G4, that Spike TV clone thing that runs something video game related every now and then between 12-hour marathons of Cops and Cheaters, is coming to an end.
It’s about damn time.
Sadly it’s about half a decade too late to call this a “mercy killing”. G4TV, the self proclaimed network for “Geeks, Gamers and Nerds” (writing that was physically painful), has had very little to do with so called “gaming culture” since around 2006-2007. A product of the unfortunate merger of G4 and TechTV, G4TV was reduced to a shambling, directionless zombie since right around the time a certain asshole by the name of Neil Tiles took over as the channel’s president.
Behold, the Bobby Kotick of television.
Originally the network had a variety of video game-centric programming, such as X-Play, Cinematech, Judgement Day, Filter, Portal and Cheat! All of these were eventually either scrapped or radically retooled. X-Play, a review show known for it’s laid back living room couch setting and frequent bouts of sketch comedy, began to change sets about once a year and altered its tone to be more serious in nature. It’s still on today believe it or not, one of the last vestiges of G4′s gaming roots. The original hosts are gone, replaced by random douchebags with faux-hawks reading off cue cards, but I guess you could watch it, if you care to hear about week-old news and watch game trailers that are available on YouTube.
Let’s not even talk about what they did to The Screen Savers… did you know Martin Sargent is supposedly working a desk job these days? That’s kind of tragic. Recent months saw the departure of both Adam Sessler and Kevin Pereira, the last two guys with any shred of credibility over there. Yes, Kevin Pereira is a cool guy and knows his stuff, despite what Attack of the Show might have made you think. Check out his guest appearance on TWiT sometime, it was great. Oh yeah, some annoying chick named Olivia Munn also left I guess.
Variety reports that G4 will be “rebranded” in 2013, finally abandoning any facade of a gaming/tech focus in favor of appealing to something more “modern male”. I don’t really see how this would be much of a shift from their current programming, but apparently executives do. The new G4 will be modeled after GQ Magazine, and a name change might accompany it.
Goodbye G4. You will forever be remembered as that network that ruined TechTV.
rip in pieces
The day TechTV died, was the day I gave up on television.
my face cries every time I realise that Americans have never experienced Dominic Diamond.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z5i_oCeP4Eg
Also let me clarify that a station entirely based on video games and tech news isn’t one that i could ever expect to last any real length of time.
They should have waited for E-Sports to grow big and then take advantage of that or something.
All I ever turn on my TV these days is PBS and Discovery. G4 was so bad. I just had a good laugh everytime I saw it branded as a “geeked” TV and saw CHEATERS on it. A demographic stereotyped as being relatively unsuccessful with dating and often intentionally is really going to give two shits about disloyal partners.
Who cares?
Seriously, we used to have an Anime channel over here called Animax. Give it 2 years of life and you have nothing but the trash bin of series no one likes and early morning Lupin the Third, which was the only thing I used to watch before they retooled themselves anyways. Annd that’s one of many.
>SyFy
*live action dramma series
You from South Africa?
And its the Neil Tiles that wonder why more and more Americans want to cut the cord on cable….
i miss portal
One of the stupidest managed channels in history. Video gaming is an incredibly popular hobby and they can’t come up with anything that people will watch.
I never watch TV, but when I do, the only channel I seem to care about is G4TV. I remember watching G4TV back in the days when I was stuck in dial-up. “A channel about video games? Heck yes!” My fav. was X-Play and Judgement Day.
Then I lost interest on the channel and I haven’t watch it for more than 6 years due to new host and hostess that I don’t even know about (they were boring.) I even remember that every time I am being forced to visit my grandparents house, I could only access one thing. The TV. I switch it on and go to G4TV, annnd Cops. I don’t know how many times I have seen that show but I just wished that I could watch anything but that. But no, I looked further down on the hours and I have to wait for 3-5 hours to watch anything new.
But now you are telling me that Sess and Kev are leaving G4? It’s no longer G4TV we all know about if they are gone. Thank goodness I don’t watch TV anymore.
TECHTV4LYFE