Video game publication GamesBeat has spun out from technology site VentureBeat into a separate, independent entity, Variety has learned. Gina Joseph, who was chief strategy officer at VentureBeat and GamesBeat, now serves as CEO for the latter’s new incarnation, which is keeping the same name. Dean Takahashi, lead writer at GamesBeat since 2008, is the revamped publication’s editorial director. “We are excited about this powerful new chapter for GamesBeat and the industry we are serving,” said Joseph in a press release. “As a niche independent publication, we’ll unlock unparalleled insights, opportunities and direct access to decision-makers, playing an integral role for this $177 billion industry and the broader interactive tech landscape.” Related Stories “This is a new era for GamesBeat,” said Takahashi in the press release. “As the gaming industry continues to evolve, thoughtful reporting is more important than ever. Our goal is to deliver the kind of insightful journalism that offers our audience contextual insights needed to understand how gaming interacts with other high-growth sectors.” Popular on Variety Joseph leads GamesBeat after spending more than two decades in media and tech, serving a stint as head of strategic partnerships and ad sales at Hearst before joining VentureBeat in 2018. She also sits on the boards of Midwest Games and the IGDA Foundation. Takahashi began covering video games as a staff writer at the Wall Street Journal in 1996, going on to write for other publications before landing at VentureBeat, where he launched GamesBeat. VentureBeat said in a press release it will “sharpen” its focus around “the enterprise shift to AI, data infrastructure and intelligent security,” in the wake of GamesBeat’s spinout. In addition to gaming coverage, GamesBeat hosts live events like the GamesBeat Summit and its Next, Global Tour and Games & Hollywood events. “What we want to do is really focus in on how we can create opportunity for the industry — not just… cover news but really just break through the noise and provide insights that matter, but also drive conversations and really focus in on the community and the needs of the industry,” said Joseph, speaking to Variety. Globally, the gaming industry saw more than 14,000 layoffs in 2024, with one in 10 developers reporting in a GDC survey that they lost their jobs. In 2025, EA’s BioWare reduced its workforce to less than 100 employees. Games journalism is just as unstable. Ziff Davis enacted soft layoffs across IGN, GamesIndustry.biz and Humble Bundle last October, after the IGN Creators Guild filed an unfair labor practice charge with the NLRB earlier in 2024, in response to prior layoffs. In addition, GameStop shut down Game Informer last August, only for Gunzilla Games to purchase and resurrect the publication in March as an entity running independently from the studio. Meanwhile, Kotaku is one of just two publications left at G/O Media, which sold off Quartz earlier in April. Many gaming journalists have set up shop at platforms like Substack to continue their work. “We truly care about the industry and we recognize that it’s been underserved in so many ways,” Joseph told Variety. “We really want to break down barriers and get everyone paying attention.” “I often hear from the smallest game companies, the game startups, that if we didn’t do a story on them, nobody else would,” said Takahashi, also to Variety. “One of the most important things to us is to cover the ecosystem and how it sprouts new ideas.” GamesBeat’s new iteration counts strategic advisors like Peter Levin, who is co-founder and managing director at venture capital firm Griffin Gaming Partners. Levin previously co-founded Nerdist Industries, overseeing its sale to Legendary Entertainment in 2012, in addition to his involvement with the sale of Deadline in 2009 to Penske Media Corporation, which owns Variety. Greg Akselrud and Kelly Siobhan Laffey at Stubbs Alderton & Markiles, LLP served as legal counsel for GamesBeat’s spinout from VentureBeat.