Thank You For Playing. And See You Next.

Every Friday, A.V. Club staffers kick off our weekly open thread for the discussion of gaming plans and recent gaming glories, but of course, the real action is down in the comments, where we invite you to answer our eternal question: What Are You Playing This Weekend?

What Are You Playing This Weekend? has remained a constant, important staple in Gameological’s history. It was there from the very beginning, with our crew sidling up to interesting people and asking about the games in their lives. It soldiered on through all the metamorphoses and departures. Our bit up here changed shape and focus, but the feature itself never lost touch of what it was really all about from the beginning: The games in your lives.

This has always been about you all, the impossibly passionate, kind, and devoted community that somehow formed around the rinky dink little site we ran out of John Teti’s apartment. I can’t speak for all the amazing writers who’ve passed through these parts over the years, but I think they’d smile and nod when I say you’re the reason why we do this. Your support is what kept us clinging to life and working our asses off to deliver the best games writing we could. And I spent every waking minute of the last six years of my life marveling over how lucky I’ve been to have the privilege of writing for a group of people this excellent and appreciative.

So with all that in mind, I can’t think of a better place to announce that today is my last day at The A.V. Club. The decision to leave was made with turmoil and fear the likes of which I’ve hardly ever experienced. But I will carry on and do my very best to spread that Gameological spirit—our Gameological spirit—wherever I end up. This section, too, will carry on. Clayton, William, Sam, and, hopefully, other familiar voices will continue to fill it, and I’m pretty confident What Are You Playing This Weekend? will still be here for you to gather around, every Friday at midnight Central. See? It outlasted even me!

So what am I playing this weekend? Whatever the fuck I want, I guess. I’m funemployed now, baby, and I’ve got all the time in the world to get soothed by the cheap dopamine drip of every open-world game in my massive backlog. More likely, I’ll just keep looking at my phone and being soothed by the soft colors and round edges of Grapefrukt’s wonderful new mobile game Holedown. Maybe I’ll even go outside—sit on a beach and stare wistfully at the horizon or—gasp—read a book. That’s something people do, right?

That does it for me, Gameologerinos. Thank you for reading and commenting and being fucking fantastic. I’ll see you around.