vgsmart.com to shut down
According to their official blog, vgsmart.com, the go-to for independent game PR, is closing down, with founder Joseph Lieberman going to work at arcadetown.com. From the blog:
Well, after 3 years of running VGSmart (Or possibly of VGSmart running me) I have decided to close down shop. The reasons are all personal decisions to aid my sanity. Neither lack of skill nor lack of interest, but the reality is I was really exhausted from doing it. Working 9 AM to 1 AM takes its toll after three years.On the bright side some things will NOT happen:
1) This blog will NOT stop (despite what some would wish)
2) My book, www.indiegameguide.com, will still be there for you to purchase
3) I am NOT leaving the indie game industry. Instead I have joined forces with ArcadeTown to continue their tradition of excellent products, excellent service, and excellent coffee (that’s part of my new job.) Seriously, I am doing business development- so if you always wanted someone at a major portal to talk to, here I am.
I never used vgsmart, because they either did not exist or I didn’t know about them when I launched my first two games, but I was planning on contacting Joseph when my latest work got closer to being finished. I wish him the best of luck, and I hope this isn’t the last of the indie game PR firms. If anyone knows of any others, please let us all know.
Update
Drake from Rabidlab kindly pointed me towards the indiegamer forums, where a topic has started about alternatives to vgsmart. No word yet as to whether any of them are standouts, but time will tell, I suppose.
http://forums.indiegamer.com/showthread.php?t=9002
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November 14th, 2006 at 4:13 pm
Yeah, it’s a bummer. I was also hoping to get the VGSmart service for my upcoming press release.
Have you ever checked out forums.indiegamer.com? There are some regular posters there vying to fill Joe’s shoes. I can’t personally vouch for any of their services, though.
November 14th, 2006 at 4:23 pm
I used to post on Dexterity.com’s forums, but when Steve shut that down and it moved t o the indiegamer.com I kind of lost interest. It was difficult for me to engage in conversations with the members there, for some reason. Also, I kind of have a policy of “Talking is not creating”, but, that’s a different blog post.
I’ll check it out again, thanks for the head’s up!