Been a member of GameSpot for 3 years, and a week, as of this writing. At first, I joined GameSpot because I loved reading the reviews that were posted here. They always informed me on whatever I wanted to know, and I've yet to disagree with a single posted review. Then I started finding out more about the site- On The Spot, The HotSpot, Burning Questions (Thanks for those Alex, I always loved reading those), Tournament TV, Editor Blog Posts- Heck even the forums were lively. I'd try to catch them every chance I got. Why? Because they had a lot of personality. The team who put out all this stuff together had a great sense of humour, while still being able to deliver quality work, none like I had seen on any other site.

Today, I just don't feel the same about GameSpot anymore. I'm sure anyone stumbling upon this will have heard about all the fiasco about Jeff- His leaving is not the sole reason of this post, but it sure broke the straw on the camel's back. From the day I joined, to today, most of the editors/staff members I enjoyed watching/listening/reading about are gone. While I think all the remaining GameSpot staff are great in their own way- Alex, Brad, Brian, Riccardo, RyanM, RyanD, Vinnie, Aaron; All you guys are great, even the ones behind the scenes, I know you guys put a lot of work into the site as well- the ones that are no longer around were pieces of a great looking puzzle. A few missing pieces of the puzzle is alright- A bit disheartning, and we're going to miss them, but one still gets the idea. But when you're missing a good portion of the puzzle, you just can't quite see it anymore.

Hope those who made the decision are happy, because many of us sure aren't.

To keep this from becoming a rant, I'll just finish it off here.

Best wishes to all that are still at GameSpot. Must be a bit awkward there right now, but I'm sure you guys will pull through. Thanks for all the great work you guys put together, especially the guys behind the scene- And of course, Jeff.

As for where I'm headed, I've decided just to take a break from any website- Going to see where things are headed.

As for me with GameSpot- I probably won't be frequenting around here anymore as much- Just doesn't feel like GameSpot anymore. I probably won't make blog posts here anymore, for the few who actually read them- Did anyone actually read them? Anyway.

Jeff Gerstmann 1996-2007

All Responsible, Can Shove It.

Over and out. Thanks again for the great times, GameSpot.

-Shadow-Eagle

My first Limited/Special Edition game. Too bad I can't even play it yet, since I'm still waiting for my step-up card to ship back to me. Two more days...

I recently just sent out my 8800GTS 320mb for the step-up program- Going to the 8800GT. On the one hand, I'm excited that I'll be getting a fairly significant upgrade. On the other hand, I'm pretty disappointed I'll be without a proper gaming PC for about a week, since I recently picked up Gears of War and Viva Pinata. Gotta save up money for the last batch of upcoming games, so I guess I'm stuck without anything to do- Gaming wise anyway. I'll just have more time to play guitar (Actual guitar, not Guitar Hero)and play hockey/tennis more with my friends.

Speaking of saving money, I have to delay picking up UT3 and/or Crysis, since I've fallen over the fence on my decision to get a 360. If you haven't read my past few blog posts about Mass Effect, its the system seller for me- Only because BioWare is developing it, since they made my favourite game of all time, Knights of the Old Republic. The shooter-Gears of War-esque combat seems kind of irking to me, since I prefer playing my shooters on the PC, but every other aspect of Mass Effect is very appealing to me, so I should be able to look past that personal minor shortcoming. Hopefully Mass Effect turns out better, not as good- BETTER, than Kotor, because I'm delaying Unreal Tournament 3 and Crysis for it, and plunking down 399.99 for it. I know this sounds like a pretty crazy decision, but to sound like a broken record, I haven't had asatisfying RPG since Kotor, so I'm willing to give up two of my anticipated games for a good RPG, if only for awhile. Luckily, Mass Effect isn't the only 360 game I want. I'll be looking into picking up Dead or Alive 4 and Eternal Sonata late December, after Crysis and Unreal Tournament 3. Here's to hoping I made a wise decision, and Mass Effect turns out better than Kotor.