What did you guys think of the new show?

@cthomer5000: I spend so much time on this site, that if this ever happened I don't know what I would do.

Imagine, what if the next Endurance Run is Vinny and someone from GS?

I...I think I would leave the site if they try and merge.

I have faith in the duders, I don't think they want a merging of the two sites, so hopefully this show is the extent of GS x GB. Nothing really personal against GS, it's just that I have always been super hesitant on spending money, but I eagerly pay to watch GB. That says something, I think. Change is bad, man, change is bad....

I don't think the show should cover DLC as well, that just made it longer.

Every time Carolyn was on camera the chat room will explode, I hate to sound rude but if chat going to act like that every time maybe Carolyn should be left out.

The wrap room! thumbs up!!

I hate Brad a little more after the the arrow to the knee being said.

GS people always had to watch what they say unlike GB, when they get use to speaking freely will be great.

Did the gamespot stream bleep the swear words?

I just wonder whose idea this was? Is this an attempt to draw more GB fans to gamespot? The other way around? I can't fathom this being the bomb crew's idea.

The reasons for paranoia are the fact that they aren't ultimately calling the shots anymore. Whatever guarantees they were given probably have end dates on them, and eventually, some new manager will be in some office saying "why the fuck do we have two different video game sites? get rid of one of them."

I'm at least approaching this with a healthy level of skepticism. I'll say that much. I worked for CBS for a while, and when things seemed suspicious, they usually were.

Definitely needs work, even if that work is just doing it a couple more times so they're used to opening a new game and jumping in for 10 minutes or so. The trouble with it from the outset is if it's a game they haven't played for a review or whatnot, there stands to be a good deal of tutorializing or menu watching. And a whole show of that for multiple games doesn't a good feature make.

I hope they stick with it and find their groove. It's nice seeing games on the new releases page I never would've thought get covered on this site actually receive some attention.

@cthomer5000: Man, now you're getting me even more paranoid. Fuck, I really hope this show goes away. Most people didn't seem to like it, and while I didn't hate it, I don't want it either.

I just went on GS for the first time in a long time, and it seriously is just IGN. I really, really don't like IGN. The community on there is worse than Reddit.

This sucks :(

I figured I'd put in my two cents about the show, knowing that the staff sometimes browses the forum, and I could give some (hopefully) constructive criticism. Maybe it's just a fear of change, but I did not like the live show today as much as the other streams. The main reason is, that, I truly believe there is just no place for GameSpot people on the Giant Bomb shows. If they want to guest-star or collaborate, put the content on Gamespot's site. I came to Giant Bomb (and still come to, more than any other gaming website) because of the unique, hilarious, and unequivocally genuine personalities of the GB duders. I didn't get that vibe at all from the GS people. With all respect to them, this is just not their arena. They are two different crews, that just don't lend to a collaborative stream such as this. Please, let GB shows just be the regular folks with their guests.

Some more general feelings I had:

• Loved the segments with Patrick and a random game, but they got kinda stale towards the end
• Segments in-general were just too rushed. Sim City got like 5 minutes, it seemed, and two Naruto and two baseball games went just a little...long
• Way too scripted and planned. The transitions and cutaways were funny, but everything about the show seemed, well, forced

I really enjoy Unprofessional fridays, and TNT, so I guess one stream that I don't end up watching during the week isn't a big deal. But, this content just seems so far out of the norm of GB's ridiculousness and hilarity that I get kinda worried if they let the GS people work with other shows. I know it's a stretch, but, I like GB just the way it is, and change just seems bad. It's a new show, though, so I will definitely give it a chance.

Only caught the tail end, but from what I saw most of the Gamespot staff are still kinda terrible on camera. Also, shotgun-style video game coverage is not really my thing, for as much as I want to watch the first half where they no doubt will be making all of the naruto jokes.

Only caught the tail end, but from what I saw most of the Gamespot staff are still kinda terrible on camera. Also, shotgun-style video game coverage is not really my thing, for as much as I want to watch the first half where they no doubt will be making all of the naruto jokes.

I wasn't there to see it, so can somebody tell me what the hell it was?

They played pretty much every game coming out this week for a few minutes. Some guys from GameSpot were there too.

It's quite ironic as that is what the GB community has actually turned into, a ton of people yelling at other people for being awful.

anyone got a link to the game spot staff page because i don't remember any of thier names

but the show needs more work -less scripted to start

i liked some of the game spot staff

game spot people need more time in front of a camera

that naruto game looked great. it reminded me of asura wrath which is a great thing

this is my 2 cents.

id have to imagine this was both the sites idea as this sounds like a thing to help both sites out. to help GB grow some more by promoting this content on gamespot (gamespot still gets a lot more views than giantbomb and most sites due to it being an established brand), and to help gamespot maintain relevancy and to continue help restoring their reputation and to help "modernize" that site and with the hope that some of the dedicated GB audience will go visit GS.

to generalize and be super reductive, that show seemed to me to be a big ol link exchange :P.

i also get the feeling that whole dilemma of which site they will be getting rid of, will be one that will not suprise me to see happening in the future (far future). but im also thinking that jeff and ryan have more overall manager roles now so id like to think this dilemma will never happen.

also, other than to help repair gamespots image and make those guys more down to earth and the fact that there are like over 18,000+ premium members on GB (i remember seeing that number during the big live live show) and the fact that more sites will be created as jeff has alluded to them working on concepting new sites., i view cbsi picking up giantbomb as a sort of investment in which they are going to see which approach to games coverage people cling to, whether it be the curated but casual laid back approach that giantbomb does, or the sterile approach that gamespot does. and then adjust budget allocations accordingly.

@mikeydct said:

I don't think Carolyn should have to sit out livestreams just because of dipshits in the chat.

Anyhow, all in all the show was pretty good I guess. The Gamespot folks obviously seemed far less comfortable on camera than the GB duders, but that's to be expected and I'm sure they'll get better over time. I'm however not totally clear on why they went this route. The show just feels a little redundant next to other Giant Bomb features and it would've been nice to see them introduce something that was a little more out of left-field. That said I hope they keep on with it and ideally it'll evolve into it's own "thing" over time

thats cause the asuras wrath guys work on the naruto ninja storm games.

id have to imagine that naruto money is what allowed them to make asuras wrath.

@mrfluke: omg i wish had some way of renting that game just to try it

@seamus85: there's a demo out on psn and xbl,

the combat is like asuras wrath but with a bit more nuance to it, and then its the beautiful flashy spectacle that asuras wrath is known for.

I liked it, its good to see different perspective on things.

Thoughts:

• I really liked the segment with Tomb Raider with the 2 reviewers from each site giving their thoughts. I think there should be waaaaay more of these kind of segments, since its give you a different perspective on the game. It might be problematic though, since GB reviews way less games than GS and most of reviewing is done by Alex who can't be on the show. For the other games that GB reviews, they mostly on par with the GS review, but in case of differences in reviews they should use this segment to explain their view points.
• I liked seeing games that would not have been covered by GB people. Ideally you would have GS sports people do the sports game. Although I did enjoy the Patrick's attempt at playing the 2K baseball game, I had the same exact reaction when I tried to play it at a friends house. So maybe keep shitting on the sports games? I DUNNO
• I didn't mind the GS crew at all. Kevin, Justin and Chris just fit well with the crew and I have no problem at all for them to be in any GB content. The other guys at least were trying to do their best, kind of saw them as the lovable losers compared to the cool kids.
• Overall going forward, I would like the GS people to cover the games that are not covered on the site and have them give a quick thought about the game. I think the PS3 Naruto game was the perfect example of this.

Coming from someone who used to follow Naruto (Years ago mind you, I'm a better person now), I really did enjoy the Naruto segments. I could relate to just about everything going on, and still look at it from a perspective of someone who knows SQUAT about it, and how batshit insane it all must seem. It was funny watching them make fun of it, and neat to see them bring in some niche games like that as well.

this is a good idea,

but i wouldn't be surprised if that devolved into assholes saying gamespot shows off the LAME stuff cause theyre LAMEEEE

I didn't really find it super useful to watch Patrick play games while acting like he never played a game before. "OK, HITTING A BUTTON I GUESS?"

I think the show has promise though.

@mrfluke: thanks for the info. ill pick it up after it drop to $20

I'm fairly into the idea of adding a third live show, but I'm not a fan of GS peeps being involved in that. The two sites are all the way different, and putting a bunch of inexperienced, mostly fake or uptight people in with the GB crew doesn't work. Don't get me wrong, they're fine people, but they're not ROCK GODS like the crew. Each duder is a unique flower with hot decals on the petals, and they bring a lot to the table. Even Drew, who started out behind the camera, has all these crazy hobbies and cool insights to add. You can just tell that the GS peeps are bland; even if they got used to the camera, they're not the duders.

I mostly liked it though I do agree that it felt too rushed and forced. The GS guys were fine, though hopefully they'll get more comfy as they keep doing the show. I think they should just try to cover games that GB doesn't have the staff to cover(DOTA 2, JRPGS, etc) that comes out in the week. It seems silly to cover games like SimCity and Tomb Raider when both sites have probably covered it in some capacity. I have hopes for this show so I hope they do better next week. :)

I mostly liked it though I do agree that it felt too rushed and forced. The GS guys were fine, though hopefully they'll get more comfy as they keep doing the show. I think they should just try to cover games that GB doesn't have the staff to cover(DOTA 2, JRPGS, etc) that comes out in the week. It seems silly to cover games like SimCity and Tomb Raider when both sites have probably covered it in some capacity. I have hopes for this show so I hope they do better next week. :)

I didn't see it. Anyone know when the archive goes up?

I had many thoughts on the show. But this is week one and ultimately, it's an experiment. Like any show, it's hard to judge based on the first outing, so I'll try to express my thoughts based on theory and some sincere positivity. Warning: Wall of Text. Sorry, but it got away from me.

I enjoy Giant Bomb most for it's slow and thoughtful approach. Thematically, the rest of the site plays to long-form content. Quick Looks are 20-40 minutes in length. Bombcast is 2.5 hours or more. TNT is 3 Hours. UPF is another 3 (or more). For the web in this era, that's immensely in-depth. But that time gives the crew room to explain their impressions and show you enough to get a good feel for the games discussed. The thoughts and opinions expressed are more complex than some numerical rating system or throwaway industry review lines. In addition, Giant Bomb manages to keep the editorial content of good quality while still being funny and crazy, letting their honest personality through. Hell, even the writing is emblematic of this. Alex's SimCity review or Jeff's Crysis 3 review are perfect examples of Giant Bomb's approach. They didn't drop on release day (like other publications) and it didn't overflow with praise or criticism — it was balanced, discussing pros and cons in their voice. They were great, honest reviews that came out when they were ready and (when paired with the Quick Look) gave a potential buyer what they needed to decide if it was worth the purchase.

Now, I understand if the crew feels they need to touch on more games/DLC that would normally fly under the radar. But they certainly don't need to talk about every game released this week. It's Giant Bomb's ability to talk about the games that matter, as well as a handful of niche titles (Trackmania, Asura's Wrath, Persona 4, etc) that makes them great. It's focused, dare-I-say "curated" coverage. I don't think many people come to Giant Bomb expecting scattershot items touching on "everything coming out this week." And I'd wager users/members of Giant Bomb certainly aren't tuning into a "new release show" to see double-up coverage of baseball games or Tomb Raider — especially with a Quick Look & Review on the site; what does this extra TR coverage serve aside from comparing reviewer notes? Presently, SimCity is a unique exception, where it's sort of an ongoing news story and deserves some mention beyond "this came out this week, quick look and review on the site." (In fact, aside from the brash "This game is broken, don't buy this game" remark from a Gamespot guy, I thought that was a good "update" segment.) The point I'm getting at is that Giant Bomb, with it's lengthy coverage in all parts of the site needs to be careful of not spreading themselves too thin. Or they'll be completely beat by the time UPF rolls around. As much as I love the idea of "more content" or "more subscriber content," I'd rather have "better content" over "more" any day. And I imagine that's the goal of everyone on GB crew too. So they wouldn't try another show if they felt it would dilute the quality of other parts of the site.

Aside from the approach of Giant Bomb, the other unique factor is the personalities of the GB crew. They are honest, funny, charismatic and heartfelt with their love of games. A lot of people above have mentioned that the Gamespot guys seemed stiff/unaccustomed to the camera. I'd have to agree. Nothing against the Gamespot crew, they seemed nice, but it felt forced. Some forced themselves too serious, while some forced too funny/laid back. It was a little rough to watch and sorta made me wish this was Giant Bomb only. But again, it's only week one. I can understand the opinions of some on the forum and in the chat that say "I pay for Giant Bomb, not Gamespot. Get them out of here." The sort of cult of personality built around the Giant Bomb crew is strong, and that shows a deep audience connection. Heck, there are probably some long time members who still aren't even accustomed to Patrick yet (but that's crazy, Patrick's cool). Anyways, adding new personalities takes time, and certainly should not be done all at once. If you want to collab with Gamespot people, I would say that the best approach would be with 2 people per week.The hectic bouncing between segments and people not only diluted the content, but diluted the personality. I can't get an idea of who is on screen if they're there for 5 minutes. Some seemed to like the guy who was on the Mass Effect 3 bit (notice, I couldn't even catch his name). Okay, so bring him in one week and have him on a longer segment. Let me get to know the person a bit and their eccentricities. Example: How did Brad Muir become such a darling? By repeated appearances where he showed who he was and his thoughts, building over time. Now, he's a welcome presence on the couch! Do likewise with the Gamespot crew, slow and steady, and they could be regulars on this Wednesday show in no time.

Conclusion/Offering Ideas:

- Slow it down. Slow and more thoughtful is Giant Bomb's strength. It sets you guys apart from the rest of the high speed, scattershot coverage that's out there. Hectic isn't always fun, sometimes it just seems roughly hewn. You can still have a tighter show without being so jumpy by…

- Picking a smaller handful (3-5) of games/DLC we haven't seen on the site before that you really want to show and focus some time on them. You can mention other releases all you want, and direct people to QL and Review coverage… but play to your ability to curate. So for example, this week: the intro on SimCity (brief, showing the bug + updating on server issues), ME3 DLC (no QL on the site, interesting to most), the 3D Naruto game (good looking game & interesting, but a type generally uncovered by GB), The Atelier game (interesting concept, usually passed on by GB), end on the Showdown Effect (shows the full release features & fun for the community to play along). Drop Dollar Dash, the 2nd Naruto game, both Baseball games, the Castlevania game, and the Tomb Raider rehash.

- "But wait," you say! "That's too many cuts! What if there aren't even 3 new games?!" That's when you can play to Giant Bomb's personality by showing new releases from that week IN THE PAST. What came out this week in 1987? 1994? 2001? Play one of those games! It shows off GiantBomb's love for the history of games, helps with the Bombastica, and could be a great way to bring in Gamespot folk. Not to mention, it's a bit of a fun curveball every week.

- Finally, bring in those new personalities slowly, and in fewer numbers. Give the audience time to get to know them. By having fewer games for a longer amount of time, you can also reduce the running around. Keeping the show on the couch, with just one special game in the Wrap Room lets it be a fun talk with this new person and not shouting chaos. So maybe have the usual GB crew and 1 or 2 Gamespot members would drop-in for segments.

Okay, whew. I'm done. That was a lot of writing, but I only write because I care. I love the site and am glad to be a member because of good discussions like this. Again, sorry to the members for the wall of text, but I hope it spurs some positive discussion/critique to keep building a better Giant Bomb.

Please keep Gamespot out of my Giantbomb, thank you very much.

I can see RPG games being a problem with this segment since most need time to showcase what the game about, especially ones that are for certain gamers.

The GS editor who was co-hosting with Ryan was pretty good! Giant bomb needs to steal him

I thought Carolyn was really nervous and reminded me of Patrick when he first started at Giant bomb.

Gamespot guys were lame.

I always feel pretty silly over it, but same with Quick Look EXs and most event coverage, I just have no interest and skip the content when people who aren't part of the crew join in. I just like the Giant Bomb crew, and the vibes from them together, and just sadly have no interest in content with other folks joining them.

That is A-OK in my view, though, I can live with a single piece of content from GB I'll skip each week, as there is plenty of other good stuff weekly.

Needs a snapper name.

And Matt Rorie.

I really enjoyed. What I liked was getting the views of the people from GameSpot and not just from the duders of Giant Bomb. But what I didn't like about it was that is was really fast and loose with the games. I guess I've been spoiled with quicklooks.

@csl316 said:

Took the words out of my mouth. All it (the show) did was make me miss the old office that much more. Haven't watched the entire show, but it seems ok. Shrink shack!

No real offense to the Gamespot guys, but I come to Giant Bomb for that crew. They have the personality and attitude and laid back style I enjoy. Things like Unprofessional Fridays? That right there, even in the title says it all about Giant Bomb. That's why I come this site and not Gamespot, or IGN, or anywhere like that. Again, no offense, but there's a reason why I think GB is number 1.

Needs a snapper name.

And Matt Rorie.

I want to give special praise to the Shrink Shack portion of this segment. As long as it's not like games are being put aside for the Shrink Shack and is just used for whatever doesn't get Quick Looked, that segment could be fucking hilarious. I would also love it if the Shrink Shacker(s) was/were picked as some kind of "lottery" (rigged or not) at the beginning of the show and it was more generally viewed as a thing you would not want to do.

was alright

So I decided to do some looking around, and found a site that tells you a website's traffic.

Turns out, Giantbomb's viewer count is a lot lower than Gamespot's. Giantbomb's traffic seems to stay really consistent (we are loyal duders), while Gamespot's jumps around a bit.

Gamespot's viewer count doesn't drop below GB's at all on the chart. This makes me think that the joint show is to bring people over to Giantbomb, not the other way around. Maybe CBSi is trying to make back the money that was spent to make the new site?

Source: http://www.alexa.com/siteinfo/gamespot.com

I'm pretty sure Giant Bomb has a much more sustainable business model than Gamespot's. They have a good crowd of paying customers, and CBSi was fully aware of this when they bought them. They're probably trying to train Gamespot's editorial staff to do more personality-based videos in hope that they can replicate GB's success.

Thought the show was great!

animated gif is sad :(

Didn't care for it. I like the long, stupidly long content that Giant Bomb puts out. I like it when they waste an hour or hours on a single game, so yeah, jumping between each one real quickly wasn't my thing.

That's unfortunate. I skimmed through the video comments to see if anyone had been an immature on there and I didn't see anything and I felt pretty good. Too bad that didn't happen live.

It's just sad that people can't keep their shit together when they see someone that they don't expect to see or see that often. That's what it is to be mature. Keep your shit together. But it's the internet and maturity is too much to ask. I'm sure Carolyn has incredibly thick skin by now. It's just too bad that it has to be that thick at all. People on both sides need to chill and look at her the same way they see anyone else. Or if they can't at least shut up and act like an adult. Because honestly it is embarrassing to me.