But... What is it?

A video game podcast? A video game live stream? An online gaming community? The answer is all three. 4Player is an opinion-based video game website and weekly podcast whose main purpose is to foster fun and (hopefully) insightful discussions amongst our enthusiast staff and within the 4Player community about the video games we love, the video games we hate, and everything in between.

We got our start in 2008 when four friends in Texas decided to try and make something of their shared passion and enthusiasm for gaming. Brad Simons, David Liao, Nick Henderson, and Travis Granger eventually got a small podcast off the ground but struggled for some time to find a means of distribution and an audience to share it with. It wasn’t until we discovered Justin.TV (now known as Twitch.tv) that we were able to find that audience and give this project wings. Since that turning point, we have recorded over 600 podcasts, achieved our dreams of covering E3 year after year, and met tons of wonderful people with whom we love to share it all with on a weekly basis!

What sets us Apart?

This industry is full of wonderful content creators, some of whom we have been lucky enough to cross paths with over the years. We feel that 4Player stands out because of our shared commitment to the cause while continuing to work full-time jobs and even starting families. We are friends before we are colleagues and we feel that brings something special to the table each week. We take a “for Gamers, by Gamers” approach to everything that we do. Because of this, you will never see us throw a bunch of screenshots at you for clicks or re-print the latest Press Release to you verbatim. We have something to say and we aim to bring context, background, and insight to every conversation and we are proud to say that our weekly podcast has become the best outlet for us to achieve that goal.

Our flagship, award-winning podcast, cleverly titled "4Player Podcast," has been going strong for over a decade and now reaches a bigger audience than ever thanks to platforms like iTunes and Spotify (Subscribe). The success of the show and the dedication of our beloved community has inspired us to expand our podcast offerings and organize periodic live events such as Project M and themed months that showcase games that we feel are worth your time and money!

A mere two years after finding our voice, we found ourselves traveling to cover the biggest events in the industry such as E3 (Electronic Entertainment Expo) and PAX (Penny Arcade Expo); a dream come true and a privilege we strive to maintain year-after-year. In the years that followed, staff has come and staff has gone. New voices have been added and we have always done our best to involve our devoted community in almost everything we do. we are gamers first, and 4Player does what it does for the player. Hence the name.

How do I Join?

Over the years, much as changed; Including how online communities grow and engage. When we first started (quite literally pioneering video game streaming on Justin.tv), we depended heavily on the reach of our live streams and our audio podcast. These days, Twitch is an industry behemoth which has made our little corner of the internet smaller. Luckily, Discord has stepped up and quickly become the centerpiece of our community! In short, the aside from bookmarking THIS WEBSITE and subscribing to our podcast (which you absolutely should do), the quickest and most effective way in would be to sign up our FREE Discord server!

You can also get involved by tuning it to our LIVE streams and podcast recordings on Twitch! We are always eager to hear from our community as we discuss the latest and greatest industry news and releases. You can take it one step by further by submitting questions or potential discussion topics each week via Discord. Just look for the weekly podcast thread in the "Submit a Question" channel.

Meet the Team

Nick Henderson
Podcast Host / Managing Editor

Nick co-founded 4Player along with David and Brad back in 2007 and has since adopted the (unfortunate?) title of podcast host and resident optimist. You may recognize him as the guy who loves Dexter, “hates” PC gaming, and screams “Holy Balls” on the stream. In his free time, he locks himself in his room, curses Konami, and mourns the cancellation of Silent Hills.

Favorite Genres: Survival Horror, Adventure, Open World

Years in Review Top 10 Games of All Time
Brad Simons
Podcaster / Broadcast Manager

Brad co-founded 4Player Podcast and has been involved with the show longer than anybody! He holds the title of most-frequent broadcaster and is widely known for his on-stream antics, epic rants, and his dramatic reactions when playing scary games. He wants you to know that he invented “Scooter Brothers” and that he actually hates playing scary games but he does it anyways for your enjoyment.

Favorite Genres: Tactical RPG, JRPG, Platformer

Years in Review Top 10 Games of All Time
Nolan Hedstrom
Podcaster / Broadcaster

Nolan was introduced to the show in 2010 and has been a major contributor ever since! He currently lives in a castle and currently sacrifices one of his many empty bedrooms as a podcast recording studio (for which we are very thankful). He’s a champion of indie games of all sizes and perhaps wields the most competitive spirit in the group; a fitting title considering he doesn’t lose at things.

Favorite Genres: Indie darling, Multiplayer, Action

Years in Review
Kris Guthridge
Podcaster / Broadcaster

Kris (commonly referred to as Krispy) came on board in 2012 and quickly established himself as the authority on comic books within the group. Don’t let that fool you though! Kris is a connoisseur of pop culture with an encyclopedia-like knowledge of film, comics, and “useless” knowledge that make him an integral component of the 4Player crew every week.

Favorite Genres: Sci-Fi Adventure, Competitive shooters, Tabletop

Years in Review
Chris Davis
Video Feature Producer / Podcaster

Chris Davis joined the group at some point that none of the other guys can really remember. One day, he just appeared. Since then, he has been a reliable member of the team who not only lends his knowledge of gaming but also his technical expertise in video production by overseeing the live production of the podcast every week and production of all of the video features that we release.

Favorite Genres: First person shooter, Strategy, Stealth

Years in Review Top 10 Games of All Time
Ed Mitchell
Podcaster / Back End Developer

Ed answered the call when we reached out to the community for help with back-end development on the website and we ended up with yet another awesome addition to the team! Aside from handling back-end functionality on the website, Ed streams on our channel weekly and appears periodically on the podcast to talk shop! We lucked out even further as Ed and his family recently made the move to Austin!

Favorite Genres: MMO, RPG, Adventure

Years in Review

Community Contributors

Carlos Ottino
The Roger Ebert of Video Games

Carlos has been a major contributor to 4Player and the community for years. He takes an unusual approach to video game criticism so describing him in words can prove difficult. He has taken many forms since he first appeared but he prides himself on his ability to blur the lines between video game critic and walking meme. If you ask him, he is the self proclaimed ‘Roger Ebert of Video Games.’ He would be wrong.

Favorite Genres: Video game masochism, Hollow Knight, Dancing Bear simulators

Years in Review
George Denison
Broadcaster / Contributor

One of two contributors from across the pond, George came to us first as a community member and later came on as a content contributor who streams weekly on Twitch and joins us for Bonus podcasts when possible! He plays a bit of everything but has developed a reputation for finding Indie gems and bringing them into the spotlight for the community to enjoy!

Favorite Genres: Indie, Puzzle, Survival Horror

Years in Review
Jager
Community Liason

Also hailing from the UK, Jager has been as a dedicated listener/viewer for years and has often served as an invaluable Liason between the staff and the community at large. His knowledge of the industry and his valuable input has allowed him to naturally evolve into a crucial member of our team. If you need something, you can find Jager actively engaging the community in Discord or in Chat.

Favorite Genres: RPG, Survival Horror, Stealth

Special Thanks

ChaiThai
Senior Community Member

Special thanks to ChaiThai for being such a consistent and devoted member of our community throughout the years and for hosting us every year when we travel to Los Angeles to attend E3.

Bjarki
Branding Designer

Special thanks to Bjarki for voluntarily taking the time and effort to put together such an awesome new 4Player branding kit in 2017 and for allowing us to use it! Your designs were a welcomed change!

Nellufy
Senior Community Member

Special thanks to Nellufy for the amazing character artwork that we now proudly use throughout our website and branding. Your talent is irrefutable. Thank you as well for being such a nice and welcoming member of our community.