I met them at PAX two years ago because one of my friend's recognized them. I wasn't a fan at the time so I didn't know who they were but he was pretty pumped about meeting them. Wasn't a big deal to me at the time because it was brief and wasn't much a conversation with me. But I would love to meet them again for sure.
In the larger scheme of things, Jeff Gerstmann really is the only "celebrity" in the industry and that's in part to his senior role at Gamespot and his subsequent controversy. Apart from that, I don't think the other guys are that hugely well known. With that said, I'd still love to meet Vinny. <3
They're celebrities to me, and without all the baggage that typical celebrities carry (e.g. every little facet of their life is well-known). That's a plus in my book, but really I only consider Jeff Gerstmann even remotely a celebrity. Not to say I hate the other guys, but Jeff is just more widely known. Ryan and Brad? Maybe a little bit. Vinny? Definitely not.
By the strict definition of 'celebrity', yes they are celebrities, however I don't think they're 'celebrities' in the way people usually think of the term.
Nope they aren't. First off, my girl doesn't even know them. Second, it wouldn't matter to me if I see them. But they could be celebrities in the gaming scene.
This is an interesting question, because it says a lot about the nature of the internet and super-niche communities. In my mind being a celebrity means that people you don't know know you. The four guys, Dave, Drew, ex gamespot people like Carrie Gouskous, Rich Gallup, and Greg Kasavin, and others are celebrities to people who follow/followed their sites, videos, and podcasts, but that may only be several 10s or 100s of thousands. Not the millions/billions who watch the NFL, Academy Awards, MTV, or whatever else "normal" people watch these days. So the giantbomb guys can walk around S.F. or Petaluma or whatever and not be thronged by hordes of adoring fans (now PAX may be a different story). No one in the computer game journalism industry is a celebrity in the way movie or music stars are, but that's because the audience is much bigger for those people. This has always been the case - a lot of people are famous in certain small circles, only a few are well know in really big circles.
Absolutely. Just as mike and jerry from penny arcade are our celebrities. There are many examples of cultural icons in the videogame industry. The Giantbomb duders are probably some of the best examples.
" In the larger scheme of things, Jeff Gerstmann really is the only "celebrity" in the industry and that's in part to his senior role at Gamespot and his subsequent controversy. Apart from that, I don't think the other guys are that hugely well known. With that said, I'd still love to meet Vinny. <3 "
" This is an interesting question, because it says a lot about the nature of the internet and super-niche communities. In my mind being a celebrity means that people you don't know know you. The four guys, Dave, Drew, ex gamespot people like Carrie Gouskous, Rich Gallup, and Greg Kasavin, and others are celebrities to people who follow/followed their sites, videos, and podcasts, but that may only be several 10s or 100s of thousands. Not the millions/billions who watch the NFL, Academy Awards, MTV, or whatever else "normal" people watch these days. So the giantbomb guys can walk around S.F. or Petaluma or whatever and not be thronged by hordes of adoring fans (now PAX may be a different story). No one in the computer game journalism industry is a celebrity in the way movie or music stars are, but that's because the audience is much bigger for those people. This has always been the case - a lot of people are famous in certain small circles, only a few are well know in really big circles. "
As popular as the NFL is, there are not "billions" of people watching football games.
Minor Internet celebs; very minor real life celebs, if at all. For instance, I couldn't imagine anyone I know understanding who I was talking about if I mentioned Jeff Gerstmann to them. Online, however, I'd certainly get at least a few people.
For the people who frequent this site, yes. There are many celebrity's (i.e. in sports, tv, and popular music) that I would never know or recognize. Does that make the football dude not a celeb? No, it just means that I don't pay attention to that stuff. How many people have to know the name before they reach celebrity status?
Has my mom heard of them? No. Has my girlfriend heard of them? No. Have my little brother or old friends from work who are still really into video games heard of these guys? No. Have I? Absolutely. I have been following these guys for years. I would be pumped to meet any one of the Giant Bomb Staff. They seem like they would be fun to get a beer with. So maybe, kinda, these guys are celebs... Let me ask you this: Is the professor of a college course that has almost a thousand students enrolled in it a celeb?
" They're minor celebrities, just like Jerry Seinfeld's character was in the show Seinfeld. "
That's probably a fair analysis. Nobody outside of the gaming world knows them. We'd all recognize them if we saw them walking down the street, or wherever. But Mommy, Daddy, Sarah and Billy that look at Kotaku once a week and use IGN might only recognize Jeff.
I would like to meet the team more than I would like to meet myself from the future. Does that make them celebrities? Would I be a celebrity if I came from the future? So many big questions in life...
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