A second independent games and culture website has been announced today: Second Wind, formed by ex-Escapist employees Nick Calandra and Ben Croshaw. 

On Monday, November 6, Calandra revealed that he’d been fired from his position as editor-in-chief of The Escapist, a position he’s held since 2019. He explained he was let go along with other staff by parent company GAMURS (which acquired the site in 2022) for failing to meet goals that weren’t properly explained. 

“I have declined my severance pay and will not be signing an NDA,” said Calandra on X (formerly Twitter). “I’m incredibly proud of everything my team and I achieved over the last four years, and the community that we built together.”

Following Calanda’s firing, Croshaw, known by his his handle ‘Yahtzee’ and creator of the site’s Zero Punctuation review series, announced his leave from The Escapist alongside several remaining employees. “I don’t have the rights to Zero Punctuation,” he wrote, “but whatever happens you’ll be hearing my voice again soon, in a new place.”

At present, Second Wind only has social media channels for X and YouTube alongside a Patreon page. The company’s description simply describes it as “focused on creating content that’s informative, interesting and fun, and everything that you came to expect from the team behind The Escapist.”

Second Wind will begin to release videos starting Wednesday, November 15.

I’m very excited to announce the name of our next adventure, Second Wind (@SecondWindGroup). @YahtzeeCroshaw and I will be live tomorrow at 11 AM CT to discuss our plans, where to support and when the first videos will drop.

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Cont. pic.twitter.com/KxjlxiIiJs

— Nick Calandra (@nickjcal) November 7, 2023