Game Damage Trailer May Spoil Upcoming Games TV Series

When I saw this video I was excited about Game Damage. I hope it gets picked up and serialized. Personally I think the show has some cinematic issues but the hosts relationships and charisma more than makes up for it and one should keep in mind the producers of this video are not professional television people. Considering their resources this turned out really well. Those were my first impressions of the video; unfortunately, I then decided to read the comments posted here. My first impression of the comments was that the internet must be filled with thirteen year old retards who think they know everything about television, game design, reviewing, and pretty much everything else.
I realize it must be hard for some of you to understand things like non-slapstick humor or type casting but please allow me to clarify some points you people address repetitively. If I am wrong (and unlike most I can imagine that I might be) I hope none of my comments offend Yahtzee, Yug, or Matt and if so, my sincerest apologies. That being said…
The thing people complain about most is the video style, mechanics, colors, ect. First, like I said above, the producers are not professionals in this field! Of coarse the video is going to have some issues. That is why when this show goes on the air the network will use a professional set and crew. You don’t think David Decovny was in charge of filming the X-Files in his bedroom do you? Also they credited the people who did do the filming. It was students at Bond University. Yes, that’s right, students, not professionals. Not that I’m complaining about them I’m sure they will grow up and be successful but why is it people are complaining about the video quality? Networks don’t use student film crews either!
The other large complaint and to some extent the most reasonable one is that none of the hosts seem to be TV personalities. “Well thank god for that”, I say. If every show on TV only contained people who exuded a sense of “TV personality” I would rather shove my head in my sons sand box than watch TV. Each of the hosts of the show fulfills a particular role the show needs and they each do their part really well. Some say three hosts is two many and it should be kept at two but with that point of view why would a show need more than one host? The Conversation. Without someone to banter with all a host can really do is say “Hey look at this” or spout uninspired humor, but who wants to be Tom Bergeron? No, three hosts may not be necessary but the formula works really well.
Most people complain that Yug is boring, and in some respects he is. (sorry Yug) But this is explained as a necessity. Yug is the true “Host” of the show with Yahtzee and Matt fulfilling the roles of point and counterpoint. Almost all television hosts are boring. As noted above, the purpose of a TV host is to say “Hey look at this” and at least fifty percent of Yugs lines are simply to keep the show rolling and prevent Yahtzee and Matt from eating up all the time arguing. Yug plays the role he was cast well and does it with without seeming bored himself as most TV hosts do. Also he seems sincere in his opinions and about his love of video games. As TV hosts go, I enjoyed Yugs performance.
The complaints about Yahtzee tend to lean more towards his deadpan expression, ridiculously high standers, and general unlikeableness. All these things are true. These are the trademarks of his humor! Call me a fanboy, I admit it. I love Zero Punctuation. But I’m not asking you like it or find him funny. If you don’t fine, but you should recognize that Yahtzee is an acclaimed comedic reviewer and most people do find him funny. You don’t have to like him but even if you don’t you should realize having a host on the show that is famous and well loved is beneficial to the show. Not everyone likes everyone else but Yahtzee is liked by most. Another complaint against Yahtzee is that he isn’t as funny on Game Damage as he is in Zero Punctuation. This is a blatant display of inflexibility in the viewers. Game Damage is a different kind of humor. Zero Punctuations humor relies more on Yahtzees ability to say a long string of swear words very quickly and to liken things to long strings of swear words and inappropriate jokes. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy that too but I, for one, am flexible in my taste in humor. Swearing every couple of words doesn’t work well on TV so Yahtzee switches gears and relies more heavily on his dry wit and inherent humor. In my opinion this is funnier. If you need swear words and slapstick to make you laugh you must be in grade school. Check out Monty Python. They rely on dry wit and clever jokes like Yahtzee and are viewed as some of the greatest comedians in the world by many. If you don’t like them then you just don’t get it. The same is true for Yahtzee. But, like I said you don’t have to like him to see how he benefits the show.
The third host, Matt, is probably the most heavily criticized. His role on the show, apart from balancing Yahtzees negativity, is to represent the more socially awkward nerdy game players. Those who populate MMORPGs. If Matt seems to be camera shy, awkward in conversation, and generally weird he hit the nail right on the sodding head didn’t he? I don’t mean to disparage him or the culture he represents but almost every flaw people point out seems to be complaining about how perfectly he represents his intended audience. So maybe you aren’t one of his target nerds but realize that half the audience this show is made for will relate extremely well to every one of his so called flaws. He also is very positive and represents casual gamers who aren’t as difficult to please as fans of Yahtzee.
Finally, I wish people would stop saying to leave game TV to Good Game or X-Play or whatever game show they like. You have every right to prefer those shows to Game Damage just as I have the right to prefer Game Damage. If no one tried to do something that had already been done but their way we wouldn’t have those shows at all. Do you think they were the first to put video games on TV? Hell, if that was the way the world worked we wouldn’t have color TV or Airliners or anything else that has improved on the original. Do you think everyone should have just told themselves “Well, the Wright brothers already built an airplane…”? I am always happy with innovation.
If you aren’t happy with something I’ve said here, well I’m sorry. Go ahead and reply and tell me how stupid I am, or that I’m full of it, or nitpick and tell me everything I misspelled. I’m probably never going to come back to this page and see what you had to say. I just wish people would put some thought into what they say before they post it instead of posting every thought that might cross the void between their ears.