Steve Butts said:
Thanks for all the feedback! We've commissioned Mahalo to produce videos in a number of different formats for us and this is their first effort. There are always some rough edges to work out in any series, both in terms of concept and overall production, but I'm confident that the value of these videos will grow over time. We've got two more in this particular series then we'll be switching gears to some more story-focused concepts for more recent games in the coming weeks.
Keep letting us know what you think!
Steve, I just want to point this out, but if the overwhelming response to a new video series is negative, do you not think it might be better to skip the next two videos you had planned in the mini-series and go for something that isn't the exact same? So far this has been a bad introduction for a new series, and sticking to the current theme for 3 weeks will leave a bad taste in viewers? mouths if the following videos on the subject are of the same quality.
My point being is that if you stick to your guns here and decide to finish the mini-series on Skyrim, but do not have drastically better explanations, I think all that will happen for this series is that is mocked for a couple weeks before taking its spot between Apocalypse Lane and Creature Caster Masters.
Also, I would like to ask what the exact objective of this series is. I mean, this essentially feels like a bit of a glorified tutorial, and not even a good one at that. It is so basic in what it presents that it feels like someone had just read the manual. I have the actual Skyrim Guide here beside me as well, with a section on classes, and the summary it provides covers far more tactics and strategies for playing one that the two minute video that I had just viewed. And it's not even half a page in length. Why doesn't this video go into detail on what other skills that aren't under the rogue tree also work well (Like Illusion)? Why doesn't it tell me how I should focus my stats when I level (Should I put points into Health? Magicka? Stamina?)? Why doesn't it tell me what perks work well for a Rogue, and which ones I should focus on getting from the start? Whenever someone asks me what is a good way to build a character, these are some of the most basic questions you can answer, and yet here, they are skipped and ignored.
I don't really feel like the Escapist Community is one that is having major trouble completing games out of difficulty. It is neither informative nor funny, so it doesn't feel at all engaging to watch and the subject matter really doesn't seem suited for this site. If it was more informative and in-depth, it would be able to provide insight that maybe a more casual or newer player may have missed, and give them new ideas to use the next time they boot it up. If it was funny, it would at least be made bearable and people would get a kick out of watching it despite it perhaps not being the most accurate or detailed walkthrough. With neither of these, it feels very dry to view and not in the least bit engaging.
I know I'm just one user amongst thousands, but I feel that if something major isn't done here to either rework or improve this new series, it'll soon be found amongst the Archived Videos section. As it stands, it is something that I can't at all see myself recommending to friends or even other users on this site, and when starting a new series, this is the most vital thing to try and achieve.
I hope we can see better from this series in the future.