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MTV Making Better Gaming TV Than G4TV? 59

Posted by Zonk from the that's-not-hard-to-do dept.
heartless_ writes "GamerGod.com has an interesting look into how MTV has shifted to provide essential gaming television in a way that G4TV never was and never will be able to. From the article: 'As G4TV now begins to fall off the gaming-centered line up and into a dull Spike TV rip-off, it is apparent that gamers would rather play games than watch TV shows about gaming. This doesn't mean all the shows on G4TV were horrible, but none of them can be considered any sort of success." I would disagree. X-Play, and Icons are both shows worth watching, but on a channel that at one point was 'for gamers', only two decent shows is pretty pathetic.
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MTV Making Better Gaming TV Than G4TV? More

MTV Making Better Gaming TV Than G4TV?

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  • I like Attack of the Show. It's not really about games but it deals with a little bit of everything. Kevin P. keeps it entertaining. They jacked up the schedule though and I haven't watched it since.

    I don't think I've ever seen an episode of Xplay that wasn't a rerun.
    • Okay, I'll admit it too. I also like AOTS - although I DVR it so I can fast-forward through the crap segments. The jokes are bad, some bits are just terrible, but all in all, it has a certain charm that keeps me coming back for more. I miss Kevin Rose though...

      I'm pissed that the clips shows they've had on the last two weeks are actually worth watching! grr...
  • X-Play is the only thing that has endured since the ZDTV days (Gamespot TV then Extended Play and now X-Play). And even that stinks now. TechTV was doomed when the smart people like Louderback and (to some extent) Dvorak who helped hold the network afloat left, and G4 removing Leo just signed its death knell.
    • Leo wasn't really a 'gaming' guy, so what we are talking about is a time when the network wasn't all about video games, but was really 'technology TV.' I do agree I'd have prefered the network back then, though the quality of news and product reviews would ALWAYS be sub par compared to reading on the net (howardforums, slashdot, etc.)

      The only show I don't mind watching but was not on the list is Cinematech. It's really cool to watch scenes from games I'd never get to or to remind me of classic game moments

    • Recently I took a new job in a new city, and until I found a home for the family I stayed in a corporate apartment with a modest cable lineup, which included G4. I caught myself watching X-Play quite a few times, and thought it was actually a pretty good show (and this coming from a guy who hasn't bought a video or computer game in years), especially the reviews of the awful games.

      Very true, however, that the ScreenSaver/Call for Help purge wiped out any chance the channel had of staying relevant. But hey

  • Re: (Score:2, Funny)

    by account_deleted ( 4530225 )
    Comment removed based on user account deletion
  • Icons was boring. It had a few intresting bits, but it was only 30 minutes. About 10 minutes, was commercials, 10 more minutes was bumpers telling us what was next, 8 minutes was pointless "chit-chat" segments. I never found more then 2 minutes of that show intresting, and I am being nice.
    • Icons is an excellent show and provides interesting backround into the hisotry of many games and gamming companies. I'll give you 8 minutes of commercial, but what's next is included in there, this "chit chat" is part of any documentary and thus gives us about 22 minutes of interesting show. Also, who here watches Cinimatech. I find it lovely, considering some of the rather unique games that appear on their. That and Micheal Jackson's Moonwalker. A classic.
      • The problem with Icons is that it's too dammed short. How the hell can you condense everything about some of the best developers into 30 minutes? Shigeru Miyamoto? 30 minutes and done...Hironobu Sakaguchi? 30 minutes and done...Kojima? 30 minutes and done. Peter Molyneux? Get my point?

        And to say nothing about the games. Let's put the Mario/Zelda/Metroid/Final Fantasy/Metal Gear/CS/GTA/Half Life franchises into a half hour wrap up. That will tell the real story of how these games came to be such hits!

        I
    • Icons is G4TV's infomercials.

  • their mistakes (Score:4, Insightful)

    by Falconoffury ( 880395 ) on Tuesday December 27, 2005 @03:48PM (#14346914)
    G4TVs first mistake was getting rid of the thoughtful shows like Call for Help and the Screensavers, and all the smart people who were on those shows. They replaced those smart people with stupid people with very little technical background. I would like to actually learn something about computers or games on TV, but that channel just went downhill after G4TV took over.

    I am also tired of seeing the most popular games on that channel. I would like to actually learn about an underdog. I want to hear about some games I've never heard about before. There are hundreds of indie games released each year that are actually fun to play, but that channel only featured the top %5 of the game market. They just don't explore the entire gaming industry.

    • G4TVs first mistake was getting rid of the thoughtful shows like Call for Help and the Screensavers, and all the smart people who were on those shows. They replaced those smart people with stupid people with very little technical background. I would like to actually learn something about computers or games on TV, but that channel just went downhill after G4TV took over.

      I couldn't agree [slashdot.org] with you more. They took a pretty good geek channel and made it suck. Like you say, they took the people who knew what

      • I disagree that they replaced people that know nothing about technology. Most of the people dont, but sarah and kevin do know alot about various different technologies. Pretty much everyone else though is just there to be pretty. Its sad to think how corporate america can take a perfectly good station, buy it, and turn it into a perfectly good piece of shit thinking its better. And they said you have to be smart to be rich..half of our nation's richness is filled with slave owning morons.
  • ... who enjoys Judgement Day. Granted, I don't actively hunt the program down, but if I'm veg'ing in front of the TV and its on I'll watch it. Also dig X-Play (for the obvious reasons) but think Judgement Day does a pretty good job of game reviews as well.

    • It's apparent GamerGod doesn't get it either (Score:5, Insightful)

      by Rakthar ( 580956 ) on Tuesday December 27, 2005 @03:57PM (#14347010)
      Gamergod Writes: "it is apparent that gamers would rather play games than watch TV shows about gaming"

      No, it is not apparent. G4 has never, ever, actually tried to have a gaming oriented show that treated the source material honestly. Arena was a program where two teams competed in multiple games to see who won. The format was 5v5, but instead of having pro teams or even people who knew eachother, it was simply whoever came to the studio that day. On top of that, the gameplay footage was shown in 30 second clips with simply a summary of who did what and what the score is.

      G4 is the first (and hopefully the last) channel that refused to actually show raw, uncut footage of the thing that it was geared around. Imagine a football channel that never showed a whole football game, but simply highlights and nothing else. Imagine a golf channel that never showed anyone actually playing golf, just fast cuts of people swinging at the ball, and it dropping in the hole. Imagine a cooking channel that didn't show any cooking because "that's too boring", and instead showed the person talking about cooking, and a quick 30 second montage of them making a pie or cake.

      The reality is, G4 never, not once, took a gamble on showing people playing a videogame. I'd like to watch some good Counter Strike players play a map (and not the idiotic highlight videos that get released either), or watch any relatively skilled competitors go at it, really. Imagine if you could leave it on the in the background while you're doing something. Or, when a popular new game comes out, they run you through the first few hours so you can see some of the gameplay tips you can use down the line. I figured at least once, they would try airing just people playing videogames at 3am or something, in lieu of one of their paid programming/informercial slots. They never did.

      People will watch fishing, cooking, billiards, poker, sports, fake courtrooms, eating bugs, fake reality shows, and home redecorating. To say that gaming is somehow more boring than these things and no one would want to watch it is pure crap. Movie files that show people playing games, being distributed on the internet, are simply too large because of the high resolution and the way that they compress poorly. TV is the perfect format for this (and some might argue, HDTV to really appreciate what's going on) and yet no one even tries.

      G4 was a terrible channel that tried to be MTV without first establishing credibility. MTV started as a music video channel (that no longer shows music videos) but at least it had a 5-10 year period where that was how it made its money. G4 never actually tried making programming that showed, in context, people actually playing a videogame and that might engage the viewer. The cost of such content would have been very cheap, and if instead of focusing on trying to be like MTV, G4 could have easily been MTV - but the MTV of old, the one that was a favorite of bands and fans alike, not 14 year old girls.

      G4 never tried to treat gamers, or its audience, with respect and simply show people playing games. And for that, it failed, and it deserved to.

      • G4 is the first (and hopefully the last) channel that refused to actually show raw, uncut footage of the thing that it was geared around. Imagine a football channel that never showed a whole football game, but simply highlights and nothing else.

        Thank god someone finally said it!

        I disagree with one thing you said, however. I don't think they should show the first 3 hours of a new game, because many people prefer to play those things and discover stuff on their own. Also, networks would have a hell of

  • I used to actually enjoy Portal. The two channels have deffinintly gone downhill since they merged them. On a plus note, I think they are showing the Canadian call for help with Leo in the mornings now.
  • Why would I want to watch games when I can play them? Sure, I frequent sites like Gamespot to read about games, but usually only when I'm at work and thus have to settle for that weak semi-fix. On the rare occasion I'm not using the television to play games, sure, I'll watch a show like X-Play - but the majority of my TV usage does not involve actually watching television, which I'm willing to bet is the case with most other gamers. That makes targeting the gamer demographic with an entire channel a bad

  • That's alright (Score:5, Funny)

    by Guppy06 ( 410832 ) on Tuesday December 27, 2005 @04:03PM (#14347057)
    G4TV makes better music TV than MTV.

  • It's apparent Gamergod doesn't get it either (Score:5, Insightful)

    by Rakthar ( 580956 ) on Tuesday December 27, 2005 @04:04PM (#14347064)
    Sorry, I mis-posted this above

    Gamergod Writes: "it is apparent that gamers would rather play games than watch TV shows about gaming"

    No, it is not apparent. G4 has never, ever, actually tried to have a gaming oriented show that treated the source material honestly. Arena was a program where two teams competed in multiple games to see who won. The format was 5v5, but instead of having pro teams or even people who knew eachother, it was simply whoever came to the studio that day. On top of that, the gameplay footage was shown in 30 second clips with simply a summary of who did what and what the score is.

    G4 is the first (and hopefully the last) channel that refused to actually show raw, uncut footage of the thing that it was geared around. Imagine a football channel that never showed a whole football game, but simply highlights and nothing else. Imagine a golf channel that never showed anyone actually playing golf, just fast cuts of people swinging at the ball, and it dropping in the hole. Imagine a cooking channel that didn't show any cooking because "that's too boring", and instead showed the person talking about cooking, and a quick 30 second montage of them making a pie or cake.

    The reality is, G4 never, not once, took a gamble on showing people playing a videogame. I'd like to watch some good Counter Strike players play a map (and not the idiotic highlight videos that get released either), or watch any relatively skilled competitors go at it, really. Imagine if you could leave it on the in the background while you're doing something. Or, when a popular new game comes out, they run you through the first few hours so you can see some of the gameplay tips you can use down the line. I figured at least once, they would try airing just people playing videogames at 3am or something, in lieu of one of their paid programming/informercial slots. They never did.

    People will watch fishing, cooking, billiards, poker, sports, fake courtrooms, eating bugs, fake reality shows, and home redecorating. To say that gaming is somehow more boring than these things and no one would want to watch it is pure crap. Movie files that show people playing games, being distributed on the internet, are simply too large because of the high resolution and the way that they compress poorly. TV is the perfect format for this (and some might argue, HDTV to really appreciate what's going on) and yet no one even tries.

    G4 was a terrible channel that tried to be MTV without first establishing credibility. MTV started as a music video channel (that no longer shows music videos) but at least it had a 5-10 year period where that was how it made its money. G4 never actually tried making programming that showed, in context, people actually playing a videogame and that might engage the viewer. The cost of such content would have been very cheap, and if instead of focusing on trying to be like MTV, G4 could have easily been MTV - but the MTV of old, the one that was a favorite of bands and fans alike, not 14 year old girls.

    G4 never tried to treat gamers, or its audience, with respect and simply show people playing games. And for that, it failed, and it deserved to.

    • Even the same game can be beaten many ways. They should show elite gamers beating classics like castlevania, zelda, metroid, resident evil... and do it without dying. There are more than enough old games to show without spoiling any of today's games. Only limit might be RPGs, aside from that all is good.

    • G4 was a terrible channel that tried to be MTV without first establishing credibility.

      Actually, what they did was try to buy their way into credibility by purchasing the suffering but somewhat respected TechTV channel (and studio), which was already picked up by many cable and satellite providers. But then they gutted everything but Xplay, so they lost everything they had bought into. Including the (much larger) TechTV audience.

    • There already is a football channel that never shows entire football games. It's called NFL Network [nfl.com]. Almost all its programming is highlights and recaps of NFL games. I don't think it ever shows current regular-season NFL games as the league sold the TV rights to ABC/CBS/ESPN/Fox/(NBC next year).
    • I have been waiting for that show for years. You know, along with the great players playing CS and even old RTS games, it wouldn't be that hard either to have like 'specials' where they show the video of some guy beating mario 3 in like 10 minutes. They could even be annoying and put a commercial or two in a longer game and you know, it would still be cool. Better than a lot of junk on TV when you are in high school, bored, and no good tv on.
    • i agree with you, when g4tv was just an idea floating around i knew they would make it a current day mtv for gamers. I watched the icons, that was pretty much the only show i could stand. When they did stuff on doom3, hl2, i thought they really did a great job. I also, like you said, would love to have seen people just playing games. Whether its mp or sp, if they just did a solid hour of going thru hl1 again, that would be fantastic. See what the player did differently or find shit i never found. If the ch
  • A dull Spike TV rip-off?

    Ouch. Kick 'em when they're down, I guess.

  • TV shows that would have gotten me to watch G4 24h (Score:4, Insightful)

    by neo ( 4625 ) on Tuesday December 27, 2005 @04:34PM (#14347321)
    1. Observing game servers live with (witty) commentary.
    2. League play from top game leagues. The ESPN of gaming.
    3. Interviews with Game Developers. Um HELLO. This was a slam dunk.
    4. Highlight films from invitational LAN PARTY tournaments.
    5. Um... get cuter girls talking about games.

  • It wouldn't be that hard... (Score:3, Interesting)

    by vertinox ( 846076 ) on Tuesday December 27, 2005 @04:59PM (#14347532)
    MTV Making Better Gaming TV Than G4TV?

    It wouldn't be that hard considering G4 is showing reruns of The Manshow, whatever the hell that street racing show is, and showing Star Trek:TNG (Don't get me wrong... I like Star Trek as much as the next guy, but the last guys who played it were Spike TV and I don't find reruns of James Bond 24/7 all that entertaining).

    I will give them the benefit of the doubt because Xplay, Attack of the Show, and that Anime thing (Barbwired Biscuit) are fairly entertaining... But I miss the days of TechTV.

    On the other side, MTV's quality programing leaves nothing to be desired except for the strong desire to turn the damn TV off and throw it out the window.

    I was really bothered when I found out over the holidays couch potatoing that MTV2 isn't showing that many videos anymore but reruns of Jack Ass and Bam. WTF?

    Do people not watch music videos anymore?
    • Do people not watch music videos anymore?

      I would if any channels showed them. (If you're lucky, you can get a music channel called Fuse which isn't terrible.)
    • Do people not watch music videos anymore?

      You can get those 'Director's Label' DVDs, but there's a really marked decline in quality from the first batch (Spike Jonze and Michel Gondry and another guy) to the second batch (some guys you've never heard of, with a couple of outstanding videos and lots of not so interesting ones). I think they need to cast a wider net and just compile good videos from any director, just have a common theme or time period to give them cohesion.

      It's kind of sad that a really awes
  • I'll admit I don't watch that much G4 and don't know much about the shows that are aired but has G4TV ever tried to pick up a show like Red Vs Blue? Seems like if they aired episodes of that or something like that it'd do pretty well.
  • "X-Play, and Icons are both shows worth watching, but on a channel that at one point was 'for gamers', only two decent shows is pretty pathetic"

    You would have thought they would realize their failure when they needed to buy another station just to deliever the content they were created to have.

  • Again, who needs gaming TV anyway?

    Gamespot has free streaming video. You'll see reviews for games you're actually considering.

    Gamespot is constantly updated and overflowing with content. The internet is the only medium that can possibly cover the games industry. Watch a rerun review for, say, KOTOR II over half a year after the game has come out (and after half the sites worth trusting have reviewed it) and you'll be reminded what a complete farce G4tv is.

    The third rate L.A. actors posing as gamers??

    • You'll see reviews for games you're actually considering.

      What about the games you're not considering?

      One of the problems with internet usage is that, because it gets so intricate and tailor-made, the average person is likely to stick with only the content they already know. When was the last time you clicked the streaming video for something you knew nothing about? Getting to see a little of a wide variety of games is a benefit to the overview mags and tv shows out there... because you can't easily igno

  • I dont care if they have "good" shows. But my problem is if you advertise for gamers you should maybe... I dont know.... have gaming shows maybe? I am not saying that G4 don't, but more like: G4 dont have enough shows to advertise to games.

    I think that what Tech TV is what it should be. That was the best version ever. You had your shows for gaming, techies, and even shows for non techies who wanted help. It was great! I absolutely love watching about Gates, Dell, Jobs, & company. But the one thing I l

  • Everyone here is talking about how great X Play is. Am I the only one who doesn't like it?
    The reviews are amazingly useless. For example, the Nintendogs review went on for about 10 minutes and featured nothing but the same "Chinese people eat dogs, lol!" joke over and over again. They concluded it with, "In the end, this game basically works. 4/5." In the time it took me to watch that I could have read useful reviews for 5 or 6 different games, from competing sources.
    It's pretty hard to get "deep" about vid
    • They basically said they'd be surprised if anyone ended up enjoying the latest RPG Maker game. Its score? 3/5. That's 60%

      No, that's 50%. Their scale has no zero, so the lowest a game can be rated is 1/5. Any worse than that and it stays unrated and lampooned as a "Game You Should Never Buy" such as:
      • "Barbie Horse Adventures: Wild Horse Rescue" (PS2)
      • "Monster Garage" (PC), and
      • "Big Rigs: Over the Road Racing" (PC)

      "Games so bad we couldn't review them because our rating scale doesn't have a zero. Don't say

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