The Community Spotlight 2020.10.17

Hello and welcome to the latest edition of the Giant Bomb Community Spotlight and I, @zombiepie, am once again honored to be your host as we look back at the best user-created offerings from the community! Well, 2020 keeps on keeping on. As many of you already know, Abby will be leaving Giant Bomb at the end of November. As is the case with any staff leaving, please share your best wishes and gratitude for their time on the site. However, much like my warning last week about the CNET layoffs, all users are requested and expected to avoid speculation on this matter. As explained during Episode 282 of the Beastcast, Abby was not fired and instead elected to not renew their contract with the site's changing of ownership. The rules prohibiting speculation also include mass speculation about potential new hires. These are stressful and confusing times and you can avoid adding to that stress by keeping all of what I have written about in mind. With that out of the way, let's jump into the site-related housekeeping.

• Here's a link to the community thread where users can thank Abby for their time on the site and wish her the best. Again, please keep in mind all of the warnings about what should be included and not included in this discussion thread. If, for whatever reason, this thread is locked, please relocate your comments to Episode 282 of the Beastcast.
• In case you missed it, here's a link to Vinny's latest post on the official Site Goings-On thread! Read all about the prep work that went into the site's Baldur's Gate 3 Quick Look!
• Users are still reporting that they are seeing old videos in the "Latest Videos" section of the site. Rorie's update is that a new ticket has been filed and they will keep you posted about any updates. Additionally, Rorie and the engineering team are aware videos are missing from the main video page.
• Business Dave has an officially Unofficial Parody Account on Twitter! It's really something!

Tweets

Videos

What's the Most Common Achievement Name? | Giant Bombcast | 12/08/2009 (By: VinnCo Archive)

Many thanks to the YouTube account, VinnCo Archive, for this Bombcast BLAST FROM THE PAST! Did you know Giant Bomb did the research to find out the most common names for PSN Trophies and Xbox Achievements in 2009? Give this video a list to find out which name came out on top!

Community Activities

Genshin Impact Friend Exchange (By: @meatsofevil)

Calling all Genshin Impact players! We now have a community friend exchange thread and it is platform agnostic! Just post your info using the link and hookup with some other users!

Blogs

Markers I: A Deep Dive Into Dead Space's UI (By: @gamer_152)

Moderator Gamer_152 goes back in time to 2008 where they look at one game that made ground-breaking contributions to UI design. Yup, they're looking back at how Dead Space's interface colored its action-horror experience!

Paper Mario: The Origami King Is A Game That Skates By On Charm Even When Its Gameplay Falls Flat (By: @bigsocrates)

bigsocrates uses their latest blog to talk about Paper Mario: The Origami King and how it "skates by on charm" despite its gameplay and structure not hitting the same high notes as previous Paper Mario games.

Why I Want More Of Larian's Divinity: Dragon Commander In Baldur's Gate III (By: @zombiepie)

ZombiePie returns to blogging on Giant Bomb to share why the Baldur's Gate 3 Early Access release inspired them to check out a game from Larian's past: Divinity: Dragon Commander! Read why they think BG3 could learn a thing or two from it!

Indie Game of the Week 192: Knightmare Tower +

Mega Archive: Part XX: From Gadget Twins to Crüe Ball (By: @mento)

First, their latest Indie Game of the Week blog to examine Knightmare Tower from Juicy Beast Studio! Read why the game's Kongegrate and iOS origins didn't impact their enjoyment of its full PC release! Second, if there are any users out there that wanted to read and talk about Crüe Ball, the Mötley Crüe pinball game Mento's latest retrospective on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive might tickle your fancy!

I Fucked Up And Bought 45 PS3 Games, Here's What I Learned (By: @daavpuke)

Daavpuke recently bought 45 PS3 games and you can check their latest blog on Giant Bomb to see why they highly regret their colossal investment of time and money.

Discussion Threads & Forums

Best Box Art of the Last Generation (By: @vincentvendetta)

Here's a FUN discussion thread on the Giant Bomb forums: which game had your favorite box art of the last generation? Common picks include No Man's Sky, NieR:Automata, The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild, and Bloodborne, but you can share and discuss your pick using the link!

Will Naruto Get The Same Treatment As DBZ FighterZ? (By: @kronixi)

Here's a discussion thread for the anime fans in the community: should Naruto get the FighterZ treatment? Do you think a competitive fighting game "fits" in the Naruto universe?

Jeff Bakalar Gives Full Impressions On Series X (Video) (By: @humanity)

Friend of the site Jeff Bakalar recently posted a video of their full impressions of the Xbox Series X. Give their incredibly informative video a watch and join the community discussion about what has been shown!

What Are You Playing On Xbox Series X On Launch Day? (By: @peoke)

To everyone planning on buying an Xbox Series X at launch, and as the title suggests, what launch titles do you plan on playing? Are there any stand-out games that you cannot wait to play?

Sony Showcases The PS5 UI (By: @nodima)

Sony has officially shown the PS5 UI! Here's a link to the community discussion about it where everyone is free to share their first impressions of what has been shown!

Microsoft Will Give GameStop A Share Of Xbox Digital Revenue (By: @mikewhy)

What is your reaction to the news that Microsoft will give GameStop a share of digital sales as a part of their new strategic relationship? Does it make strategic sense for both partners? Will this be enough to keep GameStop afloat during the Pandemic? Join the discussion now!

Should I Get Hades If I Hated Transistor? (By: @zor)

Would you recommend Hades to someone who hasn't enjoyed Supergiant Games' other works? What do you think differentiates it from their earlier games like Bastion or Transistor?

PS3, PSP, Vita Games Discontinued From Browser Based And Mobile Ps Store Starting October 21st (By: @brian_)

PS3, PSP, Vita games are being discontinued from the browser and mobile PS Store starting October 21st. Do you have nay thoughts about this news? Will this impact game preservation?

StarCraft 2 Development/Updates Are Done (By: @aiomon)

Blizzard recently announced StarCraft II will no longer receive content updates and active development on it has ceased. Is this the end of an era? What does the future hold for the legendary franchise? Join the community discussion using the link above!

Avengers Next-Gen Upgrades & Hawkeye Update Delayed Because 2020 (By: @bearhardt)

Marvel's Avengers next-gen and Hawkeye updates have been delayed! What do you think this says about the game's future? Get the details and share your thoughts with the rest of the community.

Monster Hunter - Exclusive Official Trailer (2020) Milla Jovovich, Tony Jaa (By: @robothamster)

Have any of you watched the Monster Hunter movie trailer that released recently? Join the rest of the community in discussing what has been shown of the film in the trailer.

Super Mario 3D All-Stars Reaction Discussion (By: @bondfish)

How do you feel about the mixed reaction to Super Mario 3D All-Stars? Are you bummed the collection doesn't do more, or still having a fun time with it? Are both parts of that question mutually exclusive?

Is Your Current Gen Library A Major Factor In Your Next Gen Hardware Choice? (By: @liquiddragon)

How much is your current gen library informing your next-gen console purchase? Is it a top or secondary consideration when assessing the PS5 or Xbox Series X? Join the community debate using the link!

Lists

2020 Games Played (By: @gla55jaw)

gla55jAw published a list of all the games they played during 2020. Give it a read and see their passing thoughts on everything they have played thus far.

Android Games I've Finshed & Played (By: @hellscream)

Hellscream looks back at the various mobile and Android games they played last generation with their latest list on the site! See which mobile games they loved and hated using the link

User Reviews

• The Tony Hawk's Pro Skater series is near and dear to @phoenix654's heart! Read why Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1+2 got them excited about the franchise's future for the first time in years!
• @retrogimp's Mario Party review highlights how the game deserves a lot of credit for pioneering a new genre of games.

First off: Abby isn't gone yet and I already miss Abby. So, I'll make sure to really appreciate any upcoming content with them to its fullest. Truly, Abby has given us so much and I can only be thankful for this new, unique energy.

Secondly, thank you for including my PS3 story. Any amount of recognition makes all my labor seem less like a colossal waste. I feel like Sisyphus in Hades. Maybe I should carve a Bouldy of my own.

Abby, you are a true delight and a wonderful person. Wherever you land next will be lucky to have you.

Where did that DBZ Abby come from and HOW CAN I GET IT ON A POSTER?!

@jearum, I'm not kidding!

@undeadpool: that is an old fanart back in 2018. Unfortunately I don't sell my GB fanart. You can print it yourself if you want to. Check out the images section in my profile. Those are hi res images. Thanks and cheers!

Did Abby crash Twitter?

@hellscream: The writer of this post tends to use "they" as a gender neutral pronoun to avoid making assumptions about users.

While I understand and agree rampant speculation about staff leaving and new hires is unhelpful (mentioning it three times to get the point across) - hardly anyone reads the GB forum, sorry but true, and there isn't much y'all can do about the twitter or the long threads on resetera, neogaf, reddit etc. Just gonna have to live with it and ignore it the best they can. It is the internet. People love to give their opinion - the more uninformed the louder they shout.

Abby, ever since your first appearance which was closed out with you doubling Vinny, you've made Giant Bomb a brighter place to be. You fit in immediately and gave us some great stuff along the way. There are still clips of Thirteen Deadly Sims I rewatch now and again for their hilarity and genius. Whatever you go on to do, you'll be great at it! Hope you come back and visit the Beastcast whenever you can, even if you're busy conquering worlds or playing Fortnite with Bjork by then.

Side note, thanks for including my THPS 1+2 review on here, felt good to write, love that game.

I'll say what Vinny said (or close to it) upon Austin's departure: I knew you would be moving on to other things sooner rather than later, but I didn't expect it to be quite so soon. I hope to hear what you're working on next, once you get there. In the meantime, as always, I look forward to your GBeast presence.

Thanks, Abby.

Goodbye, Abbey!

@marino Just wanna say thank you for your consistent use of they/them/their. It's helped me to more often think first before assuming someone's pronouns based on their name or how they look.

ZombiePie is the one who writes it all. I just format it, organize it in CMS, and publish it.

Haha, this post made me think I'd been misgendering Abby this whole time. I'm glad it was just ZombiePie being overly cautious.

It's a shame that speculation is obstructive enough to be forbidden, but I guess I can just do it alone in my head. It's not worth confusing the staff just for a comforting diversion.

@jearum: A-thank a-YOU!

Sucks to lose Abby, I love her contributions to Giant Bomb. Wherever she goes next I will be watching. You'll be missed a whole lot. :(

Abby! You gave GB a youthful boost that I didn't even know it needed. Thank you for being you!