That was possibly the best HotSpot that's been recorded to date. I was moved at the heartfelt earnestness of those who spoke on the podcast, all of whom I had the privilege of working with during my stint at GameSpot. What hit home for me is the part when Ricardo talked about those who work at GameSpot being a family, because it's absolutely true.

When I first started working there in February of 2003, I have to admit that I was a little apprehensive. Since GameSpot was part of CNET, I was worried that the folks working there would be all corporate, and there'd be a coldness to working there. Prior to my arrival at GameSpot, I'd just come off of working for FiringSquad and Gamers.com, companies which were founded by people who became close friends of mine. I recruited my college buddies to work there, and we all took to working together, and that was a big family atmosphere. Matter of fact, during my stint at FS and Gamers, I turned down one or two chances to work at GameSpot because I felt too much loyalty to my friends at the startup.

So coming to GameSpot, I didn't know what to expect, but I thought for sure, it couldn't offer the same cameraderie that I enjoyed at FS and Gamers. I couldn't have been more wrong. In my roughly three and a half years at GameSpot, I forged quite a number of friendships that persist to this day and will continue to flourish. Sure the site had the trappings and backing of a big corporation, but you'd never know it from the atmosphere in the GameSpot portion of the office. There was and probably still is a marked difference in feel when you walk through the edit, video, engineering, production, and art portions of GameSpot vs. any other floor in CNET, which might as well be Initech from Office Space for what I could tell.With the GameSpot floor, there'sa palpable difference in attitude and culture. Sure it's a lot of fun loving guys and gals, but every single person took their work seriously, because anything less would be letting down the rest of the family, most of whom were your friends.

In my time there, it really was the best of both worlds -- the passion and familial atmosphere of a startup or blog operation, with all the resources that a major corporation could provide. And guys like Greg Kasavin and Jeff worked so hard to maintain that separation, the duality that made GameSpot such a success. Hopefully those who are left, especially those who handle the business side, can value and draw upon the experience of the veterans to understand how it's supposed to be.

I was heartened by what I heard on the podcast, because I know all those guys. There is no more dedicated or honest group than my old mates at GameSpot--if they say it, you're damned right I'm going to believe it. And as long as those guys are still there, the people I know and believe in, I'm going to keep coming to GS to read the news, read the reviews, and watch the videos, because I know I can trust them.

I don't ever have to question it, because I've worked with these guys, looked them in the eye, drank with them, and busted my ass at the same damn tradeshows with them for years. None of the guys I know is going to print words or say anything into the camera that he doesn't well and truly believe. Here's hoping that the company that employs them will continue to protect their ability to do their jobs the right way.