BeyondStrange

I do experience the casino ads, but I am lucky to mostly get ads for local businesses. Well, except for the one time all my ads were targeted for Dublin, Ireland while I live in the US, but that was just fun.

@tartyron: I will say Fire Escape has gotten much better with that on their end. Ads are now all inserted at logical times, specifically at the beginning, after Mike says “let’s talk about games,” and either at the end of the games segment or about after an hour of it if the game section is runs long. They do custom ads now which are easier to skip through.

I literally logged onto the site today hoping to find a new episode of Blight Club. Instead, I find this terrible news and realize that even if they do further episodes, a crucial component is now missing.

I don’t post much, but I have been a premium subscriber since 2013. Ten years. There was a time that I never imagined I would unsubscribe but then GB east closed and the new direction and crew. When Jeff was fired, we didn’t know the details beyond rampant speculation. I really liked the new crew and decided to subscribe again. Now, though we don’t know exact details, it is very clear that Jeff was done super dirty.

Now, Jason and Jess have been fired and it proves that no matter what happens, corporate greed will always trump quality content. So, I am canceling my subscription and giving my money to Jeff, which what I should have done to begin with. Unfortunately, Jason and Jess do not have the draw of Jeff and the Nextlander guys, so I doubt they can find the same success on Patreon: I hope they can find a place that truly appreciates their talents.

It seems like a lot of people seem to think that being optimistic and excited about the future is mutually exclusive to distrust of the direction of things and severe criticism on how this has been handled. I know I feel both ways.

As a person who loved Giant Bomb, I did not like the content after Giant Bomb East dissolved. This line up is fantastic with some really great and varied voices. I can see this group of people making great stuff. This has always been a personality driven site and these are great personalities.

On the other hand, I think the way this was handled was bad and very corporate, which gives me concern. I’m not even talking about speculation here and trying to figure out “what really went down.” Rather, I think what many of the upset people are feeling is the cold business manipulation that gives me pause. I’ve been on the site for ten years and have seen a lot of site changes and staff departures, but this is the first time where said staff hasn’t been able to go out on their own terms in their own voice. Again, I’m not speculating, but I feel like we are being played by a large corporation (but then again, that is modern capitalism with any product). Plus, I found that announcement video to be super lame. Well produced, but also featuring the cringey and unfunny humor that I feel has hampered a lot of recent content.

So, it is possible to feel both ways. I just encourage people not to be mean to each other. I see a lot of mocking on both sides of the issue though more so people insulting others for feeling upset about the change. Remember, feelings are complex.

@bigsocrates: This makes so much sense and explains mostly everything that has happened! One of my problems with all the wild speculation and conspiracy theories about the changes have been that they have all just uninspired melodrama. Not one has mentioned mind controlling lizards and haven’t even begun to address how the Greys are involved. Maybe one or all of them were replaced by robots which were all designed by Dan Ryckert? What about the phases of the moon? GIANT BOMB DOESN’T BURN THAT HOT!

I am on the disappointment train with this package. The worst part for me though is something I think everyone has forgotten; this is actually the second time Nintendo has done this exact weird thing.

For the 25th anniversary, they rereleased the SNES ROM on the Wii in a limited run. It came with a booklet and a CD, but there was nothing else but a SNES game. And they didn’t even include Super Mario World for some reason. I don’t think it was full price, but it was at least thirty dollars.

The thing sold a lot of copies though (in the millions I believe) and they will probably make millions again with this, as barebones as it is.

@aegon: One can argue that not having a podcast and breaking their one rule is a significant action to bring attention to the issue. And saying it is “pissing over Ryan’s #1 rule” is pretty heartless and cruel. Both Jeff and Vinny dogmatically have followed that rule with both podcasts even when it was forgivable to not have a podcast that Tuesday or Friday.

I think criticism of the decision is fair, but I think context is also important. It is more than just they aren’t making content today; they are doing the one thing they said they would never do and missing a bombcast when they said they never would. That is more than just doing nothing.

I am skeptical of PUBG taking it, though most people think it will. Especially after that Quick Look today, I think most of the staff have cooled on it and Abby seems to just outright dislike it now.

I can see Neir taking it, though I must confess, I am one of the monsters who thinks Neir is a really bad game. So, I went for Cuphead. It seems like that was the one game on the list that everyone universally liked. Zelda could also take it, but I think Jeff will be against it and I don't know if the all important Brad vote is there for it.

Thanks! I only got through half the video last night, so I didn't know it was incomplete. That makes total sense then. Abby seems great at her job so I should have known she was already on the case.

I am unsure if this is the proper place to post this, but the recent "Get in the Ring" video has seemed to have disappeared from the site. All links to the video now lead to a 404 page.