Jim Sterling Watch

[Selfsurprise]

Anybody here a fan of Jim Sterling? I thought it might be worthwhile to have some variety of "response" thread for his channel because the guy tends to engender a lot of discussion, given that he isn't one to shy away from controversial topics, call out the gaming industry for it's oft cretinous behaviour and laugh in the big stupid face of the gaming communities more toxic demographics wherever and whenever they leer up from under their bridges. That, and I'd much rather chat about his videos with you fine upstanding people than the fetid abhumans that populate YouTube comments.

 

[ : FRIENDLY NOTICE : Needless to say if you haven't watched the videos that will invariably be featured here, there might be spoilers contained herein. If you have seen them already or you don't mind having certain details unveiled to you, read on.]

 

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What do you think about his lineup of winning titles this year? Whilst the perversely crass knee-jerk reactionary in me looks forward to his "Shittiest Games of the Year" videos much more, I can't find any fault with his particular selections in this round. I was really glad and not in-the-least-bit-surprised that the new Doom took pride of place in it. I loved his surmisation of Doom Guy's appeal (

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AphprlpAVyE) earlier in the year, that the faceless mute and more-or-less anonymous Doom Guy had more personality and charisma than the sad majority of full-voiced, flesh-out and individual characters that marrs the medium.

I'm also really pleased that Pony Island got a mention for it's smart and darkly humorous meta premise, it's one I've actually played myself recently and the only downside I can see to the title is that it's innovative approach will surely inspire a slew of horrible try-hards trying to cash-in on it's originality. Finally, I wasn't aware the creators of Limbo had created a new game in the same platforming vein as that title, I'd really like to give Inside a go.

 

The Cornflakes Homunculus makes me want to cry...

[Heliocentrical]

Perfect timing SelfSurprise, I was wondering what to do with this.

 

 

Without a doubt the hardest boss in DS3. His Sweeping attacks will one shot you and his cornflake vomit is almost impossible to dodge.

Edited December 20, 2016 by Guest (see edit history)

[Selfsurprise]

^ I might be able to guess what you favourite title in the lineup is.

[Heliocentrical]

^ I might be able to guess what you favourite title in the lineup is.

I haven't gotten to DS3 yet as the series is fairly new to me. I'm currently working my way through DS2. Though since I enjoyed DS1 and am loving DS2 I suspect I might like DS3. Just a suspicion.

 

You should really give them a try. I bet you would love the monsters. Especially Bloodborne if you happen to have a PS4.

[Selfsurprise]

^ I might be able to guess what you favourite title in the lineup is.

I haven't gotten to DS3 yet as the series is fairly new to me. I'm currently working my way through DS2. Though since I enjoyed DS1 and am loving DS2 I suspect I might like DS3. Just a suspicion.

 

You should really give them a try. I bet you would love the monsters. Especially Bloodborne if you happen to have a PS4.

I have actually played the first Dark Souls game and, to be totally honest, I found it absolutely rock solid to play. I'm not exactly a kick-ass gamer at the best of times and I've been somewhat spoiled by the inherent hand-holding standards of later fantasy games and a lifetime of playing graphic adventure/point n' click fare. But you are right about the monsters and enemies. I'm a fan of the website Bogleech and he has written several articles about the series bizarre menagerie of bad guys, including Bloodborne and it's diverse cast of "Great Ones". I've forgotten the name of the series developer, but even to someone as unfamiliar with the games as I am the artistic and thematic direction of Dark Souls and Bloodborne is breathtaking. I might make a top ten enemies according to franchise thread or something in the future, just to celebrate the team's teratological creativity.

[Glue Man]

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Jim's thoughts on emulators/piracy are interesting (how many times can you repackage the same video game?). I'm not exactly a fan of pirating games, but also I have a problem with how the length of copyrights keeps increasing so that Disney can keep Steamboat Willie out of the public domain. There comes a point where everybody involved with the original is dead and/or not making money on it, and I think the public should have a chance with it. I mean, look at Dracula. He's public domain and doing great. Mostly.

[Selfsurprise]

Jim's thoughts on emulators/piracy are interesting (how many times can you repackage the same video game?). I'm not exactly a fan of pirating games, but also I have a problem with how the length of copyrights keeps increasing so that Disney can keep Steamboat Willie out of the public domain. There comes a point where everybody involved with the original is dead and/or not making money on it, and I think the public should have a chance with it. I mean, look at Dracula. He's public domain and doing great. Mostly.

 

"It's a bit like Voldemort, from that movie, Game of Thrones..."

 

Off-topic: I like what you've written in your location text Glue Man. GLUE MAN AWAY! [/remains stuck to the ground]

 

On-topic: I mostly agree with what Jim has to say about emulation and it's apparent association with piracy. I'm actually less invested in playing old games so you might be tempted to think that I'm indifferent to the fate and latter manipulation of said old games - but I really believe it does matter. Much of that sentiment can be attributed to Ross Scott's commentary on the lack of a shelf-life for games that require a server to exist at all, his videos on the subject have convinced me to become an advocate of not killing games, and some of that belief transfers over to the galling lack of self-awareness and acquisitive restraint on Nintendo's part. Nintendo might have litigation on their side but they certainly don't occupy the ethical grounds of this debate, but who needs values when you have money!

[Selfsurprise]

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Might as well bring this up and generate more toxic hatefulness to round-off a terrible year :3

Whilst I've not personally (and blessedly I guess!) played any of the titles therein, I'm legitimately amazed by how sub-par that Umbrella Corps looks. Not just for the wilfully generic visuals that have a fascinatingly faux-asset look about them, but for the fact that he single player campaign is apparently and quite literally just one of the multiplayer maps - repeatedly. You have to admire the utter gall of Capcom for setting the yard-stick so low.

[Glue Man]

Might as well bring this up and generate more toxic hatefulness to round-off a terrible year :3

Whilst I've not personally (and blessedly I guess!) played any of the titles therein, I'm legitimately amazed by how sub-par that Umbrella Corps looks. Not just for the wilfully generic visuals that have a fascinatingly faux-asset look about them, but for the fact that he single player campaign is apparently and quite literally just one of the multiplayer maps - repeatedly. You have to admire the utter gall of Capcom for setting the yard-stick so low.

 

My favorite part is in the comments where Sterling said that No Man's Sky was too mediocre/unimportant to be on the list

[Heliocentrical]

My favorite part is in the comments where Sterling said that No Man's Sky was too mediocre/unimportant to be on the list

What are you talking about? Peter Nomanski's work on post-modern existentialism is truly amazing.

[Selfsurprise]

My favorite part is in the comments where Sterling said that No Man's Sky was too mediocre/unimportant to be on the list

What are you talking about? Peter Nomanski's work on post-modern existentialism is truly amazing.

 

Suspicious literary ribaldry aside, I must of been one of the few weirdos who actually thought No Man's Sky was sort of alright. I only played it five times for about several hours at a pop admittedly and it soon became a little tedious. If only the in-game inventory didn't affect literally everything you do! Not being able to interact with alien NPC's or those monoliths unless you have an open slot is as baffling as it is exasperating. Although I can admire the procedurally generated planet-hopping crux of the game (the idea ferments with possibility, and in a better game could be paradigm shifting) I feel like it would of been better for No Man's Sky if there were, instead, several dozen or so preset planets with wildly different ecosystems and local activity, injected with their own distinctive atmosphere instead the billions of inevitably hodge-podge sparsely inhabited iterations of the same model.

[Alyxx Thorne]

Sometimes I feel his show focuses too much on those issues rather than actually discuss games themselves. I've never been particurarily interested in discussing whether DLC is a good or bad thing because for me it depends on the game and whether the DLC is worth the money or not. Though this is coming from someone who buys Call of Duty every year with all DLC included so I guess I'm not really against major publishers in any way like he tends to be.

 

And speaking of No Man's Sky, I never had any interest in it to begin with, I was never part of the hype train. It seems like a decent game for me but you have to really enjoy grinding, exploring and gathering resources to get any enjoyment from it.

[Heliocentrical]

Sometimes I feel his show focuses too much on those issues rather than actually discuss games themselves.

Why does everyone have to take the games industry so seriously? Games should just be for fun and publishers should be able to screw over their customers whenever they want with no culpability whatsoever. Brilliant idea Alyxx.

 

Your ignorance regarding the games industry is really starting to get on my nerves. Just because you're fine with being screwed over doesn't mean everyone else is. Quit defending the games industry for the shitty things it's done and will continue to do on a regular basis. People have a right to speak out against these bad business practices and your attempts to mask them as "Things the consumer wants." isn't doing anyone any favors.

 

The average consumer doesn't know what's best for them. The average consumer will want whatever the publisher will throw at them regardless of the actual benefit it gives them. Publishers know this and take advantage of it on a regular basis. The average consumer doesn't know any better because they're ignorant. So it's the job of video game critics like Jim Sterling to defend them from bad practices, bad purchases and bad business overall.

[Alyxx Thorne]

I'm not saying he's wrong to have his opinions, nor am I trying to defend the industry, just that his show doesn't appeal to me that much and that I personally don't have as much of a problem with the industry as he does.

 

All I'm doing is expressing my opinion and what I'm looking for in reviews. If my opinion came off as me saying Jim's wrong, I'm sorry.

 

And attacking me for simply expressing my opinion is not cool, just so it's said...

[Templar Knight]

I like Jim on certain subjects, I think he has a very good capability to provide an extremely nuanced and penetrating critique of issues and games that can really cut to the heart of the matter in a compelling way.

 

My only problem with him is that its very obvious to see when he doesn't apply that same level to very particular subjects. To me, it sticks out like a sore thumb when watching him. There will be certain topics he will be wishy-washy on despite compelling data and evidence existing to back a certain answer over another, and when otherwise he has very stringent opinions on similar subjects, or he'll make light of concerns that are legitimate concerns to people within gaming communities just because he thinks they're bullshit, except he doesn't really disprove why they're wrong to believe its not possible in the same way he goes about other subjects.

 

You know what I mean? Its like he has different levels of subjects where he'll devote more energy and detail to covering them in more nuanced forms compared to others where he'll basically just make a satire out of the issue and end it there.

 

Its fine to have biases, everyone does, but to me it turns me off from him on those cases because I know he is capable of being better.

[Selfsurprise]

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I worry about what this might say about me, I find this sort of thing therapeutic. I must be a bigger edgelord than I'm willing to confess.

 

"Serial killers? Forget about it! They don't even have friends, and they are good at what they do..."

[Selfsurprise]

Saw this marvellous news on Leonard French's channel and thought I'd share it with you all.

 

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I think Jim was wise to offer a conclusion like this rather than drag it out any further. He may very well of just taken Digital Homicide out of contention, he gets to retain the moral high ground and presumably can continue criticising Romine for all his shady shenanigans.

Meanwhile Romine now not only to continue the steep struggle to redeem his reputation as a developer to a gaming public much savvier to his modus operandi, but has to live alongside the humiliation (maybe that's too strongly worded) of having willingly accepted Sterling's terms, we can tag the "with prejudice" clauses till we're blue in the face but I can't imagine that to most viewers Digital Homicide comes away from this affair looking any better than before.

[Alyxx Thorne]

I've been watching some more Jim Sterling lately and my opinion of him has changed a bit. It's nice to see he's not always hampering about the same issues again and again but actually focuses on different things, and I actually find him to be a very good critic. And it is kind of entertaining to see how much shit this guy gets tossed at him just because he's a public figure with strong opinions.

 

I also love that he tackles problems with a sense of humor and never takes himself too seriously, unlike some of the assholes he's dealt with (Digital Homicide, Nintendo Fanboys to name a few).

[Templar Knight]

The article he wrote on his website regarding the whole business with JonTron and Pewdiepie (the remarks regarding Pewdie was what particularly pissed me off) is complete trash though. Which explains why he didn't bother sharing his thoughts on the matter on his main channel in a Jimquisition, he knows he'd catch flak for it if he put his thoughts on that matter in his most popularly viewed content.

 

Reading it you'd think he'd never been the victim of people trying to smear him with bullshit to ruin his career over stuff he's said on Youtube that people have tried to twist out of context to look malicious.

 

Meanwhile he just got done with all the bullshit with Digital Homicide, where they just tried to do the exact same thing to him (in their case, they tried to argue he was personally inciting trolls and haters in a conspiracy to bring the company down or some other such nonsense). The only reasons they didn't succeed was because they weren't the fucking New York Times, and everyone knew their reputation as being complete and unashamed scumbags in terms of being indie developers. They had no credibility to stand on, so everyone laughed at them.

 

I was really disappointed when I saw that article. I thought Jim was smarter than that. He should be sympathizing with them (with Pewdie at least), not fucking chiding them as "lucky" they didn't face worse backlash, or saying that they should know better just because they're bigger (like that's any excuse for people fucking with you and taking what you say and do out of context. Its okay to screw with the big guys because they're big and they can take being knocked down a few pegs, but if its the little guys, oh no!). HE'S lucky nobody believed Digital Homicide, or that everybody knows much of the stuff that could be used to smear his character is meant to be interpreted as parody, or otherwise isn't meant to be taken as actually any serious suggestion.

 

Here it is if people want to take a look. I was stunned by the lack of self-awareness of his own previous experiences that it took to write this chastisement of those two.

 

http://www.thejimquisition.com/youtubers-say-the-darndest-things/

[Selfsurprise]

Just wondering what everybody thought of the new Jimquisition theme song and opening animation, and the latest separate personality rattling around in the wonderfully twisted warrens of Jim's mind named Duke Amiel Du H'ardcore. In my opinion you can't make enough fun of elite gamers or go too far.