The video game vertical of tech site the Verge split off into its own channel late Wednesday as parent company Vox Media launched Polygon to report on the gaming industry.
Vox poached editors from leading gaming blogs like Joystiq and Gawker-owned Kotaku to create what it bills as a site that "looks beyond the press releases" and tells the "human story" of the $25 billion business.
"As the industry and gaming audiences have grown up and expanded, and as game-playing platforms have multiplied, video games have become a core form of modern entertainment and an increasingly relevant form cultural touchstone," Vox's chief content officer and Polygon publisher Marty Moe said in a statement. "Polygon will cover the category with the seriousness and depth that it deserves."
Polygon's site, which launched at just before midnight EDT, is built on a responsive design platform, so the site will not need apps and can adapt to mobile and tablet screens.
Much of the staff has already been publishing up to 50 stories and videos daily on the Verge.
"The video game industry has always been defined by change, and we're not experiencing the most profound and rapid change in its history," Polygon editor-in-chief Chris Grant, the former editor of Joystiq, said in a statement. "That's terrifying but also genuinely exciting for a new outlet."
