Dear GS Homeslices,
I hope life is going well for all of you. Mine is moving along quite smoothly. Summer Quarter at Seattle Central ends this Friday, and it has been a very interesting and enriching learning experience for me. Human Sexual Psychology and Biological Anthropology have both been very liberating and re-affirming fields of study.
On to the topic of this blog's title...
After several fruitless attempts to access Retro Vault, Relax Chill & Shoot the S___, and Off Topic Federation Union, I've come to the realization that either the Unions have been wiped out, moved to Fuse V2 or are on their way out. I attribute this to GS' attempts to funnel their users into Fuse V2. I also feel that GS will eventually make it damn near impossible for non-paying subscribers to even use Fuse V2, and that these are the first steps toward that future. The absense of, or difficulty in accessing, the Unions are just the first steps toward a fee-based subscription service.
It's not really a surprise. GS has recently been aquired by a major media conglomerate. And, like most corporate powerhouses, media conglomerates despise "low hanging fruit"; things that are easily accessible to the common person: it negates their control over things. Like communism and socialism, capitalism is about small groups of elitists controlling the bulk of the population.
It's really a sad irony too. Because, over the past few months, GS' journalists have been going up to bat for gamers and everyday folks on a swath of issues. From dlc rackets to blocking used-games to the absence of bc on Sony and Microsofts' next-gen consoles, the journalists have empathized with our discontent. So I'm not blaming them at all. In fact, I both applaud their efforts and worry about their careers: GS' new corporate masters might just get pissed and fire some of them for speaking up.
Nonetheless, I'll still be on GS until they start charging subscription fees or become totally inaccessible -in attempts to extort their long-time users. I'll occassionally blog when I feel I have something relevant to contribute to thought. I'll still read your blogs and drop the occassional comment. As long as GS is still 'accessible', I'll still be around in some form. Hopefully, the rest of you will be too.
Take Care & Hang In There
-nate1222/hare1222 of Steam/Nathan Jennings of Core Box on facebook