Ex-Eurogamer and VG247 staff launch Respec, adding to independent games media cluster
Summary
Eurogamer, VG247, and RPG Site veterans launched Respec, an independent gaming site, on July 9, 2026
The outlet runs reader-supported, joining Rogue, Jank, and others already forming subscription bundles
Co-founder Alex Donaldson also owns RPG Site, now 20 years independent - the structural blueprint for Respec
"There is a suggested new wisdom that the more traditional kind of video game coverage simply isn't viable outside of the confines of established mega-sites - but we don't think that is true"
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Veteran editorial team with a proven independent precedent
Tom Orry (editor in chief) and Alex Donaldson (publisher) lead, with editor Mikhail Madnani and contributor Rebecca Jones
Combined team experience spans Eurogamer, VG247, RPG Site, TouchArcade, Inverse, TheGamer, and Videogamer
Donaldson co-owns RPG Site, in its 20th year of independent operation - the bootstrapped model Respec is replicating
"RPG Site is now in its 20th year, and is how our Respec co-founder Mike and I know that fully independent sites can be successful - because we've done it"
Positioning is magazine-style games news, criticism, features, podcasts, and video, with an explicit "no clickbait" mandate
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Respec fits a broader independent gaming site cluster reshaping PR access
Respec joins Rogue, Jank, and other former-staff-led outlets launched in the same cycle
Some of these outlets have already banded into subscription bundles, self-organizing around reader funding
"Alex and I have worked together for a long time and we want Respec to be the kind of site that is rare these days under corporate ownership - a site that has character"
For publishers and PR teams, concentrating review access around a few mega-sites now misses a growing slice of engaged readers
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