[iOS App] Introducing GBTV - A new Giant Bomb video app for iOS

Hello!

I've been working on a small project since 2016, and it's about time to let all you lovely duders know about it.

Say hello to GBTV!

Why am I making this? Well, I've been using the Video Buddy app for years, and I've loved using it, but it was beginning to fall behind in terms of iOS feature support, and Giant Bomb video shows (sorry soup_menu!). Over winter, I got some ideas for how I would have a GB video app work, so I started to make the app, having no idea if I would ever release it, but here it is!

Features:

Subscribe to your favourite shows!

Get a push notification when a new video is posted in your favourite shows.

Download your favourite shows!

Download any episode of any show, and watch them offline.

Picture-In-Picture (iPad only)

Watch your favourite videos whilst doing other stuff!

Sync playback position between giantbomb.com and your Apple devices!

Never lose your place again on any video.

Works on iPhone, iPad and Apple TV

One App Store download gets you the app on all your devices, with your initial set up synced using iCloud.

Why should I use this app instead of Video Buddy/Burger/QLCrew/Giantbomb.com etc?

Hopefully, some of the features I've added appeal to you. However, all those places are still great places to get your GB fix, and all of them offer some features my app does not (yet) have. I just hope to offer my own take on this sort of thing.

Screenshots:

iPhone:

iPad:

Apple TV:

What About Android Support?

In a previous life, I was an Android developer, but it's been a long time since I have done any large scale Android development, so I have no plans for an Android app so far. These plans may change though (especially if you hassle me enough about it :x)

Special thanks to @soup_menu, @wcarle and @frobie. This app would never have got off the ground without your hard work and advice.

Thanks, and I hope you enjoy GBTV!

GBTV on The App Store

@scott-r: Looks great duder! Keep up the good work!

Thanks to everyone who has agreed to help test the app so far. The first alpha is now available for testers, which supports video subscriptions + notifications, video playback and browsing. There are still plenty of spaces for more testers, I've already had a lot of great feedback, so all voices welcome!

This seems really great! Can't wait to try it.

Looking forward to it! I would volunteer to test but I have no idea what TestFlight even is.

Alright! So after a month or so of alpha development, I think the app is ready for beta! I've updated the screenshots and things to show off some of the new UI

Am I correct in thinking a lot of people would enjoy the option to download videos? I had some other features planned first, but I think a lot of people would like that?

Let me know!

Video downloads now supported. Watch your videos offline!

I would love to download this app! Will you be syncing between the app and the website? I'm currently using the video buddy app and the progress I have been making on my phone hasn't been tracked on the website. Would be an awesome feature.

Well, I massively missed my own Summer 2017 deadline, but the app is now available on the App Store! You can download it from here. I think the CDNs are still catching up so it might not appear for a few more hours in the App Store search results, but it's there!

Yep, all position syncing is done using giantbomb.com's API, so any video you watch on device, will be synced with the website, and vice versa :)

Been involved with testing this app; it's awesome. The only bug I've found was the app would crash if you were to search for a video. Seems like its been fixed

The app is beautiful! Thank you so much for all the good work.

Are you considering adding Chromecast support?

Nice to see it finally getting to 1.0 and being released on the app store! Also helped beta test this and it was really slick and nice. After I downloaded it from the app store, I guess it remember my settings since it didn't ask me to link my account again.

Oh man, the 11.0 requirement prevents me from getting it. I'm on 10.3. I could update but I'm holding out for a jailbreak.

Scott noticing a bug on my iPad Mini 2

Downloaded videos will not play unless you are connected to wifi. Otherwise, hitting play will cause a crash to home screen.

@polly: Thank you! That's very kind of you to say ?

@lordrenrew: Chromecast support on the to-do list, but I can't say when it will happen.

@wchigo: Thanks for your help in testing! Settings sync via iCloud, so all your devices will magically log in

@zero_: Sorry! If it helps any, I'm not planning on moving from 11.0 minimum any time soon, so hopefully there will be a public jailbreak soon for that.

@wonderva:That's a good catch! Found and fixed the bug, an update will be out in a few days, pending Apple approval.

@scott-r: it’s a great app! Thanks for the response!

Is it on the Apple TV too? I don’t see it in that App Store. Thanks.

@lebkin: Sorry, I should have said this in my original post. The Apple TV app is delayed a bit while I work on some performance issues, so not yet available sorry!

@scott-r: Glad it wasn't me being an idiot and missing the app. I look forward to getting it on the Apple TV as well! Thanks for all the hard work.

Well done on the app. I look forward to when you add Chromecast support.

@Scott-R, Dude thanks for this app and excellent it’s got iPhone X support from 1.0! Works like a charm.

@scott-r: Getting a video with Jeff's voice saying "this is an error message". Can't seem to log out and reauthenticate.

@marokazam: Thanks!

@penguin21189: Not sure why you might be getting the error video, but yes the next update will have a logout button to reset your credentials.

V1.0 is now live! This version includes a logout button, so if you’ve been running into the unauthenticated Jeff video, try logging out and logging back in.

The app also now includes an email feedback feature, and an App Store review button.

I’m not getting any syncing of progress between the app and Giantbomb.com. The app always starts each video at the beginning. I tried logging out and back in. I also deleted the app and reinstalled. No change. Is there a setting I’m missing?

@lebkin: You haven't missed anything! There's a bug with the video syncing stuff. It'll be fixed in the next update, which should be out in the next few days.

Also, just a small heads up, the Giant Bomb API currently has an issue where it will not send any info about shows, so you currently will not be able to browse old episodes of shows. Hopefully they can resolve that issue soon

I’ve just released v1.1 to the App Store. This version should fix video syncing, and a couple of other bugs.

It also adds support for watching live streams! If a stream is live on Giant Bomb, you’ll see a banner for it at the top of the screen. Just tap the banner to watch the stream in progress!

Very excited to have an alternative to Video Buddy and Burger. Looking forward to Chromecast support!

Love the progress syncing. The app is working great on my phone. Can't wait to see it on my Apple TV too. Thanks for all the work!

This is great. Been having issues with Video Buddy lately and had to resort to watching through Safari. Thanks for your hard work.

Holy crap, I’m so glad I stumbled upon this. iPhone X support!! Can’t wait to check it out over the next few days

Any updates on the Apple TV version?

@jawesome87: I've been working on it for the last few weeks, but I'm still not happy with the performance and usability of it I'm afraid. It is getting better over time, but still not in a condition I would like to ship it in.

For the mean time, there is an app called Giant Bomb Videos, which is available for Apple TV. I've used it a bit and I like it!

@espiox:Thanks! I am too when I finish it!

@lebkin: Thank you :)

@matticus: It was Video Buddy falling behind in feature support that made me write this app, so glad it's helping someone else out too!

@jaklap: Haha you are welcome! I own an iPhone X so you can be sure everything will be made to work on it ;)

For everyone else, I've just pressed the big red button and released v1.1.1 to The App Store. It's mostly just some bug fixes, with some prep work for the Apple TV version (but ATV app is still not ready sorry!). I've had a couple of notes from people, saying that video downloads occasionally get stuck on "Waiting...", and they never seem to complete. If anyone has suffered this issue, can you please try out this version, and let me know if you suffer the same problem? I think I found what the bug was, but I'm not 100% if I've managed to fix it, so feedback would be appreciated.

Hope everyone is enjoying the app!

Really love the app! I wanted to ask if there is currently and issue with the search feature. I remember there being one before but the search button is no longer there.

Well then mission accomplished. BTW, I'm switching to Android soon. Since this is iOS only, do you or anyone else have a good Android alternative to recommend? Thanks.

Really liking GBTV on iPhone and iPad. Video watching performance is great and feels a lot like the “missing” giant bomb app. I’d love to see it on AppleTV to complete the setup for me.

Maybe Im just an idiot, but when I watch a stream live, I cant figure out for the life of me how to back out of it without just closing the app and reopening it again. Im new to IOS so maybe Im just missing something. @scott-r how do I back out of a live stream. Thanks. Love the app. Im on the 2018 9.7 inch Ipad.

@mondono5: Search was there in the betas (and the search icon is still in the screenshots here whoops...) but I was never really happy with how it worked, so I took it out for v1.0. I'm still chipping away at this feature though. I almost didn't release the app because I wanted to finish search first, so it is important to me, it's just taking some time. Sorry :(

@matticus: I don't have any personal recommendations I'm afraid, but perhaps Video Bomb will be a good fit? I have never used it but it looks ace!

@notryan: No pressure on me then ;) Don't worry, it is coming!

@daltimond: Oh that's a bad bug! I could have sworn I had fixed that, but maybe not! On iPad, the video should be on the right hand side, and not the left, which is why there is no back button! I'll get a bug fix out ASAP! Sorry about that!

To anyone else who is still seeing issue downloading videos, specifically, where they always say "Waiting..." try plugging your device on to charge, and see if the downloads resume. The app tries to preserve your battery life by only downloading videos when there is still plenty of charge, and your phone is not backing up or syncing or anything, but I think it is a bit too aggressive in pausing the downloads. I'll tweak this feature in the next update to be less aggressive, but just so you all know.!

Does the app reliably play older videos? I current have to go to the site to watch particularly older videos on my current phone/app. Getting my iphone replaced soon after months of android hell and considering this app over Buddy for the newer features and support.

And maybe add an option to disable the battery based download block.

@scott-r: thanks for the info! I have been using since it was in beta so the change around 1.0 makes sense. Looking forward to future updates!