UGO Entertainment Acquires 1UP, EGM Dead, Mass Layoffs

[Emabulator]

UGO Entertainment has acquired 1UP. Straight from the source (http://www.1up.com/do/newsStory?cId=3172156):

You may have heard the rumors in the past, but today the announcement we've all been waiting for has officially come: UGO Entertainment and parent Hearst Corporation have acquired 1UP and its associated sites GameVideos.com, MyCheats.com, and GameTab.com. 1UP and its sites now join UGO's network of gaming properties that will reach over 40 million monthly unique visitors. UGO and 1UP representatives commented on the deal:

"Since we started UGO 11 years ago, we have served the gamer community and built a world-class online publishing platform," said J Moses, CEO of UGO Entertainment. "The acquisition of 1UP, with its authentic voice, tenured editorial personalities and bustling user community, allows us to expand our base of quality content and represents a major step forward in UGO's mission to become the leader in the games space."

From reader Gaz is the list of layoffs (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/01/06/assessing-the-damage-at-1up/):

At present, the following 1UP staff have indicated -- either in tweets, forum posts, or directly to us -- that they have been let go: Andrew "Skip" Pfister, Matt Chandronait, Ryan O'Donnell, Jay Fresh, Cesar Quintero, Philip Kollar, Nick Suttner, Anthony Gallegos, Shane Bettenhausen, James "Milkman" Mielke.

Additionally, publication of gaming magazine EGM is done. The last issue to be printed will be January 2009's.

[lost]

Well congrats to whoever benefits from the deal.

1up is a great site for news and previews. Hopefully they don't do a Blues News and pull the soul out.

Maybe they could buy EvAv and pay me money? No? OK then...:)

[OSX]

I think the most important tidbit here is that EGM will no longer be published, which is a shame, as it was some of the last responsible gaming journalism left. I guess Ill get some of my subscription money back, but a crying shame nonetheless.

[Ph00p]

EGM was pretty shitty overall, very poorly written and full of fluff. At least thats one less Ad Catalog posing as a Magazine, thats what you get Ziff for filling almost(or maybe more than)50% of your magazine with worhtless shit ads on top of ADS.

The only magazine that I really liked enough to get mad over was PC Xcellerator(spelled wrong ya but whatever right) it was a great magazine very funny and the ppl didn't give a shit about what they said, funny site too.

[Ilikecapcom]

It sucks they are stopping all the podcasts. Seems like the thing you should keep.

[Your Good Twin]

Yep, this blows ass. 1UP Yours got me into podcasts in the first place and I still love(d) their choicey array the most. I even subscribed to EGM just to show my support for the site and people (I believe magazines are dead and I barely got more than 10 minutes out of each copy). There is a hole now where 1up used to be. A big, painful wound.

[Fonz]

This is not good news at all 1up yours/FM/Retronauts all dead, rumors that 30 people were laid off at 1up. And EGM is officially dead. Truly an end of a golden era. Shawn Elliot ,Jeff Green and Dan Tsu jumped ship at the right time.

[riposte101]

This is not good news at all 1up yours/FM/Retronauts all dead, rumors that 30 people were laid off at 1up. And EGM is officially dead. Truly an end of a golden era. Shawn Elliot ,Jeff Green and Dan Tsu jumped ship at the right time.

Yeah, they saw what was coming and when they jumped ship I knew it was close to the end also. I too am sad that 1up yours is going away.

[Tempest261]

No more GFW or 1upYours? Oh god, my iPod just became somewhat useless :(

[Tempest261]

No more GFW or 1upYours? Oh god, my iPod just became somewhat useless :(

Er not GFW- lanparty. You guys know what I mean.

[Gaz]

Full list of layoffs is here (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/01/06/assessing-the-damage-at-1up/)... ugh, my thoughts to everyone who was laid off. No more quality podcasting; genuinely the best gaming podcast selection out there in my eyes, really going to miss it all.

[spdiscus]

This is horrible news. Best wishes / condolences to the ex-staff and ex-subscribers.

[spdiscus]

Return of kefkataran?

[modeps]

Full list of layoffs is here (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/01/06/assessing-the-damage-at-1up/)... ugh, my thoughts to everyone who was laid off. No more quality podcasting; genuinely the best gaming podcast selection out there in my eyes, really going to miss it all.

This is insanity....

At present, the following 1UP staff have indicated -- either in tweets, forum posts, or directly to us -- that they have been let go: Andrew "Skip" Pfister, Matt Chandronait, Ryan O'Donnell, Jay Fresh, Cesar Quintero, Philip Kollar, Nick Suttner, Anthony Gallegos, Shane Bettenhausen, James "Milkman" Mielke.

I'm really sorry guys. Really. :(

[beefyjr]

Good luck to all those who lost their jobs in this deal. Pound for pound, Ziff had some of the most talented people in the business, so hopefully those affected will land on their. Before idiots run their mouths about it being awesome that EGM is closing or whatever, keep in mind that real people are losing their jobs as a result of this, and in one of the worst economies in generations.

On a personal note, I love EGM and will be sad to see it go. I'm also a fan of a lot of their podcasts and the 1up Show, and it's a shame to see that kind of content, which is a HUGE differentiator from Ziff's competition, gutted out. Their audio and video content really helped set them apart from everyone else, and contributed immensely to 1up's much more intimate editorial voice. You got to know these people not only through their writing, but also their own physical voices. As a result, I felt more connected to their opinions as people than I do with almost any other site.

The world already has enough IGNs and Gamespots, and it's a shame that a standout editorial organization like Ziff seems to be heading down that road.

[Tripred]

They fucking laid off Phil. :(

FOR THIS THEY MUST PAY.

Phil needs to go work at Giant Bomb now.

[Fonz]

Yeah. I'm done going to 1up. Looks like Garnett got to stay, but still, the podcasts are what made that site. Now that they're gone I feel no need to go it. I guess ill just have to start listening to gamescoop and podcast beyond again. How did David Ellis get to stay over Simon, Shane, Ryan or Mielke though.

[Fonz]

Tina Sanchez stays too? They must be paying her pittens. Damn I wish we had an edit button lol.

[Zurik]

We should change the title to "UGO acquires 1UP, fires everyone that matters".

[grognard66]

No surprise about EGM. Sucks to be laid-off, I've been there twice.

Hopefully some of the good talent will find positions elsewhere in the industry (I wonder if it was coincidence that they had the giantbomb guys drop by for what ended up being their last podcast?).

If nothing else, I'm sure Shane Bettenhausen will get a PR job at Sony since that's essentially what he was doing at 1UP the past few years anyway.

[modeps]

We should change the title to "UGO acquires 1UP, fires everyone that matters".

I updated the title, just not quite like you suggested ;)

That news post over at 1Up has a ton of people basically saying that they're done with 1Up. Sucks.

[bto]

Well, good luck to everybody finding a job, except q-mann. I enjoyed reading EGM during the toilet breaks.

[sgtslappy]

Wow.

I love EGM.

:(

[Zurik]

I updated the title, just not quite like you suggested ;)

That news post over at 1Up has a ton of people basically saying that they're done with 1Up. Sucks.


I listened to their podcasts at work, and they were almost always interesting even if I don't agree with their opinions everytime. That's what I'll miss most, and I just can't understand why they'd buy the site and get rid of all the people that made it worth visiting. Maybe they think just the name will add traffic? Anyway, hope all the people there find another place to work.

[Emabulator]

Full list of layoffs is here (http://www.joystiq.com/2009/01/06/assessing-the-damage-at-1up/)... ugh, my thoughts to everyone who was laid off. No more quality podcasting; genuinely the best gaming podcast selection out there in my eyes, really going to miss it all.Thanks to Gaz and modeps for the updates.

At the time of the posting I could not find anything on the layoffs. I had a feeling they were coming. :(

[Yeargh]

Aaaaargh... podcasts get me through the day at work, and I haven't found enough ones that I enjoy to last me through the week. Now some of my favorites are gone. I'm not the biggest EGM fan, but I still enjoyed flipping through it every month. Best wishes to all those affected by this.

[BloodPack]

I am surprised no one has said anything about the 1UP show, it is consistently high quality stuff, I anticipate the show every week and am rarely disappointed (the last great video game show?).

But to be honest I really tried to like 1UP, as everyone said there podcasts made the site, but the rest of the content was bleh.

[SuperMonkeyFighter2]

This is horrible news, as it's just not the right climate to be out of work. With magazines slowing fading, I feel for all those who are left unemployed.
A lot of these cats worked at these mags for their love of gaming (certainly not to get rich). Hoping they all find new jobs immediately

[Zander]

Andrew "Skip" Pfister, Matt Chandronait, Ryan O'Donnell, Jay Fresh, Cesar Quintero, Philip Kollar, Nick Suttner, Anthony Gallegos, Shane Bettenhausen, James "Milkman" Mielke.

Man, that beyond sucks. Every single one of those guys have given me plenty of laughs via podcasts. This isn't right.

[Borys]

Shutting down the mag I can understand. Firing lots of people I can understand too but why would UGO close the podcasts/ shows?

[JazGalaxy]

Shutting down the mag I can understand. Firing lots of people I can understand too but why would UGO close the podcasts/ shows?

I miss EGM for two reasons:

1) it's the first gaming magazine I ever got. I remember it had a "blowout" preview of Zelda 3 for the SNES on the cover.

2) The golden age of print in the mid nineties where one issues of EGM was literally 400 pages and took you all month to read. I still keep a few for posterity.

[Rangoth]

>pours one out for the fallen<

Man I was twelve years old when I picked up an issue of EGM and discovered there were other people out there who are geeks like me. It was a life altering event that would eventually lead to many hourse working in the bowels of the Evil Empire on many games...some of questionable quality...but a life I never would of dreamed as a kid.

Now lets take Phil out and get him f-ed up and help him forget the loss of that job.

[Meusli]

Yeah it's sad to hear, especially when Phillip is one of our own. I wonder if we will see more sites merge or close these coming months, the industry seems to be in a state of constriction.

[lost]

Yeah it's sad to hear, especially when Phillip is one of our own. I wonder if we will see more sites merge or close these coming months, the industry seems to be in a state of constriction.

It's very sad. Basically it means that the only truly reputable commercial source left is the Eurogamer network, excluding a couple of print mags.

Does UGO have some super team of writers they are going to bring in? It seems odd to fire so many of your best people. Perhaps more freelancers.

I think in the future you will still to see syndicated reviews, previews and news. Commercial sites will just become cookie cutter versions of each other.

In the apocololypse!!!

[Derella]

I'm sending happy thoughts to everyone there -- getting laid off really sucks. After GFW's closure I didn't really follow 1up that much, though I did listen to their podcasts every week(which were the best around). I'm sure a lot of them will end up at other gaming sites, or working for game developers directly.

Good luck guys!

[Metal Khaos]

Here's to hoping everyone lands on their feet fine.

[Orz]

Beware the size of this 3305 x 2227 pixel image, but it's (almost) every EGM cover from 1989 to 2008. A nice trip down memory lane, and a salute to the end of an era:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dionisio/2767663311/sizes/o/

[LilAbner]

Yeah it's sad to hear, especially when Phillip is one of our own. I wonder if we will see more sites merge or close these coming months, the industry seems to be in a state of constriction.

This sucks. I talked to him about the instability of the industry (especially if you're a journalist) when he went over there. He was well aware of that and I hope he lands on his feet in the VERY expensive San Francisco area.

[modeps]

Beware the size of this 3305 x 2227 pixel image, but it's (almost) every EGM cover from 1989 to 2008. A nice trip down memory lane, and a salute to the end of an era:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/dionisio/2767663311/sizes/o/

Very cool link Orz.

[Shifter]

Damn this is a blow. My iPod too is now half dead to me. I wish those guys all the best and hope they land on their feet quickly -- at least many will get several months severance.

A few of those people really made the 1Up site what it was so i'm not sure what it is that UGO is buying. On the other hand, I never found the quality evident in the podcasts truly reflected on the site itself. I'm not sure why.

[Mr.Green]

So that's it? No more 1up Show?

Fuck, fuck and fucking fuck.

[Thin_J]

Well, there's a site I don't have to bother visiting anymore.

Way to fire most of the people whose opinions we care about guys.

[Demo_Boy]

Wow no 1UPYours podcasts? That's a big loss for my ipod. Between 1upy and Hotspot I got 50% of my market analysis done weekly on the bus to work.

Also I JUST subbed to EGM!!! Pretty good how they had lots of interviews in there. Doh

[Chimp]

Love him or hate him, Shane Bettenhausen was a fucking treasure trove of info about games. I was constantly astounded by his knowledge while listening to the 1UP Yours podcast, and found his opinions to be very well-informed and interesting even when I disagreed with him.

Some company would be a fool not to snap him up, he was a natural when it came to podcasting. He'll be sorely missed on my iPod.

[riposte101]

I miss EGM for two reasons:

1) it's the first gaming magazine I ever got. I remember it had a "blowout" preview of Zelda 3 for the SNES on the cover.

2) The golden age of print in the mid nineties where one issues of EGM was literally 400 pages and took you all month to read. I still keep a few for posterity.

My fondest memories of EGM were from the Street Fighter II era. They would occasionally have SFII guides and I eagerly waited for every issue.

[Froggy]

Skiiiiiiiiip! Man, Phister was my fav. I used to read his work in Play Magazine. Good times.

[spdiscus]

The editors' 'farewell' posts have started showing up on the 1UP homepage.

Just an FYI for the people who've already sworn off the site.

[spdiscus]

Love him or hate him, Shane Bettenhausen was a fucking treasure trove of info about games. I was constantly astounded by his knowledge while listening to the 1UP Yours podcast, and found his opinions to be very well-informed and interesting even when I disagreed with him.

Some company would be a fool not to snap him up, he was a natural when it came to podcasting. He'll be sorely missed on my iPod.

Agreed. According to his farewell post (http://www.1up.com/do/blogEntry?bId=8977573&publicUserId=1002415), Shane decided to leave.

[Chimpbot]

I loved thumbing through EGM when I was at my folk's house; I never bothered to change my mailing address, so there'd always be a stack of two or three when I'd drop by for a visit. It'd give me something to do for the better part of an evening...and occasionally, there'd be a few wonderful tidbits I hadn't heard about yet, such as the Splatterhouse remake.

The times, they are a'changing'...

[Slowpc]

Does anyone have a twitter list of those that worked at 1up so I can keep up to date with what is going on? I have a few of their feeds but not all.

It is sad to see such a great group of guys and gals get removed from what they did so well like this. Now I have to find another podcast (until the guys get their other podcast up and running) and video podcast (already miss the 1up show)

I wish them all the greatest of luck and everything. It is so sad to see something like this happen to such a great group of people that really did do a great job with the topics at hand.

Now... back to work for me... :( :( :(

[Exodus]

That picture brings back so many memories...

[Chris_D]

Just some info for fans of Phil or 1UP.FM. Unfortunately there's no RSS subscription link yet I don't think.

http://www.eat-sleep-game.com/

As Promised: Episode 1 of Rebel.fm

January 8th, 2009 by As Promised: Episode 1 of Rebel.fm

January 8th, 2009 by Aegies
Won’t you please welcome Anthony Gallegos, Nick Suttner, Philip Kollar, Matt Chandronait, Ryan O’Donnell, Jade Kraus, and me, as we bring you the opening salvo of Rebel.fm. It’s on, bitches.

Hey, look, it’s a torrent that won’t fucking destroy the site when you download from it!
PS: Yes, quality not so good for a lot of it, but bear with us. Things will be better next week. Promise. Even if we have to bring in a ringer to show us how it’s done.