It’s not just a theory, gamers.

On January 9, the founder and host of The Game Theorists YouTube channel Matthew Patrick, better known as MatPat, posted a twenty-five-minute video titled “Goodbye Internet.” In the video, Patrick announced he will no longer be hosting the channel’s shows Game Theory, Style Theory, Food Theory and Film Theory as of March 9. He stated this was not an easy decision and struggled to keep tears from his eyes for “Goodbye Internet’s” runtime, as he’d founded the channel with his wife Stephanie Patrick (née Cordato) in 2011.

“If you think about it, this channel was Steph and my first child,” Patrick said. “Before we had Ollie, before we had Skip, CatPat, was this. This was our baby.”

Patrick answers the inevitable question of why he’s leaving early into the video, first citing YouTuber Tom Scott’s farewell video “After ten years, it’s time to stop making videos” posted on January 1. He also stated he intends to spend more time with his family, spending much of gushing about his son Ollie. Patrick also admitted a more “selfish” reason for his decision, citing the desire to “end on a high note.”

“When you think about it, there’s really only two ways to step away from a YouTube channel,” Patrick stated. “You either decide the day you stop uploading and you’re like ‘I’m done’; or, you just keep uploading videos from now until the heat death of the universe and you watch as your relevance slowly dies or your passion slowly dies.”

Before he “whips and nae naes off into the distance” he will host nine more theory videos, culminating in his final video on March 9. These theories are intended to tie up loose ends, revisit “old favorites” and generally provide closure for fans before his final theory, which Patrick described as a “a going away celebration.”

While he is delegating hosting duties, he won’t be stepping away from The Game Theorists entirely. Patrick will remain part of GTA Live “for the foreseeable future” and announced his role as a host for an upcoming Style Theory fashion show. However, he stated his position will mostly shift to behind-the-scenes production work.

“I’m still gonna be alongside the creative directors talking about programming, brainstorming ideas for episodes,” Patrick said. “That’s awesome. I love that. I don’t want to give that up.”

In the section labeled “A New Challenger Appears,” Patrick further explained why he’s stepping away from hosting duties. Patrick currently hosts all four Theory sub-channels but has “always envisioned these channels as a place where we could spotlight all sorts of creators.” He intends to shine the spotlight on those who do behind-the-scenes work on his team. While he contributes to the script-writing process, Patrick admits most of the words he recites on recent Theory videos are not his own.

“I’m listed on every single one of them as the writer because I touch every single script,” he said. “I polish it into my voice, but in all honesty, the bulk of what I’m saying is coming from someone else. It’s their research, it’s their work. Why should they have to filter their creativity through my voice?”

After March 9, each of The Game Theorists‘ sub-channels will be hosted by their respective Creative Directors. Forrest Lee, an editor of the channel for ten years, will host Film Theory, Amy Roberts will host Style Theory, Santi Massa will host Food Theory and Tom Robinson will host Game Theory.

Patrick ended the video with tearful gratitude for everyone who has watched the channel’s videos for the past thirteen years.

”I love you guys,” he said. “I do. You’re not just numbers. You’re not just ad impressions. You’re not just merch sales. What you have done for me and, from everyone I’ve talked to, what I’ve done for you is special. It’s special.”

If you haven’t already, check out MatPat’s full farewell video below: