Might want to download those old GFW Radio episodes - Layoffs at IGN, 1up closed

[hampster]

:'( :'( :'(

IGN has laid off an unspecified number of employees today, Polygon has learned, and plans to shutter sites 1up.com, Gamespy.com and UGO.com.

http://www.polygon.com/2013/2/21/4014196/ign-layoffs-1up-ugo-and-gamespy-shutting-down

Classic 1up Yours
GFW Radio

[Sho Nuff]

Well, that was inevitable

[Arbys Roast Beef Sandwich]

End of an era, I guess. Weren't there like 3 people left at 1up?

Stopped going to 1up when they stopped doing Retronauts anyway.

[archnemesis]

I'm surprised they lasted this long.

[Don Flamenco]

does anyone here really listen to old podcasts by game journalists

[Don Flamenco]

I'm starting to think Jeremy Parish actually controls the entire games journalism industry and that all of this is part of his plan to be the last remaining games journalist on earth.

[Human Snorenado]

...I thought 1up shut down years ago

IGN sucks, so anything that hastens their oblivion is good in my book.  I have zero sympathy for your average "games journalist" so don't expect any solemn words or crying out of me.

[Dickie Dee]

Wait, they were all just re-bought by ZiffDavis a couple weeks ago and now this?

Does suck for anybody losing their job though

[hampster]

does anyone here really listen to old podcasts by game journalists

I do sometimes. Usually the This Year collections, sometimes random episodes

[Rahxephon91]

does anyone here really listen to old podcasts by game journalists

I listen to old Retronauts all the time.

Man GFW was possibly the best podcast ever and I don't even play on PC. I mean it was inevitable especially when 1up became part of the IGN package and even more so when Fox sold them. I hope those few 1up people find some places to land.

[originalz]

My mate and I used to do freelance writing for 1up, Japan-based articles and such.  Bloody hell, were they unprofessional.  Half the time they wouldn't pay us unless we kept harassing them, and despite promises, they never gave us any official press status to go to events and such.

[Olivia Wilde Homo]

I thought the original 1up (up until 2009 or whenever it was) was everything that was wrong with modern games journalism: a focus on their wacky and kooky personalities with everything else being secondary.  These days gaming journalism is almost entirely unnecessary.

[fistfulofmetal]

I thought the original 1up (up until 2009 or whenever it was) was everything that was wrong with modern games journalism: a focus on their wacky and kooky personalities with everything else being secondary. 

funny because I found it to be exactly what I was looking for.

I didn't give a single fuck about their website and solely watched The 1up Show and listened to 1up Yours.

It's the reason I transitioned to Giantbomb

[benjipwns]

https://twitter.com/JustinMcElroy/status/304698646996348928

JustinMcElroy
Just so I'm sure: No one bemoaning the death of 1UP/GameSpy/UGO is using an ad blocker, right?

Orusaka
@JustinMcElroy You know, much like I pay for Giant Bomb, I'd gladly pay for Polygon. I refuse to see ads, however.

https://twitter.com/JustinMcElroy/status/304703329232121857

JustinMcElroy
@Orusaka That's your choice, but you're stealing.

[Stoney Mason]

funny because I found it to be exactly what I was looking for.

I didn't give a single fuck about their website and solely watched The 1up Show and listened to 1up Yours.

It's the reason I transitioned to Giantbomb

This pretty much describes me. I thought the 1up show and 1up yours were both really great things.

[hampster]

wonder if these guys who get their pants in a twist about adblockers sit down and watch all the tv commercials during the shows they watch, like good l'il boys.  Go take a piss?  That's stealing.

That giantbomb eurotruck quicklook made it seem like those guys haven't seen the web without an adblocker in a long time. Naughty Vinny

[Sho Nuff]

JustinMcElroy
@Orusaka That's your choice, but you're stealing.

[/quote]

LOL

[benjipwns]

You wouldn't go to Borders and read any of their content without paying.

[Steve Youngblood]

Would now be an appropriate time to post the Skyrim dancing pic to undermine McElory?

[Eel O'Brian]

what happened to that dude? i kinda liked him when he was with joystiq, but he's turned into kind of a dipstick

i guess maybe finding art is sort of like finding religion for some people

[headwalk]

mcelroy is a certified cunt. i remember an incident where he pulled the "you might want to rethink that or you'll never work in this industry again" card after a writer called out his shit heel brother on not playing the game he reviewed.

[bork]

My mate and I used to do freelance writing for 1up, Japan-based articles and such.  Bloody hell, were they unprofessional.  Half the time they wouldn't pay us unless we kept harassing them, and despite promises, they never gave us any official press status to go to events and such.

"My mate" and "bloody hell?"  You're from Buffalo, man.   

Reminds me of Gamebrink, which Bebpo and Duckroll warned me about- the guy paid me for reviews in the beginning and hounded me to get them to him ASAP, then he just stopped paying.   

[Phoenix Dark]

Ad block does indeed hurt that industry, come on. Speaking of which, IGN is also selling their esports tournament (IPL) rights. It started out with a bang when SC2 was more popular but waned last year (coinciding with SC2's decline in popularity). I thought LoL and dota2 would save it due to the crazy viewer numbers those games attract; LoL easily tops 100k concurrent viewers during big tournaments.

Lack of major advertisements and a poor monetizing system certainly made this an easy decision for IGN; I was surprised at how much money they dumped into esports (including free 1080p streams) but the ROI remains too low to justify that type of commitment. I seriously doubt HOTS will save SC2 so expect 2013 to be even bleaker.

MLG is next.

[Himu]

Where is Parish going?

[bork]

Whatever happened to Garnett Lee?

[Don Flamenco]

Ad block does indeed hurt that industry, come on. Speaking of which, IGN is also selling their esports tournament (IPL) rights. It started out with a bang when SC2 was more popular but waned last year (coinciding with SC2's decline in popularity). I thought LoL and dota2 would save it due to the crazy viewer numbers those games attract; LoL easily tops 100k concurrent viewers during big tournaments.

Lack of major advertisements and a poor monetizing system certainly made this an easy decision for IGN; I was surprised at how much money they dumped into esports (including free 1080p streams) but the ROI remains too low to justify that type of commitment. I seriously doubt HOTS will save SC2 so expect 2013 to be even bleaker.

MLG is next.

MLG is already a zombie.  They've never actually turned a profit...all this esports shit is paid for with VC. 

They'll never sell IPL. 

[hampster]

Whatever happened to Garnett Lee?

He works at Shacknews/Gamefly and hosts the Weekend Confirmed podcast

[Smooth Groove]

Is Jessica Chobot going to be an escort now?  She doesn't look the type to get a real job

[Arbys Roast Beef Sandwich]

she's in her late 30s IIRC. seems to be the next logical step. either that or IR porn

[bork]

Speaking of D-list video game celebrities, where is Morgan Webb now?

[Rahxephon91]

Is Jessica Chobot going to be an escort now?  She doesn't look the type to get a real job

She got fired as well?

[Phoenix Dark]

Ad block does indeed hurt that industry, come on. Speaking of which, IGN is also selling their esports tournament (IPL) rights. It started out with a bang when SC2 was more popular but waned last year (coinciding with SC2's decline in popularity). I thought LoL and dota2 would save it due to the crazy viewer numbers those games attract; LoL easily tops 100k concurrent viewers during big tournaments.

Lack of major advertisements and a poor monetizing system certainly made this an easy decision for IGN; I was surprised at how much money they dumped into esports (including free 1080p streams) but the ROI remains too low to justify that type of commitment. I seriously doubt HOTS will save SC2 so expect 2013 to be even bleaker.

MLG is next.

MLG is already a zombie.  They've never actually turned a profit...all this esports shit is paid for with VC. 

They'll never sell IPL.

True but MLG did manage to turn a profit on a couple of their smaller events last year. But overall they are kept afloat by VC, and will likely be heavily downgraded this year (expect more online tournaments instead of live events imo). That's why I was so excited about IPL, and quite impressed by the quality of their first event; it really blew MLG out the water despite a freak accident causing stream delays. They had the funding, the talent, and some decent advertisers.

I've heard some rumors that Red Bull might buy IPL but we'll see.

[originalz]

I thought LoL and dota2 would save it due to the crazy viewer numbers those games attract; LoL easily tops 100k concurrent viewers during big tournaments.

DOTA2 has their own support for viewing tournaments in the game.  It's pretty much perfect, each match usually has several commentary tracks and you can more or less manipulate the feed to watch exactly where you want or just follow the commentary feed.  There's no point for another site to show matches.

[Flannel Boy]

Is Jessica Chobot going to be an escort now?  She doesn't look the type to get a real job

How much would you pay for such an escort?

[Howard Alan Treesong]

Is Jessica Chobot going to be an escort now?  She doesn't look the type to get a real job

How much would you pay for such an escort?

I dunno--can I pay with Microsoft Points?

[hampster]

Is Jessica Chobot going to be an escort now?  She doesn't look the type to get a real job

According to Rebel FM she is writing and starring in Daylight by Zombie Studios

[Don Flamenco]

Supposedly Red Bull bought IPL (the IGN esports + fighting game league) 

I'm impressed and glad that Mike Ross (and all the other people who got on board a week before this shit went down) won't be out of a job. 

[Phoenix Dark]

I thought LoL and dota2 would save it due to the crazy viewer numbers those games attract; LoL easily tops 100k concurrent viewers during big tournaments.

DOTA2 has their own support for viewing tournaments in the game.  It's pretty much perfect, each match usually has several commentary tracks and you can more or less manipulate the feed to watch exactly where you want or just follow the commentary feed.  There's no point for another site to show matches.

LoL has the same thing, and it's connected with twitch hence 100k viewers a tournament. DOTA2 also has a big presence on twich and gets around 60-70k viewers constantly.

[Phoenix Dark]

the rumors were true

Blizzard has purchased the IGN Pro League. IPL technology and assets are now owned by Blizzard, and existing members of IPL’s staff will help form a new team in San Francisco “whose primary focus will be on creating high-quality web and mobile content in support of Blizzard games.”

“This new team will help us to further develop the rich media experiences that extend the fun and engagement of our games online,” said Blizzard executive vice president of publishing Itzik Ben-Bassat. “This is a team of passionate gamers with a proven track record, and we’re looking forward to now leveraging their expertise and technology to support a variety of online efforts.”

Other IPL staff members will join Blizzard’s existing eSports team. Following today’s news, IGN will partner with multiple eSports organizations to cover their events in the future rather than focusing on a few key titles.

http://www.teamliquid.net/forum/viewmessage.php?topic_id=406876



I'm guessing they'll use this for US coverage of the new WCS tournament they announced last week. It'll also likely be used to hype the upcoming Blizzard dota game