Tragedy. There's no other word that could be used to describe the loss of Ryan Davis, of Giant Bomb. Chris shares his thoughts on Ryan's untimely passing last week.
I, like everyone else, am incredibly shocked and saddened to hear of the passing of Ryan Davis. Even though he was only 5 years older than me, I feel like I grew up watching him. It's not a stretch to say that Ryan and the rest of Giant Bomb have been the pattern we built this silly blog and podcast on. What Ryan Davis, along with Jeff Gerstmann, accomplished together cannot be understated.
The new brand of games journalism that Ryan helped usher in has totally changed the way videogames are covered. These days, everyone has their own favorite "videogame personalities", whether it be Adam Sessler, the Polygon crew, or even YouTube dweebs like Pewdipie. If it wasn't for Ryan Davis and Jeff Gerstmann putting themselves out there, being dumb in front of a camera, game coverage would remain stuck in the same faceless void it wallowed in for years. He and Jeff came to exemplify everything that was great about GameSpot, and when they left GS to form Giant Bomb, I followed along.
Ryan was never afraid of looking dumb, and in fact, embraced the absurdity of life. He knew he was living his dream, and he wanted to make sure sure everyone else knew it too. Ryan was a tireless worker, often hosting marathon events like the Big Live Live Show! or Giant Bomb's annual E3 blowout. But he never seemed anything less than ecstatic to be doing what he was doing. We could all learn a lot from that.
I've spent hundreds of hours with Ryan and the GB family, via video, podcasts, Twitter, what have you. Over the past 5 years, Giant Bomb has grown into a huge online community, but Ryan and the guys never let you feel like weren't special and appreciated. Think about it: what other website frequently receives care packages from fans the world over, who simply want to make the guys laugh, and show how appreciated they are?
The last time I saw Ryan in person was at a PAX East, and Ryan had his nose buried in a 3DS with a huge smile on his face. Everything about Ryan was oversized, his laugh, his wit, and his zest for life.
Ryan will be missed by everyone who had the pleasure to know him, whether personally, or via Giant Bomb and Gamespot. Rest in peace, Ryan.
Chris Linendoll is a duder for life. Follow him on Twitter.
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