Geoff Keighley facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Geoff Keighley
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Keighley in 2018
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| Born | June 24, 1978 |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Occupation | Video game journalist, presenter |
| Years active | 1994–present |
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Notable work
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Geoff Keighley (born June 24, 1978) is a Canadian video game journalist and TV host. He is famous for hosting many big video game events. Geoff is the main producer and host of the Game Awards, which started in 2014. Before that, he worked on the Spike Video Game Awards. He also hosts and produces Summer Game Fest. Geoff has hosted live shows for events like Gamescom and the former E3.
He used to host TV shows like GameTrailers TV and G4tv.com. Geoff also writes for different publications, including Kotaku. His special series, The Final Hours, shares behind-the-scenes stories. These stories come from interviews with creators of popular games. Some games include Portal, Mass Effect, and Tomb Raider.
Contents
Geoff's Journey in Gaming
Starting Out in Games
Geoff Keighley was born on June 24, 1978, in Toronto, Canada. His parents worked at IMAX, a company known for big screen movies. This helped him learn to appreciate awards shows like the Oscars. Geoff and his younger brother loved computers and video games from a young age. When he was a teenager in 1996, Geoff started his own website called GameSlice. It featured game reviews and news.
Geoff's first step into video game reporting was in 1994. He helped write for Cybermania '94, the first video game awards show on TV. Even as a teenager, he was inspired to create an "Oscars" for video games.
Learning and Writing
In 1997, Geoff went to the University of Southern California. He studied business there. During this time, he suggested a new idea to GameSpot. He wanted to write long articles about how popular games were made. His first big story was about the game Unreal. He got special access to the game creators because he knew one of them.
Through these stories, Geoff met many game developers. He even got open access to Valve, a famous game company. After his business degree, he studied law for a short time. Around 2002, Geoff also started writing for magazines like Entertainment Weekly. He also became a co-host for The Electric Playground TV show.
Hosting on TV
In 2003, Spike TV asked Geoff to host his own show, GameTrailers TV with Geoff Keighley. He also worked on other video game projects for TV. On the G4 network, he interviewed important people from companies like Sony and Electronic Arts at the E3 event.
For MTV, he helped create specials about the game Gears of War. These shows took viewers behind the scenes of the game's creation. In 2007, the Discovery Channel aired a documentary about game releases. Geoff helped produce this show. He also hosted special events for game launches on Spike TV. These included shows for "Madden NFL 08" and "Halo 3".
In 2012, some gamers criticized Geoff during a presentation about Halo 4. He was sitting near ads for snacks, which made some people question journalism standards. This event led Geoff to think about his career.
Geoff helped with the Spike Video Game Awards from 2006. In 2013, Spike changed the show's format. Geoff felt it became too much about advertising. Because of this, and the earlier criticism, he decided to leave the show.
The Game Awards and Summer Game Fest
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In 2014, Geoff decided to create his own awards show. He got support from big companies like Microsoft, Sony, and Nintendo. This led to the creation of the Game Awards. The first show was in December 2014, and Geoff has been the main host ever since.
From 2017 to 2019, Geoff hosted the E3 Coliseum. This was a live online event during the E3 trade show. It featured interviews with game developers and publishers. However, due to changes at E3 and the COVID-19 pandemic, Geoff decided not to organize the E3 Coliseum in 2020.
With many game events cancelled in 2020, Geoff worked with game companies to start Summer Game Fest. This online event ran from May to August 2020. It helped developers announce new games and show off demos. Summer Game Fest has continued as a virtual event and became an in-person event in 2023.
Deep Dive Journalism
Geoff's "The Final Hours" series gives a close look at game development. He gets special access to studios as games are almost finished. In recent years, these stories have been released as mobile apps. Geoff believes it's important to do deep investigative journalism in the gaming world.
Other Appearances
Geoff Keighley has appeared in video games and movies. He was a holographic character in the game Death Stranding. A mask of his face was also added to the game Among Us. In August 2021, Geoff played Uncle Theodore in Muppets Haunted Mansion. He also had a small role as a game awards presenter in The Matrix Resurrections.
See also
In Spanish: Geoff Keighley para niños
