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[Mikey Jr.]

Do you guys think that EZA can reach 50k or have they more or less peaked? Haven't followed the development of other crowdfunded projects and can't compare their story to others. I'd really love to see them build a studio.

In their current state, I don't see them ever cracking 45k, nevermind 50k.

Right now, it seems like they are on a bit of cruise control. They seem to be doing their thing, status quo. Honestly, if they are happy hovering around 39k, God bless them. Still an amazing number.
But I think that 39k is the hard limit for them right now. I really have no idea how to break through that ceiling, but it goes beyond youtube videos. That much I know.

edit: Suggestions

I know they are still getting their footing, but reviews need to be out on day 1. They seem to be doing a bit better, and I realize some of it could be out of their control, but releasing a review for a game 2 weeks later is doing them no favours. Hell, Mighty Number 9 was reviewed an entire month later. At that point, you are just releasing videos for your patrons and subs.

 

[ElephantShell]

Well yeah, he was talking about that one site that reviewed it early and unpatched. Playstation-something.

Oddly enough I'm pretty sure that review ended up being one of the higher scores the game got (8/10 I think).

 

[Karu]

I'm honestly fine with their output right now. I was not a big fan of Kinda Funny's rapid expansion which stretched them super thin and deluted the product I came to the in the first place (That's how I felt. If you think that was not the case, god bless you! ). Also not a fan of a potential off topic Patreon. Stay on message and expand your audience in what you are great at with the occasional Spoiler/Frame Trap discussion on movies and so on.

This fear of change might hinder the growth potential of Easy Allies in the short and long run, though. I'm super interested how Kinda Funny evolves once they fully transistioned to their new studio. Maybe the last 15 month of growing pains will be worth it in the end. That would certainly be great and could be a potential guide for Easy Allies as well.

 

[Elfforkusu]

On another note, I laughed at the super slow fade in+out Ian did at the end of the last Easy Update.

 

[Bloodworth]

I know they are still getting their footing, but reviews need to be out on day 1. They seem to be doing a bit better, and I realize some of it could be out of their control, but releasing a review for a game 2 weeks later is doing them no favours. Hell, Mighty Number 9 was reviewed an entire month later. At that point, you are just releasing videos for your patrons and subs.

When we can, we will, but it's not a realistic benchmark for us to hit consistently in our current state. Reviews do help more if we get them up earlier, but I don't think they ever really hurt. I remember I didn't get around to reviewing The Crew until four months later at GT, and it still got a decent number of views. The only real cost is in losing the chance to review something more recent, but regardless, any review still gets viewers and traffic from search.

 

[Deimo5]

No Man's Sky got the score I expected. What does Kyle think of it? It can fall pretty low on the contextometer.

 

[slash3584]

No Man's Sky got the score I expected. What does Kyle think of it? It can fall pretty low on the contextometer.

Tbh after hearing the guys discuss the game and watching Ben's stream I thought it would get a better score, but this aligns exactly with my experience with the game.

For such a huge universe there's so little variation on the "pieces" that are used for fauna and flora.

After a while I was like hey look there's a rat head # 2 with snail body #34 under that same cool looking tree I saw 3 planets ago but this time they're blue!.

But I got to give it to them, sometimes the parts combine just right and make for beautiful vistas that drives yo to keep exploring to find more awesome combinations.

 

[WiseSplinteR]

I'm clearly in the minority based on the views, but for me the reviews are the least interesting thing the allies publish.
It's their personalities that make their content interesting and the classic review formula just doesn't have enough of that.

I miss the "Just Played" video's they used to post in the GT days, where it was just two people talking about a game.
That way they could push each other to explain a point of view, or justify an opinion, and insert the awesome EZA spark that makes them unique.
For me that would be much more interesting than the review format as it currently stands. (It's also why I think "Brandon Plays Pokemon" was such a success).
Watching those unscripted 1 on 1 conversations is more entertaining and also more informative as you can get a better sense of how those individuals really feel about the game.

If any of the allies read this please don't think I don't appreciate all the work it takes to craft a review video: video capture, writing, editing, Brandon's VO etc.
You guys do it very well, it's just the format that I find boring, not the quality of your productions.

---

TL/DR: Reviews are kinda boring and take a lot of time and effort to make, Just Played's are more fun and easier to produce.

As always, Love and Respect

 

[Grayfox341]

*snip*

TL/DR: Reviews are kinda boring and take a lot of time and effort to make, Just Played's are more fun and easier to produce.

As always, Love and Respect

I totally respect this opinion. However, there are a fair amount of people that only watch our reviews because of the specific format. I think it's good that we can talk about/evaluate games in a variety of ways so that people can choose what they prefer. For those that want a long, back-and-forth discussion of NMS, it will absolutely happen on the next Frame Trap.

L&R

 

[brotkasten]

I'm clearly in the minority based on the views, but for me the reviews are the least interesting thing the allies publish.
It's their personalities that make their content interesting and the classic review formula just doesn't have enough of that.

I miss the "Just Played" video's they used to post in the GT days, where it was just two people talking about a game.
That way they could push each other to explain a point of view, or justify an opinion, and insert the awesome EZA spark that makes them unique.
For me that would be much more interesting than the review format as it currently stands. (It's also why I think "Brandon Plays Pokemon" was such a success).
Watching those unscripted 1 on 1 conversations is more entertaining and also more informative as you can get a better sense of how those individuals really feel about the game.

If any of the allies read this please don't think I don't appreciate all the work it takes to craft a review video: video capture, writing, editing, Brandon's VO etc.
You guys do it very well, it's just the format that I find boring, not the quality of your productions.

---

TL/DR: Reviews are kinda boring and take a lot of time and effort to make, Just Played's are more fun and easier to produce.

As always, Love and Respect

While I absolutely agree with you and definitely prefer the Just Played format, there's huge value in reviews for an outlet and I wouldn't want them to drop it. Reviews also happen to be less time-consuming for the viewer, while still getting the point across, which is something I'm always for.

 

[Auctopus]

Yeah, I realise "Just Playeds" are the new thing and a lot of people make instant decisions based off what they see on Twitch/Youtube or what their favourite streamer thinks about a game but there's still room for critical analysis and it's some of my favourite content.

GT Just Playeds I enjoyed if one of the guy's had played something cool but didn't need to do a whole analysis on it but then games like "Divinity: Original Sin" or something equally expansive in any genre, I don't feel like you can make an informed decision by just watching an hour or so of a stream or have someone tell you their impressions from the first 5% of the game.

I think there's still considerabe value in analysis and review of games as a product and piece of art/design.

 

[El-Suave]

If they have people on the opposite ends of the like/don't like NMS spectrum, I'd love to hear a discussion of the conflicting opinions. That would cool for polarizing games like NMS. It could happen on Ian's or Huber's show if they don't want to make it a seperate video. It would be a shame if such an exchange happened and it would be wasted because it's hidden in a live stream somewhere.

 

[Napalm_Frank]

I love you Ben, but...

After Brandon's ''meltdown'' at last years E3 I secretly hoped he would review NMS .

''You can't score this game, it's automatic 10 by default.''

 

[Auctopus]

Quoting Shin-Ra from the Bound thread...

Preload started (SCEE) and it's 1.56GB.

Not sure who won that bet. Might be Jones.

 

[plasmawave]

Huber?

 

[cm osi]

Quoting Shin-Ra from the Bound thread...



Not sure who won that bet. Might be Jones.

i think blood

edit: jones was 1.8 gb, Blood was 1.7 gb

 

[Fahzgoolin]

Not that it should be mentioned in a review or effect it's score, but I hope EZA addresses the marketing lies or lack of follow through on different features in NMS. Honestly, those missing features were a big part of my initial excitement and the fact that Hello Games still remains silent or vague about it all just makes me feel all sorts of negative emotions.

Regardless, thank you Ben for the fair and honest review.

 

[sora87]

MS Edge has html5 for VoDs on twitch now, firefox doesn't though

 

[IdreamofHIME]

Excellent review. Hype free and really interesting opinions. The final score was lower than I thought was coming, but the review was brilliant. Ben Moore showing he's in the top tier of the industry.

 

[ElTorro]

Excellent review. Hype free and really interesting opinions. The final score was lower than I thought was coming, but the review was brilliant. Ben Moore showing he's in the top tier of the industry.

Yeah, I went in expecting a higher, more hyped score from Ben, given how well-intentioned he approached the game. Thumbs up for his objectivity.

 

[Rockk]

I tweeted Bosman about No Man Sky. It's officially guttertrash.

@KyleBosman No Man's Sky has a 70 on Metacritic. Star Fox Zero has a 69. Is No Man's Sky officially Miyamoto guttertrash now?

@_JTRO absolutely. It's all about that metascore, baby

Spoiler

I'm joking. Mostly.

 

[LightOfTruth]

Wish we could raise enough to get these guys a studio.

 

[Mikey Jr.]

Wish we could raise enough to get these guys a studio.

True. But its gonna be a long while if it's just from patreon.

 

[Ultimadrago]

Thanks to Ben for the review. While I know he wasn't calling the game bad, I'm glad I never got enamored with NMS from the start. In the end, it really does look exactly like what I expected. Of course, this observation goes far past Ben's review. With many of the more vague answers from posters/developers alike on what exactly the title offered, I always deemed the bulletpoints more negative than positive and was only proven more as the details rolled in.

I'm happy for those enjoying it, however! I know Ian was talking about his love for it in the past Easy Update.

 

[TC McQueen]

Thanks to Ben for the review. While I know he wasn't calling the game bad, I'm glad I never got enamored with NMS from the start. In the end, it really does look exactly like what I expected. Of course, this observation goes far past Ben's review. With many of the more vague answers from posters/developers alike on what exactly the title offered, I always deemed the bulletpoints more negative than positive and was only proven more as the details rolled in.

I'm happy for those enjoying it, however! I know Ian was talking about his love for it in the past Easy Update.

You know, looking back at it, Jones' whole rant that one E3 (IIRC) about not knowing what you do in NMS was super on point. It's kind of a shame that the hype got so out of hand, but that's what happens when things are kept vague.

That said, I think NMS's legacy is going to be that crazy procedural generation algorithm. If developers can find a way to integrate triggers into it so players can get stories out of the planets they visit, it could revive space opera games in a big way by making them way more affordable to produce.

 

[wapplew]

True. But its gonna be a long while if it's just from patreon.

It's hard cause they only cover video games (console mostly), KF is big with their none game nerd stuff. Actually, every video game media outlet is branching out to survive.
I wish EZA can do none game content to reach out for bigger audience, at the same time worry about they are not true to themselves if they do that.

 

[Roubjon]

I can tell Damiani enjoys telling stories so I think Story Time is a great idea. I definitely enjoyed pilot!

 

[Mikey Jr.]

Important:

Bosman will be doing a REAL playthrough of A Link to the Past.

This is not a prank. Everyone hold onto your butts.

 

[wiibomb]

I liked the new story time, but I have a suggestion. Most of the content of EZA isn't scripted and while that isn't necessary, Daminani seems like a perfect person for a kinda more scripted comment, not exactly scripted may be, but better presented.

I mean, this is a pretty nice thing James from Angry Video Game Nerd did back last year when he talked about his first experience with filming, it was extremely well done IMO, that was some commentary he made kinda more scripted based on his own story. Why this? I think the more fluid commentary would actually help a lot this kind of video. I don't know, my humble point.

Huber?

take me to

Spoiler

the upside down

valhalla!!!

 

[SweetTeddie]

TL/DR: Reviews are kinda boring and take a lot of time and effort to make, Just Played's are more fun and easier to produce.

As always, Love and Respect

I think guys like Blood, Ben and Huber love reviewing games so they'll always want to do them. For such a small team though, doing video reviews seems like overkill. Even huge gaming sites don't bother with video reviews because they're too time consuming to produce. It could make sense to only make video reviews for the huge games and just publish written ones for stuff like I am Setsuna or Mighty No 9.

 

[wiibomb]

Important:

Bosman will be doing a REAL playthrough of A Link to the Past.

This is not a prank. Everyone hold onto your butts.

 

[Hasney]

Monthly tournament group stream. Hopefully there's a miracle and the subscriber notification is back in the corner of the screen and not.over the action so I find it watchable.

A man can dream.

 

[Static Veins]

Great pilot of Story Time. I always love hearing these kinds of stories, and Damiani is a good storyteller, so I'm really looking forward to future episodes.

 

[Mikey Jr.]

No, he promised this time.

Pinky swore.

 

[Brian_FETO]

Important:

Bosman will be doing a REAL playthrough of A Link to the Past.

This is not a prank. Everyone hold onto your butts.

Damiani will be playing, but both will be there

The ideal scenario

 

[Napalm_Frank]

Important:

Bosman will be doing a REAL playthrough of A Link to the Past.

This is not a prank. Everyone hold onto your butts.

When did this happen?

 

[wiibomb]

No, he promised this time.

Pinky swore.

where is the prove of this.

I completely await him putting a cardboard of him in the stream

 

[Brian_FETO]

When did this happen?

New stream concept called "Settle It" where they go through a game and try to reach a middle ground opinion-wise

Hopefully Knack and Captain Toad are on the queue for future editions

 

[Hasney]

New stream concept called "Settle It" where they go through a game and try to reach a middle ground opinion-wise

Hopefully Knack and Captain Toad are on the queue for future editions

Ooo, I like this concept.

 

[Elfforkusu]

New stream concept called "Settle It" where they go through a game and try to reach a middle ground opinion-wise

Hopefully Knack and Captain Toad are on the queue for future editions

This is good.

This is damn good

 

[MrMette]

Great pilot of Story Time. I always love hearing these kinds of stories, and Damiani is a good storyteller, so I'm really looking forward to future episodes.

Yeah I really enjoyed it as well. Hopefully they can get over 40k consistently.

 

[kenta]

I would be more on board with Story Time if it were a rotating cast

 

[Naythan]

I would be more on board with Story Time if it were a rotating cast

Same. I'm cool with Damiani serving as a host/curator and telling the bulk of the stories but I think the show overall would be more fun with open concepts (aka not necessarily tied to Nintendo) and a rotating cast. I'd be happy either way but I think some changes could make it into an amazing show.

 

[MrMette]

I would be more on board with Story Time if it were a rotating cast

Sure, that would be nice as well, but Damiani is certainly up for the job. I think the pilot was great.

 

[Portugeezer]

I would be more on board with Story Time if it were a rotating cast

He said it will have guests on from time to time.

 

[Elfforkusu]

Story Time is a good show idea. Liked the first episode. Focused, good length. Nice job Damiani.

 

[TheDarkKnight774]

New stream concept called "Settle It" where they go through a game and try to reach a middle ground opinion-wise

Hopefully Knack and Captain Toad are on the queue for future editions

I LOVE this idea. It's why I was so upset about Kyle weaseling out of the bet in the first place.

So we got the trial, Huber/Brad full playthrough and now Kyle/Damiani stream. Best timeline confirmed.

 

[Karu]

I LOVE this idea. It's why I was so upset about Kyle weaseling out of the bet in the first place.

So we got the trial, Huber/Brad full playthrough and now Kyle/Damiani stream. Best timeline confirmed.

what a twist

 

[TC McQueen]

I'm morbidly curious if they're gonna get a correction for the Love & Respect that mentioned you can't get money for fanfic, because there's an Amazon program that does that for a few IPs.

 

[Tregard]

I was wondering if any EU based Allies here would be interested in a game night in the near future? I'd be interested in playing Overwatch with a few peeps from the group