I guess hyperbolic satire just isn't my thing. Advertising himself as "Gaming's Biggest Douchebag" and talking in that bloody accent doesn't help anything, either.
But who cares about his personality? No one is attacking him as a person, it's the persona we (most of us) have a problem with. Because it makes the show obnoxious and unentertaining.Jake Lewis Clayton said:-snip-
I agree with a lot of his opinions, but he's an extremely poor public speaker. He takes too long to make his points and has no real grasp on how to deliver humour verbally. It's like watching Charlie Brooker at half speed with no wit. On the other hand, I really like some of his written articles, where these weaknesses don't affect him quite so badly.blobby218 said:I've watched a couple of his videos now and i'll say they're not for me, and i was reading some comments the other day with mixed feelings on him, so i was wondering what everyone really though. Be honest now folks.
Why did you show the video description?kroldok said:In the Video description:Ian Caronia said:*SNIP*
ALSO! This has nothing to do with nationality. This has to do with a genuine lack of talent and a lack of tact. Put it to you this way: Would a real journalist who has integrity, talent, and tact take time out to explain their POV and address the topic?
Last time I checked, heads don't explode in warfare games, especially COD. And it was a pop because of the audio and camera equipment being used. Guns don't just sound like pops when firing (especially in a firefight) because, well...that's just obvious. And real war has people screaming. A lot. And taking shots from behind cover.
...Did he just say real violence is boring? Is he trying to go by just this footage alone?
Wait... What the hell? He's PARODYING the SUICIDE?!
Thank you, Jim. I'm sure that trying to shock viewers with such footage was TOTALLY NECESSARY instead of, I don't know, thinking of how to explain yourself clearly and credibly...which you still failed to do.
You hack.
This week, Jim Sterling talks about Leigh Alexander's "Who Cheers For War?" (erroneously named in the video because of unscripted bollocks) and counters the claim that gamers want realistic violence.
No, it's not subjective in this case. The only reason any grim footage is ever used is to A) Show people what the assailant looks like so they are aware/asking for help apprehending a criminal or B) Shock value. And, unlike showing the tapes of a robbery or something, that's what using snuff footage is for: Shock value (and it is snuff footage because someone literally dies on camera, as opposed to a snuff film where it's a film featuring actors/randoms literally dieing on camera. Just clearing that up).From the video:
"Were you at all disturbed by that? if so congratulations you have not been desensitized to real voilence, videogame violence: yes, real violence: no."
"Videogames are not like real life, and i for one am very very glad of that"
"They (gamers) don't want a real iraq war situation, because not only is it disturbing on a true level, it's boring".
Yes, he is highly inflammatory in his presentation, and there are other ways of making this point (wether or not they are better is subjective).
Firstly, it's ignorance to say all violence in videogames is over the top or cartoonish. Heavy Rain. LA Noire. The SMT games (magic is sometimes involved, but a character's death has weight and is neither funny or cartoonish). Red Dead Redemption. I can go on, but I don't have to.The point I see here being that real violence is disturbing and scary, the word boring certainly seems ill placed here but when taken within the context of the video where he clearly states that videogame violence is over the top and cartoonish, this signifies to me a use of the word to not mean it's dull but simply unwanted, that most people who play violent videogames do not achieve hard-ons, or laugh in glee when they watch the news showing the latest natural disaster, or pictures of actual war-victims, I believe it's not a case of boring as in: "I can watch this all day and I'm not bothered", but rather a case of boring as in: "I derive no pleasure or excitement from this whatsoever", and there is a difference.
Wilhelm Scream: I actually didn't catch that about the screams. Either that or I just didn't know what that was. Since that's the case then I'll take back what I said about the screaming. Makes sense. Thanks for the info, though. Like I like to joke:"There is no screeching, there's no Wilhelm screams in real war":
From Wikipedia:
The Wilhelm scream is a film and television stock sound effect first used in 1951 for the film Distant Drums.[1] The effect gained new popularity (its use often becoming an in-joke) after it was used in Star Wars and many other blockbuster films as well as television programs and video games.[2] The scream is often used when someone is shot, falls from a great height, or is thrown from an explosion.
What is said here is that the specific kind of screams often heard in film and videogames are silly and cartoonish in that they don't properly represent the actuality of a war-zone.
No, mate, I was just having fun. You know how some people say "It makes me so mad I can punch a kitten?" Well I was just turning an awful phrase around to be funny by abusing Eldrtich Horror creatures (TVtrops the term, but in short it's the classification of Cathulu-like monsters that can induce madness just by reading their name or looking at them). Wasn't trying to be poignant or anything with that. Just goofing around.On a final note: with your comments on burying alive or bludgeoning fantasy-animals littered about, I'm honestly having a hard time telling if you are serious or poking fun (witch is not to say that I mind, I do after all eat meat).
yikes man.. you have a point but 'ridicule' is a bit much isn't it?Ian Caronia said:In conclusion: Jim whateverhisnameis is a hack and deserves no less than ridicule until he learns how to be a real journalist. Doesn't matter if he's only on the net. He's getting paid to be a journalist, and thus he should do his job correctly instead of being the "edgy" equivalent to Fox News.
I would say that it's not bad because his production values suck, but rather because it is made so evident in the show that they are so low.Kahunaburger said:And his production values suck.
The video description state that the video is made with another piece of work in mind:Ian Caronia said:Why did you show the video description?kroldok said:In the Video description:Ian Caronia said:*SNIP*
ALSO! This has nothing to do with nationality. This has to do with a genuine lack of talent and a lack of tact. Put it to you this way: Would a real journalist who has integrity, talent, and tact take time out to explain their POV and address the topic?
Last time I checked, heads don't explode in warfare games, especially COD. And it was a pop because of the audio and camera equipment being used. Guns don't just sound like pops when firing (especially in a firefight) because, well...that's just obvious. And real war has people screaming. A lot. And taking shots from behind cover.
...Did he just say real violence is boring? Is he trying to go by just this footage alone?
Wait... What the hell? He's PARODYING the SUICIDE?!
Thank you, Jim. I'm sure that trying to shock viewers with such footage was TOTALLY NECESSARY instead of, I don't know, thinking of how to explain yourself clearly and credibly...which you still failed to do.
You hack.
This week, Jim Sterling talks about Leigh Alexander's "Who Cheers For War?" (erroneously named in the video because of unscripted bollocks) and counters the claim that gamers want realistic violence.
"_There is never a reason to show footage like the one he used other than for shock value."No, it's not subjective in this case. The only reason any grim footage is ever used is to A) Show people what the assailant looks like so they are aware/asking for help apprehending a criminal or B) Shock value. And, unlike showing the tapes of a robbery or something, that's what using snuff footage is for: Shock value (and it is snuff footage because someone literally dies on camera, as opposed to a snuff film where it's a film featuring actors/randoms literally dieing on camera. Just clearing that up).From the video:
"Were you at all disturbed by that? if so congratulations you have not been desensitized to real voilence, videogame violence: yes, real violence: no."
"Videogames are not like real life, and i for one am very very glad of that"
"They (gamers) don't want a real iraq war situation, because not only is it disturbing on a true level, it's boring".
Yes, he is highly inflammatory in his presentation, and there are other ways of making this point (wether or not they are better is subjective).
_There is never a reason to show footage like the one he used other than for shock value. Fact. Why? Because there's nothing to be gained from it other than the shock of the audience.
_Why is it not subjective that there are better ways to go about proving a point? Because good journalism doesn't rely on cheap tricks like that one to prove it's point. Any good journalist worth their salt can explain their opinion and/or point with words. You can even show diagrams, statistics, or better yet related footage. Video game footage! That snuff footage had nothing to do with gaming or violence, he just used it to illustrate his point when he could've done the same thing with average COD footage.
*shows random COD videogame footage*
"Does this feel real to you? No? Because at the end of the day it isn't. Though we might not realize it while we're 'in the zone', all the clipping, graphical inconsistencies, the way your character getting shot in the foot somehow makes your eyes get covered in jelly, and even just the fact that we're really only sitting in a chair with a controller or keyboard in our hands is all information that's fed to our brains to disconnect fictional violence with real violence. We don't want true death. We don't want to see real people die just as much as we don't want to get shot! Just because we want more visceral action that doesn't equate to a lust for realistic war. As much as gamers talk about killing and such, we also enjoy outrageous deaths and love watching bad ragdoll effects of a falling body. Those things are what separate us from murder-lovers. Yes, we want to blow a man's brains out with our high-powered rifle. But more importantly, we want the ability to turn off the bloodshed at some point. Maybe go off and eat some Cheetos or watch porn. In my case both.
_That little power button? That's what divides murder from playtime, and it's what prevents sane gamers from thinking real murder is cool."
See? All dialogue. The point was explained as clearly as the individual (in this case, me) thought they could, showed no actual rage and even had one or two attempts at humor (be they successful or failures). More importantly, the point was explained without any cheap gimmicks, without the manipulation of the audience. Without any snuff footage.
Also watch the ending of the video again. Watch what he does. See how he parodies the real suicide he JUST used for shock value? He thinks he's being funny. The fact that he thinks parodying the snuff footage would be funny immediately discredits his argument because it shows a callous disregard for the weight and reality of the death (the reason he used it in the first place). He shows he doesn't care about the death and can make a joke of it. BAD journalism. BAD journalist. And since he's supposedly known for being "funny but edgy", you can be safe in assuming he only did that last bit because he was serious the whole video and wanted a joke, and to show, yet again, how "edgy" and "unapologetic" he is.
This is proof that he is a hack.
Firstly, it's ignorance to say all violence in videogames is over the top or cartoonish. Heavy Rain. LA Noire. The SMT games (magic is sometimes involved, but a character's death has weight and is neither funny or cartoonish). Red Dead Redemption. I can go on, but I don't have to.[/quote]The point I see here being that real violence is disturbing and scary, the word boring certainly seems ill placed here but when taken within the context of the video where he clearly states that videogame violence is over the top and cartoonish, this signifies to me a use of the word to not mean it's dull but simply unwanted, that most people who play violent videogames do not achieve hard-ons, or laugh in glee when they watch the news showing the latest natural disaster, or pictures of actual war-victims, I believe it's not a case of boring as in: "I can watch this all day and I'm not bothered", but rather a case of boring as in: "I derive no pleasure or excitement from this whatsoever", and there is a difference.
Secondly: The word "boring" does indeed mean that you're not deriving pleasure from it, but the term is not used in describing something horrible/horrific/shocking. The reason is because...well...you're not bored when you're shocked. Or horrified. You're too busy being shocked! ...Or horrified!
Boring- monotonous, tedious, tiresome, humdrum
To call actual death, especially war, humdrum is not only factually incorrect but also insulting to all those who have experienced war or the loss of a loved one. And, if you want to go in another direction, you can even say it's insulting to those who died, but that would be less fact and more opinion.
_Guy made a huge feus pax there and he stuck with it thinking he was saying something smart. In actuality he was making himself look even more so like an insensitive and ignorant individual.
Firstly: nowhere in the video does he state that death in videogames have never had emotional value(nor did I), it is however very obvious that it is not real (cartoonish), even when there is a strong emotional context, and people who play videogames for the most part know this.
Secondly: to note here is that he did not call it 'humdrum' he called it boring, and Dictionary.com does not result in humdrum as a definition but rather a synonym, and they are different (witch is not to say that my source is better than yours, but they are apparently different). What source did you use?
(Sidenote: english is not my first language, and it struck me there is a chance that the value of common terms used in an uncommon fashion is easier for me, as I am not used to hearing them in daily speech and therefore have "big-picture-hearing" perhaps placing emphasis on the subject as a whole, and interpreting single words from within the context to a greater degree)