FROM THE BOWELS OF HELL, I BRING YOU A BREAKING NEWS STORY....
Or, maybe just the bowels of Gaia.
I have learned just recently today we now have a NEW CEO. Okay, the other one is now over product management and the new guy that's coming in worked with some...chocolate thing, that no one has even heard of, IBM ( and those familiar with IBM old comps we know the direction they went. HA. ) And Oracle, which is the software people behind Java which recently has had a s**t ton of it's own issues. SO, high hopes for new CEO? I say not.
BUT! This is not all.
DrinkyTengu ---Artist, laid off a few months back but that explains alot of why we don't see her awesome works.
Buki, PRlSM, Harbinger of Pandamonium, mlos, and tiranaki are gone too
Buki, PRISM were artists
Harbinger was an admin / dev not sure what they did. *
mlos, wasn't familiar with.
Tiranaki I have heard of them but not familair with them. *
BUT!
Panagrammic ( even though he did some s**t to zomg that we all raged about, and to the gaia older profiles, he was still one of the older members. He took most of the s**t from the community and was behind HoC. --Heard he quit )
And the REAL a** kicker in this long list of a** kickers:
[JK] A FOUNDER ( one of three ) on gaia, who over saw zOMG as well.
Out of all the places I've ever worked at, Gaia really was my favorite one. I loved being able to connect with the community.. you guys, and in my work life it's been my most rewarding experience so far. From the Zurg event, zOMG and finally HoC I made a lot of friends that I'll never forget, and I'm really sincerely thankful for each and everyone one of you who's ever cared to leave me a nice message, talk to me, support me and check out the content I helped create.
I'll miss working at Gaia too - we started out as a group of friends who wanted to make a cool website for anime fans. Back then coming to work felt like visiting a friend's place and coming up with awesome ideas and actually making them reality. Over the years Gaia changed and with it's growing size it got more business like which in itself really isn't necessarily a bad thing. We managed to take on bigger projects and in the end even created a whole mmo and other full-fledged games! There are still a lot of great people working at Gaia and I wish them the best for the future. I can't however deny that I'm a bit bitter of the way the layoff was handled. Pan already touched up on it but it hurt that we were denied the chance to even just say goodbye to our colleagues in person.
After all, I really don't regret my time at Gaia. It didn't quite turn out the way I wanted it or expected it to, but I wouldn't trade the experiences I've had for anything. I sincerely wish you, the users and my friends who still work there the best.
Please don't feel too bad about what happened, after all we had a few really great years and created some really great memories together and you can be sure that I won't just disappear! I'll make sure to check in and keep in touch smile
I'd also like to say thank you for all the great years with all the other people that were let go. You guys are in the same boat as me and I hope you're not feeling too sad. I'm especially thinking about those of you who have been around as long or even longer than me, like Saka, Panagrammic and a few people who's usernames I can't remember.
Lastly, I gained something amazing thanks to Gaia! I met the love of my life, Liz. We've had almost 5 wonderful years together so far and we plan on getting married soon.
See you around fellow users!
- JK
==============================================
Pan's journal:
Quote:
So long, and thanks for the fish! As always, I can be a little more honest and forthright in my journal, and I wanted to thank the community for the chance to interact and work with you over these past years.
Yes, another layoff -- bunch of senior people, bunch of artists, and probably the least important, me! Bunch of secondary stuff as a result, but I'll let the company make whatever announcement it deems fit on that.
It's part and parcel and endemic to this industry, unfortunately; the trials and tribulations of the technology sector, especially the social networking sector, mean that while you might continually have a job, it almost certainly will not be the same job.
Having been on both sides of this at various times, it's hard either way. On the one hand, you have people that are suddenly worrying about how they're going to make the rent (and, while CEOs might get the cushy layoff packages, the rank-and-file do not), and on the other hand you end up having to go to work and feeling a bit of survivor guilt and wondering whether it might not be time to look around.
It's sad leaving -- the people at Gaia are very special; to give you an example, during the last few layoffs, when everyone was told and the people that were staying were given the option to leave, many people stayed to help their friends through a difficult time. That's really unusual and really gives you the sense of the Gaia "family." (Unfortunately, for whatever reason, they did it this time with what we in the industry call the "gas chamber" method, which details I will not go into but should be pretty obvious).
The company is bound by privacy laws, and they can't legally talk about anyone that has left; anyone that gives specific details doesn't know what they're talking about (or is being really unethical, I guess) -- it's one of those things you just don't do. Like most industries, the ratio of pretentious blowhards to people that know what they're talking about is about 10 : 1, hah!
My big regret is not making it a user meeting, in all the years; I've had such great relationships with so many different people, it's really a pity that I didn't get a chance to meet you guys face-to-face.
And I'll miss especially working with the mods -- I didn't have a chance to do it recently, but I'll tell you that sitting in the Gaia #mod channel and reading their conversations is something that should be experienced by everyone at least once. You guys only see the tip of the iceberg for the work that our volunteer mods do -- they do 10x behind the scene, and they do it with a style and a passion and a sense of humor that is amazing.
However, you guys have made this place great (well, great any time I wasn't reducing gold payouts), and it was amazing to work someplace where we could push something and get feedback in 5 minutes.
You may still see me on occasionally -- I am going to wait for my few MCs to appreciate and then I will spend my golden years commissioning art, because while I have neither the funds nor the family nor the fancy monocle to be a patron of the arts in reality, I can definitely do it on Gaia!
But in the now, as I type this: I am sitting across the table from gracewar7 while drinking coffee at Paris Baguette in Palo Alto. I'm trying to block the sweet smell of carbs while we are planning out our new company and a new (educational) iPad app. Long shot? Definitely. Scary? Yeah. Will I be homeless after it fails? Potentially! But, it's something that maybe could take off, and maybe do some good for disadvantaged or disabled children, and doesn't that seem worth a risk? Life is short -- so why not take chances while you can? Why not try to change the world for the better?
But, if you're in the Bay Area, and see a homeless person, be extra nice to that homeless person: that homeless person might be me.
As you've probably already seen, there were some internal changes here at Gaia. The last two days have been incredibly hard for everyone here, going from rumors and gossip and confusion, to finding out not only our coworkers, but our close friends, were among those affected by the changes. Layoffs are never a happy thing but they're especially difficult when everyone you work with is part of a close-knit family, which is exactly what Gaia is. Every one of us is part of the family and we all share the same highs and lows. Right now, we're still in that low and are recovering from what transpired, still mourning those we no longer see each day, and still adjusting to this new situation. Many of you are sad and upset and that's a perfectly reasonable reaction but you should realize we are all feeling the exact same way. Knowing only a little bit before you found out doesn't make it any easier for us.
Now, as for myself, I'm thankful to still be here and have already begun doing the same thing I was before this happened, building the next big event for you guys to enjoy. I've seen some doubting if Summer will happen because of the changes, or if we'll delay it, and I'd like to say now that our schedule of development and launch for the event has not been affected by this change, aside from a day or two of productivity lost due to the news and subsequent meetings to determine what our new plan of attack was. Myself, Narumi, and codemonkey are all still here and we're all still working hard to deliver what we think will be a surprising and fun event for all of you. Fret not, we won't let it fall to the wayside. That goes for the other existing features on the site as well. We have no plans to remove any of the features or games that you already enjoy playing each day.
We lost some long-time staff members and friends and that loss isn't something that won't have its effects, but this isn't the end of Gaia. We still have an incredibly talented and dedicated group of people working to make your experience here as great as possible. We will continue to crank out fixes and new features for you to enjoy. I'd encourage you to be sad and discuss the events that have transpired, going through that period of mourning is necessary for anyone to accept what has happened. That said, I also recommend not losing all hope. We still have big things planned and while this isn't a happy time, the sadness won't last forever. We're definitely not going to let it prevent us from delivering the projects we're incredibly excited to show off in the coming months and second half of the year.
Aftermath Been a wild few days. For details on what specifically, please see this statement on what transpired.
For those of you who have been here a while, you know this was not the first time this has happened. This, in fact, is the third. Having been here for each one, if you were ever wondering, no it does not get any easier.
We lost a great many colleagues, colleagues who's presence and awesome personalities at this company are irreplaceable and will most certainly be missed. I wish them all the best in whatever their futures hold. As every one of them was amazing at what they did, I have no doubt their futures hold nothing but amazing things.
The dust is still in the air, the path ahead still a bit hazy to see, however, let there be no mistake the path is still there. Always winding forward, always leading to new, unexplored and exciting things.
I do want everyone to know that Development on Gaia Online is not halted due to those we've lost. I have been leading the devs and driving projects and initiative forward unabated for some time now and recent developments have not changed that. The leadership (Community Support, Art, Creative, Dev) that has been driving Gaia Online for the past few months is still there. Limited resources in some areas may mean some things may have to get shifted around, re-prioritized and yes maybe even cut, but projects and development is not going to all of a sudden stop.
For the time being the projects currently being executed on for Gaia Online will continue. For the ones we had yet to start, well, the haze is still a bit too thick to know for sure.
I'll provide further updates later when the dust settles. For now I just want all of you to know that what transpired was sad, and in the short term things will be difficult but we do what we do because we love Gaia and that hasn't changed.
Until next time... Narumi Misuhara Sr. Engineering Manager
Uncle Kenny: Don't mean to derail this thread since there isn't much I can really answer or address, but I wanted to clarify a couple of these since I've seen it mentioned a couple times now. Harbinger of Pandamonium and tiranaki were both Admins/CS staff and left the company at the beginning of March when their contracts were up. They were not part of the group affected on Tuesday.
Posted: Tue Jun 11, 2013 9:45 pm
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Norahlie, an artist responsible for many items, has been asked to leave Gaia due to management changes. I'm sadden by this because she is mostly known for unisexing a lot of Gaia's older items.
While I know Staff come and go as things change, it's still sad to see one leave. Especially as talented as Norahlie. I want to wish her the best in her endeavors and hope she and her husband have a wonderful and bright future. She is working on Skullgirls as a clean-up artist, by the way. /excited because I love Skullgirls
Gaia's losing another good artist-how do you feel? Who will now unisex all those old items?! D: I feel like this is some sort of popularity voting contest, who would you vote to KEEP on Gaia? Same question, but reversed: Who would you vote to LEAVE? /this last one is a fun question.
Unfortunately we have some RIG artists leaving us and three more victims of GaiaOnline's recent layoffs. First we have Bara-chan, who just informed the community of her departure through a journal entry. Now for those that don't know Bara-chan then shame on you. She is most known for her oh-so-colorful and fun RIG items along with her super fun RIG/site artwork. For those that love colorful items with a splash of obnoxiousness and fun, Bara-chan was the artist for you. Unfortunately she was only able to stay for a year. Her artist role as a Gaian was cut waaaay short in my opinion. I will miss her fun items. I will miss those crazy colors. I will miss her adorable and vibrant illustrations. I will miss quite a lot of things. Personally I hope GaiaOnline realizes that they let go a sparkly jewel of an artist. Anyways, please make sure to give warm send offs to Bara-chan. We all wish her the very best. Shine on Bara-chan. SHINE ON!
Oh Gunmetalrose. cry I will miss you the most Scarecrow. Out of the three artists that were let go, your items were the ones I most looked forward to. They were always a burst of colors I never would have thought of using. Either they were bright and powerful, or faded and reserved, but always ever so lovely. And your backgrounds? Ugh. Always amazing. I personally own all of your background items. And I rarely use backgrounds. It would be a crime not to own all of them. Anyways, we will truly miss you Gunmetalrose. It has truly been a delight over these past few years. I am glad you listed your tumblr and deviantart in your journal. I for sure will be following the both of them.
Now on to our third ever-so lovely and amazing artist, Zimmay. Unfortunately I just learned that she was let go from GaiaOnline. For the past 3 years she has been giving us item after item, many of them being released in the RIGs we so adore and obsess over. She too is known for her very colorful and unique color palette. Oh gosh how I will miss those colors. Make sure you thank her for all of her hard work and lovely items. She will surely be missed, but we hope that she will find another job soon that would equal or top the happiness and joy she might have had working for GaiaOnline. You have amazing talent Zimmay. Keep it up! heart
(I will be scouting you at A-kon next year so I can purchase your obnoxiously cute artwork)
*Due to post retraints, I had to reduce the amount of items I could show for Zimmay down to her most recent. Bara-chan's and Gunmetalrose's item list was not affected. She has made a lot of items. Did you know the limit of a post is 50,000 characters? oAo The entire lists for each artist can be found in my obnoxious Artist/Item List right here.
Posted: Sun Jun 23, 2013 4:37 am
I wonder for how long this will go on. Almost all amazing artists are gone, and I'm afraid Gaias art department will only produce ugly trash like the recent Fluff comic pretty soon. Gaia makes a living off of beautiful items and art, but they let go of the ones the users adore the most. I cannot see how this is good business.
I wonder for how long this will go on. Almost all amazing artists are gone, and I'm afraid Gaias art department will only produce ugly trash like the recent Fluff comic pretty soon. Gaia makes a living off of beautiful items and art, but they let go of the ones the users adore the most. I cannot see how this is good business.
I can't see how this is going to work with much of anything. Most of Gaia is based on art and with out artists, we've got little to nothing. Not to mention I recall when the art department was swamped when the Case EI was out and the staff was short handed and they couldnt do much, makes me wonder about the state of things now....
ToushinYusuke Captain
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ToushinYusuke Captain
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Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 11:18 am
Swarf, the last remaining guy in Zomg, got the axe 8/12/13
Right click copy and open in new window if images won't show up.
Well it was 5 hours of fun teamwork, but even then we couldn't defeat it. Swarf really went out in style. "YOU FIRED ME??!! WELL I'LL SEND YOU GUYS A MONSTER OF A BEAST!" XD We had so much fun! Thanks for another great time zOMGaians! <3 Love you guys so much. heart
I didn't have a chance to write up a goodbye earlier, so here it is. Today was my last day as a dev at Gaia. I'm gonna sorely miss working at HQ, but I wanted to let everyone know how much it's meant to me for all these years.
I joined Gaia just as a job but it quickly became much, much more than that. Gaia gave me the chance to work on something far more important than a game or a website. I was introduced to a community of amazing people and the eye-opening experiences which follow. There may be a fair share of trolls, but I've also seen the good in people come out in ways I never thought possible. Gaia has shown me people more passionate, more supportive, more dedicated by far than what I've come to expect from IRL interactions. I've seen people reach out to others across languages, across oceans, regardless of social status, beyond race or gender or any other label. And whether it's cooperation or conflict, I see people who care. Writers, illustrators, schemers, jokers, leaders, and dreamers. You're an amazing bunch. You've given me a passion for making games and a desire to foster community. I hope I never again have a job making something that's just a game or a website. I want to always be doing something meaningful in people's lives like Gaia has been.
There's not a better player community in the world and I'm honored to have had the chance to make games for you guys. I wish I'd had more time to fix up zOMG, clean out some bugs, add PvP, or put in new areas. I'm sorry I wasn't able to get more done in the time I've had with you guys. You all are the guardians and maintainers of the zOMG areas now. You have always been at the core. You're the motivation to work hard and do well. And I'm proud of all we accomplished along side you guys. You're the best crew a captain could ever ask for.
We'll miss you, man. Good luck with all your endeavours!
To make light of it all, here's a video describing how much I've missed today.
Posted: Tue Aug 13, 2013 12:29 pm
Drowning, drowning, drowning... They fire so many, yet they still want to pump more cash out of the users. I really wonder what they spend their money on. I know it's a big site to run, but really...
Looking at Club Verge, and the insane prices in the special shop. Looking at the recent poll about wanting a safety box, which you need to buy with cash. Looking at the Black Friday and summer "sales"... What the ******** are you up to Gaia?
Fire all employees and try to get more money for a less fun site, that's just wrong. Maybe we're closer to that monthly membership fee than we want to believe?
You're Gonna Carry That Weight. Three thousand, seven hundred, and sixty two days ago I followed the suggestion of a friend to check out a site called Go-Gaia. I found its forums filled with anime and roleplay-loving individuals and quickly became wrapped up in its interesting world. I worked my way up the ranks and became a Moderator to use my free time to give back to the site I enjoyed so much. Only a few weeks after I graduated college, this turned into an opportunity to work as a software engineer alongside some of the names I had only seen in forum posts. I packed all I could into two suitcases then hopped on a plane and flew across the country to begin my journey as a Dev in Silicon Valley. This journey would take me places I had never expected like meeting the woman I would make my wife, making an adorable Corgi puppy part of our family, and forging friendships that will last a lifetime. Professionally, I grew from a newbie in over his head into the Events Lead, responsible for coming up with games and activities to be played and enjoyed by users from around the world. Without Gaia, I'm sure things would have turned out much differently for me and I'll forever be in debt to the Gaian entity that gave me these amazing chances. As a result, it is with a certain sense of disbelief that I inform you all that yesterday was my last as a Gaia Dev.
Now, before anyone thinks up any kind of conspiracy behind my departure, I want to be perfectly clear. This is MY decision. I was not fired. I was not let go. No one in management or any other department is pressuring me to leave or trying to get rid of me in any way. I have spent my time with Gaia building fun events and games, fixing bugs with old/making new features on the site, and doing what I could to make the experience on the site as enjoyable as it could be. I do not regret a second of that time, however, I have received an offer from a tech company back home and believe that it's time to use/challenge my skills elsewhere. Accepting this offer allows me to work for a global company which will significantly advance my professional career and puts my feet in a much larger door, exposing me to all sorts of new ways of doing things. It also means that I get to move back to where I grew up and be closer to my family which is really important to me. As a bonus, the cost of living there is far cheaper than it is here in the Bay Area (as anyone who has lived here can attest to) so my wife and I will be able to start planning for our future.
I can't put into words how much I'll miss you all and I'm sorry that I won't be around to build your events anymore. I hope you enjoyed the events I did make and will continue to enjoy the games and features that I helped make or fix up. I'll still be around on the site since there's no way I could fully leave this place after almost 11 years so drop me a PM if you ever want to chat. I'm hoping to have some time to grow my personal development projects as well, so if you care to follow along to see what I'm up to, feel free to add me on Twitter (@Fuzzgoat).
You've been great and I couldn't have asked for a better audience for my work. Thank you all for the last 2 1/2 years, you're why I am where I am now.
Sincerely, Chris Fivecoate aka Uncle Kenny Gaia Online Events Lead 2012 - 2014, Developer 2011 - 2014, and User 2003 - The End
I know that was pretty heavy and for anybody that wants a little pick me up, I present to you my own personal Ein alongside the plush Ein that I own. And if you're interested in following along with her Corgi-shenanigans, you can follow my wife's Tumblr and Instagram.
Uncle kenny has announced in his journal that he is no longer a Dev at Gaia. He has quit and is seeking better job opportunities closer to home. Please take the time to read his entry in its entirety, before you post there, and wish him the very best.
You're a blessing. You're truly a breath of fresh air amongst the dev team on Gaia, and it seems like all that you do is sorely under-appreciated. Especially during these dark Gaia times where hate and vehemence and distrust and confusion and tension toward a lot of Gaia's staff run high. Every time I see you post in the Staff alerts, I smile, knowing that I can expect actual bug fixes and alerts and actual site maintenance from you, instead of "OMG FLASH SAL!!! FLASH SALE!!!! GIVE US YOUR MONEY NAOOOO! HURRY UP!!! WE KNOW YOU WANT THESE TOTALLY BITCHIN ITEMS!!! YO U YOU CAN BE AN ELITIST ******** LIKE YOUR FRIEEEENDS! HURRY AND GET IN ON THIS! LA VICTOIRE! CLUB VERGE! LOOK, FLYNN'S BACK!" And I can't tell you how much I appreciate you taking the time and effort to make this Halloween pre-event goldsink what it is. Gaia knows we need it. Good lord, do we need it, with Smashbloxx and Flynn pushing her booty and chest so far down our throats that we're lactating out our asses.
Praise be to you, Uncle Kenny. Gaia truly doesn't deserve you, and while you very well might be the very last of a dying breed of caring staff on the team, and while it would devistate so many to see you go, I pray that you can gtfo out of there for greener pastures, before your bosses unjustly lay you off for caring too much and not putting profits ahead of the community, or they somehow find a way to corrupt you, like the others, if they let you remain in that line of work. Because that would be the last thing I'd want to see.
You're a godsend, Kenny. A warrior to stand and protect what little remains and remind us of a dev team who truly care for the Gaian community and our happiness.
Earlier today, Uncle Kenny made a post in his journal:
Quote:
Three thousand, seven hundred, and sixty two days ago I followed the suggestion of a friend to check out a site called Go-Gaia. I found its forums filled with anime and roleplay-loving individuals and quickly became wrapped up in its interesting world. I worked my way up the ranks and became a Moderator to use my free time to give back to the site I enjoyed so much. Only a few weeks after I graduated college, this turned into an opportunity to work as a software engineer alongside some of the names I had only seen in forum posts. I packed all I could into two suitcases then hopped on a plane and flew across the country to begin my journey as a Dev in Silicon Valley. This journey would take me places I had never expected like meeting the woman I would make my wife, making an adorable Corgi puppy part of our family, and forging friendships that will last a lifetime. Professionally, I grew from a newbie in over his head into the Events Lead, responsible for coming up with games and activities to be played and enjoyed by users from around the world. Without Gaia, I'm sure things would have turned out much differently for me and I'll forever be in debt to the Gaian entity that gave me these amazing chances. As a result, it is with a certain sense of disbelief that I inform you all that yesterday was my last as a Gaia Dev.
Now, before anyone thinks up any kind of conspiracy behind my departure, I want to be perfectly clear. This is MY decision. I was not fired. I was not let go. No one in management or any other department is pressuring me to leave or trying to get rid of me in any way. I have spent my time with Gaia building fun events and games, fixing bugs with old/making new features on the site, and doing what I could to make the experience on the site as enjoyable as it could be. I do not regret a second of that time, however, I have received an offer from a tech company back home and believe that it's time to use/challenge my skills elsewhere. Accepting this offer allows me to work for a global company which will significantly advance my professional career and puts my feet in a much larger door, exposing me to all sorts of new ways of doing things. It also means that I get to move back to where I grew up and be closer to my family which is really important to me. As a bonus, the cost of living there is far cheaper than it is here in the Bay Area (as anyone who has lived here can attest to) so my wife and I will be able to start planning for our future.
I can't put into words how much I'll miss you all and I'm sorry that I won't be around to build your events anymore. I hope you enjoyed the events I did make and will continue to enjoy the games and features that I helped make or fix up. I'll still be around on the site since there's no way I could fully leave this place after almost 11 years so drop me a PM if you ever want to chat. I'm hoping to have some time to grow my personal development projects as well, so if you care to follow along to see what I'm up to, feel free to add me on Twitter (@Fuzzgoat).
You've been great and I couldn't have asked for a better audience for my work. Thank you all for the last 2 1/2 years, you're why I am where I am now.
Sincerely, Chris Fivecoate aka Uncle Kenny Gaia Online Events Lead 2012 - 2014, Developer 2011 - 2014, and User 2003 - The End
I know that was pretty heavy and for anybody that wants a little pick me up, I present to you my own personal Ein alongside the plush Ein that I own. And if you're interested in following along with her Corgi-shenanigans, you can follow my wife's Tumblr and Instagram.
I for one will miss him greatly and I wish him the best of luck in his new career heart
(Please be sure to read the entirety of his journal entry before posting. Uncle Kenny was not fired and is leaving of his own choice. For links to his wife's Tumblr/Instagram, see his original post here)
According to reapersun's tumblr, she has left Gaia as an item artist. (She will still be working on the manga as a contracting artist.)
Thank you for all the items you have made! I hope that you find good endeavors outside of Gaia! You've made us some amazing items in the past & we users hope the best for you!
....and another one down. One of the only original artists still left on gaia. ...if not the only one still left.
