I wish to present something to the Giant Bomb community. I am wondering if it is time to revisit the meaning of "Pulled a Brad".

Now wait...hear me out. I'd like to direct your attention to the Twitters of one Will Smith and one Gary Whitta:

@garywhitta Up til 3:15am clearing 50 waves of Horde w/ willsmithVinnyCaravellabradshoemakerdrewscanlon Brad soloed a Brumak! soawesomesotired

@garywhitta willsmithbradshoemaker it was legendary, wish the game had a record highlights feature! So many great moments. Brad is my new gaming hero

@willsmith garywhittabradshoemaker solo'd a level Brumak (was it the level 30 or 40 one?) was one of the more impressive things I've ever seen.

I wish to present something to the Giant Bomb community. I am wondering if it is time to revisit the meaning of "Pulled a Brad".

Now wait...hear me out. I'd like to direct your attention to the Twitters of one Will Smith and one Gary Whitta:

@garywhitta Up til 3:15am clearing 50 waves of Horde w/ willsmithVinnyCaravellabradshoemakerdrewscanlon Brad soloed a Brumak! soawesomesotired

@garywhitta willsmithbradshoemaker it was legendary, wish the game had a record highlights feature! So many great moments. Brad is my new gaming hero

@willsmith garywhittabradshoemaker solo'd a level Brumak (was it the level 30 or 40 one?) was one of the more impressive things I've ever seen.

That type of badassery is hard to ignore. What say you, Giant Bomb? Is it time for a change?

Never forget. 25/8/11

But no it's been proven with his starcraft 2 A-game that Brad can and has excelled in certain types of gamage. He sucks much often than not, though, (and embarrassingly so in a lot of cases) so I vote it stands for the same meaning it always has.

this doesn't change anything

One instance of Brad doing something right in a video game as opposed to hours of recorded footage of him stumbling around at the simplest things? No.

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

*Requisite post about Brad being a much better gamer when he isn't recording a quick look*

As amazing as this surely was, the Crates situation from the Ocarina of Time 3D quicklook prevents this from changing anything significant. If anything, this only just barely balances out that single instance.

Damn. I thought it was the REAL Will Smith. I don't care anymore.

Maybe someone should watch the Deadly Premonition endurance run.

@Abyssfull said

He sucks much often than not, though, (and embarrassingly so in a lot of cases)

There is no such thing as being "embarrassingly" bad at a video game.

We're all good and bad at different games. Brad has shown on numerous occasions he is really good at Starcraft 2, and remember Q3? He was the top of the leaderboard the whole TNT. Me? I suck at both of these games.

@Metal_Mills said:

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

The Super Mario Wii QL is at least a great example for the ''Pulling a Brad'' concept being put under a friendlier light; Ryan with all of his e-bullying of Brad, killing him in mere seconds of the QL, is what made for a lot of humour for it. <3

@stise said:

@Abyssfull said

He sucks much often than not, though, (and embarrassingly so in a lot of cases)

There is no such thing as being "embarrassingly" bad at a video game.

Brad sometimes failing to grasp the most common of gameplay mechanics for some games is what I'd label as ''embarrassingly bad''.

I've always maintained that it's never been a question of Brad's gaming ability; it's how long he lets his avatar/servant/minion live.

@Abyssfull said:

@stise said:

@Abyssfull said

He sucks much often than not, though, (and embarrassingly so in a lot of cases)

There is no such thing as being "embarrassingly" bad at a video game.

Brad sometimes failing to grasp the most common of gameplay mechanics for some games is what I'd label as ''embarrassingly bad''.

See, I disagree. If it were up to me, I'd forget everything about every game I'd ever played before playing a new one. I remember playing games as a kid and just running around not knowing or caring what I'm supposed to be doing, having emergent fun with my independent discoveries. Sometimes it was frustrating, sometimes it was due to the game's lack of explanation, sometimes it was my own inattentiveness, but it never mattered in any case. I envy that Brad is still somewhat able to play games that way.

@stise: Yeah, but you're not an actual game-critic, who's job is to infer to the viewer how particular games can handle and such. Plus going into games cold isn't the problem, it can provide humour and give you a fresh look as you follow them through learning the games mechanics and ropes, it's the times when he can be a little slow to catch on with certain things when it becomes frustrating. Especially with games that are deemed ''crazy, weird or insane'' ect. over the basis that he couldn't work out how to play the game.

But anywhoo I don't want to turn this into some Brad-Hatin' thread... Brad is actually my favourite of the main four, despite what my comments in here may of suggested... But yo, pulling a Brad was coined for a reason and the reason still stands to this day.

Yeah, Gary Whitta and Will Smith, those icons of hardcore video game skill. Clearly Brad is the most hardcore gamer alive if those two think he's good.

@gladspooky said:

Yeah, Gary Whitta and Will Smith, those icons of hardcore video game skill. Clearly Brad is the most hardcore gamer alive if those two think he's good.

Ah but Brad wasn't playing against them. Horde mode, dog. Co-op. Their skill has nothing to do with Brad taking down a Brumak by himself. They just witnessed it. Your sarcastic reply has been rendered ineffectual.

This went about how I figured it would. The main thing to take from this is Brad's still awesome.

This just makes the classic definition of "pulling a Brad" even funnier.

• Diamond League in SC2
• Can solo a Brumak
• Can't figure out these movement controls

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

NOTHING CHANGES!

Besides, "Pulled a Brad" is universally accepted. It's like trying to change the meaning of "ok".

@Ravenlight said:

This just makes the classic definition of "pulling a Brad" even funnier.

• Diamond League in SC2
• Can solo a Brumak
• Can't figure out these movement controls

Yup!

@Metal_Mills said:

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

I agree with this, people suck.

@TheSouthernDandy said:

@gladspooky said:

Yeah, Gary Whitta and Will Smith, those icons of hardcore video game skill. Clearly Brad is the most hardcore gamer alive if those two think he's good.

Ah but Brad wasn't playing against them. Horde mode, dog. Co-op. Their skill has nothing to do with Brad taking down a Brumak by himself. They just witnessed it. Your sarcastic reply has been rendered ineffectual.

This went about how I figured it would. The main thing to take from this is Brad's still awesome.

"If those two think he's good." Do try to keep up.

Brad does not suck so much as he is namby pamby

Rebuttal: Shadow of the Colossus quick look.

@Metal_Mills said:

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

I agree with this, people suck.

I pulled a Brad last night... if ya know what I'm sayin'...  

@gladspooky said:

@TheSouthernDandy said:

@gladspooky said:

Yeah, Gary Whitta and Will Smith, those icons of hardcore video game skill. Clearly Brad is the most hardcore gamer alive if those two think he's good.

Ah but Brad wasn't playing against them. Horde mode, dog. Co-op. Their skill has nothing to do with Brad taking down a Brumak by himself. They just witnessed it. Your sarcastic reply has been rendered ineffectual.

This went about how I figured it would. The main thing to take from this is Brad's still awesome.

"If those two think he's good." Do try to keep up.

No I got that. Again, my point was, as follows. Brad. Brumak. Brad kills Brumak by himself. That's awesome and not easy. The guys what witnessed it is beside the point. My reason for making this ridiculous poll was what Brad DID. Brad. Just him. By himself.

Brumak is leaving?

Clearly this was all due to Gary Whitta's cunning master plan of "kill that thing", that is the only reason Brad was able to pull off such an amazing feat. When you have a man with a brilliant strategic mind such as his to lead you through the fog of war, any encounter on the battlefield has already been decided.

@Metal_Mills said:

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

I think it turned to hateful rage for a reason. It used to be that Brad would die hilariously quickly like the New Super Mario Bros. Wii QL, or there were variants like the QL for Resident Evil 5 DLC where Brad got too flustered to ever actually fire his gun, so he kept just running from one end of the area to another, evading the enemies and making zero progress.

But it's understandably frustrating when, in some recent QLs, Brad is more confident in his completely bad moments, not even acknowledging he is the one fucking up. There's the infamous SotC Quick Look, where he thinks the game isn't properly accepting his inputs, instead of the more reasonable conclusion of "I haven't played this game for years, I'm probably forgetting how the controls work". Similarly, in the recent Resident Evil 4 HD QL, he tries to do a puzzle by the church, by skipping past the on-screen clue and dismissing Vinny's COMPLETELY CORRECT suggestion, because he totally remembers how to do it. Then he sits there and completely fails for a minute or two because he is mistaking it for a completely different puzzle.

I know no one is perfect, but the other Giant Bomb guys tend to own up to their faults, or admit that they don't yet understand the full extent of the gameplay. Brad tends to just go "Come on!", as if he's awesome but the game is cheating him.

@Metal_Mills said:

Pulling a Brad used to be fun. Then people turned it into hateful rage. It's ruined and should be buried now.

I think it turned to hateful rage for a reason. It used to be that Brad would die hilariously quickly like the New Super Mario Bros. Wii QL, or there were variants like the QL for Resident Evil 5 DLC where Brad got too flustered to ever actually fire his gun, so he kept just running from one end of the area to another, evading the enemies and making zero progress.

But it's understandably frustrating when, in some recent QLs, Brad is more confident in his completely bad moments, not even acknowledging he is the one fucking up. There's the infamous SotC Quick Look, where he thinks the game isn't properly accepting his inputs, instead of the more reasonable conclusion of "I haven't played this game for years, I'm probably forgetting how the controls work". Similarly, in the recent Resident Evil 4 HD QL, he tries to do a puzzle by the church, by skipping past the on-screen clue and dismissing Vinny's COMPLETELY CORRECT suggestion, because he totally remembers how to do it. Then he sits there and completely fails for a minute or two because he is mistaking it for a completely different puzzle.

I know no one is perfect, but the other Giant Bomb guys tend to own up to their faults, or admit that they don't yet understand the full extent of the gameplay. Brad tends to just go "Come on!", as if he's awesome but the game is cheating him.