Even the most casual browser won't have missed this week's kerfuffle over the firing of Gamespot's Jeff Gerstmann. His termination at the website was widely reported as being (possibly) due to pressure from game publisher Eidos, who weren't happy with the site's low review score for their game Kane and Lynch. Cue a web-wide hissy-fit, lots of rampant speculation and frantic conspiracy mongering.

Finally the dust is clearing, with Gamespot posting a rebuttal of most of the accusations flung at them. Seems Gerstmann wasn't fired for that particular review, and all the things that had been cited as evidence for this theory - Eidos removing advertising from the site, the video review disappearing, the swiftness of the falling axe - were all just coincidence. While that all seems terribly convenient, this has been backed up by the editorial staff at the heart of the matter. In their weekly podcast The Hotspot, the core editorial team, while still not all happy about how the whole affair was handled, go to great lengths to point out that no-one was sacked due to outside pressure and that their editorial integrity remains intact, if a little battered.

Case closed. Please?