Jar Time w/ Jeff: Some Guy With Some... Jar? Who Would Watch That? - 01/25/2012

ahhh good old points report.... i mean  JAR VIDEO! 

Hilarious Jeff is hilarious!

@Brenderous said:

These videos are always so interesting and insightful. Definitely one of my favorite pieces of premium content.

I could listen to Jeff talk about video games for hours.

Agreed. Jeff's true insightfulness really only seems to show when he's by himself like this, though. Some moments of NDX were a similar situation.

Good talk. I am right there with ya on the exciting times for content consumption. I think I watch more Giant Bomb video content than any other network.

Jeff is so smart and funny, jar time is the best time

Ending was great. One day, the internet will be so advanced that I can watch this video, reach inside and pet that Dig Dug toy in the background.

these are the reason i finally bought into premium.

Another good one. I don't know how Jeff does these monologues

Not just who would watch this.. who would pay for it? The answer: Us.

Really like this feature.

Apple plays the silent treatment game they do because they know that if you release too many details a ton of people won't buy manufactured product, they'll wait for the next hyped product.

In fact, it's possible that release a disappointing spec product is a good long term strategy, because then people are more likely to go "Well, I might as well just buy the current one, cuz the next one ain't gunna be that much better"

Love when Jeff gives his life advice!

I think Jeff is right that at one point video games were diverging into multiple audiences, but I think production costs have led to a converging. The big expensive titles are taking fewer risks than ever, there are even companies totally dedicated to just cloning success. And their late 2011 game coverage backs that up, they kept saying "This game is really well made, but it's just.. nothing new.. nothing exciting.." It's the same things we've been saying about Hollywood for awhile.

I think this is why the indie scene is seeing a huge resurgence, there's room for small developers again now that big developers have to make these behemoth lowest common denominator games, the divergence is now all on the edge.

the awkward grin at the end cracked me up

I can't picture any of them getting out of the hardware game, they are all in it for hardware reasons. Microsoft and Sony want an entertainment hub in the living room that is their walled garden, they're willing to sacrifice to keep their foot in that door, and they are competing asymmetrically in different markets. Nintendo is a hardware company, they make games to sell hardware.

If anything, I think that Apple is going to enter the space and complicate things worse. The first Apple TV was a bit of a flop, but I think Apple will try again, and now they are actually a gaming platform force. Apple and Nintendo have the most in common, their software drives their hardware sales.

That last question/answer really blew me away Jeff. The passion you show for your business is inspiring man. Jars of Wrath!

When he talks about adult paperboys, I think he may not be aware that those dudes in the 90s, at least where I came from, were often drug dealers. Paper routes created a good cover for delivering drugs.

jeff w/jars is the main reason why i signed up for a premium membership.

is there a way to get this audio only so i can listen to it on the train?

@bemusedchunk said:

jeff w/jars is the main reason why i signed up for a premium membership.

is there a way to get this audio only so i can listen to it on the train?

download it and convert the file to a .wav or .mp3 using a free file converting program.

Got something to watch, while I eat breakfast. :D

love it

Thanks for new content, jeff

Apple have so many rumors surrounding their products they don't need to market their products to much. It's not that much different from what game companies advertise their products, it's just Apple don't announce a title to far in advance.

Yes!

@AxleFGK: i figured that was my only way. thanks for confirming!

@liquidsword said:

I really liked this jar time. At the end when he is talking about how this is a great time to be living was actually inspiring. It's awesome to see anyone that happy about their work.

Yeah, I totally agree. It's easy to look at Giant Bomb and see a website filled with dumb funny videos, but at the end of the day, @Jeff and the gang are truly shaping the way that video game-related content is created and shared on the internet.

Before Giant Bomb, I'd occasionally visit Gamespot, IGN and Kotaku for text reviews, and I'd go to Gametrailers for video reviews. I took no real notice of the names of the people writing the reviews, I just read the text and looked at the score. I signed up to the site before it was up simply to see what it was all about (they did this pre-sign-up thing where you could make an account before the site was done or something like that, I don't remember the details), and watching the site grow into what it is now has been astounding. You simply cannot deny that Giant Bomb has directly influenced the amount of video we see on other video game sites nowadays, and that in itself is pretty amazing. Go to some other sites and see how many of them are doing their own Quick Looks, and there's a couple that are even doing regular live shows now.

Not only that, but back then, there was absolutely no way in hell I'd ever subscribe to a website. I always thought the idea was ridiculous for the money they were asking (the one I remember was IGN, and I saw no value in that at all), but Giant Bomb comes along and just does it right. From the beginning it has been about the personalities of the staff that matters. They cover the games they want and in the way they want to do it, and people responded by embracing them. Simply by being true to what they know and what they believe in, they've gathered a massive fanbase and are setting trends in the way we all get our hands on video game-related content.

Seeing Jeff talk about how it's an exciting time for all this stuff and about how we're all going to live to see how it's going to change... it really is something to think about. I don't mean for this to sound all pathetic and gushy or anything like that, but I simply want to thank Giant Bomb for being here. I've learned so much about games and the industry through the discussions on the podcast and everything else, and being alongside such an awesome group of guys on the site - as well as a great community - is the most exciting thing of all. We're going to see media change together, and as Jeff said at the end, it's pretty exciting.

Great watch with unique insights as always Jeff!

i was actually one of those kids that played everything, and i mean literally everything.. have like a 200+ game collection for the PS2

Newspaper hater! There's nothing wrong with old school 'news intake' via the medium of paper. Is it the fastest, most direct and 'logical' way to stay informed? No, paper's a preference. I like to believe we're living in a world in which 'convenience' does not necessarily mean 'digital'.

Apart from that, GREAT episode! I really do believe GB's among the pioneers of a new approach to content/access/community.

Oh and keep them Jar Times comin'

I love the optimism and vision. Also jar.

I want this as a podcast.

@Jeff about the Hall of Fame thingy: I really love Terranigma on the SNES which has some hardcore fans in Australia and Europe - unfortunately it was never released in the US. The game was about a character who has to rebuild the world, develop cities, and who helps making the most important inventions of the world (airplanes, electricity, cameras...) It's the one game I wanted to see on GiantBomb since you guys started. I really want people on GiantBomb to know about that game, especially because you run a website in the US. It also featured a great soundtrack and you could talk to animals, fly an airplane, maneuver your own ship, buy your own apartment and furniture. Please, please, please show this game :-)

Apparently Jeff thinks that going to a torrent site and just downloading whatever you want is a huge hassle and very time consuming. I bet the record companies love hearing that sort of misinformed bullshit. :D

After some great moments on the Bombcast this week 2012-01-24 episode, I was feeling like I needed some more Jeff, and here he is. I love the world of everything Jeff; tiger-gatorade, NDX, and Jar-time.

Stranglehold huh?..I didn't know they banked theiir best resources and such..I have that game, never unwrapped it. Wanted to but doesn't ocurr. Now I know the narrower def. of triple A..except fpr variations in-company.

@Feigr

His point is not that downloading a torrent takes a great deal of time but that the whole torrent user lifestyle is one practiced by people that don't have jobs, or at least ones with very low responsibility. He doesn't want to say it, but he obviously finds piracy disgusting and believes that anyone practicing it has compromised on themselves in a major way. In his position, with his work, it would be a huge desertion of his responsibilities to commit piracy.

Really good set of questions and answers even in the context of this outstanding series. I'm still amazed how incredibly well done these continue to be and get legitimately excited every time I see a new one has been uploaded.

I'm glad you talked about your perspective on the whole old media/ digital distribution/ piracy mess. It's a complicated issue which makes the balanced and nuanced position presented here impressive. Some of the asinine discussion over on tested lately really got under my skin. That seemingly hipster/ rich motherfucker stance seemed like the reactionary equivalent to the piece-of-shit cave dweller feeling entitled to get absolutely every piece of content for free. I find both of these extremes to be swift ways to decrease the quality of content to abysmal levels.

Admittedly I'm most likely overly sensitive because so much content is region locked for me and comes month or years late in horribly localized, aka gimped, versions. But still, good on you for seeing the bigger picture. That level of insight explains the usually high quality of content here!

@jakkblades: i have ajob and a very good one at that...and i still torrent from time to time...

@jakkblades: Yes I am fully aware that regardless of what he thinks of piracy he has to project that image of himself, and for what it's worth I don't think that he's insincere, although a lot of other people in the business are.

It'a also a question of morals I think. I made a decision a long time ago to not have any morals because I felt that caring about people or things that didn't impact me in a direct way was a waste of time and energy. The ones that do feel the need to have opinions on those sorts of things though do get a lot of mileage out of the whole piracy thing and it's a very simple way to feel better than other people, just because you chose to pay for stuff. And if that's what people want to do then fine, I just think it's a bit funny that's all. :)

I love these video they are by far one of the best premium things on the site. It is always awesome to here Jeff view on this kinda stuff.

Man, these are awesome. Keep making them Jeff.

Too bad it's only available to subscribers. Everyone should benefit from hearing Jeff.

kinda sucks that you can't see the fallen over wii from this angle.

Great jar time as always.

Gerstmann you bastard.

cool and interesting stuff especially the end with your thoughts on "new media", media tech and advertising

@Feigr: I think it's more that there is no risk of going to Amazon and buying it. Plus you know exactly what you're getting. That's what he means by less hassle.

The beginning of this video is so damn meta

eat more foods with O-mega 3 you'll have a liitle bit more engergy.

@Baconator said:

Newspaper hater! There's nothing wrong with old school 'news intake' via the medium of paper. Is it the fastest, most direct and 'logical' way to stay informed? No, paper's a preference. I like to believe we're living in a world in which 'convenience' does not necessarily mean 'digital'.

Apart from that, GREAT episode! I really do believe GB's among the pioneers of a new approach to content/access/community.

Oh and keep them Jar Times comin'

By the time you read that newspaper that news is like 14 hours old. Stop living in the past grandpa!

Huh. I've had the complete opposite thing to internet dating. Only one bad date out of the bunch (and it was more funny than horrible) and the girl I'm going out with from the site is the girl that I'll marry. I liked it much better and found it easier than other, more tried and true forms of dating.

I couldn't really care less about my xbox account and gamerscore and what not. Ditto for playstation.

So I certaintly don't hope ms and sony are gonna rest on their laurels just because some people are rabid about that stuff and will buy anything that carries it forward.

@MediumDave said:

Huh. I've had the complete opposite thing to internet dating. Only one bad date out of the bunch (and it was more funny than horrible) and the girl I'm going out with from the site is the girl that I'll marry. I liked it much better and found it easier than other, more tried and true forms of dating.

I have to second this I had a great time online dating and met my now fiance' on okcupid.com