How newer games are treated on the site (here we go...)

@kcin: This could really just hop back and forth because both of us are speaking in hypotheticals. Neither of us actually knows what goes on behind the scenes so everything is speculation, including you saying that they don't have time. Maybe they do have time but they honestly are burnt out and don't want to make content. We don't know.

I do know, though, that they have gone on record to say that being press gets them press access which is part of why they do it. I'm sorry that I don't have the exact quote, but I am like 90% sure Jeff has said that within the last year or so. Also, they do have a press Steam account, which they have said has tons of games, so they definitely benefit from having that label.

Regardless, these arguments can literally go no where, you know as little as I do about what goes on when the cameras are off, but we are both free to speculate. You're theory is opposite mine, but that's fine. You shouldn't say that I should not hold my theory though just because I don't actually know the exact details, because neither of us do, duder.

I don't want to talk about how they can make more content or why they are incapable of doing this or that, I was just asking if people felt there was a lack of content from newer games beyond a single video segment. The conclusion I have come up with is that TNT was a huge part of me getting my newer game fix. For most people it was a way to play with the crew, but for it was just a way to see more new games get played because I don't have the ability to play them myself. I really wish they would bring that show back, because the more I think about it the more I realize how much fun the show was.

@azurath: I have no theory, and I am making no speculations. My theory is not the opposite of yours because I don't have one. I can't have one, because I don't have any information to base one on. All I've said is that anyone who does make a guess or theory has no ground to stand on. I'm glad you now agree with this, though.

You did not simply ask if people felt there was a lack of content, you also accused them of being lazy and running the website incorrectly, because the site as you know it does not fit what you think that they think it is. Now that you have eliminated that conjecture, though, your question is now fair to ask and is no longer loaded with the problems it was when you first phrased it in the OP.

People here respond negatively to questions like this not just because there are so many of them, but also because they are accusatory, entitled, and vitriolic.

@kcin: I really don't want this to keep going, but to be fair it is really hard for me to read pretentious posts like that and not respond. I said "Hey we can both have opinions and are both right but that's not what the thread was about so let's just move on." and your response is "Yeah, but by the way you are wrong and I am right". Why do you have to be like that? Just fucking don't respond at that point dude....

You do have an opinion, if you didn't you wouldn't be fighting me on this. You are defending their current practices, which is fine man, but stop pretending that you are righteous and that I am some peasant who doesn't understand how opinions work. You said this earlier.

"What of meetings? Emails? Time spent maintaining relationships with developers and their ilk? What if they are changing Giant Bomb completely? Battling corporate for more bandwidth, money, space, people, etc.? These things also take time, along with plenty of other responsibilities we do not know of."

You are giving an opinion and trying to shroud it by finishing your sentences with "but maybe they aren't so who knows.". Take pride in your opinion, you don't need to hide it with some weird pseudo-morality concept of not having opinions when you don't know 100% of what is going on. We are just some people on a video game forum, no one will (or at least people shouldn't) get mad at you for looking at the facts and then speculating to form an opinion. I would expect the same from you, but clearly for some reason you disagree.

I am not accusing "them" as in Jeff, Brad, Vinny, and Drew of being lazy, I was saying the idea behind the site is starting to feel dated and that IN MY OPINION they should try and make more content based around newer games. I can say they are running the website incorrectly if I want to. If I feel like they are doing a shitty job, which I don't I just think they could do better in regards to content around new games, then I am allowed to say that.

So many people in the video games community have problems understanding that an opinion that says something is bad is no lesser an opinion than one saying something is good. I know it's hard to hear someone say something bad about something you like, but you can't just write it off as incorrect.

Really though, let's keep it on topic. I know (and hate) the feeling of a thread getting closed or changing topics before I can give a response, so please respond to this if you want, but after that this should really be over with.

The only real bottleneck is video editors, there's only 2 of them and one of them also does a ton of onscreen and review work. And as people have said every other person in this business covers the new games, but who's there to stand up for Bioforge? Giant Bomb is.

@corruptedevil: I looooooove the current content they do, and I don't want it to go away. I just personally would like more coverage of newer games added on top. Jeff has said he has big plans for the site and he needs more people to fulfill those big plans. Hopefully some of those big plans are something like Quick Looks done from multiple view points or something. I could see them one day having a "Vinny and Jeff play..." with the names being interchangeable so more than one Quick Look of a video could go up. That might be neat.

I'm all for recording multiple videos for the latest games, provided they are entertaining to watch and the guys are genuinely interested in continue playing (like in the Dark Souls 2 videos). Having said that though, I would watch Vinny play old Castlevania games and talk about random things over them playing hours upon hours of the newest games like say, Watch Dogs.

@probablytuna:

I think it would be really cool if they just did more "novelty" stuff (might not be the right word) with the site. Like, have a theme once a month, where one week is Dracula week and Patrick writes an article about it and they have interviews with CastleVania directors and then all week they have videos/QLs of them playing games related to said theme. New Mario Kart coming out this week? Well, everyday we'll upload a video of us going through the other Mario Kart titles leading up to the release of the new one. New AssCreed game coming out? Load our Last Saves special where a few of the guys load their last save in a different AssCreed game each day. TBFP do this a lot, with Stryder week, RussleMania (every day for a month they played a different wrestling game), and in October they played a new horror game every day but I forget the pun name they used for it.

Things like that would go a long way in keeping things fresh and interesting, and generating more content. It would also allow for more variety in the games they play depending on how they go about it. I'm sure the minds at GB could think of some really neat gimmick stuff to help generate content.

For me, the problem isn't that Giant Bomb don't go in-depth and make lots of videos about certain games - the problem for me is that they have an excellent track record of choosing to focus on games that I have little to no interest in. My taste in gaming has drifted further away from the site's over time, and it was a little bit frustrating, in a selfish sort of way, to see them dedicate so much time to Dota 2, Spelunky, and, most prominently, the Souls games, when there are so many great and interesting games that they won't even try.

But as to the OP's problem of wanting to live vicariously through the staff and watch them play games that they can't afford to buy, I think that that is a pretty short-sighted view of the situation, and I find it troubling. Giant Bomb attracts a dedicated following of people who, as a rule, play a lot of games and are deeply invested in the medium. For these people, it's better to offer an uncut and often unprepared glimpse or overview of a game and then allow the viewer to make a more informed purchasing decision - this philosophy is what created the Quick Look. And then they do retrospective playthroughs of games when they are no longer current or after they've passed their initial release window. Think about how many people would choose not to watch them streaming the entirety of a recently released game due to spoilers, or them wanting to preserve the freshness of the experience for themselves? As much fun as it can be to watch other people play games, especially if those people are as hilarious and insightful as the Giant Bomb crew, the ultimate joy of gaming is still, and will always be, playing the games.

But as you said, there are so many people livestreaming and Let's Play-ing newly released games on Twitch and YouTube respectively, and tacitly suggesting that the site shifts its entire focus because you want them to take up the mantle and do it better than them (which I've no doubt they would) strikes me as conceited and more than a little selfish. Livestreams and Let's Plays are extremely popular right now, but let's remember one thing: from day one, the thing that made Giant Bomb so special is that they chose to be different, and not do the obvious/easy thing because it would lead to page views. Maintaining that unique identity has to be better than getting lost in the torrent of YouTube kids shouting into their mics pretending to be the Game Grumps.

Both I Love Mondays and Thursday Night Throwdown stopped when Ryan died. Mail Bags also became less frequent.

I spend most time here going through old content, persona 4 ER, DP ER, Phantasmagoria (Random PC game) and the Bioforge run, are among my favorites. Other than that, I love the podcast and UPF, but I still reminisce about the old days. You could say I am one of the disgruntled, yet I fully support the guys to make and put out whatever they want.

I think Giant Bombs pacing works well for me, I could probably go to other sites that do the hybrid game coverage/LP thing you alluded to, but I've always felt like they were doing it for the sake of traffic. I like the features on GB because it seems like they actually want to play the games, not just finish a video playlist that says "lets play" in front of it before trudging on to do it again with no heart or passion. I'm not opposed to more content, but it needs to be done because they feel it would bring substantive value, not just to match 1:1 what YouTube lpers churn out. That is a losing race imo.

@azurath: Are there any recent games that warrant that kind of coverage?

I've always considered Let's Plays to be the most lazy and boring way of covering video games. Shorter, more energetic and dense videos is the way I like it. But sure, if it doesn't get in the way of any other content on the site, I could just look past those videos and watch what I like.

But I rather take well produced and well edited content and more interesting ideas with the live shows over Youtube-esque LP's. Quality over quantity.

@gaff: for a whole month maybe not.

Question: Who has two thumbs and could not turn down a week long Pokémon reflective?

Answer:This guy, and maybe Bob Kelso.

They need interns again; those guys made tonnes of regular vids along these lines.

I'll agree, the website could pump out a little more content but what in the fuck are you talking about.

The Quicklooks are always made to the length they need to be to get a feel and idea of the game and it's mechanics - often they go on for much longer than that in the case that it's entertaining. If a game has a lot more to it and is fairly entertaining to watch, they usually do some more parts until the returns seem diminishing. I'd rather watch an hour of quality entertainment than have a couple of the guys sitting there bored and out of conversation playing through fucking Assassins Creed 4 or something. I don't know that you noticed but the majority of the time when they are showing something they have started playing - they are usually sacrificing their own style of gameplay for the sake of it not being boring as shit.

Look kid, I understand you are poor and the best you can do is watch other people play entire games. But this is the dumbest and most impractical set of suggestions I have ever witnessed.

Maybe just maybe, the majority of people enjoy watching the guys play old games that were likely missed or mostly forgotten by the rest of the community, and maybe just maybe the average person around here who isn't 12 doesn't have time to play through every new game - let alone watch someone else do it. There are other places for this sort of content, maybe that's where you should go look.

You want them to do gimmicks they won't enjoy, just so there's content going up? Oh boy, I can't wait for the Jaws Endurance Run during Shark Week.

Lots of people seem to have a lot of ideas about what this site is doing wrong (although they got this far and have done a lot to change game coverage with their influence). Despite all these "problems" Giant Bomb is one of the most popular sites in the industry so I'm going to continue to trust their judgment on how to best run their site.

Maybe take your awesome ideas and do them yourself if you think "being more like YouTubers" is a way to differentiate and grow an audience.

There have been flaws and missteps and regrets with how they've done things, but most of the suggestions I hear from people are terrible. Reminds me why they got where they are.

And can we at least keep all this stuff in the currently booming thread of GB criticism? Or was "more videos, more like YouTube" really inspired enough to need it's own version of that same thread?

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go make a new thread because I've just been struck by inspiration: Jeff is jaded, Brad is bad at games, Patrick is a hipster SJW, and they owe us Endurance Runs!

Edit: I don't mind criticism but at least try to be original if you're gonna make a second criticism thread. And if you have good ideas for the industry, why not try it yourself? This isn't "you're not allowed to criticize if you don't do it yourself". It's "prove your idea is good". Make the stuff you'd want to see. That's where all great content comes from, and that's the Giant Bomb philosophy.

Yeah, this may have initially had a little potential to go in its own direction, but now I see no reason not to redirect this discussion to this thread.