Idea for Game of the Year Podcasts

I'm sure this is something that takes more time than I could imagine, AND it'd be a lot of work for a feature that lasts once a year. But it'd be awesome.

For a high res image, click here.

Aside from the lack of Shop skills, let me know what you think!

It's an mp3 file and I know of no way to cut out specific sections of a streaming mp3 file.

@c0l0nelp0c0rn1 said:

It's an mp3 file and I know of no way to cut out specific sections of a streaming mp3 file.

Make it a series of MP3s that are individually downloaded based on the user's choices. I'm pretty sure I've seen the same applied to video on... um... certain video sites.

I know I'm not the only one that doesn't want to miss the 10+ hours of GotY podcasts just because they spoil one or two games I'm still in the middle of.

That's a ridiculous amount of work for a fairly minor reason. If you don't want the game spoiled, either finish that game, or skip ahead in the podcast

@MildMolasses said:

That's a ridiculous amount of work for a fairly minor reason. If you don't want the game spoiled, either finish that game, or skip ahead in the podcast

A good compromise would be to timestamp the discussion, but GB seems to take issue with doing that.

It'd be cool, but yeah, that ain't happening. The engineers seem to really be being put through the wringer right now, just trying to get out the site redesign alone.

@Andorski said:

@MildMolasses said:

That's a ridiculous amount of work for a fairly minor reason. If you don't want the game spoiled, either finish that game, or skip ahead in the podcast

A good compromise would be to timestamp the discussion, but GB seems to take issue with doing that.

I suppose this could work. Heck, a user could do this in the forums.

@fuzzybunny566 said:

wouldn't a list of games that you don't want spoiled on that particular podcast essentially spoil which games will be announced as nominees on said podcast?

I'm not worried about spoiling the awards so much as spoiling the games.

@MildMolasses said:

That's a ridiculous amount of work for a fairly minor reason. If you don't want the game spoiled, either finish that game, or skip ahead in the podcast

I can't buy games as soon as they come out and finish them immediately. I bought AC3 at a midnigh launch and have been to busy to finish it. I'm sure I'm not the only one too busy. Heck, Brad was complaining on the last podcast about them spoiling Mass Effect 3. And skipping ahead only works if you know when they'll stop talking about a game, which means you'd have to have the time stamp.

I know it's a lot of work, which I said up front. But it's a neat idea, maybe even something the community could collaborate on.

If I'm not going to play a game, like Black Ops or Halo 4, I still want to hear the guys talk. But it's also possible I'm overestimating how much people hate spoilers. If I'm alone on wanting a system like this, then never mind.

I think it's better to create a thread dedicated to GOTY podcasts and have users chime in about spoilers. Imagine having to do 2~3 hours discussion on games a day and note down all the spoilers as it happen, I think it might disrupt the flow.

I personally prefer a more heated discussion between the crew during GOTY podcast and it's impossible to have them unless they can openly discuss the whole game so I guess I am the I don't mind spoiler crowd :P.

just fastforward when they start getting into spoils about a game. solved

The staff at the site tend to use the podcasts as an excuse to actually talk about these things, the further bog down this discussion by having extra work onto what is essentially a nicety they provide wouldn't be fair to them or to us, would probably make things lamer. They are going to have this discussions anyways for their own purposes with doing the awards, the reason the podcasts exist is because they think it would be valuable for others to hear how these things go down, it's no more than that. What I'm saying is it's less about serving up specific content and more about 'hey it would be nice to turn the mics on while we do this part of our job we are going to do'.

Someone on the forums, maybe you even, can/should do this work (timestamping) if they feel it valuable to others. The staff at the site have more work to do than run through this shit just to make it situationally more convenient for a small portion of the people that would even listen in the first place, and a sub-set of those people that 1. Didn't finish X game 2. Think spoilers are a bad thing 3. Are grumps about it.

Here's the secret to all the endings in video games this year... Ancient Aliens.

Meh, they can spoil away. Know what happens in a game doesn't spoil it. It can actually be kind of cool, you might pick up on nuances in the story you might otherwise miss. Try to look past a few story beats and look at the game as a whole, and experience the journey. Knowing that a character dies in a game or resolution is performed by x task doesn't make or break a game. It's how you got there, and all the shit you go through beforehand.

Ryan has said numerous times over the past five years that he's just not going to do timestamping or splitting so...while this is a cool idea, I wouldn't hold your breath.

@Andorski said:

@MildMolasses said:

That's a ridiculous amount of work for a fairly minor reason. If you don't want the game spoiled, either finish that game, or skip ahead in the podcast

A good compromise would be to timestamp the discussion, but GB seems to take issue with doing that.

I agree, a timestamp would save a lot of trouble from jumping around. The only problem is that some games get talked about for almost the entire show (Saint's Row the Third or Skyrim).

Meh, they can spoil away. Know what happens in a game doesn't spoil it. It can actually be kind of cool, you might pick up on nuances in the story you might otherwise miss. Try to look past a few story beats and look at the game as a whole, and experience the journey. Knowing that a character dies in a game or resolution is performed by x task doesn't make or break a game. It's how you got there, and all the shit you go through beforehand.

Am I crazy? Are spoilers really that big a fucking deal?

I want it all spoiled. I don't care that much, as long as I know the reasoning behind their decisions. Game stories are inconsequential enough as it is.

The talk about the games would have to be too compartmentalized for this to work. I'm with you in spirit though as I have some stuff like Spec Ops to finish with games still being played. If you listen to the GOTY podcasts everything is fair game, that's just how it is.

@HistoryInRust said:

Am I crazy? Are spoilers really that big a fucking deal?

Uh if you care about finding out about something on your own, yes. People who have different opinions than you do are not crazy, it turns out.

I've been trying to understand Ryan's aversion to using time stamps on the podcast, and I think I got it (although it's still kind of lame). The Bombcast is unstructured enough that time stamps wouldn't be 100% effective since topics aren't given exact blocks of time (even less so than in the past). I'm also assuming that Ryan doesn't want to affect the flow of the Bombcast down the road by having discussion being influenced, even subconsciously, by the need to compartmentalize discussion. That said I think discussion still follows enough structure as to make time-stamps a fairly effective and welcome addition.

If they don't want to do it because of laziness then that's pretty terrible.

Kind of on the subject of Game of the Year podcasts but not really. They used to do an emails only podcast after their GOTY stuff but didn't do one last year. I hope it makes it's return this year, because they're always so unpredictable!

Cue one slipping through the cracks or someone having a different definition of spoiler and all shit hits the fan.

It's a neat idea but probably wouldn't be worth it in the end.

@ArtisanBreads said:

The talk about the games would have to be too compartmentalized for this to work. I'm with you in spirit though as I have some stuff like Spec Ops to finish with games still being played. If you listen to the GOTY podcasts everything is fair game, that's just how it is.

@HistoryInRust said:

Am I crazy? Are spoilers really that big a fucking deal?

Uh if you care about finding out about something on your own, yes.

I've just never understood why people cling with such fervent, slathering, narrow psychosis to the notion of keeping things hush-hush. If it's a twist of any actual merit it will resonate beyond that first "ah-ha!" moment anyway. And one goddamned plot twist shouldn't be grounds for deciding whether a game's quality is any greater or lesser regardless.

It's arguable you might be better equipped to judge a game's narrative by knowing twists beforehand in order to gauge their respective set-ups and planted seeds, rather than being blindsided by the thing in a way that gooses over the flaws of the writing, or the other shortcomings a game might have.

Now, obviously, one shouldn't go out of their way to spoil games or movies or books or comics for others just out of mutual respect. But getting bent out of shape just because someone tells you the good guy wins or everyone dies or it was all a dream is just about the most obtuse thing I can process at this point.

When it comes to parcing out the greatness of a respective game, that is.

@ArtisanBreads said:

People who have different opinions than you do are not crazy, it turns out.

Also, knock this shit off. No one is impressed.

5.1 surround sound for premium members, with Brad put on the subwoofer channel.

@c0l0nelp0c0rn1 said:

It's an mp3 file and I know of no way to cut out specific sections of a streaming mp3 file.

for that matter they will more than likely mix and match in reference to past games they were talking about.

@HistoryInRust said:

@ArtisanBreads said:

The talk about the games would have to be too compartmentalized for this to work. I'm with you in spirit though as I have some stuff like Spec Ops to finish with games still being played. If you listen to the GOTY podcasts everything is fair game, that's just how it is.

@HistoryInRust said:

Am I crazy? Are spoilers really that big a fucking deal?

Uh if you care about finding out about something on your own, yes.

I've just never understood why people cling with such fervent, slathering, narrow psychosis to the notion of keeping things hush-hush. If it's a twist of any actual merit it will resonate beyond that first "ah-ha!" moment anyway. And one goddamned plot twist shouldn't be grounds for deciding whether a game's quality is any greater or lesser regardless.

It's arguable you might be better equipped to judge a game's narrative by knowing twists beforehand in order to gauge their respective set-ups and planted seeds, rather than being blindsided by the thing in a way that gooses over the flaws of the writing, or the other shortcomings a game might have.

Now, obviously, one shouldn't go out of their way to spoil games or movies or books or comics for others just out of mutual respect. But getting bent out of shape just because someone tells you the good guy wins or everyone dies or it was all a dream is just about the most obtuse thing I can process at this point.

When it comes to parcing out the greatness of a respective game, that is.

@ArtisanBreads said:

People who have different opinions than you do are not crazy, it turns out.

Also, knock this shit off. No one is impressed.

Sorry, I was really trying to impress you!

There is a value to the response to a viewer or reader's initial shock or reaction to fiction. There really is. Case closed.

You say "when parcing out the greatness of a respective game" and sure, in the case where you have already played the game , but that's not the issue here. You initial reaction to something is important. I just played the Walking Dead and if I knew what the choices were that I was going to have to make, if I knew events in the plot, if I knew the ending the game would not have had the emotional impact or the pressure and urgency to it.

This is no different than movies really, even if player urgency is out of the window.

@ArtisanBreads said:

@HistoryInRust said:

@ArtisanBreads said:

The talk about the games would have to be too compartmentalized for this to work. I'm with you in spirit though as I have some stuff like Spec Ops to finish with games still being played. If you listen to the GOTY podcasts everything is fair game, that's just how it is.

@HistoryInRust said:

Am I crazy? Are spoilers really that big a fucking deal?

Uh if you care about finding out about something on your own, yes.

I've just never understood why people cling with such fervent, slathering, narrow psychosis to the notion of keeping things hush-hush. If it's a twist of any actual merit it will resonate beyond that first "ah-ha!" moment anyway. And one goddamned plot twist shouldn't be grounds for deciding whether a game's quality is any greater or lesser regardless.

It's arguable you might be better equipped to judge a game's narrative by knowing twists beforehand in order to gauge their respective set-ups and planted seeds, rather than being blindsided by the thing in a way that gooses over the flaws of the writing, or the other shortcomings a game might have.

Now, obviously, one shouldn't go out of their way to spoil games or movies or books or comics for others just out of mutual respect. But getting bent out of shape just because someone tells you the good guy wins or everyone dies or it was all a dream is just about the most obtuse thing I can process at this point.

When it comes to parcing out the greatness of a respective game, that is.

@ArtisanBreads said:

People who have different opinions than you do are not crazy, it turns out.

Also, knock this shit off. No one is impressed.

Sorry, I was really trying to impress you!

There is a value to the response to a viewer or reader's initial shock or reaction to fiction. There really is. Case closed.

You say "when parcing out the greatness of a respective game" and sure, in the case where you have already played the game , but that's not the issue here. You initial reaction to something is important. I just played the Walking Dead and if I knew what the choices were that I was going to have to make, if I knew events in the plot, if I knew the ending the game would not have had the emotional impact or the pressure and urgency to it.

This is no different than movies really, even if player urgency is out of the window.

Yes, spoilers are a big fucking deal for some people. Simply because they don't bother you doesn't mean you should assume they don't bother others.

I made a thread which I'll update when the podcasts are out with the games they actually spoil and when, so people know.

It's not going to happen but one thing I would like to see is tags so you know what games are talked about on each podcast (all of them, not just game of the year).

So many games I have yet to play, (ps3 is bk in England) so I will be mostly skipping during the podcasts

Want an idea for goty podcasts? Have Alex Navarro on them.

Yeah, I know, I just blew your minds.

Interesting, but it would take a hell of a lot of work.

I think most people underestimate the power of a spoiler. I was able to watch Citizen Kane without knowing what Rosebud was, and it made the ending incredibly potent. Same thing with the Sixth Sense, which I saw a decade after its release. Today, people throw these reveals around as jokes, which is totally fine. They're old ass movies, one much more so than the other. People should be able to talk about them without worrying about ruining the experience for others. But saying that spoilers aren't a big deal not only misses the point, but achieves nothing.

I can only imagine what FF7 would have been like if I didn't know what happened to Aeris.

They jump around far too much in their GOTY podcasts to actually manage those spoilers. Honestly, use your fast forward button. If you are so sensitive to spoilers that hearing them will ruin a gameplay experience for you, then either play the games before you listen or keep your finger on the fast forward. It isn't the job of the guys to protect you from spoilers. The GOTY podcasts are a chance for them to discuss games FULLY that they may have skirted around in earlier episodes throughout the year. I mean, how many weeks now have they discussed The Walking Dead without actually discussing it?

*edit* As a quick little spoiler story, I had a major character arc in HBO's The Wire spoiled for me by a caffeine-fueled Wikipedia bender. Although I was slightly disappointed in knowing ahead of time, I found it interesting to watch the character's story knowing the outcome.

That sounds absolutely fucking impossible. If you don't want spoilers don't listen. I make an effort to beat the games I care about so they won't get spoiled, all others I have to deal with. I think its the best part when they go in depth about the games and compare them, that's the point about the end of the year.

children these days...

@Bourbon_Warrior said:

5.1 surround sound for premium members, with Brad put on the subwoofer channel.

"And Bradley Shoemaker is here." "WUUUUUUUUB"

I hate to take the hard line on this but if you don't want spoilers... Don't listen! We can't have spoiler free Game of the Year discussions. We have to remember, these GOTY podcasts are actual discussions, with a podcast as an afterthought. Unlike the regular Bombcast, the guys don't really do them for "the user" they just figure, "Hey, we're going to have to have an 8-12 hour discussions about these awards so we might as well record it so the users can understand the decision making process." If you don't want spoilers you are perfectly able not listen and get the actual awards through their video packages...

Or just go to the last few minutes of each podcast where they recap all of the award winners.

At the very least I think a run-down of the games that will be discussed/spoiled sounds like a good idea to those that are still finishing up their back-logs.

@Bourbon_Warrior said:

Brad put on the subwoofer

Poor dog

As a side note, I'd rather have a trimmed version of the Bombcast that cuts out the parts where they talk about video games. I just like their personalities and chemistry.

@satansmagichat said:

As a side note, I'd rather have a trimmed version of the Bombcast that cuts out the parts where they talk about video games. I just like their personalities and chemistry.

@satansmagichat: I agree The best parts are always when they don't talk about games!

They are talking about games that have come out through the year, if you didn't play it yet, too bad, I doubt you will play it after since games are always come out throughout the year.

@Tylea002 said:

@ArtisanBreads said:

Sorry, I was really trying to impress you!

There is a value to the response to a viewer or reader's initial shock or reaction to fiction. There really is. Case closed.

You say "when parcing out the greatness of a respective game" and sure, in the case where you have already played the game , but that's not the issue here. You initial reaction to something is important. I just played the Walking Dead and if I knew what the choices were that I was going to have to make, if I knew events in the plot, if I knew the ending the game would not have had the emotional impact or the pressure and urgency to it.

This is no different than movies really, even if player urgency is out of the window.

Yes, spoilers are a big fucking deal for some people. Simply because they don't bother you doesn't mean you should assume they don't bother others.

I made a thread which I'll update when the podcasts are out with the games they actually spoil and when, so people know.

Thanks for doing that! I know I'll use it with a couple games. I wanted to play Spec Ops and missed Black Friday and am looking to pick it up for less than the $30 I'm seeing out there.