Zero Punctuation: Tomb Raider: Underworld

whyarecarrots

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Nov 19, 2008
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-V- Otix said:
whyarecarrots said:
Ahh at last, a truly moronic post deserving of a ban; something we can be truly and unamobiuosly satisfied with and not bod down the thread with discussions of why he was banned.
Wait are you talking about your own post? I dont see where this statement could be true for anything but. I have to agree that ZP is still entertaining and all just not as much as it was back in the day. So nice job voicing your opinion in a truly idiotic way.
I was merely commenting on the fact that the last few ZP threads have had a discussion on them about why the first few posts were banned; in this thread the first reply was banned for a reason, and thus no reason for a discussion on it.

And please, how have I voiced my opinion in a truly idiotic way; I voiced my opinion of the first reply of this thread in a manner appropriate for the post. In case you missed it it's been hidden by a mod so you have to click to show it, but I promise, it's there.
 

Ragnarok the Red

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Dec 10, 2008
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Epictank of Wintown said:
SYSTEM-J said:
Baby Tea said:
It IS a review show with jokes! You said yourself that it's comedy within the framework of a review! You know what that means? That it's comedy WITHIN a review! Well shucks darn, that's what I've been saying. You didn't outline any difference, you merely stated: It's not a review with comedy! It's comedy in a review!
I'd have thought the difference would be clear, but apparently not. The difference is what the emphasis is on. If it's a review show with jokes, the emphasis is on the review. People should tune in to watch essentially fair, informative pieces of consumer journalism that are intended primarily to help them with their purchasing decisions. Since Yahtzee quite deliberately avoids being fair, informative or even making journalism, this clearly isn't the case.

By contrast, if it's a comedy using the framework of a review, the emphasis is not on any of the criteria a proper review should consider but rather about making people laugh. In the latest episode, Yahtzee references Top Gear and Top Gear is a classic example of a show that uses the review format to generate laughs. In a recent episode, Clarkson did a "proper review" of a car after someone complained (just like you and your chum "Nuke" are) that Top Gear don't do proper reviews anymore. The sequence was broken up into different areas of analysis, but within the conventional motoring purchase criteria were questions like "Will it help me escape from baddies in a shopping centre?" The whole section was a joke, quite deliberately, and whoever wrote in had quite clearly Missed The Point.

That's the difference. If you really need it spelling out so clearly I can only assume two things:

1. You aren't really getting ZP in the first place, which throws into severe scrutiny your criticisms of the show.
2. You have little idea of what constitutes a good review, which undermines any praise you may have for ZP as a review show even if it was one.
This man, ladies and gentlemen, has it right. Yahtzee isn't out to make a review. He doesn't give scores, he doesn't do the things that EVERY SINGLE REVIEWER on the planet does. No. He uses a video game review as a platform for comedy and that's something he pulls off really well.

Sure, the show's changed. So what? All I've really seen from people complaining about ZP is how it's changed and, paradoxically, is exactly the same as it's always been and getting stale. Which one is it? The 'change' and 'stagnation' are really rather mutually exclusive.
System J and Epic Tank make excellent points here. What Yahtzee does aren't game reviews in a traditional sense, they are a topic for him to comment on comedically which he does to good effect. If you want a real, itemized review of a game head over to IGN or something (cue jokes about their lack of integrity here) or bum on over to GameFAQs and see what other gamers think about something following a precise breakdown of graphics, sound, gameplay, etc.

And like has been said before, you can't please everyone all the time. You'll never find a way to do something without pissing off at least a decent minority chunk of your demographic. If Yahtzee stays the same people complain about stagnation and formulaic-ness. If he changes it's "jumping the shark" or "abandoning what made the show so good". Either way you win, and either way you lose. Trying to please everyone is a pointless endeavor.

Hell I myself miss the unique song openings and closings the show had it's first 9 or 10 months, but I realize as time went on and Yahtzee became more and more popular the greater the risk of him getting in trouble for unauthorized copy infringement or just plain old running out of songs to use on a given review. So I understood why he revoked it.

What I think a lot of people don't see about Yahtzee's reviews is that when you tune in to watch them you AREN'T tuning into a G4 program segment reviewing a game or some such, you're tuning into a Comedy Central 4-5 minute standup comedy rant about it.
 

HuCast

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Aug 18, 2006
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Liked it much better than the last ones...the hits come much faster and harder-tons of quotable stuff-thanks a lot for this one, still lmao :)
 

twilinova07

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Nov 26, 2008
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another good episode this week. my favorite was the joke about the autistic camera

and thanks for pointing out how evil she kinda is. women role model my ass.
 

Mexicanbulge

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Jan 15, 2009
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I agree that i think zero punctuation has been slipping from the episodes of old, but i would put it to you that you are simpley becoming acclimatised to the humour.
Personally i have to say that i found this weeks episode extremely funny and a great return to form for yahtzee.
It included some of his best lines to date and made me watch it twice on the spot which no video has done since the super-smash-bros-brawl mailbag-respondance video.
Also i signed up, which i obviously havent done before.
My only quibble is that some of the time taken up with repeated titty points could have been used to have a longer go at the camera.
I reckon terrible cameras deserve more criticism as they can make and otherwise good game almost unplayable (see ninja gaiden 2).

All in all a great return to form yahtzee! Now don't slide back!
:)
 

thejaoodmaster

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Jan 9, 2009
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I would agree with Ragnorak on most of his points. Nonetheless, he shows how some people would spend literally hours defending an online icon( or a real, very funny person) who makes fun of fans like Ragnorak.
 

AceDiamond

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Jul 7, 2008
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Again I'm still not understanding this sort of "indie rock fan wangst" that's coming from people these days regarding ZP.

Wonder if we'll see "Yahtzee has sold out" t-shirts appearing on Cafe Press
 

spudpuffin

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Apr 27, 2008
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NewClassic said:

Zero Incentive - A NewClassic Rant on Zero Punctuation.

Like Lara, one thing Yahtzee seems to be showing signs of is simply tiring out. He's becoming old, not particularly interesting, and going towards stale in terms of humor and style. Once upon a time, Zero Punctuation was a series that was more about game reviews with good humor and an active style that encouraged the viewer to be a part of the experience, laugh, and actually learn something about a game.

More lately, not too unlike G4, Yahtzee's been slowing down, and now he's leaning a lot more on humor instead of game-content. Although this doesn't make it bad, it does make something of it that it is not. For the most part, Zero Punctuation is no longer about game reviews, and is now about gaming-related humor.

<img_inline caption="Simply put, Zero Punctuation
has become something it's not." align="left">http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/NewClassic/Forum%20Stuff/spy.jpg
Almost like it's a new show disguised in an old shell, I can't help but feel like Zero Punctuation is losing some of what made it better once upon a time. The loss of the clever song-choices at the beginning and end of the videos, the clever intelligent humor woven into the discussion of the games themselves, and actual review segments that really told the player more about the game than simply pointing out a series of flaws and making jokes about them. (Don't get me wrong, this was always present. But it feels stronger now, as if this is the main focus.)

I'd like to point out here that I'm not calling this video series bad. What it is has simply become is something different. As much as I'd like to encourage the video series, I'd rather say take a step back and look into it's roots. Some of the things that made Zero Punctuation so clever is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Maybe I'm speaking only to myself here, but I'd like to think the series could return to what made it so strong to begin with.

Now, I'd like to take a moment to perhaps stave off some dissent before it gets to a point of argument rather than debate. I'm not here to attack Yahtzee. I feel like he could be doing better with this video series than he currently is, and I see no harm in saying as much.

Though if I were, I hope we would all understand how little it would accomplish. Small time curmudgeons like me won't reduce Yahtzee to tears, considering how little he cares about us. As small-time viewers , we're more here to provide traffic and watch something we enjoy, with the commentary being nothing other than banal time-wasting. Hopefully, we can get some discussion as to the very limited review-content of Yahtzee's latest ZP videos.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/NewClassic/Forum%20Stuff/washedup.jpg
To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what I'm accomplishing here. Fans of the series will, especially those currently watching each video with bated breath, are likely going to continue to be fans of the series regardless of what I have to say. Ultimately, though, my opinions are what individualizes me, as well as what is important. Like all comments on these videos, it really shows the power of opinions as a commentative medium. (Admittedly, a lot of these opinions completely mirror Yahtzee's, regardless of game or opinion.)

What would not surprise me is if this comment is received poorly. Maybe it's my cynical side talking, but I'd hardly believe that many people will appreciate this opinion; even only because it disagrees with Yahtzee. I've never really understood the almost crusader-like fervor that fans of the series attracts, and I find that no matter how often I watch the videos, there's always something about Yahtzee's opinion that I disagree with.

Not that small time critics like myself do well making posts like these, as they often wind up dead, or carrying on flame wars. And if you wanted my honest opinion, I'd suggest how little all of it matters because I don't think this series will just turn over and die. A lot of it is because that the series still has merit on its own. "Mankind Has Yet to Recognize My Genius" is and will always be a misnomer, because the term genius has so much of a subjective slant to it.

Admittedly, this video seems to like it's using a lot of "too obvious" jokes, and he manages to completely dodge the game review. Entirely. (Okay, maybe he touches on it a little, but for the length of the video, it's largely sketch comedy.)

Though he seems to hate the series, and yet jumps on this one simply because... I'm rather confused by the entire experience. Why? It doesn't make sense to me.

By and large, I'm not particularly pleased. I feel like this series could really return to how clever it once was, and recover that balance of subtlety and blatant humor that it once had. As time progresses, though, I feel like I'm only fooling myself into thinking that it could ever be that way ever again.

Maybe I'm just some cranky old gamer looking at something, and wishing it were more like something he enjoyed some time ago, instead of just occasionally alluding to it like it is now.

(Although, bonus points for the Unskippable ad at the end of the video. Good series, although it already has plenty of viewers.)
look m8 u need a girl were not here for comparisons to the "old days" were here for 4 minutes of a guy making semi-resonable arguments and nit picking that hilarious!
 

Anitoon

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Jun 18, 2008
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NewClassic said:

Zero Incentive - A NewClassic Rant on Zero Punctuation.

Like Lara, one thing Yahtzee seems to be showing signs of is simply tiring out. He's becoming old, not particularly interesting, and going towards stale in terms of humor and style. Once upon a time, Zero Punctuation was a series that was more about game reviews with good humor and an active style that encouraged the viewer to be a part of the experience, laugh, and actually learn something about a game.

More lately, not too unlike G4, Yahtzee's been slowing down, and now he's leaning a lot more on humor instead of game-content. Although this doesn't make it bad, it does make something of it that it is not. For the most part, Zero Punctuation is no longer about game reviews, and is now about gaming-related humor.

<img_inline caption="Simply put, Zero Punctuation
has become something it's not." align="left">http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/NewClassic/Forum%20Stuff/spy.jpg
Almost like it's a new show disguised in an old shell, I can't help but feel like Zero Punctuation is losing some of what made it better once upon a time. The loss of the clever song-choices at the beginning and end of the videos, the clever intelligent humor woven into the discussion of the games themselves, and actual review segments that really told the player more about the game than simply pointing out a series of flaws and making jokes about them. (Don't get me wrong, this was always present. But it feels stronger now, as if this is the main focus.)

I'd like to point out here that I'm not calling this video series bad. What it is has simply become is something different. As much as I'd like to encourage the video series, I'd rather say take a step back and look into it's roots. Some of the things that made Zero Punctuation so clever is rapidly becoming a thing of the past. Maybe I'm speaking only to myself here, but I'd like to think the series could return to what made it so strong to begin with.

Now, I'd like to take a moment to perhaps stave off some dissent before it gets to a point of argument rather than debate. I'm not here to attack Yahtzee. I feel like he could be doing better with this video series than he currently is, and I see no harm in saying as much.

Though if I were, I hope we would all understand how little it would accomplish. Small time curmudgeons like me won't reduce Yahtzee to tears, considering how little he cares about us. As small-time viewers , we're more here to provide traffic and watch something we enjoy, with the commentary being nothing other than banal time-wasting. Hopefully, we can get some discussion as to the very limited review-content of Yahtzee's latest ZP videos.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a395/NewClassic/Forum%20Stuff/washedup.jpg
To be honest, I'm not entirely sure what I'm accomplishing here. Fans of the series will, especially those currently watching each video with bated breath, are likely going to continue to be fans of the series regardless of what I have to say. Ultimately, though, my opinions are what individualizes me, as well as what is important. Like all comments on these videos, it really shows the power of opinions as a commentative medium. (Admittedly, a lot of these opinions completely mirror Yahtzee's, regardless of game or opinion.)

What would not surprise me is if this comment is received poorly. Maybe it's my cynical side talking, but I'd hardly believe that many people will appreciate this opinion; even only because it disagrees with Yahtzee. I've never really understood the almost crusader-like fervor that fans of the series attracts, and I find that no matter how often I watch the videos, there's always something about Yahtzee's opinion that I disagree with.

Not that small time critics like myself do well making posts like these, as they often wind up dead, or carrying on flame wars. And if you wanted my honest opinion, I'd suggest how little all of it matters because I don't think this series will just turn over and die. A lot of it is because that the series still has merit on its own. "Mankind Has Yet to Recognize My Genius" is and will always be a misnomer, because the term genius has so much of a subjective slant to it.

Admittedly, this video seems to like it's using a lot of "too obvious" jokes, and he manages to completely dodge the game review. Entirely. (Okay, maybe he touches on it a little, but for the length of the video, it's largely sketch comedy.)

Though he seems to hate the series, and yet jumps on this one simply because... I'm rather confused by the entire experience. Why? It doesn't make sense to me.

By and large, I'm not particularly pleased. I feel like this series could really return to how clever it once was, and recover that balance of subtlety and blatant humor that it once had. As time progresses, though, I feel like I'm only fooling myself into thinking that it could ever be that way ever again.

Maybe I'm just some cranky old gamer looking at something, and wishing it were more like something he enjoyed some time ago, instead of just occasionally alluding to it like it is now.

(Although, bonus points for the Unskippable ad at the end of the video. Good series, although it already has plenty of viewers.)
I agree with what this man is saying. If I compare the paper mario or mario galaxy review to his more recent videos I see a difference. n style, in his jokes. It's kind of dumbed down. BUT in this review I kind of understand why he didn't go in depth in this review. It's because he's right! All this game was, was a quick cash in of the franchise. And Yahtzee and myself hate that to a pulp. They did it to sonic, to mario and to crash bandicoot and using Lara's bong body is a sad marketing strategy. Back to yahtzee's new style...I don't know it just doesn't seem the same.
 

kommando367

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Oct 9, 2008
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a little immature but still good, i was kind hopeing he would mention the games big glitches
(i've confirmed it has two glitches that make it unfinishible)
 

theSecondLaw

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Jan 15, 2009
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Anitoon said:
I agree with what this man is saying. If I compare the paper mario or mario galaxy review to his more recent videos I see a difference. n style, in his jokes. It's kind of dumbed down. BUT in this review I kind of understand why he didn't go in depth in this review. It's because he's right! All this game was, was a quick cash in of the franchise. And Yahtzee and myself hate that to a pulp. They did it to sonic, to mario and to crash bandicoot and using Lara's bong body is a sad marketing strategy. Back to yahtzee's new style...I don't know it just doesn't seem the same.
When the games major selling point is a nice pair of polygons, its hard to NOT dumb it down.
 

niloony

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Jan 15, 2009
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Why is michael atkinson still alive ?... (Australian internet censorship/game censorship senator)

@ The whole yahtzee is getting old thing
I've only been watching the series for about a month so i'm not effected by nostalgia like the rest of you. But i have watched every episode since then and there are some fantastic ones and a few medicore ones. Yet overall he has kept to the same style and on average they are still just as good. You can hardly blame an underworld review for being without much depth other than that of Lara Crofts cleavage.
 

the farkinator

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Nov 6, 2008
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Yahtzee is a dedicated man with a mission, and I say more power to him. However, I think he needs to do something a little more intresting. I agree with some of NewClassic's terrifyingly long rant. While Yahtzee is still good, he needs to make more puns and such. I.E. get a little more entertaining. (maybe some fanboy baiting.)
 

Metalrocks

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Jan 15, 2009
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had to register my self for this now.
i always like his reviews and agree with him (at least with the games i have played) but i think he talks TRU down. i din't die many times as he claims. sure the camera is a problem and the controls, i agree but in his review he talks more bad about it then reviewing it. yes, there are many parts out but i still think it has gotten better since cristal took over. at least you can finally play it with the mouse which wasn't before.
the levels are better looking then before. they look more realistic and believable.
big tits, yes, but still better looking then in the other titles and i agree strongly with her face. that was a good one.
what i can't understand why he complains about the dirt on lara.
there are few things he din't mentiont about the game, like about the athlet to make lara's moves realistic and about the music, sound.
TRU is not perfect but still entertaining and yes, you must have played legend to understand underworld better about lara's mother.

it is still a funny review but it could have used more infos.

PS. yes, i know, my spelling sucks. german is still my strongest language.
 

pothb

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Dec 12, 2008
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Yahtzee needs to review Legacy of Kain from Eidos/Crystal Dynamics. It's old though... too bad. As for Tomb Raider... never bought one, but I've played em. Not absolutely horrible but I don't get why she's popular (aside from looks, and huge breasts, obviously).