Ben Kuchera bids farewell to Ars Technica
- Monday, 16 January 2012 08:30
In many ways, the work of a critic is easy. We risk very little, yet enjoy a position over those who offer up their work and their selves to our judgment. We thrive on negative criticism, which is fun to write and to read. But the bitter truth we critics must face is that in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful than our criticism designating it so. But there are times when a critic truly risks something, and that is in the discovery and defense of the new. The world is often unkind to new talents, new creations. The new needs friends.
I remember the first time I heard those words in the theater, during an afternoon showing of Ratatouille. I was enjoying the movie up until that point, and my kids in particular were quite taken with the talking rats and their lively work in the kitchen. After listening to that speech, though, I felt like a lightning bolt hit me. No one had ever summed up the work I wanted to do so well. My wife made me a print with Anton Ego's impressive image and that speech for me to hang in my office for Christmas this year, and I think about it often.
I've always believed in two things: we must be effusive about the games we love, and we must be brutal with those we hate. Writing for Ars Technica has allowed me to do both, and I hope I did it well. Today is my last day with the site, and I feel it's important to describe what it was like to call this site home for the past several years.
