Polygon Sees Massive Layoffs Following Sale to Valnet

Valnet is the owner of Game Rant, thus following the trend of consolidation in the games journalism market.

It was a bleak day for gaming news outlet Polygon as multiple staffers were fired following its sale to Game Rant parent company Valnet. Among those let go were:

• Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief Chris Plante

• Senior Writer Michael McWhertor

• Deputy Editor Matthew Reynolds

• Games Writer Tyler Colp

• Senior Reporter Nicole Carpenter

As the press release puts it, this purchase means "Polygon will now integrate Valnet’s Gaming Portfolio, which includes industry-leading publications such as Game Rant, TheGamer, Fextralife, OpenCritic, DualShockers, and HardcoreGamer."

This follows an alarming trend of not only layoffs in video game journalism, but consolidation of numerous outlets under large, corporate umbrellas. Almost exactly a year ago in May, IGN parent Ziff Davis purchased the Gamer Network and added it to the company's own huge gaming portfolio of sites. The homogenizing of games journalism, particularly as it pertains to mainstream outlets, inevitably means less varied opinions and voices.

If you're feeling skeptical about that point, look no further than Penske Media Corporation, which owns Variety, Rolling Stone, The Hollywood Reporter, Billboard, and Deadline. Ever wonder why you'll see the same buzz terms and phrases when it comes to coverage of things like movies and TV shows? It's not an accident that coverage of Disney Marvel's Thunderbolts* film, for instance, has coverage that constantly refers to the movie's portrayal of "mental health." Funny how that works out, eh? Not that Penske's sites are the only ones marching to the drum of Marvel's beat, but it's pretty clear how less autonomy means less diversity of thought.

Regardless, it isn't clear why Valnet chose to jettison these particular staffers, especially if the goal is "strengthening [the company's] position in the gaming media landscape." If we learn more, we'll update, but in the interim keep it posted to Bits & Bytes for more as this story develops.

Source: Valnet Press Release + GamesIndustry.biz