Point of a Quick Look?

I think the various Giant Bomb guys have different ideas of what a quick look is for and I wanted to see what the community thinks the ideal quick look should be.

What is the point of a Quick Look by host:

Pure Entertainment

• Vinny (often tries to break the game or do something goofy)
• Dave

Should you buy this game

• Jeff (critical, tends to make it review like and often ends with a summary of his thoughts on getting it)

Informational

• Brad (tends to pick a section played before to best show off the game)
• Alex
• Patrick (loves to make broad industry/game history type statements)

Follows the tone of others

• Ryan

Maybe the argument could be made that all the different tones should be left, that people want different things out of the videos. Personally, I would love to see Giant Bomb quick looks drop the pretense they sometimes have of being informative and recognize its key differentiation, why it is different from all other gaming websites, is because it is fun and gaming is fun. I think Patrick's gaming articles, the forums, reviews and game pages are great avenues for the other tones. Honestly, game information is cheap and easy online, quality entertainment not so much. Quick looks should be about pure entertainment. And I don't think it is inherently the personality that drives the tone; Jeff is a funny guy and he can be goofy. I think he and others would be a lot more entertaining if they just saw the point of a quick look as that pure entertainment.

I find the quick looks always at least entertaining. Their point is to give you a quick look at the actual game and I feel that that is what all of the staff is trying to do. They all have their own style, which is good thing. I like the diversity.

The ideal quick look is one that entertains me and doesn't fail to show me what the game is like.

Ryan - Loves them menus!

Quick looks - working as intended.

@Subjugation said:

Quick looks - working as intended.

@LiquidSwords said:

@Subjugation said:

Quick looks - working as intended.

I like quick looks because they show me what I can expect from a game and are more informative (generally) about what I can expect from a game then anything else tends to be.

How they show it off is up to them, really. They don't have to be informative as the game should speak for itself and I don't mind when they just make fun of it or play it wrong (can you really play a game wrong? You can be bad at it sure, but I don't think it can be played wrong haha). So I like the varying degrees of quick look.

To me it just varies depending on who is in the quick look. You summed it up pretty well what their strengths are and I find most of them entertaining. Only time I don't care for a quick look is if its a game I have no interest in and they aren't really doing anything to make me interested in watching them play it. That is generally uncommon.

Ugh, Dave Quick Looks are the worst, because he's always playing some obscure PC title that looks boring as hell.

I like Vinny and any of the other three guys. Vinny's play-style resembles mine somewhat.

Usaly when they dont have performance angisity, like the batman Quicklook, or when they arnt skiping a tutorial/directions that are directily telling them how to do somthing then beating their heads against the level for 40 miniuts like the Eufloria Quicklook. then the are very entertaining. but its just that %5 of videos where they arnt reading, or they are moving too fast for their, and our, own good. or as in the batman Quicklook, people complained about spoilers in the Uncharted 3 Quicklook, so they advoided any and all activitys.

But quicklooks should be about how the games play, and if they where to drop all pretence of information i would not watch them, If i wanted to watch someone play a game and comment on it, i wouldnt watch a quicklook where they often start in the middle with no syntax to whats going on. i would watch a letsplay from the start.

I honestly refer more to the quick looks for a good feel of whether or not i want to buy a game more than even the reviews. Don't get me wrong, i read every single word of the reviews becuase I'm looking to learn from their styles, but at the end of a quick look I usually have decided whether or not to buy the game.

I always thought it was to give us a Quick Look of a game. They always show off enough of a game to give a general idea of what kind of game it is.

@burnttoast said:

Follows the tone of others

• Ryan

LOL. Thats mean.

Ryan is the ultimate summon. And I quote "Check out this gun, now I THROW IT AWAY! FUCK THAT GUN!"

Quick Looks are 20-40 minute videos of them playing a game in a relaxed environment where you can get a real sense of what the staffers personally feel about the game.

It's incredibly valuable since you are watching exactly what they are doing in the game as they narrate along in a pretty frank manner. From that you can pretty much judge if the game is for you or not when you consider their general likes and dislikes for games. They are both informative and entertaining. You can't really ask for more. It's why Giant Bomb is what it is today.

That's just my opinion.

you get information on what the game is going to be about.  i like the different ways that the host do it. it gives kind of like a review and a sum up and show what the game is like.
 
i like it so i can get what the game is going to be like. i don't really like how it might be in the middle of the game.

I find that more often then not vinny plays 20 questions more than any other guest and can meld with anyone in the crew the easiest.

I find that more often then not vinny plays 20 questions more than any other guest and can meld with anyone in the crew the easiest.

I love having different styles from different matchups of crewfolk. It's a good way to keep it fresh and interesting.

@burnttoast said:

• Brad (tends to pick a section played before to best show off the game)

So what you're saying is brad is trying desperately to not embarrass himself on quicklooks?

Ryan is the ultimate summon. And I quote "Check out this gun, now I THROW IT AWAY! FUCK THAT GUN!"

I wish the quick looks had less videogame footage and more footage of guys falling off skateboards and cracking their nuts on metal railings and less informative, entertaining, casual commentary and just looped Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers and the UT M-M-M-Monster Kill sound effect. If I wanted videogame footage I would just go to the 'internet.' I know there are other sites out there that show footage of guys falling off skateboards and cracking their nuts on metal railings but Giant Bomb needs to know what it is and that's pure entertainment, and what is more entertaining than guys falling off skateboards and cracking their nuts on metal railings?

@Dany said:

I find that more often then not vinny plays 20 questions more than any other guest and can meld with anyone in the crew the easiest.

Yeah Vinny seems to gel well with any staff member. His adventures with Dave are great though.

Quick Looks are the reason I switched to Giant Bomb as my main source of game information. I have seen way too many Quick Looks than are good for me, and I liked them all, regardless of who was playing. They are very informative (in many ways a lot more informative than reviews) and extremely funny thanks to the chemistry between the reviewers, regardless of who have teamed up. I actually like the changing of the teams, it keeps things varied and interesting.

Quick Looks are awesome, they don't need to be changed!

@Merricks said:

I wish the quick looks had less videogame footage and more footage of guys falling off skateboards and cracking their nuts on metal railings and less informative, entertaining, casual commentary and just looped Tchaikovsky's Waltz of the Flowers and the UT M-M-M-Monster Kill sound effect. If I wanted videogame footage I would just go to the 'internet.' I know there are other sites out there that show footage of guys falling off skateboards and cracking their nuts on metal railings but Giant Bomb needs to know what it is and that's pure entertainment, and what is more entertaining than guys falling off skateboards and cracking their nuts on metal railings?

Are you sure you don't mean animals with funny hats?

Ryan is easily the best quick-looker.

@Subjugation said:

Quick looks - working as intended.

I have to agree, love them as they are - a lot better, informative and funny than the majority of games video content out there.

Hm, the point of a QL is always to give you/us a short impression of a game and the way it is presented doesn't change that, imho. I wouldn't think too much about it... :)

I like that each staff member brings his own personality to the table, that the content is variable rather than forcefully conformed to fulfill certain content standards.

QL's to me are like sitting down on the couch with a friend(s) + game you just bought. Sometimes it's stupid fun, sometimes someone's read all about it/played a beta or something and talks all about the game, other times people will be in a bad mood or the game just flat out sucks, etc.

Humor, I don't get much more out of them.

@Dany said:

I find that more often then not vinny plays 20 questions more than any other guest and can meld with anyone in the crew the easiest.

For this reason he should really be on pretty much every Quick Look. He also seems the most open to reexamining what they're doing in case they're missing something important.

Ironically, he has the least time for them, and we get stuck with other pairings.

A quick look should show the game mechanics. It'll basically say "hey, this is what you do in this game. This is how it plays." That is the point of a quick look. Any other commentary or joking is extra for entertainment purposes.

From what I've seen, everyone on the GB team seems to be under the impression that the quick looks are largely there to give the viewer some idea of what they game they're playing is like, but I do think the differing takes on the quick looks are due to the fact that the editors all have their own style and their own fortes which they like to bring to the table, more than them having any differing end goals. I think to say that the reason Giant Bomb is better than other game websites is because it's fun is rather reductionist. There a lot of aspects that make Giant Bomb a good site and I believe not only that one of them is that they can provide informative and insightful content, but also that they're entirely capable of doing so in a way that is entertaining and often humorous.

I have bought quite a few games I had no interest in because of Quick Looks.

Except for the Game Room ones, I just watched those to enjoy Jeff's increasing frustrations.

I honestly feel like the tone of the quicklooks have been slowly shifting, and it's picked up speed ever since the memberships started. They used to be about playing games and enjoying themselves and having fun, and I feel like the tone is shifting towards more informational and educational. I remember the Wheelman and silent hill homecoming as two of the best examples of the tone that they used to have, and more and more they seem to be heading towards a (i hate to say this) but gamespot feel where it's more about showing off the games then having fun while doing it.

I love Ql's, better than reviews I think often. As for Vinny, his 20 questions really get a bit much for me sometimes, but I like Vinny. I like them all, but the other guys need a little bit more rationale for back-up because that's their world. Vinny (and David) are not pro. video game whatevers, but GB quicklooks still absolutely benefit from them.

And of course we got Alex, and even Will though I do not know if he has done a QL.. When you think of it GB has an amazing staff and contributers.

@coakroach said:

@LiquidSwords said:

@Subjugation said:

Quick looks - working as intended.

@Wipeout said:

Ryan is the ultimate summon. And I quote "Check out this gun, now I THROW IT AWAY! FUCK THAT GUN!"

Where was that?

@burnttoast:

I think quick looks are designed to give you an experience similar to sitting down at a friends house to see a new game. He boots the game up, and you guys play together while he explains how to play. Seems to work great.

I'd really like to see Let's Play video's of the bigger games where Giant Bomb crew play through the entire game. There have been several games this holiday season that I've enjoyed watching video's for instead of playing. MW3 SP campaign, Uncharted 3 SP, BF3 SP, all these campaigns don't seem very interesting to play to me so having them on in the background while i'm doing other things is similar to watching a friend play and I enjoyed them.

Quick Looks = Page hits.

Quick looks have become rather boring, though that's probably on me rather than the staff. I tend to start watching a quick look, and five minutes later I'm doing something else, not even paying attention to the video anymore.

If you're on the site long enough, you learn how to take what you need from a quicklook, regardless of how it's presented.

@mnzy: It was for the FF: Crystal Bearer's quicklook I'm pretty sure.

Quick Looks are fantastic, easily the best feature of the site and the reason I joined. I personally find them to be the most useful way to judge if I'm going to like a game that I've ever seen, plus I see games I never would otherwise. I wish I discovered them years ago.

maybe I'm in the minority, but I'm kinda glad each GB staffer lends their own feel to quick looks. Gives it a nice variety.

I find the commentary is usually good enough that they work well as stand in bombcast when I'm doing work.

I like them the way they are. They usually entertain me and they show me the basics of the game.

QLs were the reason I came back to this website, stayed for the community.

I think the fact that different staff bring different things to a Quick Look is great. I'd rather they don't change anything and just keep doing what they're doing.