The Gameroom Blitz: down, but not out.

[ManekiNeko]

Due to circumstances beyond my control, I've put my web site, The Gameroom Blitz, on hiatus until I can get back on my feet financially. It'll be back eventually, I'm sure, but until that happens I won't be publishing any new content there. However, you can still access all the old articles and comics by using the site map on the index page.
I just wish the Blitz had been more popular. It's been online for about seven years but only a handful of people had read it regularly. I've always felt it deserved more recognition, but I suppose that just wasn't meant to be.

JR

[ManekiNeko]

The complete lack of responses to this post begs the question... just what is so repellent about The Gameroom Blitz, anyway? What has limited its reader base so much? I tend to think of the site as a good source of information and entertainment for gamers, but if you'd like to shed light on why it was never a success, I would appreciate the insight. Just try not to be nasty about it, all right?

JR

[Gamereviewgod]

It's a great site....well designed...looks great. But, you need to remember, there are thousands, if not hundereds of thousands of gaming sites out there. Not an easy market to make it. I found DP and kept with it, began writing reviews, and it stuck. By the way, the bad fighting game article is great...

[Kid Fenris]

Don't look at me. Your site's in my bookmark list.

Actually, the only complaint I had about the GR Blitz concerned its front-page layout. You had to scroll down a bit to find out what was new, and sometimes there wasn't a direct link to the latest review or whatever. It's a trivial gripe, but there's just something nice about getting a taste of a site's newest offerings the moment it comes up.

As for the lack of recognition, I think it has less to do with the GR Blitz and more to do with the state of game fandom on the internet, which tends to heap traffic on sites that are rapidly updated news sources or showcases for a bombastic jackass who can't last a paragraph without insulting something.

The Gameroom Blitz doesn't fall into either category, but I wouldn't think that it needs to. It's the nature of fansites and fanzines to be limited in readership, and yet it’s also rewarding to put together a publication for a limited group of people who you respect.

Stick with it. The internet's a huge place, but as long as you've got good updates and a clear vision of what you want the site to be, your readers will come.

[kainemaxwell]

Jess, i loved your site myself, heck if you remember I inspired one of your reviews after our many talks!

[stargate]

I've checked out your site quite a few times, mainly for reviews. I like it alot. Extremely well done. Don't give up. Maybe you need to advertise it a bit more or ask other sites to add yours as a link.

[bargora]

I also have enjoyed the Blitz, and have got it bookmarked.

[Charlesaway]

Until this post, I had never hear of it. Sorry.

Maybe knowledge of the site in the community at large was missing? <shrug>

[Scoots]

Sorry to hear about the financial difficulties, ManekiNeko. Hope you get everything straightened out. Try not to let the lack of response bum you out too much. Anyone in the classic gaming community who's in it for anything but the love of doing it is going to be in for a rough time. It sucks spending hours or days on a review and fretting over every word (as I've been doing all morning) and then getting no feedback on it, or even worse: "you're reviewing a 20 year old game? why?"

Anyway, great site! Good luck with everything.

[ManekiNeko]

Thanks, guys. I appreciate the encouragement.
I still need to keep the site on hiatus for the time being... I'm having financial difficulties and now's really not the time to work on it. When I find a good, steady job and have some financial security, I'll be able to bring it back, perhaps even bigger and better than it was before.

JR

[slapdash]

Nature of the beast, Jess. There's only so much time in a day, but so many distractions. I realize that isn't much of a comfort, but, well, that's the truth of it. I suppose you should really just write for yourself, and be proud and surprised when you DO get some nice comments or discussion.

Wasn't this a problem with your zine too? I mean, I think that I tended to only get LOCs from fellow faneds, and I imagine you probably ran into the same thing. I'm assume of course that you had readership outside of fellow faneds... I only had a couple, so I suppose I wouldn't be surprised to find that you were in the same boat...

[Lasermouse]

Hey Jess:

You know, I've always enjoyed GRB, don't worry too much about the lack of response, since when I used to do zines, I'd rarely get letters from anyone either, and even now with a website that attracts many more vistitors a day than the printed zines could ever reach, the forums are barren. Don't know what Joe is doing right, but these DP forums are always hopping. My theory is that since DP is the most widely read classic zine and the specialization on classic games lends it more adult gamers and more importantly, more active readers than younger skewing sites that mostly cover the new systems.

When it comes to new games, this is just the way it is, lets face it reading sites that mostly review new games makes for a passive medium, where most readers are only interested in your letter grade and probably don't even read 90% of the review.

On the bright side, as you stated on your site, you have gained a lot of experience which you can use to perhaps get yourself a professional writing job - though don't limit yourself to writing just about games - I made that mistake and the pigeonhole left me financially bereft. Let's face it, the days when a small fan site can earn enough income with banners and ads to support the writer are long over, and these heady days were a result of the dot-com bubble.

Now, things on the net will hopefully return to the spirit of the old days when people did zines for the sheer love and personal enjoyment of it. Back in the old days, people would ask me why I spent so much on my zines, when I had no chance of earning anything back, I'd always say that it cost less to run a zine than it would to take up a hobby like skiing or snowboarding and people who ski don't look for ways to earn back their lodge passes and spend the money and time because they enjoy it.

So anyway, don't be discouraged by the lack of feedback, the people who do personal sites/zines should do them for their own happiness. As for the GRB, I'm a bit sad to see it on hiatus, but on the other hand, I know someone who's as dedicated a gamer/writer as you won't be able to resist coming back as the spider to the flame.

- MP

[nildem]

I'll admit I hadn't ever heard of your site before your post. x_x I spent over 4 hours last night reading through the reviews and features sections. Very well written and informative. Best of luck to you in the future. Please let us know when you do start it up again, though.

[Arqueologia_Digital]

Hey!, i recently looked your site and it´s very cool...don´t forget there are a lot of sites...my site is online too and never have a ton of visits...but i made it for southamerican people who collects (and there are not so many)...so a high percent of visits come from USA

[nildem]

Hey!, i recently looked your site and it´s very cool...don´t forget there are a lot of sites...my site is online too and never have a ton of visits...but i made it for southamerican people who collects (and there are not so many)...so a high percent of visits come from USA

You wouldn't happen to have an English translation of your site, would you?

[ghsqb]

Hey JR, add me to the list of people who had never been to your site befors this post, but now that I have, I really enjoyed reading a lot of the stuff you have there.

Look at the bright side, when you do get it back up and rolling again, you've made some new fans with this thread!

To all of you who help keep this hobby alive and thriving, thank you!