I haven't watched his Christmas streams yet. What does he say to chat when they suggest this?!
I could never imagine sitting at a screen for this period of time. I have to get up and wander quite often to refresh myself and to have a drink. I would feel like death if I played for that period of time and be bored out of my mind no matter how good a game it is.
i knew my post wasn't clear when i posted, with L&R i meant between allies, stop agreeing on everything and be more aggressive! use that prove it ticked!
The subscriber song debate was interesting. Ian was complaining about how they had to stop what they were doing to do it. You didn't have to stop completely, just do the same things you always do just with less frequency. I wonder if there's some way they can delay the on screen notifications until they have to sing (or just show them again all at once, Nico Nico style full screen?).
Wild Guns was the best choice out of the three, but yeah I guess it was too tough. I'm surprised they don't have a few backup games always ready. I love how absurd it was when they just cracked open the gift game and started playing it. I never watched anything Gundam but customizing the Gundams looked really cool, and the attacks looked nice for a few minutes I guess ¯\_(ツ_/¯
Corporate Bosman is now complaining about f2p game?? SMH. Also the smells book was the best troll gift that I can never top.
Bonus: Since the video wasn't on Youtube I watched it on Twitch. I started it while doing some stuff and didn't skip the waiting screen. Some great anime tracks caught me off guard. Damiani the real anime senpai of the allies.
The subscriber song debate was interesting. Ian was complaining about how they had to stop what they were doing to do it. You didn't have to stop completely, just do the same things you always do just with less frequency. I wonder if there's some way they can delay the on screen notifications until they have to sing (or just show them again all at once, Nico Nico style full screen?).
The subscriber song is the dumbest thing Easy Allies do. They really need to just collate all the new subscribers at the end of the stream, read their names, and then sing 'You're all subscribers now!'
The subscriber song discussion has always been a thing - I suppose it's come to a head because someone mentioned it on screen. There's not many ways around it as people have said before, it's instant gratification for the subscriber (even though the gratification should come from supporting the channel). I don't mind it, it's personal and sometimes funny but I agree it does get in the way of the flow of the stream. Especially if one of the Allies is trying to say/explain something important.
Eg. "So next week, we have some exciti-YOU'RE A SUBSCRIBER NOW - um, where was I, so we have a new series coming to patrons above ten-SUBSCRIBER NOW- YOU'RE A- YOU'RE - SkeletonDeath23, YOU'RE A SUBSCRIBER NOW"
They could opt to have a system like other streamers where this jingle could play when they were subscribed to: https://clyp.it/vb2zo004
It means subscribers don't get in the way of the stream but it instantly becomes less personal and I'm sure the Allies want to acknowledge people's support themselves. I don't get tired of hearing the subscriber song, whereas I would get tired of that jingle. Because of the act of singing, I feel like it's kinda different each time but as I said before, sometimes gets in the way.
The subscriber song is the dumbest thing Easy Allies do. They really need to just collate all the new subscribers at the end of the stream, read their names, and then sing 'You're all subscribers now!'
The subscriber song is the dumbest thing Easy Allies do. They really need to just collate all the new subscribers at the end of the stream, read their names, and then sing 'You're all subscribers now!'
The subscriber song discussion has always been a thing - I suppose it's come to a head because someone mentioned it on screen. There's not many ways around it as people have said before, it's instant gratification for the subscriber (even though the gratification should come from supporting the channel). I don't mind it, it's personal and sometimes funny but I agree it does get in the way of the flow of the stream. Especially if one of the Allies is trying to say/explain something important.
Eg. "So next week, we have some exciti-YOU'RE A SUBSCRIBER NOW - um, where was I, so we have a new series coming to patrons above ten-SUBSCRIBER NOW- YOU'RE A- YOU'RE - SkeletonDeath23, YOU'RE A SUBSCRIBER NOW"
They could opt to have a system like other streamers where this jingle could play when they were subscribed to: https://clyp.it/vb2zo004
It means subscribers don't get in the way of the stream but it instantly becomes less personal and I'm sure the Allies want to acknowledge people's support themselves. I don't get tired of hearing the subscriber song, whereas I would get tired of that jingle. Because of the act of singing, I feel like it's kinda different each time but as I said before, sometimes gets in the way.
This is another option. But again, far less personal.
Unfortunately, when streamers get more popular, the personal interactions can be one of the first things to go.
It's just so petty. Why do people afford so much weight to this notion of being recognised by the streamer? It's bizarre it comes across as desperate on both the subscriber and the streamer. I hoped Easy Allies would cultivate a different approach, otherwise you'll just garner an audience that feeds off these contrived recognition tactics, that the discerning viewer will realise how they only do it out of compulsion.
We are humans, it's understandable that we desire acknowledgement. You know they would get half as many gifts or less if they didn't open them on stream, and probably none if you couldn't tell them it was from you ¯\_(ツ_/¯
Wanna take that line of thinking a step too far? Why do people introduce themselves to the allies when they meet them during meetups or events
I don't mind the song when it's not repeated too often, or too loud, or interrupting something interesting. Pretty sure it was only acknowledged this week due to how bad it was during the diorama stream.
Twitch sub shout outs are a part of twitch culture I'm not particularly fond of but I'm also not as strongly opposed to them as some people. I think trying to work out solutions/adjustments that are less disruptive until someone figures out something better that fulfills the same function is the way to go. :-x
If one of them would do a quick "Hey so and so, thanks for subscribing" each time, that's fine. Personally, I think the subscribers name appearing on screen should be enough, but whatever. It's just coordinating 9ish people at a time to sing brings things to a halt. Also, they're primarily interacting with eachother (prefer this) rather than chat during the group streams making it more disjointed.
I'd prefer them reading subscribers name at the end and then doing the song. Either way, still tuning in regardless. Kind of says a lot about how happy the community is that a basically miniscule thing such as this is the current "complaint" about EZA.
there was a heated argument about Fire Emblem Heroes being a bad game, badly designed and neither of them would budge an opinion, typical of both when they are convinced in an opinion. I assumed that heated the room a little.
I don't consider FEH a good or badly designed game, it is a mobile game and it has a bit of both without much of either.
I've started listening to EZA a few weeks ago and I have to say that I love these guys! They strike a wonderful balance between polished professional and passionate fan. The size of their group means there are plenty of different opinions and varying tastes in games to keep their content fresh.
They're now a permanent fixture in my podcast rotation.
I've started listening to EZA a few weeks ago and I have to say that I love these guys! They strike a wonderful balance between polished professional and passionate fan. The size of their group means there are plenty of different opinions and varying tastes in games to keep their content fresh.
They're now a permanent fixture in my podcast rotation.
check frametrap if you want to hear about more games, the EZA podcast is mainly focused on news while frametrap and the other discussions are more focused on what the allies are playing, as yeah, they have a great variety because of the different personalities in the group
there was a heated argument about Fire Emblem Heroes being a bad game, badly designed and neither of them would budge an opinion, typical of both when they are convinced in an opinion. I assumed that heated the room a little.
I don't consider FEH a good or badly designed game, it is a mobile game and it has a bit of both without much of either.
check frametrap if you want to hear about more games, the EZA podcast is mainly focused on news while frametrap and the other discussions are more focused on what the allies are playing, as yeah, they have a great variety because of the different personalities in the group
Think this might appeal to some of you guys who never got a chance to play the early Yakuza titles. Especially with all the recent talk about the franchise.
Video games plus just ordered reprint of the first 4 Yakuza games. The second of which was hovering around $100 beforehand. They are selling them at $50CAD each ($38 USD)
If interested definitely look into credit card problems with this site, most people say to only purchase through them via paypal.
there was a heated argument about Fire Emblem Heroes being a bad game, badly designed and neither of them would budge an opinion, typical of both when they are convinced in an opinion. I assumed that heated the room a little.
I don't consider FEH a good or badly designed game, it is a mobile game and it has a bit of both without much of either.
I've started listening to EZA a few weeks ago and I have to say that I love these guys! They strike a wonderful balance between polished professional and passionate fan. The size of their group means there are plenty of different opinions and varying tastes in games to keep their content fresh.
They're now a permanent fixture in my podcast rotation.
If one of them would do a quick "Hey so and so, thanks for subscribing" each time, that's fine. Personally, I think the subscribers name appearing on screen should be enough, but whatever. It's just coordinating 9ish people at a time to sing brings things to a halt. Also, they're primarily interacting with eachother (prefer this) rather than chat during the group streams making it more disjointed.
I'd prefer them reading subscribers name at the end and then doing the song. Either way, still tuning in regardless. Kind of says a lot about how happy the community is that a basically miniscule thing such as this is the current "complaint" about EZA.
I have to agree with this wholeheartedly speaking as both a long-time lurker and a recent new subscriber as of the latest group stream. Personally, I've always found it best when streamers briefly acknowledge a subscription instead of making a big spectacle out of it as things such as chanting/singing "You're a subscriber now!" can disrupt flow and train of thought despite being a nice gesture.
We are humans, it's understandable that we desire acknowledgement. You know they would get half as many gifts or less if they didn't open them on stream, and probably none if you couldn't tell them it was from you ¯\_(ツ_/¯
Wanna take that line of thinking a step too far? Why do people introduce themselves to the allies when they meet them during meetups or events
I don't mind the song when it's not repeated too often, or too loud, or interrupting something interesting. Pretty sure it was only acknowledged this week due to how bad it was during the diorama stream.
It's definitely a nice feeling to get a shout-out here and there for something you did even if it's not the reward in itself. The subscriber song is awesome, but I seriously think it shouldn't be done, let alone constantly, during an active stream just because it can be so damaging to the actual content especially in group steams which rely heavily on the interactions of said streamers.
There has been many instances where some folks get passed over and others get the full treatment due to the situation which can be disappointing to folks looking to get that response. I was actually one of the people who got passed over during the last group stream, but I understood the circumstance while others were not as understanding going by the chat at the time.
Having all subscriptions acknowledged briefly or at the end of a steam avoids that potential for disappointment all the while benefiting the streamers themselves by avoiding the issue where some feel they have to drop what they're doing or saying to address a subscription.
Usually these kind of things never bother me or I hardly notice them but the recent "you know" infection spreading around Easy Allies members is making some of the content harder to get through. Adding "you know" at the end of every statement sentence is really irking me for some reason, Ian was the main offender of this and it got a bit bad during the beginning portion the recent Frame Trap episode with Huber/Ben. is it a cali thing? Seems like just a bad habit that they're not even aware of.
I appreciate Kyle trying to cull the "like" use a little during this weeks' podcast, should just have the ticket level up once more and add "you know" in there too when Huber/Ian are on next week.
Really liked the changed up format of Frame Trap, I think it greatly helped the discussion when several people had played the game.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
why dont you take the money youre spending on obscure manga and just donate it to them? seriously, i bet theyd appreciate the money more. posters dont pay bills.
more over, its funny to me that people dont want subscriptions or donations acknowledged on air but are perfectly fine with hours and hours of present opening a month.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
I'm not against presents as it's an amazing feeling for both the giver and receiver, but I do believe that's another thing they need to either push back to the end of the stream or make a separate video for. As it is now, it's just giving a bad impression to folks who are either new to Easy Allies or don't agree with the concept of gift giving such as yourself.
I don't think it's very fair to label the presents as a "bunch of useless shit" though as the majority of them look to have a lot of care attached and cater to the allies' interests who, in turn, often show great pleasure in receiving them.
Tangible cash is definitely supportive, but it removes a certain element of that community aspect for many. At the end of the day, if you feel that you must donate money, it's just better to support them on Patreon at a pledge level appropriate to your budget rather than go through other third parties such as PayPal and/or similar companies.
why dont you take the money youre spending on obscure manga and just donate it to them? seriously, i bet theyd appreciate the money more. posters dont pay bills.
more over, its funny to me that people dont want subscriptions or donations acknowledged on air but are perfectly fine with hours and hours of present opening a month.
Money isn't really capable of conveying the same amount of appreciation and compassion you have for a person let alone a group. I don't believe you'll find many folks, if any, who agree with gift opening taking a large portion of stream time but are opposed to the constant use of the subscriber song. They both need to be evaluated and changed from the current format due to the issues being presented here, Patreon, and on Twitch chat.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
1. I don't mind the present opening
2. I don't mind the subscriber song
I know y'all have been on the edge of your seats about this, well now you are in suspense no longer!
PS: The "automata" mispronunciation thing for Nier Automata is going to drive me nuts. This is an obscure word to most people I suppose, but in CS we, uh, use it sometimes.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
Hah, wow, coming in strong. I'm all for them getting gifts and whatnot, but think they'd be better acknowledged in a separate video similar to like how Giant Bomb does their mailbag videos especially if they're going to continue receiving so many of them. But whatever, if people want to give them money or gifts, that's awesome. Only thing slightly worrying is the sheer amount of anime I'm sure they're going to receive and as someone who doesn't like anime (it's ok if you do like anime), i'm worried we're going to lose a few of them going down that deep, dark path of an endless amount of anime.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
At least they are not insulting random people who are by the way also happen to be part of this thread-community. I very much hope you are alone in this... Yikes.
why dont you take the money youre spending on obscure manga and just donate it to them? seriously, i bet theyd appreciate the money more. posters dont pay bills.
more over, its funny to me that people dont want subscriptions or donations acknowledged on air but are perfectly fine with hours and hours of present opening a month.
Their fans took their time and money to buy them gifts they thought they would appreciate. I pretty sure the allies are grateful and if the ever felt that way about gifts the way you seem too I wouldn't be a paying subscriber anymore
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
I like the gift opening stuff to be honest. If they are playing a game I don't really care for I usually game myself during the podcast, but when the gift opening part is up, I pause my game to watch it.
It's just fans wanting to give them something back for enjoyment they give us and them wanting to acknowledge the fans who are giving them these presents (which is a normal thing to do imo). I don't see anything wrong with that. If you don't like watching it, just skip through that part on Youtube or something. Also, I am indeed not the biggest fan of the subscriber song, but I do see it as a necessary evil to get them more subs (as apparently a lot of people like it). I don't have a problem with the donations themselves, why would anybody have a problem with that. I also don't have a problem with them acknowledging the people who donate as it is a nice incentive for a lot of people to do so, I just am not the biggest fan of them screaming in my ear each time somebody subscribes.
But again, I see it as a necessary evil, so it's all good. Btw, I also don't feel they should change something just because I don't like it. They should do what they think/feel is best.
I am also quite sure that almost all of the people who are splurging on those gifts are also Patreon backers.
I like the gift opening stuff to be honest. If they are playing a game I don't really care for I usually game myself during the podcast, but when the gift opening part is up, I pause my game to watch it.
Regarding the game selections, I do think it'd be smart for them to decide on a fall back game (like Overcooked) for the stream if it becomes apparent that the group or chat aren't really feeling what's being played (like with the Power Rangers game the other week).
We're all archaic for still using forums to discuss a videogame website. I think we're just too old fashioned for the Twitch culture that EZA chat seems to want. That's OK, I still enjoy a lot of their stuff and the group streams are still great when they play the right game.
IMO the group streams are pretty fucking shit now.
not even touching the shitty games they list to stream. my biggest gripe is the present opening. you guys have an issue with EZA recognising people supporting them financially on twitch but not with them opening up presents? presents are a complete waste of money that could be better used to support EZA. what has more utility to an ally trying to pay their bills: a batman poster or a $50 donation? for some reason the EZA community is against donations or more over, acknowledging donations. but its perfectly fine for some random cunt to keep buying pointless shit just so he can get his sycophantic message read on air. for me its no different. its just people spending money on unnecessary gifts so they can get some sort of acknowledgment on stream.
seriously, i watched a stream the other week and there was present opening that went over an hour. it was fucking gross. a bunch of useless shit for the guys. the sentiment is nice but shit, at a certain point its way over the top. why cant they just read letters? why does there need to be a 'gift' attached to it? how many obscure posters and books do they need? at the least, donate the money you wouldve spent so they can actually use it as opposed to worthless consumerism shit.
last week was an hour of presents. this week 45 minutes. i'll be generous and say its 30 minutes a week. thats 26 hours of present opening a year. honestly, at a certain point, it does become 'useless'. i appreciate the sentiment and it was cool at first but cmon. after a year of this shit, how many posters and trinkets do they need? i'd be more impressed with 1/2 an hour of hand made shit that actually means something as opposed to just more "stuff" that i guarantee a lot of will never get used. i know they appreciate it but do they appreciate as much as money at this point? i'd rather see the creativity of allies and a donation that actually has some use. as it is, its just watching pure consumerism for nearly an hour each week. after 26 hours, its gross IMO. sorry if i hurt anyones feelings. i wouldnt have said anything but you guys were discussing where or not to acknowledge someone actually contributing money to them meanwhile if you buy them a poster and a keyring you can get a whole group shout out.
Obviously there are elements to your argument that don't really depend on figures, but I don't understand why people feel the need to exaggerate a problem to prove a point. Last week had a huge pile to get through, but this week presents were 24 minutes. During Power Rangers, presents took 8 minutes. I don't think we even had any during Pokemon Snap, and for Crazy Taxi, it was done in about two minutes.
If you haven't seen Cup of Jones, Brandon did discuss it some, but you have to understand that different people have different ways of expressing appreciation. Some people don't care at all about gifts (giving or receiving) while others find a great deal of joy in a personal and thoughtful present.
I honestly do worry sometimes about the potential of looking ungrateful if I end up getting something I don't like or simply don't have room for. Likewise, if presents really did take up half of our time every week, we might need to handle them differently, but neither is a real problem so far.
I like the gift opening stuff to be honest. If they are playing a game I don't really care for I usually game myself during the podcast, but when the gift opening part is up, I pause my game to watch it.
It's just fans wanting to give them something back for enjoyment they give us and them wanting to acknowledge the fans who are giving them these presents (which is a normal thing to do imo). I don't see anything wrong with that. If you don't like watching it, just skip through that part on Youtube or something. Also, I am indeed not the biggest fan of the subscriber song, but I do see it as a necessary evil to get them more subs (as apparently a lot of people like it). I don't have a problem with the donations themselves, why would anybody have a problem with that. I also don't have a problem with them acknowledging the people who donate as it is a nice incentive for a lot of people to do so, I just am not the biggest fan of them screaming in my ear each time somebody subscribes.
But again, I see it as a necessary evil, so it's all good. Btw, I also don't feel they should change something just because I don't like it. They should do what they think/feel is best.
I am also quite sure that almost all of the people who are splurging on those gifts are also Patreon backers.
I'll admit that there's been a couple group streams where the opening of gifts has been both a welcome change and the highlight; however, I also do have to agree that lately it's been a bit too much of a time sink. I still want to see them do it, but it would likely be best to reserve them until the end or do a separate showcase video for the more extreme cases.
The subscriber song in itself is fantastic; however, its use seems to be far too frequent when it could instead be used as a catch-all at the end of every respective stream. A good example could be one where they read a list of the subscribers for the day after doing the bit regarding Patreon and their funding situation and then closing it off with a nice grand gesture of "You're all subscribers now!"
Acknowledging subscribers shouldn't ever change but it gets to the point where instant reactions and/or the singing kills the flow, train of thought, or even mood at any given moment. There's been instances where a discussion or conversation piece is just dropped because they couldn't recall what was just said or what they were going to go with after reacting to a stream of subscription notices.
last week was an hour of presents. this week 45 minutes. i'll be generous and say its 30 minutes a week. thats 26 hours of present opening a year. honestly, at a certain point, it does become 'useless'. i appreciate the sentiment and it was cool at first but cmon. after a year of this shit, how many posters and trinkets do they need? i'd be more impressed with 1/2 an hour of hand made shit that actually means something as opposed to just more "stuff" that i guarantee a lot of will never get used. i know they appreciate it but do they appreciate as much as money at this point? i'd rather see the creativity of allies and a donation that actually has some use. as it is, its just watching pure consumerism for nearly an hour each week. after 26 hours, its gross IMO. sorry if i hurt anyones feelings. i wouldnt have said anything but you guys were discussing where or not to acknowledge someone actually contributing money to them meanwhile if you buy them a poster and a keyring you can get a whole group shout out.
While receiving money is certainly more practical, it's not something that should be encouraged let alone over heartfelt gifts or letters. It's one thing to mention their Patreon, but it's entirely another matter to ask for donations straight-up. I have to agree with Blackleg-sanji1 that if an ally ever reacted to a gift with disdain or stated something along the lines of preferring cash, I wouldn't support them any longer outright.
Some people may only want the recognition that comes with gift giving; however, that's more of the exception rather than the rule. It's a lot harder to acknowledge someone for their monetary contributions simply due to the fact that it generally gives off the wrong impression. Not everyone has the ability to devote a chunk of their income whereas it's easier to send a physical item they may already have lying around, can make themselves, or can acquire at very little cost.
_/¯ 
