A question for videoessay enjoyers

[Vexicrypt]

I have to admit that I like videoessays about videogames and I'm not ashamed of that. At all. Okay, maybe a little. After watching them for many years I've noticed some similarities in their delivery that made me think about what makes a good essay for me personally. When I say "essay" I basicaly mean it in a general term because there is a thin line between essay, retrospective and analysis/critique (at least on Youtube). So there are two major methods of structure and pasing that are most common: 1) every segment (story, development, gameplay, bottom line) are separated from each other completely; 2) story and gameplay elements flow together taking turns as game mechanics get introduced along the way. I see pros and cons of both which makes it even harder to decide which one I like the most. Sometimes I just space out if the video stays on the same topic (lets say gameplay) for a bit too long, but on the other hand, when the story gets interrupted by contextual thoughts and criticism it makes it harder to follow the plot. Of course its a matter of balance, I guess, but I would like to hear your thoughts about this topic. And to be more specific, my question is which approach do you prefer and why?

 

[Zooey]

I think it depends on how long it is. Like if its one of those 5 hour Morrowind video essays, it should be broken up into clear parts.

 

[Yousef]

Personally I’ve come around to lean towards more either the dry sarcastic/self aware delivery of cybershell, which almost borderline on parody in a good way, or the confidently concise style of Matthewmatosis. Besides that, I can’t quite sit through most non-text essays. Generally, I don’t really mind the idea of a guy just talking things he likes, but something like that is much more difficult to digest in a video format compared to text or a real time convo. There’s a bit of commitment on the viewer’s end, which in itself is not a problem, but when there’s an ocean of these vids, there’s usually little reason to sit down and listen to Passionate Nostalgic Reviewer #3456 compared to Hardworking Essayist #8689.

Even if their videos are well-edited or well put together, even if the writing is on point and the scripting is nice, even if the arguments are well built, there’s just nothing you can do about the colossal fatigue you experience navigating so many of them. Which is why I primarily stick to only a reliable few. I also like Joseph anderson, although I much prefer his streams.

 

[qw90700]

Modern neuroscience tells us about this and forms theories regarding it. So if you know about Carl Jung's ideas you will learn about functions and how functions affect behavior and thus the personality of people. In that context you seem to be a high Ne user who values constant different fun variety but you are also high Ti user who like to learn so combining Ne and Ti functions it make you wanna value educational material that constantly changes valuable things to learn, but due to being a Ne user you don't prefer to focus on one thing. If this function idea and related personality typing was realistic I would say "you may be interested in MBTI" but treat it as fun hobby, when the actual personality typing is what Carl Jung wrote about in his books that it's the one you may wanna learn to get why you are the way you are and what it means for you.

In that regard I'm similar and different. For example I dislike essays that tells about stuff in a story format and focuses too much on personal life of people when it's not even related to the actual topic lol. I value learning useful information rather than "interesting" ones and when someone makes an essay I would demand everything about it taught but when it comes to video games what's told tend to be distorted in a way they can focus too much on Nintendo by ignoring SEGA's consoles as if they didn't effect the industry. Same for video game genres. They talk about DOOM but never about Zero Tolerance and related big deal games of the genres. So when these videos seem more like advertizing or having subjective opinions it's when I stop watching lol.

 

[Roy U. OmOm]

Vidya esseys are a blight.
Not because they exist, but because they take attention and credibilty from the actual documentaries made with great deal of attention, research and foreknowlage.
They water down the information to the point that you know less then you did 30 minutes ago, while materal made by professional and passionate people who actually put an effort into it, gets marignalized or forgotten.

It's yet another uneeded perk, made along with the influx of "twitch stream" audience.

 

[ciro64]

Well, when it's a review above everything else, I like every segment separated from each other. This tends to be my favorite, mostly thanks to Nerrel.

But the other format can work too if well executed.

Also I like that @Yousef brought Cybershell because he has a very charismatic way of luring you into whatever he says. It's not unscripted, but it's also not conventional either.

 

[wilddogsdivorce]

both are pretty great, but i think my ideal is when development is covered largely at the front of the video in a general way, with finer details being brought up later in a brief way where it becomes relevant. and the reason i prefer that is because i like to watch these videos multiple times over, and generally have less interest in development facts as a whole. when they are formatted in this way, i will often skip such segments on a second viewing and i find the option quite nice.

also, i have a habit of watching many very long videos about the same game. these development sections can often be quite similar, being mostly factual. but everyone has their own take on story and gameplay things, and it's mostly this sort of thing that i enjoy hearing about in an essay.

 

[Vexicrypt]

Vidya esseys are a blight.
Not because they exist, but because they take attention and credibilty from the actual documentaries made with great deal of attention, research and foreknowlage.
They water down the information to the point that you know less then you did 30 minutes ago, while materal made by professional and passionate people who actually put an effort into it, gets marignalized or forgotten.

It's yet another uneeded perk, made along with the influx of "twitch stream" audience.

It seems to me that you somehow managed to stumble upon the worst "essayists" that make those watered down slop videos pretending to be knowledgeable and deep (wich I totally understand). But a lot of folks are really passionate about what they are making and do a bunch of research to treat the games/topics with respect and dedication they deserve. Actual documentaries are great but only few people have the opportunity and connections in the industry to visit studios to interview devs in person (see Noclip). That being said, they still use the same information you can find online, most likely. So there is no real difference between it being told by a "serious professional guy" or your "avarage youtube dude" if they took the same info from the same source. Twitch stream audience preferes channels that farm drama, releasing "analysis" videos every single day with zero to none editing and attention to details (and seemingly effort, but I try to not judge anyone) and I'm not talking about those here.

Post automatically merged: Today at 2:42 PM

Personally I’ve come around to lean towards more either the dry sarcastic/self aware delivery of cybershell, which almost borderline on parody in a good way, or the confidently concise style of Matthewmatosis. Besides that, I can’t quite sit through most non-text essays. Generally, I don’t really mind the idea of a guy just talking things he likes, but something like that is much more difficult to digest in a video format compared to text or a real time convo. There’s a bit of commitment on the viewer’s end, which in itself is not a problem, but when there’s an ocean of these vids, there’s usually little reason to sit down and listen to Passionate Nostalgic Reviewer #3456 compared to Hardworking Essayist #8689.

Even if their videos are well-edited or well put together, even if the writing is on point and the scripting is nice, even if the arguments are well built, there’s just nothing you can do about the colossal fatigue you experience navigating so many of them. Which is why I primarily stick to only a reliable few. I also like Joseph anderson, although I much prefer his streams.

I completely missed the renaissance of this genre so I can still watch some random essays that get recommended to me by the mighty algorithm. It seems like this niche is saturated (if not oversaturated) though, so it makes sense to stick with few channels you've been reliably enjoying throughout the years. I'm kinda getting into Joseph Anderson (mostly trying to understand his high status in the critique genre) but lately I've been watching Noah Caldwell-Gervais, who has this more naive but literary approach to "talking about games", which feels unique despite of pretty basic editing. I've also heard the "text vs video" argument and thought about it too, but the thing is, most people will choose video format because of convenience. I don't know where one could even go for videogame essays in text form, any recommendations?

 

[Narisucks]

Its 50/50: you have to like what you're listening to and the person who's delivering it. Mainly I put on video essays because I'm interested in the topic, I'm already following the channel, or I need background music while I grind out some levels in a handheld or try to get through an excessively long visual novel.

(I watched a six hour essay about Jurassic Park Trespasser and I still haven't reached the second act of Unlimited Blade Works...please pray for me)

 

[bjork]

Does something like Chrontendo fit as an essay? I really like that style of covering games.

I feel like attempts at super deep dives into games can be good, but I've come across so many that just feel like rearranging old bits of known info and don't necessarily tell you anything new if you're familiar with the subject. For those I think as long as they're having fun, it isn't hurting anyone, but I'm okay skipping it.

 

[Waffles's iconWaffles]

I used to really like Hbomberguy's video essays because they flowed beautifully while also keeping your attention the whole +3 hours and drawing a clear distinction between parts, but that's incredibly hard to pull off and even some of his don't quite make it anymore as far as entertainment + structure go.

 

[beefbowl]

I actually dont care about other people's views, thoughts or retrospectives on video games. Or any medium. If they just talk passionately, then i care. Other than that %90 of video "essays" are just slop content with no value.