Q&A: September 30th, 2020

Ethan McArthur Asks
What is the biggest moment in terms of spectacle that you've had playing a multiplayer game, where you've had to stop and remind yourself that everyone around you are also players? 

Definitely Planetside 2.

Can't imagine that's a surprising answer, but despite taking lace well over 5+ years ago at this point, I still remember being a Tank in the middle of a convey with 30-40 heavily armored vehicles, all lining up to utterly wreck the enemies ship.

I played Single Player set pieces in games like Bad Company 2 that weren't a quarter of the scale, and that it was happening in  real-time with players all sharing the same objective dynamically, was quite amazing.

Matt Koster Asks
Can sheer spectacle ever overcome other deficiencies in a game, or more broadly, in media? Trying to avoid spoilers, I'm thinking of the end of Final Fantasy 7 Remake, or the end of MGS4, or the anime Code Geass, each of which has a phenomenally spectacular ending, but doesn't fully deliver on their story. 

I think spectacle can absolutely overrule our emotions. The easiest example that comes to my mind is Modern Warfare 3. I went into that game thinking the story was fucked from the word go, due to it being a direct follow-up to MW2, a game with more plotholes than bullets fired.

However, there came a point, during the Airplane mission about an hour in, that I just grinned like the Joker, and proceeded to eat up every pound of explosive cheese thrown at me. I look forward to revisiting that game one day to see if its absurdity is still as hilariously entertaining as I remember.

Now, what I think matters is when that spectacle itself becomes the experience, and when it merely distracts. I think we've all played a game that seemed really intense in the moment, but amongst retrospect, fades into obscurity.

Dominik Jaworski Asks
What are the future candidates for a Years Later, currently?

Definitely Metro Exodus, that's more dependent on when I get my GPU upgrade. I could run the game, but barely maintaining 60fps with many of the settings turned down, and for videos, I want them to be at the best quality possible.

I can't decide which Call of Duty gets the treatment next, I could continue with the Modern Warfare trilogy, or I could go to World at War. The trouble is, I'm not nearly as engaged with Zombies as the rest of the series, so I feel nervous stepping into that pool, though I could always find someone to assist, and maybe even use that angle to give a more unique take.

There's one game I hope to save for April Fools Day, can't say, though a couple people already know of my plan (if it comes to fruition).

Bioshock's been requested quite a lot, so that's a consideration, especially as I don't have a common view of the series either. Though one thing of note is that there's plenty of videos which would even or eclipse Years Later videos in duration. So, the Years Later format isn't the only one with potential for longer videos.

DaCody Asks
What date do you see yourself hitting 1 million subs?

Two days after I give Sparky the channel.

Kevin O'Donnell Asks
What's your thoughts (if you have any) on Killer Instinct season 3 soundtrack? Only reason I ask since you're a fan of Celldweller & that you recommended The Fall of Reach OST by Tom Salta (who also goes by the name Atlas Plug for other music) back in January. 

It's very good! Not surprising, considering that Klayton & Atlas Plug have quite a few similarities with Mick Gordon in style. Both are extremely talented, and Champion of Sanghelios did a great job merging sound of Killer Instinct and Halo.

I do prefer Mick's heavier guitars, but Klayton's electronics and rhythm are superb, I love A Shattered Eyedol, very reminiscent of his End of an Empire album.

Now get all three of them to collaborate (maybe even add Sonic Mayhem) and I'll pre-order 10 copies.