IndustryGamers has confirmed today with AOL that GameDaily is going bye-bye. An exact date for the website's closure was not provided, but from what we understand, it's going to happen very soon (this month). Basically, the GameDaily team and the site's content will be merged with Joystiq, as Joystiq becomes the main outward facing games brand for AOL. A Joystiq relaunch is also being planned as part of the merger. Both teams mutually agreed to the decision to merge.
Joystiq Editor-in-Chief Chris Grant told us, "We're really excited about what we've been working on over the last several months and, though I can't offer much in the way of the 'how' and 'when,' I can offer this for a 'why': We're going to be directing the GameDaily site and staff over to Joystiq as AOL's premiere video game destination."
Excerpt from the article:
"It's been two months since the untimely demise of Joystiq. It's difficult to believe. Not a day goes by that we don't still feel the loss. For a while the misery was somewhat mitigated by the fact that the site remained accessible.
The staff had gone but a few of us faithful community members were keeping hope alive, still carrying on conversations in the comments section weeks after the final goodbye went up. We didn't want to let go. We didn't want to face the cold reality that the site no longer served any real purpose; and unfortunately, a site without a purpose is not long for the world wide web. The site itself was taken down on March 17th. It was a dark day indeed."
The last of the lost Joystiq sites officially launches their specific return plan with a Kickstarter that's raised over fifty thousand dollars in two days.
In memory of the dearly departed Joystiq...
