By now I'm sure everyone has heard about this, but just to recap - UGO buys 1Up, cancels EGM, then proceeds to shutter 30 staff from the 1Up offices. Twitters and direct contact from the staff indicate that the long running 1Up show has also been cancelled, as have many/all of the site's beloved podcasts. The whole affair fills me with tremendous sadness. I've never met these people, never even been in the same state as them, yet I feel I knew them on some level. As the phrase going round the net says, they were 'the best friends I never met.' The staff of 1Up's honesty, friendly nature and willingness to have a laugh meant that they became more than just faceless journalists. Instead they became characters we could all relate to. Where else could you roll your eyes at Shane Bettenhausen's Sony fanboyism, or laugh at in- jokes about Nick Suttner's beard? Make no mistake, the journalism was top notch too, and the easygoing relationship with many figures in the industry meant that there was a relaxed informal air to interviews or scoops picked up. All I can say is that I'll miss all of them terribly. It'll be odd not to ride the train to work and hear Garnett say 'Weekend confirmed' into my headphones. I wish all of them the very best, and I've no doubt that they'll be back in the business soon enough. But a little part of what made games journalism special has died.
