site has significantly less content that interests me than it did before, and lost a lot of its charm. The Bombcast is still excellent as always, but what happened to TANG, consistent video reviews, general shenanigans, and news that's on par with other gaming sites(a lot of important stories never even get posted on GB anymore - instead it's a lot of indie stuff/fighting game updates)?

I think that happened when Patrick took over as the news leader.

Dave is going too! :D

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US" people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

FUCK. YES.

Cautious but if you guys believe in it and are happy, then I'll follow wherever it takes you. =)

@gladspooky said:

@Vinyl said:

The cynicism pervading the place right now is a fucking downer, man. Later, all you "UGH GIANT BOMB HAS BETRAAAAYYYED US" people, don't let the door hit you on the way out.

Um, okay.

Yaaay! They're gonna have ads blasted all over the site! Jeff's gonna go back to reviewing 500 handheld games a year! No more Quick Looks/Endurance Runs! Yaaay! This is great news!

cause this is totally going to happen, I can see the FUTURE

Well, you've had my trust and at least 2 year long subscriptions from me so far... I guess since I just paid I'm along for the ride.. Wow does this have me nervous though, I always explain to my friends that giantbomb is so amazing since they aren't in anyones pocket, they are their own company and can't be bought for reviews or opinions. Being owned by CBS kinda ruins that claim now. :( Worried, but hopeful, I'll still be here though I suppose.

@ChrisInCali: Well until more video game movies are made I doubt Ryan can do anymore of those.