Why independent websites like GBAtemp are struggling to survive in 2025
For over two decades, GBAtemp.net has thrived as a community-driven hub for gaming news, homebrew, and discussion. We’ve weathered changing consoles, evolving trends, and countless internet shifts. But here’s the hard truth: in 2025, running an independent website funded solely by ads has become a losing battle. Over the past year, our ad revenue hasn’t just dipped—it’s collapsed. And this isn’t unique to us. Across the web, independent forums and niche sites are fighting the same fight. Let’s break down the key reasons why.
Search and social media used to be reliable pipelines bringing new readers to independent sites. Not anymore. Google changes have hit hard. Recent algorithm updates and “AI Overviews” often answer questions directly in search results—meaning fewer people actually click through to the original sites. Even established communities like ours have seen referral traffic shrink. The Guardian wrote an excellent article about this phenomenon recently.
Social media keeps users locked in. Platforms like Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram dominate attention. Their algorithms prioritize keeping you scrolling, not sending you to an external link. In fact, Facebook referrals to publishers have dropped by more than half in recent years.
A decade ago, much of the internet’s content lived on independent sites. Today, more and more creators skip running their own websites altogether.
Advertisers follow the audience, and right now the audience is on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitch. Industry reports predict that in 2025, creator-driven platforms will generate more ad revenue than all traditional media combined. For advertisers, placing a targeted video ad in a TikTok feed is easier and more measurable than buying banner space on a forum.
The web has pivoted to video. In 2022, video made up over 80% of all internet traffic, and that share is still growing. Advertisers are pouring billions into video ads, especially short-form formats.
If your content isn’t video-first, it’s far harder to earn competitive rates.
GBAtemp’s strength has always been in text discussions, written guides, and news posts—formats that unfortunately don’t attract the same ad spend as flashy videos on streaming platforms.
Ad blockers are no longer a niche thing. Depending on the audience, between 30–40% of visitors may be blocking ads entirely. In tech-savvy communities like ours, that number can be even higher. No matter how engaged those readers are, blocked ads mean zero revenue from them.
Even when ads do show, they often earn less than before:
- Privacy rules and cookie crackdowns (including Chrome’s phase-out of third-party cookies) make it harder for advertisers to target specific audiences. Less targeting = lower CPMs.
- Brand safety filters can exclude entire pages if they contain certain “flagged” keywords—hurting ad demand for gaming and modding topics that advertisers don’t fully understand.
- Invalid traffic (IVT) checks can mistakenly throttle ad delivery if traffic sources look suspicious to automated systems.
- Restrictive new laws in certain countries, which shall not be named, may result in the site becoming totally inaccessible.
Put all this together and you get the situation we’re in now:
- Less traffic from search and social
- Lower ad rates even for the traffic we keep
- High ad blocking rates among our loyal members
- Disappearing traffic sources in certain countries
The result? Revenues falling to unsustainable levels.
GBAtemp has never been “just another website.” It’s a community, a knowledge base, and a place where gaming culture, especially modding and homebrew, lives and breathes. But the internet is shifting under our feet. For a while now we have been exploring new ways to keep the site alive:
- Alternative monetization (subscriptions, Patreon, merchandise)
- More video content to tap into where advertisers are spending
- Possible partnerships to keep hosting and development sustainable
- Changing ad networks to provide a boost in advertising revenue
The unfortunate conclusion is that we may be forced to display more adverts on our site if we want to keep going, with different ad formats, as well as notices for users who haven't whitelisted GBAtemp on their ad blockers.
It isn't our intention to ruin the site for users who keep their adblockers enabled, so we're working with our ad network to solve that. But hopefully after reading this, you understand the struggle we're in.
Registered members can still update their preferences to block video ad formats (which are not yet fully deployed under our new ad network). To enjoy a fully ad-free experience, consider supporting us by becoming a patron.
To discuss the new ad formats which are progressively rolling out, please use this ongoing discussion thread. We are listening and will adjust based on feedback as much as we can, to find the right balance between usability and minimum revenue.
1. The Big Tech Traffic Squeeze
Search and social media used to be reliable pipelines bringing new readers to independent sites. Not anymore. Google changes have hit hard. Recent algorithm updates and “AI Overviews” often answer questions directly in search results—meaning fewer people actually click through to the original sites. Even established communities like ours have seen referral traffic shrink. The Guardian wrote an excellent article about this phenomenon recently.
Social media keeps users locked in. Platforms like Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram dominate attention. Their algorithms prioritize keeping you scrolling, not sending you to an external link. In fact, Facebook referrals to publishers have dropped by more than half in recent years.
2. The Rise of the Creator Platform Economy
A decade ago, much of the internet’s content lived on independent sites. Today, more and more creators skip running their own websites altogether.
Advertisers follow the audience, and right now the audience is on YouTube, TikTok, Instagram, and Twitch. Industry reports predict that in 2025, creator-driven platforms will generate more ad revenue than all traditional media combined. For advertisers, placing a targeted video ad in a TikTok feed is easier and more measurable than buying banner space on a forum.
3. Video Is King - Text Pays Peanuts
The web has pivoted to video. In 2022, video made up over 80% of all internet traffic, and that share is still growing. Advertisers are pouring billions into video ads, especially short-form formats.
If your content isn’t video-first, it’s far harder to earn competitive rates.
GBAtemp’s strength has always been in text discussions, written guides, and news posts—formats that unfortunately don’t attract the same ad spend as flashy videos on streaming platforms.
4. Ad Blockers Are Everywhere
Ad blockers are no longer a niche thing. Depending on the audience, between 30–40% of visitors may be blocking ads entirely. In tech-savvy communities like ours, that number can be even higher. No matter how engaged those readers are, blocked ads mean zero revenue from them.
5. Privacy & Policy Changes Have Slashed Ad Value
Even when ads do show, they often earn less than before:
- Privacy rules and cookie crackdowns (including Chrome’s phase-out of third-party cookies) make it harder for advertisers to target specific audiences. Less targeting = lower CPMs.
- Brand safety filters can exclude entire pages if they contain certain “flagged” keywords—hurting ad demand for gaming and modding topics that advertisers don’t fully understand.
- Invalid traffic (IVT) checks can mistakenly throttle ad delivery if traffic sources look suspicious to automated systems.
- Restrictive new laws in certain countries, which shall not be named, may result in the site becoming totally inaccessible.
6. A Perfect Storm for Independent Communities
Put all this together and you get the situation we’re in now:
- Less traffic from search and social
- Lower ad rates even for the traffic we keep
- High ad blocking rates among our loyal members
- Disappearing traffic sources in certain countries
The result? Revenues falling to unsustainable levels.
Why This Matters—and What’s Next
GBAtemp has never been “just another website.” It’s a community, a knowledge base, and a place where gaming culture, especially modding and homebrew, lives and breathes. But the internet is shifting under our feet. For a while now we have been exploring new ways to keep the site alive:
- Alternative monetization (subscriptions, Patreon, merchandise)
- More video content to tap into where advertisers are spending
- Possible partnerships to keep hosting and development sustainable
- Changing ad networks to provide a boost in advertising revenue
The unfortunate conclusion is that we may be forced to display more adverts on our site if we want to keep going, with different ad formats, as well as notices for users who haven't whitelisted GBAtemp on their ad blockers.
It isn't our intention to ruin the site for users who keep their adblockers enabled, so we're working with our ad network to solve that. But hopefully after reading this, you understand the struggle we're in.
Registered members can still update their preferences to block video ad formats (which are not yet fully deployed under our new ad network). To enjoy a fully ad-free experience, consider supporting us by becoming a patron.
To discuss the new ad formats which are progressively rolling out, please use this ongoing discussion thread. We are listening and will adjust based on feedback as much as we can, to find the right balance between usability and minimum revenue.
Last edited by Costello,
