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Penny Arcade 11/30/2007 Jeff Gerstmann fired from Gamespot, allegedly for K&L review

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C

Chipopo

Banned
Gary Whitta said:
If this all turns out to be true, I think the game community really needs to make their voices heard on this somehow. This kind of crap cannot stand.
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you really enjoy strikes, don't you?

edit: I guess a boycott would be the appropriate term. Still!
 
G

Geek

Ninny Prancer
Chipopo said:
lol it's pretty evident how much kotaku takes from gaming age to pad out their reports. Compensation should be demanded.
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None of this was sourced from GAF.

Well, maybe the crybaby parts.
 
E

Eric WK

Member
Sooo, he's going to need a new job, right?

Gerstmann for fourth chair!

P.S. If this is true, and the events surrounding it are true, then it's an absolute travesty.
 
C

Chipopo

Banned
Geek said:
None of this was sourced from GAF.

Well, maybe the crybaby parts.
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yeah I didn't think the source was, just some of the padding, like mentioning how fanboys wanted Jeff's blood for certain review scores.
 
R

Rody

Member
WrikaWrek said:
The video review was just him trashing the game (The game sucks anyway, it's the truth).

then the video review got pulled. Can't believe he got fired over it.
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Really? Damn.
 
H

Hellsing321

Member
WOW. If he really was let go because of Kayne & Lynch review then that is a crock of shit. I may not have always agreed with his opinions on games but he was always great to listen to on the Hotspot and On the Spot. Gamespot has just been getting worse and worse as this gen goes on.
 
C

Crusade

Member
etiolate said:
If this is true, it is a raw deal Jeff got. I won't miss his reviews though and I am not shocked it happened at Gamespot. Look, his eye catching reviews were meant to be eye catching. The ethical integrity of Gamespot has long been gone. If a site is okay with continually lowballing big games for attention while throwing out perfects for a tired series like Tony Hawk, then I don't throw this out of the realm of possibility. It just seemed Jeff didn't want to do this particular deal.
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Jesus christ, stop calling him out for THPS3. That was 6 years ago, and back when Tony Hawk was at the absolute top of it's game. It may not have been perfect, but it was an amazing game for it's time
 
G

Geek

Ninny Prancer
Chipopo said:
yeah I didn't think the source was, just some of the padding, like mentioning how fanboys wanted Jeff's blood for certain review scores.
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Man, every hypersensitive fanboy-filled forum was like that. You should've seen the Gamespot forums at the time. Pathetic.
 
Z

zenbot

Member
If it is the case that Jeff was let go due to advertiser pressure, it is amazing that CNET management could be so short-sighted. Did they think that the news wouldn't get out? Or do they just think it's not that big of a deal?

Once a review site loses their credibility, what the fuck else do they have?
 
T

TTG

Member
I'm sure him being fired is a part of the ad campaign. It sure worked for me, reading their review right now.
 
W

Wonderdog

Member
I wager an official announcement will come soon, which indicates Gertsmann and Gamespot "chose to part ways" so he could pursue other opportunities. Honestly, I think we'll never know the REAL and TOTAL truth on what happened here, lest some internal Gamespot or CNET person risks it all to tell us.
 
K

Kintaro

Worships the porcelain goddess
Kittonwy said:
There's seriously something up with that. I'm not sure when you have game publishers putting game ads on a site that reviews these very same games, there isn't some sort of conflict of interest going on, or at least the appearance of a conflict of interest.
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There's always the appearance of conflict of interest with you cover your site full of ads. It's only natural. They are paying the bills and you just don't bite the hand that feeds you. That's the way it goes in people's minds. Especially when the ads are of average to shitty games.
 
D

dr3upmushroom

Banned
tanod said:
WHAT?! I was wondering why he wasn't on the Hotspot. Nobody said anything about him either.
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I was wondering the same thing. Personally I think he was the face of GS, and one of the most recognizable (And hated at times) game journalist. Wonder what publication he will go to now.
 
T

TekunoRobby

Tag of Excellence
I honestly hope CNet and Eidos go through the ringer for this travesty. Hopefully other news sites will pick up on this once "concrete" info is found and blast it out.

Grecco said:
Im pretty curious on how PA guys got to know about this way ahead of the internet.
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It's rather easy to pick up a phone and call your contacts within a company. When you're part of a certain community, in this case the journalistic one, it's guaranteed you'll hear things before the public does.
 
R

Rody

Member
TTG said:
I'm sure him being fired is a part of the ad campaign. It sure worked for me, reading their review right now.
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So, it DIDN'T work, right? Because I don't think they would want you to read that review.
 
K

Kodiak

Not an asshole.
But Gerstmann was getting them like... mad hits by giving good games shitty scores. I know it was the only reason I went to gamespot over the past year.
 
M

mosaic

go eat paint
Chipopo said:
lol it's pretty evident how much kotaku takes from gaming age to pad out their reports. Compensation should be demanded.
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Nah, in this case, I know their editor had the story ready to go too. Remember, MOST of the people in the industry work and roam around San Francisco proper. Everyone knows Everyone. I've just been exchanging phone calls and IMs with people, but there are a buncha folks out there that have been drinking beers and shooting the breeze with those involved since yesterday. It has been the buzz on the down-low for 30+ hours now.

For the record: I personally haven't spoken with anyone from PA, Kotaku, or any other outlet. And those who I have spoken with shall remain nameless. I'm also not going to spill any inside info other than what ultimately becomes public knowledge. My motivation for posting the PA comic was simply to post it, to make it known. GAF woulda picked up on it anyway, so why not? I'm angry too.
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Woah. Although I never really read GameSpot's reviews (or trust them for that matter), Zelda 8.8 was one of the most entertaining events of 2006.
 
A

ant1532

Banned
What the fuck. Gamespot is losing me if he is fired. Rich left in the summer, Greg has been gone and even though Ryan Davis and Alex Navarro are great and everything, they don't come close to being as hilarious as Jeff is.

Gamespot has always been awesome with its great personalities in their editors and hilarious videos and shit like On the Spot or Hotspot. And I don't care what any of yall say but Jeff Gerstmann was the best personality they had.
 
B

BobTheFork

Member
I thought his review video was kind of crap, but he's paid to give his opinion, you can't fire him for it. At least I thought. Maybe they put pressure on him for a better review and said what he thought. If true, what dicks
 
E

etiolate

Banned
Crusade said:
Jesus christ, stop calling him out for THPS3. That was 6 years ago, and back when Tony Hawk was at the absolute top of it's game. It may not have been perfect, but it was an amazing game for it's time
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It is mentioned because it is part of the point establishing Gamespot as a site with untrustworthy past doing something untrustworthy now. I am just less shocked than other people.
 
S

Spire

Subconscious Brolonging
I rarely agree with Gerstmann but this is outrageous. If he really did get fired over that review, or even a string of unpopular reviews, then the integrity of gaming journalism just took another blow. If publishers can wrangle that kind of control over Gamespot, then who isn't safe?
 
S

Sean

Banned
This is fucking absurd. Gerstmann has been with GameSpot for eleven years now (since 1996), I can't believe he would get fired over a fucking Kane & Lynch review of all things.

I don't care what anyone else says about him, Gerstmann is a good guy. Hopefully 1UP will offer him a job or something.
 
T

TDG

Banned
Gary Whitta said:
If this all turns out to be true, I think the game community really needs to make their voices heard on this somehow. This kind of crap cannot stand.
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A strike? A boycott? A revolution? Invading Gamespot forums? (j/k)

Revolution-Age
 
F

Firestorm

Member
Hm. Kotaku article actually makes this seem as if Kane & Lynch was the reason... From PA I just figured they were making fun of the coincidence. If Jeff really was let go because of this, then I say we should cause a shitstorm to try and change how this stuff is run.

Advertisers getting their claws into the reviews is one of the reasons most people don't trust sites with any impressions.
 
D

dr3upmushroom

Banned
ant1532 said:
What the fuck. Gamespot is losing me if he is fired. Rich left in the summer, Greg has been gone and even though Ryan Davis and Alex Navarro are great and everything, they don't come close to being as hilarious as Jeff is.

Gamespot has always been awesome with its great personalities in their editors and hilarious videos and shit like On the Spot or Hotspot. And I don't care what any of yall say but Jeff Gerstmann was the best personality they had.
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He ranks up there with the funniest men (Shawn Elliot, Sean Baby, Crispin and Jeff Green)in video game enthusiast press.
 
M

MirageDwarf

Member
AAK said:
GAF is so gullible.

Why can't you all wait for an official confirmation?
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OP has already confirmed this more than once in this thread. He also confirmed there are others in journalist circle who know about this.

By the way I'm talking about let go of Jeff not the actual reason mentioned in the comic.
 
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