An email I sent to Giantbomb

[JonCole]

What's funny is that wasn't even the tweet that I thought you guys were talking about, which made me really confused about the conversation as it went on. I thought you were talking about this one, which struck me as Ryckert-dumb in a different way. Namely, that all games have to be a fun escape and that there's not really place for games that tackle difficult topics or handle things in nuanced ways that aren't blatantly enjoyable.

 

I think it was pretty clear that he was talking about his own half-year. I don't think anyone moderately responsible with friends in the industry that could have been affected by GG could talk about the half-year and say it was positive.

[Undeadpool]

Largely you make fair points but I have to say that this isn't a valid reason. The onus is not on unprivileged groups to create diversity. The onus is on those who have the power to hire to make the choices that undo the systemic oppression. If you really care about diversity you can seek out the applicants even if they didn't get in contact with you. I know this could be hard (tracking down potential hires that didn't reach out to you) but it's what has to be done if you do care about diversity.

 

The hire also does depend on what you think the job entailed. Like you and others have said, Dan bringing fun to the cast is a fair choice and in some ways being just a casual happy gamer style dude is a personality that performs that job more than a person offering a new voice would. I don't think it's impossible to have hired a woman for that kind of role but it puts the hire in a different context.

I get that and I agree 100%, but that still leads into: maybe they did. Maybe they reached out to some people and got turned down. Maybe they either already had a job they liked, or weren't interested in relocating for a job. I mean GB, and not just them but damn near every job in the country, tend to hire people they know first or go for a "safe" hire.

 

Though ultimately if they do wind up hiring to replace Klepek, I truly do hope they get someone with a new perspective.

[SuperBiasedMan]

I mean GB, and not just them but damn near every job in the country, tend to hire people they know first or go for a "safe" hire.

 

I think last time this came up I tried to make this super clear but forgot to do so this time. So...

Casual cronyism is a rampant problem through all industries and so I'm not saying GiantBomb are a special example of being bad at it. It's a pretty (unfortunately) common system that this is just one more example of.

[Badfinger]

Ok I'm probably giving him too much credit on carefully choosing words he writes, but I really do think there's nothing wrong with that tweet.

 

 

I am reminded of a friend of mine in some ways when people discuss Dan. She and I were asking each other how our New Years Eves were, and she said she loved hers because she had an amazing time going to dinner and dancing, and then had wild, crazy sex when they got home.

 

My reaction internally to when she says those things is: why did you say that? You know people don't say things like that, right? One, she doesn't seem to know. From many conversations, she paints this picture of everyone around her walking into a room and casually announcing "man I'm tired from all that sex I just had!" Two, why can't you say that? I don't say things like that, and I never will, but on reflecting there's nothing that actually prohibits you talking like that if you wanted.

 

I would NOT have said publicly what Dan did, but I don't actually see anything wrong with him saying it. How fucked up is our society that it probably is the best personal 6 months of his life or career or what have you, but to actually say that gets him vilified? I understand there are larger themes and important things in play out there in the world, but man it's a tweet.

[Gormongous]

What's funny is that wasn't even the tweet that I thought you guys were talking about, which made me really confused about the conversation as it went on. I thought you were talking about this one, which struck me as Ryckert-dumb in a different way. Namely, that all games have to be a fun escape and that there's not really place for games that tackle difficult topics or handle things in nuanced ways that aren't blatantly enjoyable.

 

I think it was pretty clear that he was talking about his own half-year. I don't think anyone moderately responsible with friends in the industry that could have been affected by GG could talk about the half-year and say it was positive.

Ok I'm probably giving him too much credit on carefully choosing words he writes, but I really do think there's nothing wrong with that tweet.

 

 

I am reminded of a friend of mine in some ways when people discuss Dan. She and I were asking each other how our New Years Eves were, and she said she loved hers because she had an amazing time going to dinner and dancing, and then had wild, crazy sex when they got home.

 

My reaction internally to when she says those things is: why did you say that? You know people don't say things like that, right? One, she doesn't seem to know. From many conversations, she paints this picture of everyone around her walking into a room and casually announcing "man I'm tired from all that sex I just had!" Two, why can't you say that? I don't, and I never will, but I guess there's nothing that actually prohibits you talking like that if you wanted.

 

I would NOT have said publicly what Dan did, but I don't actually see anything wrong with him saying it. How fucked up is our society that it probably is the best personal 6 months of his life or career or what have you, but to actually say that gets him vilified? I understand there are larger themes and important things in play out there in the world, but man it's a tweet.

 

I'm sorry, I'm already tired of arguing my position. It must just be a cultural difference for me. It'd be inconceivable for me to say publicly that a given period of time was my peak personal happiness if I had friends and colleagues hurting in the way that #GamerGate hurts people, not least because I'm not going to be at my happiest if my friends and colleagues are hurting. I'm not saying Dan shouldn't be allowed to post the tweet or deserves to be "vilified" for it, I'm saying that I personally find it in bad taste and it contributes to my difficulties appreciating Dan as a member of the video games establishment.

[shammack]

What's funny is that wasn't even the tweet that I thought you guys were talking about, which made me really confused about the conversation as it went on. I thought you were talking about this one, which struck me as Ryckert-dumb in a different way. Namely, that all games have to be a fun escape and that there's not really place for games that tackle difficult topics or handle things in nuanced ways that aren't blatantly enjoyable.

 

I don't think that's what he was saying at all and I think Sean's reply was incredibly obnoxious. In context I think it's pretty clear that he wasn't trying to dictate what games can or can't be; he was just saying that even though a bunch of awful shit happened around them, video games are still a great way to have fun.

[Undeadpool]

I think last time this came up I tried to make this super clear but forgot to do so this time. So...

Casual cronyism is a rampant problem through all industries and so I'm not saying GiantBomb are a special example of being bad at it. It's a pretty (unfortunately) common system that this is just one more example of.

That we can surely agree on!

[Apple Cider]

I don't remember which thread it got linked in, Social Justice maybe, but Maddy Myers (who is extremely qualified) specifically talked about her experiences of applying and not getting hired to GB and what kind of nonsense fallout happened, so if you want to make a case about the hiring, you have at least one example of someone who I think absolutely could compete with Dan on a requirements level. The issue though is that if you create an environment that "suits" more affable gamer dudes to fill in a slot, then that's what is going to seem like a natural choice to you, regardless of that naturalness being constructed.

[thefncrow]

Dan's bugged me with his attitude on twitter recently, but it wasn't over that tweet.  That tweet is kinda a continuation of something he said the night before, which specified much more about how good his personal life was for the second half of last year.  But in that earlier string, he says these things:

 

There were obviously some aspects of the industry that were really rough in 2014, but I hope everyone stays positive and has fun next year.

 

Video games should be an escape from all the serious, negative stuff in the world. Try to focus on the fun in 2015. It's a much better time.

 

That right there is the crux of my problem with Dan.  It's a strange variation on the dumb "if you try hard enough you will succeed" stuff, a sort of "if you just try hard enough to pretend that all the unfun horseshit doesn't exist, it'll just go away without anyone having to work to make things better".  There was some comments he posted around election day this year:

 

 

Apparently there's some voting thing going on today. I'm not sure if it's happening in California, but I DO know that I don't give a shit.

 

I've always trusted that smart people that actually know and understand the issues will vote. I don't understand anything, so I'm not needed.

 

If it's easy to understand, I'll vote on it. In 2012's election, I also voted to legalize gay marriage in MN because I understood the issue.

 

I know that I'm happy and that most super-political people I know are usually stressed, so I'm just gonna keep doing things my way forever.

 

And kinda the topper, when someone sent him a link to a voter's guide that tried to explain the issues in simple terms so he could be educated enough to vote meaningfully (phrased something like as "Do you realize this thing exists?") in response to the bit about how he'd vote if the issue was simple to understand:

 

 

I don't. I kinda just assume everything will work itself out like it always does.

 

Working hard guarantees success.  Working hard to ignore something means it'll just go away.  And if you don't engage, well, don't worry, things will naturally just get better on their own.

[Badfinger]

I do not think the point of video games is escapism, but I also think it's fine if the point of video games is escapism to you.

[Apple Cider]

In some ways, video games can really be escapism for everyone, but a lot of people TRY to use video games as escapism and end up being painfully aware of things we'd like to not think about in the real world, sadly. Dan seems, again, nice, but incredibly able to not think about "the hard stuff" which in and of itself is dismaying. 

[chummer]

I don't remember which thread it got linked in, Social Justice maybe, but Maddy Myers (who is extremely qualified) specifically talked about her experiences of applying and not getting hired to GB and what kind of nonsense fallout happened, so if you want to make a case about the hiring, you have at least one example of someone who I think absolutely could compete with Dan on a requirements level. The issue though is that if you create an environment that "suits" more affable gamer dudes to fill in a slot, then that's what is going to seem like a natural choice to you, regardless of that naturalness being constructed.

 

"No Qualified Women Applied," a.k.a. Go Fuck Yourself

 

So I have very few feelings about Dan himself. He seems like a nice fellow whose ignorance doesn't come with malice but still carries a lot of harm (for example the "work hard and you're sure to get it!" belief).

 

There's a lot of people like Dan, who hold the same beliefs about life and games, and I think he has just become an easy focal point w/in our sub-culture for the dismay other people feel about the types of views he holds. He worked a long time at Game Informer saying the same stuff, it's just that now he's at an outlet that people who are vocal about video games care about so it's a whole different audience. 

 

I'm rambling now. Ryckert is Homer Simpson:

 

[BadHat]

I don't think that's what he was saying at all and I think Sean's reply was incredibly obnoxious. In context I think it's pretty clear that he wasn't trying to dictate what games can or can't be; he was just saying that even though a bunch of awful shit happened around them, video games are still a great way to have fun.

 

Do you not think it's kind of shitty to suggest that people need reminding of this? Like anyone being negatively affected by games culture right now is going to read this and go, "oh yeah, I should just have fun"? I really like Dan and I don't think he has a shred of malice in him, but how is that not just the most condescending statement. Seriously, look at the replies to that tweet and tell me that he's not giving support to the shittiest, most dismissive people. Even if it's totally inadvertent, and I believe it was, it still displays how thoughtless he is about this stuff. Which, in the scheme of things, whatever, it's just some guy making some dumb tweets, but it does make me value his opinion a lot less.

[SuperBiasedMan]

Worth pointing out that this guy making dumb tweets has a sizeable following as an Internet personality so it's not the same as your buddy who says a lot of dumb stuff, Dan has a real impression on people who casually view his stuff and subconsciously absorb his message.

[shammack]

Do you not think it's kind of shitty to suggest that people need reminding of this? Like anyone being negatively affected by games culture right now is going to read this and go, "oh yeah, I should just have fun"?

 

I mean, I needed reminding of it and was glad to see it. But whatever; if people want to ascribe the worst possible connotations to everything the guy says then I guess that's their prerogative.

[JonCole]

I mean, I needed reminding of it and was glad to see it. But whatever; if people want to ascribe the worst possible connotations to everything the guy says then I guess that's their prerogative.

 

Your previous reply to me was with regards to a post where I both gave him the benefit of the doubt on the half-year positivity tweet and criticized the subsequent tweet. I'm not "out to get" Dan. I don't think he's a bad guy. I do think that he doesn't take great care in what he's saying. I also think that he has some beliefs that are tainted with privilege and could hurt some people who don't have it as good as him. The reason I'm so critical at all is because he has a big following and he's the newest member of a community that I really care about.

 

This kinda stuff really puts me off. When I was weighing whether or not I should attend Giant Bomb's PAX South panel versus another one, it took my wife to remind me that I'm a huge fan of that site and have been for years. I'm not happy to be conflicted about GB lately, I really just wish they could be more relevant to the broader gaming community that I care about.

[Dewar]

Dan's bugged me with his attitude on twitter recently, but it wasn't over that tweet.  That tweet is kinda a continuation of something he said the night before, which specified much more about how good his personal life was for the second half of last year.  But in that earlier string, he says these things:

 

 

That right there is the crux of my problem with Dan.  It's a strange variation on the dumb "if you try hard enough you will succeed" stuff, a sort of "if you just try hard enough to pretend that all the unfun horseshit doesn't exist, it'll just go away without anyone having to work to make things better".

This being the first time I read that tweet (I don't hang out on twitter very much) I read it as targeted at the GG folks, basically a "lighten up" statement with different phrasing, not a "ignore the problems and they'll go away" thing.

[Dewar]

"No Qualified Women Applied," a.k.a. Go Fuck Yourself

That and http://metroidpolitan.com/blog/2014/6/24/a-gdc-epilogue-powerful-games-journalist-men-i-have-met are absolutely heart-breaking.

[tegan]

 

[Bjorn]

Not gonna lie, a younger me would have eaten the hell out of that monstrosity.

[Reyturner]

Not gonna lie, a younger me would have eaten the hell out of that monstrosity.

Same, only replace "younger" with nothing.

[Bjorn]

I'm growing increasingly cognizant of things like "heart disease" and "how-many-notches-are-left-in-my-belt-oh-my-god-there-aren't-anymore". Otherwise I would still eat it.

[Mangela Lansbury]

Find someone to split one with. There's a burger joint back home that's famous for their Krispy Kreme burger and I just split it with someone whenever I wanted one.

[Vorlonesque]

I think the donuts would kill it for me...I don't really like glazed donuts (I can eat them though) and I'm weirdly picky about mixing stuff like that for some weird reason.  That said I'd totally eat a burger like that with normal buns (or pretzel buns or other things) and then eat the donuts.  I could even get away with it since I'm underweight and already eat horribly (I actually need to gain weight...I only weigh 112 pounds now...I need to at least gain back the 8 pounds I lost when I got sick a couple times recently and then ideally put on some more weight to reach whatever is the normal healthy weight for a 5'11" guy...though its hard for me to get above 125 for some reason even at age 35).

 

Edit: I would add that, while Dan's tweets are a bit oblivious perhaps; I can't get angry because he's expressing that he's happy or whatever.  Hell, right now I'm not miserable and would even say I'm content...maybe even happy.  I think its perhaps a bit tone-deaf to go around touting your happiness this year...but I would assume and hope that's what people are upset about (and not upset that Dan is actually in a state of happiness right now...after all you don't control you emotional states and demanding he do otherwise would be a bit terrible, but asking kindly that he perhaps not publicly revel in it while others suffer I can completely understand).

 

I'm typing this on a shitty ultrabook keyboard...so it may not make any sense.

[Bjorn]

The best weird burger I ever ate was in New Orleans. This may be common in some places, but I had never heard of it. I was in a place called the Absinthe Bar, and asked where to get a good burger. And this big motherfucker sitting at the bar perked up (I'm a big guy, and he dwarfed me), looked at me and said with this Jersey accent, "What you're gonna do is go up the street, take a right, go two blocks down and go into Yo Mama's, then you're gonna order the Peanut Butter Burger, with a slice of American cheese. And they're gonna wanna put all this other shit on it, and you're gonna tell them no. You want the Peanut Butter Burger with a slice of American cheese, without any of that other shit.  Trust me."

When the big motherfucker at the Absinthe Bar tells you to go order a Peanut Butter Burger, that's what you do. And it was delicious.