I think i know why ZP no longer amuses me.
- Thread starter Kollega
- Start date
Recommended Videos
I support this notion. Anything I could add to this would just be unnecessary, inelegant bulk. Thanks for phrasing it for me Inferno_622.Inferno_622 said:
I don't think you realize that the creator of ZP's main purpose isn't to be funny, it's to bring an honest critic/review of a game. Yes, it's true, however incredible you might find it. The second most important thing for a ZP video is humour.
I can still find the videos funny though, the Super Mario Galaxy 2 one was by far the most entertaining in recent history, in my opinion.
I can still find the videos funny though, the Super Mario Galaxy 2 one was by far the most entertaining in recent history, in my opinion.
I think you've got it the wrong way round. I'm fairly certain the main purpose of ZeroPunctuation is to rip games apart and be funny, and it's a bonus if he actually gives any kind of insight into what the game's about. Honestly, if anyone ever took him seriously, they'd only have, like, two games.Gilgamesh00 said:
I still laughed a few weeks ago when the sign off for ENN was "seeing you after ZeroPunctuation!". ZeroPunctuation is officially the last thing I watch on Wednesdays, ENN is first
Zero Punctuation has always been 2 parts real criticism to 2 parts entertainment, though I think it's clear from Extra Punctuation that Yahtzee does know what he's talking about. I've found myself disagreeing with much of what he says, but I still enjoy the videos. Not sure what you're talking about when you say it's gotten less wittier - the SMG2 reveiw last week was one of my favourite in a long time.
I agree with you. Some of the new ones are funny, but a lot of them lack the wit of the old ones.
Your assertion is false, ZP has not lost the wit it once had, after all you don't suddenly become braindead (no wait!, yes you do car crash, oh fuck).
It has however lost its charm, ZP is no longer that hot girl in class, she is now your girlfriend nagging you about settling down and your afraid of that, your afraid of commitment and thats why you don't like ZP no more, what you need to do OP is stop watching ZP...
...just get away from her OP I'm serious, next thing you know ZP will be pregnant and you'll be stuck in a vicious cycle of paying the pub club and looking after ZP.
Zero Punctuation, DON'T DO IT KIDS!
It has however lost its charm, ZP is no longer that hot girl in class, she is now your girlfriend nagging you about settling down and your afraid of that, your afraid of commitment and thats why you don't like ZP no more, what you need to do OP is stop watching ZP...
...just get away from her OP I'm serious, next thing you know ZP will be pregnant and you'll be stuck in a vicious cycle of paying the pub club and looking after ZP.
Zero Punctuation, DON'T DO IT KIDS!
I definitely agree with the OP. It saddens me greatly, because I was really into ZP earlier in his run. It seems to me that for quite a while now there has really not been any true insight in the reviews--in the earlier ones, he would discuss a game and almost use it as an opportunity to discuss more general principles of game design or aesthetics. The humor was abundant, but what made it even funnier was that it had a brilliant and very sincere point behind it. It was basically just a funny way of saying some interesting. Now, each review is just a succession of random "shock" jokes that don't give you an idea of what the game is all about, what his experience of the game was, and why any of it matters. The analysis, the education, and the observations of the game beyond just the initial sensory experience of it seem absent, and those were what I liked.
He also used to find the truly interesting or unique moments of a game and present them. I'm not sure whether he had more time to play with the games in the old days--if you only get a few hours with something it's hard to find the really unique bits about it. You need to get to know something before you can make truly funny jokes and observations about it. I understand that it is difficult to find the time, and that you cannot keep up the highest standard of writing indefinitely, but all I know of Mr. Croshaw are his reviews and games. I enjoy them/used to enjoy them. I don't really care about him personally. I hope he pulls the nose up a bit so I can keep having this very entertaining thing to watch every week. But the quality has certainly slipped over the months, and I'm not going to pretend not to notice.
To be perfectly fair, though, it really does seem like a LOT of the games he reviews are pretty cookie cutter and generic. If you review 4 games that were basically cut from the same cloth, have the same virtues and same problems and same plots and almost identical methods of play, then I can see how it would get hard to think of funny ways to present each one uniquely and with cutting edge wit. Imagine if someone told you to write 4 papers on WWII--not 4 papers each about a different aspect of WWII, but 4 papers just overviewing WWII. That would be pretty hard, because you'd put your best effort into the first one and then get stuck with second string stuff to say in the other 3.
He also used to find the truly interesting or unique moments of a game and present them. I'm not sure whether he had more time to play with the games in the old days--if you only get a few hours with something it's hard to find the really unique bits about it. You need to get to know something before you can make truly funny jokes and observations about it. I understand that it is difficult to find the time, and that you cannot keep up the highest standard of writing indefinitely, but all I know of Mr. Croshaw are his reviews and games. I enjoy them/used to enjoy them. I don't really care about him personally. I hope he pulls the nose up a bit so I can keep having this very entertaining thing to watch every week. But the quality has certainly slipped over the months, and I'm not going to pretend not to notice.
To be perfectly fair, though, it really does seem like a LOT of the games he reviews are pretty cookie cutter and generic. If you review 4 games that were basically cut from the same cloth, have the same virtues and same problems and same plots and almost identical methods of play, then I can see how it would get hard to think of funny ways to present each one uniquely and with cutting edge wit. Imagine if someone told you to write 4 papers on WWII--not 4 papers each about a different aspect of WWII, but 4 papers just overviewing WWII. That would be pretty hard, because you'd put your best effort into the first one and then get stuck with second string stuff to say in the other 3.
I guess that you missed one of his references in todays. One of the funnier ones I have heard in a while.
As many plot holes as Blackburn Lancashire.
Blackburn Lancashire is referenced in a Beatles songs as having 4 thousand holes.
I read the news today oh boy
4 thousand holes in blackburn Lancashire
although the holes were rather small,
they had to count them all..."
Things like that keep me coming back. I find them original and funny. And sort of like inside jokes. Most people will not get them, those that do will enjoy them.
As many plot holes as Blackburn Lancashire.
Blackburn Lancashire is referenced in a Beatles songs as having 4 thousand holes.
I read the news today oh boy
4 thousand holes in blackburn Lancashire
although the holes were rather small,
they had to count them all..."
Things like that keep me coming back. I find them original and funny. And sort of like inside jokes. Most people will not get them, those that do will enjoy them.
Yep, the good ol' Australian charm of an Englishman.Doctor What said:
Wait, what?
OT: I still find them funny. The thing that I find impacts on the humour the most though is whether or not I've actually played the game.
The one thing I do miss is the old music intros; the theme tune just gets my goat and pushes it through a 10th floor window.
Eyy.....
I wasn't going to post... But I felt I had to...
I watch ZP and Will continue to watch it for a long time, because... I think the world Needs Yahtzee. Well the world of Gaming at least.
It has long been my mantra in life that the only way things can get better, Is if we demand better, Even if everything is perfectly fine, We should always demand more, and thats why Yahtzee is important. He really is the lone wolf taking and breaking everything down, making sure that we understand how what we consider fine and dandy can bring about so much sterility in the way of progress.
As long as Yahtzee is here as the angry voice we never show, then we can hope for a better tomorrow....
I wasn't going to post... But I felt I had to...
I watch ZP and Will continue to watch it for a long time, because... I think the world Needs Yahtzee. Well the world of Gaming at least.
It has long been my mantra in life that the only way things can get better, Is if we demand better, Even if everything is perfectly fine, We should always demand more, and thats why Yahtzee is important. He really is the lone wolf taking and breaking everything down, making sure that we understand how what we consider fine and dandy can bring about so much sterility in the way of progress.
As long as Yahtzee is here as the angry voice we never show, then we can hope for a better tomorrow....
Me'h I think he's a arrogant, stuck up, holier then thou prick... Though that's an accurate description of the rest of the inhabitance of Great Britain so I can't take points off him for that. As for his reviews... Well I admit they have been dwindling in charm lately but well I enjoy giving them a watch on a Wednesday evening. Makes my evening and it's a five minute distraction from the rest of my boring life... So I can't complain.
Though I don't think it's that they are lacking in charm but that we are so used to it now that it's no longer as funny. I remember when I began watching these and I found them hilarious, even then people where complaining on how it was getting old and it wasn't as funny as his earlier work. So maybe it's just worn off over time.
Yeah way may look back on the old vids and laugh but that could be caused by our nostalgia.
I will say that when I read (I think it was on T.V Tropes)that he hate's his own fanbase and the blatant insults he throws to people he thinks are wrong... I sort of go off of him a little. The same way I went off Bale when he decided to flip his lid on T:S. Though I should probably take what as been written by T.V Tropes with a pinch of salt.
Edit: Mmmm I can no longer seem to find where it said this on T.V tropes... Possibly been deleted or removed... Though we do get a little segment on how he's apparently not a big a dick in real life. B'ah I guess I need to find a more trusted source before I start to make my judgements of his character.
Though I don't think it's that they are lacking in charm but that we are so used to it now that it's no longer as funny. I remember when I began watching these and I found them hilarious, even then people where complaining on how it was getting old and it wasn't as funny as his earlier work. So maybe it's just worn off over time.
Yeah way may look back on the old vids and laugh but that could be caused by our nostalgia.
I will say that when I read (I think it was on T.V Tropes)that he hate's his own fanbase and the blatant insults he throws to people he thinks are wrong... I sort of go off of him a little. The same way I went off Bale when he decided to flip his lid on T:S. Though I should probably take what as been written by T.V Tropes with a pinch of salt.
Edit: Mmmm I can no longer seem to find where it said this on T.V tropes... Possibly been deleted or removed... Though we do get a little segment on how he's apparently not a big a dick in real life. B'ah I guess I need to find a more trusted source before I start to make my judgements of his character.
I wouldn't say he's losing his touch of humor that much.
I just think people are starting to percieve him moreso as a critic rather than a humorist, that's all.
I just think people are starting to percieve him moreso as a critic rather than a humorist, that's all.
I lost interest in A Hero's Quest around Episode 13? 14? Whenever they get interrogated and escaped is when I gave up on it... Does that count?
OT: I think Ben's pretty funny, though he is declining in humor. Maybe it's because he has to do all his humor so fast and he has to be "Witty".
OT: I think Ben's pretty funny, though he is declining in humor. Maybe it's because he has to do all his humor so fast and he has to be "Witty".
I've been thinking this for a while now, the op brings up alot of good points as do most of the other posters. I think that in the begining Yahtzee was funny, but the reason his reviews were really good was that they were for the most part fair. Even though they were always completely negative you could even sometimes get a good sense if you wanted to buy a game or not from listening from his reviews (assuming you took them with a pinch of salt). But now they're not funny anymore, they're not even fair. He's just spewing hate and bile without any real substance. It seems now like he doesn't even finsh the games anymore to get a real basis for making jokes about them anymore either.
I haven't watched them in a while though, I stopped watching soon after the... I can't even remember what video, Monster Hunter Tri I think, or maybe before that and since then I only saw the Super Mario Galaxy 2 review just to see if he had gotten any better again, I was dissapointed in that he had not the "cake" joke was okay, but it didn't make me laugh like he used to.
It's probably because his original gimmick, his quick talking from which the name of Zero Punctuation is derived has worn thin, it used the be that the fast talking coupled with rapid fire jokes at first was intrinsically funny, then as the novelty wore thin he was able to carry the show on wit and humor alone, and it was awesome! But then it started getting less witty and the humor is wearing thin.
Apparently some people still like him though because he still gets decent numbers of views and compliments on the forums, but as this this thread is evidence of he isn't quite as good as he used to be. Oh well, I think watching ZP has had a positive impact on my life and I think I really got something out of watching it. I sometimes get the feeling that he no longer enjoys making the videos, and maybe that's whay their quality is going down. I feel that if he really no longer enjoys it that since he's now a published author and has his own dining establishment in the city, maybe he sould move on from ZP and go on to do something he enjoys.
That's just my opinion though.
I haven't watched them in a while though, I stopped watching soon after the... I can't even remember what video, Monster Hunter Tri I think, or maybe before that and since then I only saw the Super Mario Galaxy 2 review just to see if he had gotten any better again, I was dissapointed in that he had not the "cake" joke was okay, but it didn't make me laugh like he used to.
It's probably because his original gimmick, his quick talking from which the name of Zero Punctuation is derived has worn thin, it used the be that the fast talking coupled with rapid fire jokes at first was intrinsically funny, then as the novelty wore thin he was able to carry the show on wit and humor alone, and it was awesome! But then it started getting less witty and the humor is wearing thin.
Apparently some people still like him though because he still gets decent numbers of views and compliments on the forums, but as this this thread is evidence of he isn't quite as good as he used to be. Oh well, I think watching ZP has had a positive impact on my life and I think I really got something out of watching it. I sometimes get the feeling that he no longer enjoys making the videos, and maybe that's whay their quality is going down. I feel that if he really no longer enjoys it that since he's now a published author and has his own dining establishment in the city, maybe he sould move on from ZP and go on to do something he enjoys.
That's just my opinion though.
Yeah I am getting kind've bored, but I'm getting bored of Unskippable too so I don't know. I think ideas are just running dry
You are right that Zero Punctuation has lost some of its wit lately, but the "wrong turns" you identify I consider grossly false.
1) - the neverending bashing of America is "meh".
WRONG: On so many levels. When a single nation has alienated the whole world by being a dick, I applaude the man who appropiately and hilariously mocks them.
2) - constant appearance of balls, dicks, various holes and such are "meh".
SORTA: Yeaaaaaaaaaaah... getting kinda weird, but still funny.
3) - the sarcasm regarding "plotdeviceum" and "helicopter intro" seemed pretty blunt, like a hammer instead of rapier, and therefore "meh".
WRONG: Blunt yet effective.
4) - the only genuinely funny bit of sarcasm, the one about "metaphor for adolescence" was swiftly undermined by a dead baby joke. Dead baby jokes ARE NOT TOO FUNNY - OR CLEVER, and i used to love ZP for cleverness.
WRONG: You remind me of a Roger Ebert saying what is art or not.
1) - the neverending bashing of America is "meh".
WRONG: On so many levels. When a single nation has alienated the whole world by being a dick, I applaude the man who appropiately and hilariously mocks them.
2) - constant appearance of balls, dicks, various holes and such are "meh".
SORTA: Yeaaaaaaaaaaah... getting kinda weird, but still funny.
3) - the sarcasm regarding "plotdeviceum" and "helicopter intro" seemed pretty blunt, like a hammer instead of rapier, and therefore "meh".
WRONG: Blunt yet effective.
4) - the only genuinely funny bit of sarcasm, the one about "metaphor for adolescence" was swiftly undermined by a dead baby joke. Dead baby jokes ARE NOT TOO FUNNY - OR CLEVER, and i used to love ZP for cleverness.
WRONG: You remind me of a Roger Ebert saying what is art or not.