G4 And Gamespot Team Up

Kyle Orland (the video game ombudsman) has a new site, VGM Watch, and today he has commentary and and interview on a team up between G4TV and Gamespot. Given the tone of the interview, there will be more collaboration between the two businesses in the future. From the article: "Usually, the worlds of online games journalism and televised games journalism remain relatively competitive. Sure, an online outlet may report on the latest televised game awards show and members of the online media may sometimes appear on TV, but usually the two media are competing for the same eyeballs, rather than collaborating to create joint content. That changed this week, though, when GameSpot and G4 teamed up to produce four half-hour episodes of Cinematech (the shows premiered over the past two days, but this is G4, so there will be at least 50 repeats in the next week). I talked to Gamespot's Greg Kasavin about the G4 collaboration, the differences between TV and the Web, and the future of putting video into video game journalism."

Comments

Well...

[Anonymous Coward]

This is sure to culminate the shitty flood of advertisements.

That's great...

[BuddyJesus]

But why produce only Cinematech? The last time I watched that show, all it was was online video clips posted into 30 minutes.
On second thought, this makes a lot of sense.

Noo!

[Anonymous Coward]

RUNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNN!!!!!

Did you see what they did to TechTV??? Run before it's too late gamespot!!!!!!!

Oh wait, gamespot already sucks, maybe if G4 swallows them they will explode.

Good

[imstanny]

Maybe now G4 will be less based on re-runs.

Re:Good

[pnice]

Maybe now G4 will be less based on re-runs.

Yes, I hope so. Nothing like watching X-Play only to find out it's Adam and Morgan letting you know when the PSP is going to be released. Reruns of review shows do not work very well at all.

I guess they are bringing back that Leo Laporte guy soon to do Call for Help. http://www.g4tv.com/callforhelp/index.html and Barbed Wire Biscuit looks pretty cool.

I do wish that would let people send in video auditions for the new host of Attack of the Show. Some of us don't live in New York or LA and we might make a good host. I'm here in the middle of Texas and didn't have the means to audition in person. Oh well, I'm going to have my wife apply to be the new fragdoll. At least they take email resumes.

Re:Good

[Pxtl]

Yep. It's sad that they have to sink to reruns when there's so much good gamer content out there. Just start chucking out machinima and showing demo footage of LAN tournaments. Reruns of news shows is just retarded. At worst, do what TLC does, and show the same damn new show 30 times in one week - but don't show a news show later.

Foreplay

[warmgun]

I hate it when two companies engage in this kind of protracting foreplay. Just merge or buy-out or whatever and be done with it. Now we're going to have to endure at least 3 more /. articles on this subject.

Re:Foreplay

[Anonymous Coward]

And that's not including the dupes, either!

Re:Foreplay

[warmgun]

I bet there's one person who reads every /. comment just find the ones where s/he can make some joke about dupes.

New program?

[NJVil]

Will G4 and GameSpot have the foresight to mutually produce a show called G-Spot?

Of course, most Slashdotters won't get it.

Re:New program?

[jclast]

It won't be new. G4 already runs a block of programs they call "the G-Spot." I don't know all of what's in it, but I think X-Play and Attack of the Show are part of it.

Re:New program?

[pnice]

G4 already does have something they call the G-Spot. I don't think it's actually a show per se. I don't know what the G-Spot is (in regards to g4techtv) but they are always talking about it. "Catch it at the G-Spot." I think it's pretty lame.

Re:New program?

[Anonymous Coward]

Of course, most Slashdotters won't get it.

Yeah, and YOU NJVil will be the last person on earth to get it...

Re:New program?

[MrCopilot]

We Get it, We just can't find it.

Re:New program?

[IpalindromeI]

It's pretty easy to find. Rub your finger along the upper side of the vaginal wall. A couple inches up, you should feel a rougher area, like very small corrugations. That's the spot you're looking for, although different women have different sensitivities to it, so finding it may or may not mean much to yours.

How is this new?

[Gothic_Walrus]

Wasn't the original version of Extended Play on TechTV known as GameSpot TV?

I didn't have the channel back then, so I'm just going with what I've heard elsewhere, but I'm about 90% sure that that's what the show was known as before it became Extended Play and, later, X-Play.

Re:How is this new?

[bigbigbison]

This is correct, X-Play was originally called GameSpotTV, however, this is because, at the time, the channel was called ZDTV and ZDNet owned Gamespot.

Since then, however, the channel formerly known as ZDTV has been sold twice (first to Paul ALlen's Vulcan Ventures and then to G4TV) and Gamespot has been sold to C|Net.

I would be surprised if anyone still working at either company (besides Adam Sesler and perhaps original GameSPotTV co-host Lauren Felder(? was that her name?) were working there back then.

Re:How is this new?

[nb caffeine]

Wasn't TechTV sold to comcast and merged with G4? At least that is my recollection of the transfer

Re:How is this new?

[Gothic_Walrus]

That's basically what happened. According to Wikipedia...

"It originally was called ZDTV by its founder, Ziff-Davis, when it debuted on May 11, 1998. It later was owned by Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures. Vulcan Ventures sold TechTV to G4 Media (owned primarily by Comcast), which merged it with the video game channel G4 in May 2004 to form G4techTV. In February 2005, the name was changed back to G4, eliminating TechTV from the name completely."

Comcast basically bought out TechTV to eliminate the competition. I still think that was a stupid move - TechTV had a different audience entirely and did much better ratings-wise - but it's too late to change that now.

Re:How is this new?

[bigbigbison]

The former TechTV on air personalities have always said that rather than eliminate the competition, it was to get on more cable systems. Since G4 is owned by Comcast, there was hesitation on the part of other cable companies to add the channel. So by buying TechTV, they were instantly available in a lot more homes.

What?!?

[rAiNsT0rm]

People actually WATCH G4?!?

They could have 12 women orgies with a donkey and a floor-lamp and I still wouldn't watch that channel. "Sean Baby" is enough to make me throw up, let alone the sickly little blonde dude and his emo/lame chick sidekick.

As my girlfriend puts it, "I'd rather watch someone just play a game for an hour than this crap." The only exception was their "Johnny Extreme!" E3 bit, and even that was only funny because I was there and saw it going on. TO THE MAX! IT'LL PUNCH YOUR BALLS OFF! EXTREME!... and SUPERFULOUS!

Re:What?!?

[jayhawk88]

"Sean Baby" is enough to make me throw up

Man that ain't no lie. I watched some of those Video Game Vixen shows, with that lame VH1 guy hosting. Seanbaby, you're website is probably one of the 5 funniest in the history of the web, but damn dude, stay off the TV.

Re:What?!?

[rAiNsT0rm]

Word. He definitely has a face for radio, I guess in his case a face/personality for the web.

God I tried to repress that, but I never felt so sorry for people than seeing a bunch of lame people oogling "Videogame Vixens" and awards for best jiggle, etc. That was pretty low and even some of the most hardcore parent-basement dwelling dorks would have more self-respect than to be on TV discussing the jiggle of a videogame boob.

I seriously weep when I flip past G4 and realize that they have basically done nothing to help raise the image of gamers/geeks, they manage to play into every stereotype and then go even lower. I shudder to think of the average joe's opinion after watching 5 minutes of G4.

A videogame network could be so cool with such little effort. Have people playing multiplayer online games and just televise it with maybe some commentating. Hell I'd flip it on to watch a cool deathmatch or Mario Kart or basically anything *other* than what is currently on G4. And the chance to get to play and have it televised would be pretty neat for gamers.

Re:What?!?

[Torgo's Pizza]

Sean is the biggest prick in the game community that I've ever personally met. His ego is so inflated. Thinks he's god's gift to gamers. It's a good thing that most developers don't give him the time of day anymore.

Re:What?!?

[rAiNsT0rm]

I've met the guy twice. The first time was at E3, the second time was at the Mortal Kombat Release two years ago and I called him a dick, he talked shit then backed off like a pansy. I wanted so bad to get arrested kicking Seanbaby's ass just so I would make the news and get some kudo's from the true gamers out there who despise him as much as I do. I'm still mad I didn't just sucker-punch him when I had the chance, damn me for taking the man-to-man approach.

Re:What?!?

[pnice]

I don't mind Sean Baby so much. I thought he was great as the guest host on Attack of the Show. He was funny and things were flowing well between him and the rest of the AOTS people. I've never been face to face with him though so it might be a totally different experience.

Re:What?!?

[rAiNsT0rm]

Oh, god... Pompous, Arrogant, Ass - that would be a nice way of summarizing the guy. I'm not sure how you can miss his personality by his appearance and actions on TV but apparently you did :)

I guess some people aren't put off by him or his antics and personality, but to me it is like fingers on a chalk board.

Re:What?!?

[radicalskeptic]

A videogame network could be so cool with such little effort. Have people playing multiplayer online games and just televise it with maybe some commentating. Hell I'd flip it on to watch a cool deathmatch or Mario Kart or basically anything *other* than what is currently on G4. And the chance to get to play and have it televised would be pretty neat for gamers.

They actually already have this. It is called Arena, and it is actually pretty boring. First of all, all the teams have stupid names like "fragkillaz100" that makes them seem like idiots. Secondly, the specific multiplayer games they participate in are kinda boring to watch. They're so slow that they have to edit out a lot of the game time and just provide you with highlights. If they ever did a Street Fighter III or Guilty Gear battle I would be ecstatic, but I've never seen them do anything besides FPS or racing games.

Re:What?!?

[rAiNsT0rm]

Exactly. Not all games are made for this, and most games require you to know the game for it to be any more interesting than paint drying.

But say you get four people together (they could be celebs or regular schmoes, or some of each) do a little bio/background on each one so people have some peronal attachment and are engaged beforehand. Then have them go at it in say MarioKart. You need to pick games that are fairly quick and allow for some hilarity to ensue. No one wants to watch a RTS or RPG for sure.

The thing is games are only fun because of the fanatasy and interactivity... just like when you were little and yelled at your sister for pushing the buttons on her controller while she waited to get back in the game. No one wants to just WATCH a game being played, you need to add an element of personal attachment to the players, humor (no one likes to watch people who are too serious play a game), and fairly quick paced action (not too fast or else viewers can't keep up). Mario Kart, Guild Wars PvP battle, even tetris/bust-a-move puzzle games wouldn't be bad.

The thing is just as I said G4 has it all wrong. There are so many opportunities and ways to make it interesting and fun, just typing this reply I've had probably a dozen ideas that are all viable.

ruin of Gamespot

[Anonymous Coward]

I wonder if they will ruin Gamespot the way they ruined TechTV. I refuse to watch G4 since they absolutely hosed everyone involved with the Screensavers. And introduced some of the lamest most inept people I've ever seen. What a horrible company! I'll be glad when they fold. Maybe then someone else can fill the void left by TechTV.

The Damage Is Done

[Shihar]

I don't think it matters at this point. After killing TechTV and replacing TechTV programming with that shitty, shitty, awful G4 line up... nothing can bring that station back. What bugs me worst about the G4 line up are the fucking stupid people they manage to drag onto these shows. You watch X-Play and you see true gamers having fun and doing their thing. You watch any of their shitty shoes and it is pretty apparent that they have pretty looking women who couldn't get a job anywhere else staring at a teleprompter with such cues as "laugh cute". Then they filled their channel with the must mind numbing crap they could find. "Cheat!" !? For fucks sake, anyone who doesn't know how to use the Internet to find cheat codes to their video games is a fucking idiot. Then you have the stupid fucking car shows. Yeah, I got it. Cars and Asian chicks that look like they have been drugged into a permanent state of mental retardation. Gee, you found my nerd fantasy. After that sort of crap "Video Game Vixens" some how manages to further lower the bar, which is a feat in it of its self.

I just can't believe that sort of crap replace ScreenSavers, Body Hits, and all the other awesome programming that TechTV had. Gah. I hope G4 goes bankrupt. The only thing worthwhile about G4 is that if I am bored, I can be sure that they have an X-play rerun. G4, you fucking suck. Grow up.

still there's Morgan Webb

[coughman]

enough said.

You mean TWO new programs

[WidescreenFreak]

Now, you should know very well that there would have to be TWO shows. It would be no fun to have G-Spot unless it's also shown with something new to most Slashdotters - 4-Play.

Of course, most Slashdotters won't get that either. What do you mean? The Nintendo 64 allows four people to play at once!

;)

Having seen the co-produced cinematechs...

[DragonPup]

...let me say they SUCK. Cinematech is the simplest idea for a video game show. ie, show cool clips and fmv, let the viewer veg back and enjoy. Toss in an occasional themed show(all ninja games, retro gaming, etc) and it was great. But these co-produced ones are just shit. Some fake feminist group talking about 'empowering women in games'. I don't need two Wellesey Collage rejects lecturing me before each clip and (badly) acting all feminazi and 'down with men'.

So in summary...

[dreamquick]

Embarassingly mediocre TV channel meets embarassingly mediocre games website, much embarassing medicraty expected to follow?

Seriously, how many of them does it take to work out their business model is totally screwed?

1. Less biased and more in-depth reviews are available online, for free!

2. Screenshots and movies are also available online from people who care about the game.

2. Cheats, strategies and guides are available for free online.

Come on then gamespot / G4, why do we REALLY need you? Honestly?

Gamers watch TV?!

[nakedsushi]

We all know that real gamers don't watch TV. They're too busy trying to get a mount on WoW. I think G4 caters to the new-money type gamers who have just discovered it in the current generation. They're the ones who think Halo singleplayer is the greatest game ever made, and the ones who rush out to get Madden 200N (insert N for current year) on launch day.

Gamespot 4 TV?

[UltimaL337Star]

I say screw this and split G4TV into Tech TV, and G4-Rado, make that satallite radio, I'll be happy then. And honestly my opinion on Gamespot, they certainly aren't my favorite gaming info go to site, but I find I can sometimes get very old information on more classic console and PC games (still even carrying a standard galery instead of just a listing in an index) which IGN/Gamespy has seemed to dump, even their planet classic gaming sites

"putting video into video game journalism"

[randomizer9]

How about we put some journalism into video game journalism first? The Escapist is about the only video game related website I can read without having to endure lame jokes, constant pop-culture references, and the ever-so-popular "attitude."