I didn't think it would be this hard

I came to Giant Bomb around 2014. I remember I had a coworker who was a big fan in 2013 and he told me about them and I remember when Ryan died, but I finally dipped my toes in a bit later. I was immediately a fan. I used to be big into Achievement Hunter/the Rooster Teeth Let's Play stuff in the early 2010's but by the time I was getting into Giant Bomb a lot of that stuff just wasn't for me anymore. I was less and less interested in people playing things up to the rafters and putting on what was obviously a character whenever they hit the record button. Giant Bomb was the exact thing that I was looking for.

I bought my first premium membership after the Contradiction Quick Look + Subsequent supplemental footage. I had to see where that stuff went and I never looked back. I've been a premium member since. It's always been my comfort place. If I'm having a week where I'm getting my ass kicked and I'm anxious and I have zero energy and just want to lie in bed all day I know that Mario Party Party or Demo Derby or Steal My Sunshine or Playdates or UPF will be there for me. I'm far from the first person to say that they've helped me through difficult times, but I think it just speaks to how special this place is.

I was bummed out when they announced the departures but I want everyone to do what makes them happy, and I'm intrigued to see where the site goes next. I just finished watching the goodbye stream and man I didn't expect it to kick me in the stomach as hard as it did.

I think it's because I always thought of that core four; Jeff, Vinny, Alex, and Brad, as eternal. Others may come and go, but those guys would always be here. I couldn't fathom waking up one day to find them not at Giant Bomb. Which, I know, is incredibly naive. I'm a goddamn 31 year old man I should know better. Even so it hit me super hard to watch them say their goodbyes, to hear Jan play that fucking song over it which is absolutely thematically appropriate but an emotional low blow that I both hate and love, and to read the Community Spotlight.

I sat here just crying for like 20 minutes. I know that it'll all work out okay. I know that everyone will be better off and happier. I know the site will live on and change and still be something that I love. But in that moment, I just wanted to beg those guys not to go. And if there's anybody else who had a similar reaction to me, just know that it's okay, that you should feel those feelings. We can be sad for a little while.

See you folks next game.

Hang in there friend, you’re not alone in your feelings.

Preach. It is a gut punch for them all to suddenly leave. I want to know what happened last weekend. If you listen to last week's Beastcast, there's no inclination at all from Vinny or Alex that they were leaving. Plus of course they just hired Bakalar, so they were trying to build up. This is so sudden and unplanned.

From one sad-about-online-31-year-old to another, we're all in this together. I went ahead and cried during the last stream. When I told my wife, someone with only a barely-tangential relationship to the site through me listening and watching, she immediately understood. I've gone through hell during my time as a fan of this site, but I always had the duders to keep my spirits up. Change is scary and it hurts, but I've also got a small twinge of excitement, both for what Vinny, Alex, and Brad will go on to create and for what Jeff+Co's minds will come up with now.

And fuck that damn Fast+Furious song 😂

I felt exactly the same. I had some bad years dealing with my depression but having an hour or two every day with the duders was a bright spot that helped me keep going.

@nadavis1: Hang in there! It sucks but having followed the Giant Bomb guys since way before they were Giant Bomb, I can only say: it will work out in the end.

Jeff and gang (Ryan Davis, Rich Gallup, et al, a different gang in the early days before Alex, Brad and Vinny were in front of the camera) always helped to keep me sane and brought a bit of fun.

So I am sure that as before, there will be some form of entertainment from Giant Bomb in whatever way, under whatever name, and with whoever joins.

They've done it before!

@nadavis1: I can only echo your time with Giant Bomb and your reaction. I'm around the same age as Vinny, Brad, and Alex (and Jeff). It was always great listening to the guys who have so much knowledge and understanding of my favorite hobby. All I can hope is that the site and podcasts continue to bring content that treats the audience like they are equals.

Don't forget we have decades of content to rewatch and listen to, I often listen to old bombcasts.

I was surprisingly ok, been following the crew since Gamespot and while hearing the announcement for the first time hit me in the heart, it was quickly followed by "You knew this would happen some day, but Jeff's still there, Rorie too, Danny's hanging out and the rest of the guys are a'ight, this is fine", it sounds like Red Ventures wants them to keep doing what they want, whether that was just Vinny being polite we'll see but i'm strangely looking forward to seeing what they do now.

What also helps is i've developed another hobby that is very time consuming, so losing a few hours of GB content last week wasn't the worst thing.

What helped me cope with previous staff departures is that they continue being a part of video game content all over the web, mostly Twitch, and archived on YouTube.

If you haven't yet watched Abby & Vinny playing chess last weekend, let me point you in the right direction: CHESS WITH ST. VINNY! | Chess.com with Vinny Caravella

Abby and Dan in particular are pumping out more content than they ever did while still at Giant Bomb. And you'll find gems like the stream of Abby & Dan & Alex Boniello playing Mario Party online, also just from last week. It all just fits in perfectly with what would have been a Giant Bomb East production of past.

Personally I find myself in the same mental space watching these as if the videos were published on giantbomb.com itself, like nothing has changed.

Drew I still listen to every week on the Shift+F1 podcast (with Danny O'Dwyer!), and his Cloth Map videos were all masterpieces, while Covid didn't put a stop to them.

Austin I miss most from video content in recent years. Maybe I'm not looking in the right places since I want video games, dammit, not tabletop and such. I remember gladly watching some Waypoint videos years ago which still had him in "GB mode." There was a gem of a series where he and Rob (you'll know Rob from the Shift+F1 podcast with Drew & co) played Xcom 2 every week for a good long while, a real must watch, until it was cut short for whatever life reason. :( It seems they only pop up once a year for Extra Life now.

Ben did disappear as a public face, but that is exactly why he wanted to leave. I'll miss the guy but that's what he chose, and hard to argue with him not wanting that spotlight. I sure wouldn't, either.

The Vinny & Brad & Alex departures are all so recent that clearly we can't know yet when they will have taken enough of a break, and to know if we can continue enjoying them playing video games somewhere over the internet. That's why seeing Vinny pop up on Abby's stream already was such an unexpected delight.

Same feelings as the rest of you guys. As a 36 year old man, I actually cried when trying to reconcile this in my mind. I've been listening to the podcast and enjoying giantbomb stuff since high school, it's always been there with me, through a divorce, multiple moves across the country, new jobs... Wherever I was physically or emotionally, listening to the giant bomb podcast, or watching a UPF, I always felt at home. These guys don't know me from adam, but they always felt like friends. I wish them and the remaining GB crew the best. Hopefully everything will work out in the end.

Well I'm not a sad 31 year old, but I will be in about 6 months from now. Great write up friend, I too was incredibly saddened by the news. I've followed GB pretty much from the start and, much like you described, could always retreat into their endless labyrinth of content whenever I was feeling high or low. I'm gonna miss the core duders but I want so much for them to be happy and I know the site is still in good hands with the remaining crew.

Gerstmann is a force of nature, and Jan, Jeff B, Jason, Rorie, and Danny (at least for a little bit) are a rockstar team. I'm excited for the future and seeing how they re-invent themselves.

Also - shoutout to that Contradiction quick look you mentioned. That is easily in my top 5 on the site