Hero-of-Time Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 I happen to wake up at half 2 this morning and noticed that Neogaf was really slow. I then had a look at the boards and seen there were spam topics all over the place, various topics shut down, people being banned left and right and then eventually the whole thing went down. I had a quick look on Google to see if I could find out what was going on and found this. Quote Tyler Malka, the owner of popular gaming forum NeoGAF, is facing allegations of sexual assault. A Facebook post claims that Malka, who is better known online as his username “Evilore,” was a mutual friend that went on a road trip with her down to New Orleans. She alleges that once in New Orleans, she got sick, went to take a shower, and then Malka decided to join in without any consent (the two were not in a relationship at the time, and never were). These aren’t the first time that Malka has faced allegations of sexual assault, as his own blog post about a trip to Spain led people to question him after he admitted in 2012 to grabbing a woman in a club while drunk. Due to the situation, several longtime moderators have stepped down. I’ve managed to confirm that even more moderators are planning to leave the site in the near future. While there’s a staff exodus, the site itself has gone into a state of self-implosion, as people are currently trying to one up themselves in an attempt to get banned from the site. These types of threads were being removed earlier, but now many have stayed up since the site doesn’t seem to have an active moderation team at the moment. The whole place was like the wild west, with pretty much anything going, seeing as there were no mods to stop people. It was absolutely crazy.
Glen-i Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) Yeah, it's been completely mental over the past hours. I've gotta admit, it's been strangely fascinating to watch. Regretting it a bit this morning, I'm absolutely shattered and I've got to moderate 15 or so kids as they play Smash Bros in an hour. A lot of people really want to distance themselves from the site. It all happened amazingly quickly. EDIT: Always thankful that people take the time to archive pictures of developing stories so that a site going down can't really stop anyone from seeing stuff like this. Edited October 22, 2017 by Glen-i
Hero-of-Time Posted October 22, 2017 Author Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) It will be understandable if this is the end for the site but I will be really gutted if that was the case. There is no other gaming site that breaks and collects the news as fast as Gaf. I also used it for everyday news, as well. As Glen said, it has been an interesting thing to watch develop and it's going to be even more interesting to see just what happens if the place does shut down. On the bright side, maybe people who left this place but still posted on Gaf will actually come back? Edited October 22, 2017 by Hero-of-Time
Nicktendo Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 I'll be genuinely sad if this is the end for GAF. Even though I never post there, I often lurk and find the majority of the discussion genuinely interesting. Outside of gaming, the posts especially during Brexit and the General Election were awesome, informative and genuinely amusing at times. Despite that though, there is a massive problem with toxicity, there are some truly awful posters, just the worst kind of people. Especially when it comes to discussion around journalism and the gaming media or personalities. The amount of people white knighting and shutting down any kind of discussion is awful. It's like twitter on drugs. If it is the end, I'll definitely miss the gifs and the memes. Espcially the "lock if..." OPs and the "first reply nailed it" ones. Plus, it really is one of the best places to find in depth and fast moving discussion. Reddit doesn't quite cut it for me in that regard. 3
Happenstance Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 Yeah I remember seeing the post pop up on Reddit earlier this week. Some people saying EviLore turned down a 10 million offer for Neogaf recently, something I bet he's now regretting. My only real exposure to EviLore was on a Giant Bomb E3 after hours show one year. They had him as part of a roundtable discussion but never really got around to talking to him. He moaned a lot after that about it but when they have actual devs and other journalists to talk to, why would they care what a forum owner has to say? Never really liked him after that. The forum itself I found it was so big that it was easy to just walk away from discussions that got toxic and still enjoy talking elsewhere. I'll be sad to see it go if this is how it goes.
Hero-of-Time Posted October 22, 2017 Author Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) I've tried using Reddit a few times but I just can't get used to the layout. I find it far too messy. Plus, everything seems to be all over the place due to sub reddits being a thing. Edited October 22, 2017 by Hero-of-Time
Happenstance Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 1 minute ago, Hero-of-Time said: I've tried using Reddit a few times but I just can't get used to the layout. I find it far too messy. Plus, everything seems to be all over the place due to sub reddits being a thing. I just use Reddit on my iPad in this mornings, basically just looking at the front page for stupid gifs etc. I've added a few sub reddits to that but its never felt the most intuitive site to use, especially if you want to actually have a conversation in the comments.
Hero-of-Time Posted October 22, 2017 Author Posted October 22, 2017 3 minutes ago, Happenstance said: I just use Reddit on my iPad in this mornings, basically just looking at the front page for stupid gifs etc. I've added a few sub reddits to that but its never felt the most intuitive site to use, especially if you want to actually have a conversation in the comments. Yeah, it's weird. It's been around for ages now and I thought they would have cleaned it up by now. Saying that, some guys at work use it loads and find nothing wrong with it but they think the Gaf layout is a mess. I suppose it's just what you're used to.
Fierce_LiNk Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 I use Reddit (browsing and reading, not posting) and am now used to its layout. But, I do agree that it's quite messy and can be a pain to follow. I don't really read Neogaf, but I know others that do and how informative it can be there. It'll be a shame if the place crashes due to the actions of its owner. A shame for the fans to have that area tarnished. Hope the whole thing can be resolved with a positive outcome for the fans, but with appropriate justice carried out against the owner.
Dcubed Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 Oh My God! I just heard the news!! Is this even real life? It all happened so fast!! It’s so surreal!! While I have to say that the mods there seem to have done the right thing, assuming that the allegations against Evilore are true (and, given his past actions, I wouldn’t be surprised at all to hear that they are true), this is a complete disaster! The entire gaming press and the industry as a whole relies on that site as a primary source of information and news aggregation! I rely almost entirely on it for all non-Nintendo info (and even then, the other Nintendo sites I regular for info often rely on NeoGaf sources). Losing it is a massive blow!! Sales analysis? Gone. Pretty much everyone relies entirely on NeoGaf. Without them, the likes of VG Chartz will run rampant. Unless the sales guys on there can somehow get back together and get something going again, we’re completely in the dark when it comes to sales data! Losing Neogaf is basically the gaming equivalent of losing the Associated Press overnight! Outside of the news sites, we have nothing but Reddit and Twitter now (and that’s hardly useful if you don’t already know what you’re looking for, since it’s entirely decentralised!) Oh man. This is bad. 3
Hero-of-Time Posted October 22, 2017 Author Posted October 22, 2017 Pretty much how I feel, @Dcubed. So many gaming sites use Gaf as the place for information or a way to distribute their own articles and news pieces. If Gaf does end up closing up shop, it's going to have a big impact on gaming news sites all across the Internet. 1
killthenet Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) I've always found Neogaf to be a pretty awful place for the most part, full of hot takes, spoilers and too many gifs but I still found it to be useful for breaking news so would check it occasionally because it's members always seemed to be ahead of the curve. The dissolution of the site won't mean the end for those members though, I'm sure in a couple of weeks there will be another forum up and running under a different name, there are enough members to ensure that a new site would be easily crowdfunded. Edited October 22, 2017 by killthenet
Choze Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) 6 hours ago, Nicktendo said: Despite that though, there is a massive problem with toxicity, there are some truly awful posters, just the worst kind of people. Especially when it comes to discussion around journalism and the gaming media or personalities. The amount of people white knighting and shutting down any kind of discussion is awful. It's like twitter on drugs. If it is the end, I'll definitely miss the gifs and the memes. Espcially the "lock if..." OPs and the "first reply nailed it" ones. Plus, it really is one of the best places to find in depth and fast moving discussion. Reddit doesn't quite cut it for me in that regard. Reddit has too much herding and focus on influencing people. It’s monetised to an extreme. Better off not using it. Not that neogaf was perfect, it wasn’t at all and there is probably more stuff to come aside from sexual assault and shenangans prior to ‘neo’. But it was the most interesting gaming forum even with all the flaws. The rest left are just terrible. it’s also a shame that the other big ones are gamer gate havens (who are cheering oddly) or overly full of ‘influencers’. Edited October 22, 2017 by Choze
Glen-i Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) 19 minutes ago, Choze said: Reddit has too much herding and focus on influencing people. It’s monetised to a extreme. Better off not using it. Not that neogaf was perfect, it wasn’t at all and there is probably more stuff to come aside from sexual assault and shenangans prior to ‘neo’. But it was the most interesting gaming forum even with all the flaws. The rest left are just terrible. it’s also a shame that the other big ones are gamer gate havens (who are cheering oddly) or overly full of ‘influencers’. There's a general group of enthusiast gamers online who have a serious problem with treating everything as some kind of competition. Which console does best, which one of their favourite game series is most successful, stuff like that. Them having an opinion doesn't matter, they want everyone else to agree with them. The majority of the time, this bleeds into everything. So quite frankly, other forum diehards see GAF collapsing as some kind of massive victory. As if their site has somehow "won". It's incredibly sad and childish. And that's coming from someone who draws fanart of a game series aimed at children. Edited October 22, 2017 by Glen-i Changed the quote to reflect Choze's edited post 2
drahkon Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 8 minutes ago, Glen-i said: So quite frankly, other forum diehards see GAF collapsing as some kind of massive victory. As if their site has somehow "won". N-E won? YES. FUCK EVERYBODY ELSE. We won, people. Drinks on Glen-i. 4
Choze Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 Well Gamer gate types seem happy so that will be many industry and media types included. Unfortunately. Whilst I agree with the crazy fan boy complaints a lot of the friction isn't actually natural. Its marketing. Gamingdom has a huge problem with this. It brings the hits. 1 1
Choze Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 2 minutes ago, drahkon said: N-E won? YES. FUCK EVERYBODY ELSE. We won, people. Drinks on Glen-i. N-E is great but one of many good tiny forums.
Glen-i Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 6 minutes ago, Choze said: Whilst I agree with the crazy fan boy complaints a lot of the friction isn't actually natural. Its marketing. Gamingdom has a huge problem with this. It brings the hits. This is one of the few things that really gets to me. When a company directly implies that other competition is the enemy, It creates a nasty atmosphere of "Us VS Them" But I have to question the priorities of those who take this kind of view to heart because of that. Sure, everyone (Including us) has a preference for which console we like best, every single gamer does. But to some people, me saying "Given the choice, I would choose to own the Nintendo Switch, and here's why..." would immediately make them discount the rest of my statement and go on the defensive, no matter how many reasonable points I make. Just now, Choze said: N-E is great but one of many good tiny forums. I suppose this whole NeoGAF debacle has made me appreciate the quality of the posters that regularly frequent N-E. It's one of the perks of having a smaller userbase. Much more likely to have a conversation with sensible people who may have different views to you, yet are open to hearing you out on whatever you find interesting. Quality over Quantity and all that. Even if the majority of you choose the wrong Pokemon game as your favourite. 2
Nolan Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 Can’t say I’m particularly miffed about this. Neogaf always seemed a bit of a shit show to me. I avoided it in the same way I avoid reddit. What a shitty house of cards though to just collapse at sexual harassment being leveled at the owner. It perfectly exemplifies why I didn’t like the place, plenty of users doing the internet equivalent of flipping their tables over and the moderation teams all whispering bye Felicia as they do a mic drop. It all comes off as childish bullshit. 1 2
Glen-i Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) 12 minutes ago, Nolan said: What a shitty house of cards though to just collapse at sexual harassment being leveled at the owner. Sexual abuse in general is a really big concern to a lot of people there. (Which it should be) A lot of discussion about it, especially when that story of the man working at Naughty Dog revealed he was a victim of such and Sony tried to pay him for his silence came up. So it's not totally surprising so many people jumped ship in such a way. The sheer speed of this escalation is what made this so interesting to witness. And is why I stayed up most of the night following it. Like @Dcubed mentioned above. GAF is used to verify a lot of gaming stories. It also often shows when gaming companies are trying to pull a fast one. Strangely reliable is how I'd put it. You had to ignore some of the dumber posts. Edited October 22, 2017 by Glen-i 1
Nolan Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 1 minute ago, Glen-i said: Sexual abuse in general is a really big concern to a lot of people there. (Which it should be) A lot of discussion about it, especially when that story of the man working at Naughty Dog revealed he was a victim of such and Sony tried to pay him for his silence came up. So it's not totally surprising so many people jumped ship in such a way. I’m not saying it shouldn’t be a concern. And as you said the speed of the escalation of the whole thing is astonishing to the point of stupidity.
nekunando Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 I never really started browsing Neogaf until last year when we were all thirsty for Nintendo NX news! Previous times when I visited the site I almost felt overwhelmed by the number of threads and the speed at which everything was moving. It was a world away from N-Europe I always appreciated the gaming GIFs, though.. particularly around E3 I'm no longer intimidated by Neogaf and regularly check it for news, opinions and rumours so I'll probably miss it now if this is the end.. but sexual harrassment isn't on
Dcubed Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 (edited) 4 hours ago, killthenet said: I've always found Neogaf to be a pretty awful place for the most part, full of hot takes, spoilers and too many gifs but I still found it to be useful for breaking news so would check it occasionally because it's members always seemed to be ahead of the curve. The dissolution of the site won't mean the end for those members though, I'm sure in a couple of weeks there will be another forum up and running under a different name, there are enough members to ensure that a new site would be easily crowdfunded. I doubt that anything is gonna be able to quite replace it. Sure, some of its subcommunities might survive, like the sales analysis guys (They run a sales database on a seperate site and I know that at least some of them were in contact with each other outside of the forums, so I reckon that there’s a good chance that they’ll get back together and get that ball rolling again - though since Neogaf, as a company, had an arrangement with NPD that granted them limited access to their data, they’re not gonna be able to get that back...), but you’ll never get that one-stop-shop that Neogaf was again. Sure, you’ll see many of its members gather together in lots of disparate places (I hear that a fair few of them are gathering on Waypoint) and probably set up small sites of their own, but certainly not together as a big conglomerate like they were before; especially in the age of social media, where much of it will be sucked up by the likes of Reddit, Twitter and Facebook; invisible to those that don’t know what exactly they’re looking for. It was the culmination of 18 years of work that was consistently very much in the right place at the right time to breed such a massive and sprawling collection of communities. What happened here was definitely a good thing, but we all lost something hugely valuable in the process; and that’s something we’re probably never gonna get back again. Keeping up to date with gaming news and happenings is going to be a LOT harder going forward now... I’m still in disbelief that such a massive and influential site could collapse literally overnight! Maybe we’ll see some of them end up here at N-Europe? Who knows? I like to think that we’re a nice little community with an open and friendly attitude (which is certainly quite rare these days, especially with the Gamergate types flooding the interwebs), so perhaps we’ll see some of the good ones end up here! Edited October 22, 2017 by Dcubed 2
bob Posted October 22, 2017 Posted October 22, 2017 What are 'Games Gate' types? Are they those for or against it? I've lost track.
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