Wreckage: EGM Gone, 1UP Changes - Editorial

A lot of stuff went down last week in the world of video game enthusiast press. Gaming magazine EGM was made a footnote in gaming history and massive cuts were made at 1UP.com. It was a strange, real-time event that played out over the Internet and the ramifications of which will be surely be felt by gamers for years to come. So, here are Aaron's comments.

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Wreckage:

EGM Gone, 1UP Changes

It was a bizarre feeling to “watch” the gutting of a once-great source of video game information (and related features and reviews), including the best gaming podcasts on the Net. In case you don’t know what I’m talking about it, word broke early on January 6, 2009 that Ziff Davis had closed the 20-year old EGM (Electronic Gaming Monthly) and sold the 1UP Network to UGO/Hearst Corporation, kicking 40 or so Ziff staffers to the curb in the process.

I think the gaming community at large knew that Ziff Davis was in financial trouble and something was going to give.

Unfortunately, when it finally gave, it was in a flash of light, which pretty much left the 1UP/EGM offices a big crater, with only a few survivors struggling out of the rubble, their skin sloughing off, no doubt feeling guilty of being far enough

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underground to have survived the initial blast.

And like a lot of big events, the first reports were confusing, with information being posted and then brought down by paidcontent.org, but the remnants of which were snagged by Whattheyplay.com and posted. Gaming forums grabbed it and ran with it. Twitter feeds of the writers and editors

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were reviewed. Suddenly the original story resurfaced on paidcontent.org; Joystiq and Kotaku started posting “casualty lists” of 1UP/EGM staffers had been let go. Confirmation of the firings, bloodletting, reductions, whatever you want to call it, started trickling in on forums from defeated-sounding ex-staff members. Internal emails were leaked to Gamasutra. Threads started appearing pointing the way to torrents so fans could grab full podcast collections. Bits and pieces were cobbled together to form an incomplete picture of what happened.

And in front of the wave of information (both corroborated and fictionalized) there was a blog post by Sam Kennedy, 1UP Site director and one of the few survivors that reeked of PR spin and brought to mind a vision of the Iraqi Information Minister. Jeff Green, former EIC of Games for Windows (a.k.a. Computer Gaming World), another Ziff Davis magazine that was canned in early 2008, summed it up pretty well in a recent blog post while commenting on Kennedy’s statement that “We’re still the same 1UP, and we’ll still be producing the same content...we always have.”

"Well, no, you're not, and no, you won't. You're not the same 1UP because you just lost a gigantic chunk of what made 1up 1up. It may go on, it may in fact produce great things, but it won't be the same. All that a company ever is is a mix of specific personalities. That's all it is. Period. When you remove people, it may go on, but it's never "the same." Saying it's the same is a disservice to all the people who just got canned. And, no, you won't be "producing the same content" because those responsible for some of the most popular and distinctive content – the 1up Show, the podcasts – no longer work there anymore. So, again, you can't say it's "the same". It's not. (And since everyone on the Copy Desk got canned, too, it won't be as well-edited, either.) Better to just acknowledge that, since we all know it anyway.” Source.

And the sentiment echoes my own thoughts after reading Kennedy’s blog (but Green says it better as he has an “insider” perspective in that he actually knows Kennedy). One of 1UP’s attractions was, sorry, is its sense of community – other gamers, the editorial staff were accessible in a way that no other site has been able to match. A big part of this was the podcasts and videos (a phenomenon I wrote about in The Brodeo: In Memoriam) that allowed listeners/watchers a chance to connect with the editors. Now with nearly all of those familiar personalities gone, 1UP has become a shell of its former self. So, when Kennedy writes that – I’m paraphrasing – “everything is a-okay” anyone with half a brain knows this is the UGO/Hearst company line. There’s no doubt in my mind that he feels guilty – many of his friends and co-workers are suddenly out on their collective ass, while he digs out of the rubble – while having to haul the line that all is rosy and good, and the all this empty space in the office can be put to use by installing a bowling alley. NOTE: Kennedy has made another blog post that shows just how much this whole situation has ripped his heart out and clarifies a bit on what his previous blog post should have said. And though he seems hopeful for the future, the timbre of his writing should tell you what a hell week he had.

I can’t pretend that I know the details – who was fired, who left on their own, or the whys and wherefores of a media buyout – but what I do know is that 1UP has an uphill climb when it comes to regaining an audience that cares.

More should also be made of the loss of EGM from the magazine scene. Just shy of 20 years of being published (by one issue!), it will never get a proper send-off, which follows in the footsteps of what happened with GFW Magazine. There will be no blowout (printed) issue. No last hurrah! for one of gaming’s most venerated magazines. It’s a damn shame because the magazine and its writers deserved that much. It will be missed, there’s no doubt about it, especially since a lot of the current generation of gamers grew up with the magazine – pouring over the reviews and features with a fine tooth comb and discussing them endlessly on playgrounds, cafeterias and, later, message boards.

The whole thing is unfortunate, but here’s to hoping that something good comes of it. The fact the core has splintered and the pieces flung into outer space means those splinters are suddenly not as constricted as they once were. Shine on you crazy diamonds! NOTE: The diamonds really are shining. The first podcast from Rebel FM (fractured from 1UP FM) landed in the number one spot on iTunes; there’s word that the former 1UP Show crew have something the works; and Ryan Scott, formerly of CGW/GFW and EGM, has announced a podcast of his own.

Here’s wishing all the best to those that lost their jobs – you have talent and with a sprinkling of luck or the right reference/blackmail material I’m sure you’ll land on your feet. And to those that survived, best of luck!

- Aaron Simmer

(January 13, 2009)

sunshine