If game critic and video-maker Jim Sterling has a nemesis, it’s game developer Digital Homicide. That name might not sound familiar, as they’re a small studio that has released a couple of games on Steam. But they may soon enter notoriety after this month’s unprecedented actions.
Gaming Youtuber Jim Sterling has been sued by developer Digital Homicide, after Sterling panned their game Slaughtering Grounds. How much are they being sued for?
$2.26 million in direct product damage; $4.3 million in emotional, reputational, and financial distress; and $5 million in punitive damage requests. Total sum - $10.76 million. What’s your take on the case?
FTC says department store paid for social media posts without disclosing they were ads.
Taking sponsorships for content without disclosing that they were paid for could land you or your sponsor in hot soup. What would you do if given the opportunity for one?
What happens when traditional journalists meet Youtubers on press junkets? Was the Youtuber’s behaviour justified given his content, or do you feel it sets back mainstream acceptance of Youtube as a channel for gaming information?
YoutubeÂ
Broadcast schedule:Â Once a week
Gaming platforms: PC
Genres played:Â Fighting and Beat em ups.
Channel description:Â It's a channel of old school fighting and beat em up games that have never seen the light of day.
Have a gaming channel or blog and want to be featured? Let us know about you here!
Upload/Broadcast schedule: Monday-Friday: 5pm to 10pm, Saturday and Sunday: 8am to 10pm
Gaming Platforms: Nintendo 3DS, PC, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Wii U, Xbox 360, Xbox One, SNES/N64/GC/PS1&2
Genres played: FPS, action, third person, horror, indie games
Channel description:Â My channel aims at giving back to the viewers just for following! Every is entitled to everything the stream has with a simple follow and their is no obligation to donate and/or eventually subscribe. There are giveaways often and an extremely welcoming atmosphere where gamers come together to keep it real :)
Have a gaming channel or blog and want to be featured? Let us know about you here!
Yet Another Stat That Proves The Male Gamer Stereotype Is A Farce
With new data from a Pew Research Center survey, we know that women play an even bigger role in the gaming community. Of the 40% of Americans who own a video game console, 42% are women and only 37% are men.
There are now thousands of gaming Youtube channels out there generating videos daily, all in a bid to become the next Total Biscuit or Yogscast channel.Â
But the fact is, there are so many channels out there that simply writing a straight up review, recording gameplay or opening a box while staring into a camera won’t propel most Youtubers or streamers into the big time. Why won’t the followers come? Here are 5 common mistakes gaming channels should avoid.
Lack of planning
Do you know what you want your channel to accomplish? Or who your target audience is? Do your videos help both you and the viewer achieve something? What is the point you want to make?
Failing to plan for both your channel and your videos results in unfocused videos that may leave viewers unsatisfied. Even if it’s just a Let’s Play of a game, a bit of research and planning can help to focus your commentary and make it a more satisfying watch.
No differentiation
There are enough gaming channels and sites out there that simply writing a review, playing a new game or unboxing the latest Loot Crate isn’t going to cut it. There are already millions of others doing the same thing.Â
Don’t just stream or record some gameplay with a few comments that add nothing to the experience. Think about how you could make your videos different, whether it’s in the story, commentary or simply showcasing your unique personality.
Copying from popular channels
So you figure you’ll learn from the masters. If Markiplier or CaptainSparklez has millions of subs, they’re worth imitating right? Unfortunately, it doesn’t quite work that way.Â
Copying someone else’s style of commentary rather than finding your own voice is a surefire way to come across as a phony. People connect to and engage with Youtubers they feel are authentic. If you try to be someone you’re not, it will be apparent to viewers. Â
As for more tangible things like titles, tags and other meta data? Big no-no. If they notice and get offended, they may never want to talk to or work with you in the future.Â
Not engaging with subscribers
If your subscribers comment on your video, do your best to respond to them. They are important to you and your channel, so make them feel valued as much as you can. Take a cue from Markiplier, who tries to respond to his fans as much as he can and often uploads videos thanking his fans for their support.
Making money the goal
If you read up on the history of the most successful Youtubers, you’ll find they all have one thing in common - they did it for passion. They were just having fun recording gaming videos even if they weren’t getting paid. Some were in school or working full-time jobs.Â
Loving what they did helped them find the motivation to make videos even when there weren’t any other rewards. If you started a gaming channel because you thought it looked easy to make a living off of, you might want to take some time to think about what you’re truly passionate about and make a channel about that instead.Â
In 2014 nearly 4,000 backers pledged $100,000 for a silly game about being a bear. Yesterday, despite seemingly happy backers and 78 percent positive reviews on Steam, Bear Simulator’s developer says updating the game any further is “a lost cause.”
While Pewdiepie has been credited with helping many indie game devs achieve success with original games, his popularity can be a double-edged sword. Â Developer John Farjay found this out when the Pewds played his game and had some choice comments for it.
The subsequent torrent of negativity unleashed upon the game resulted in Farjay deciding to quit further development after delivering the game to backers. After considering the impact of his video on the developer, Pewdiepie removed the video and issued an apology. Then reversed his decision and put it back up on his channel after hearing about the developer quitting.
What do you think? Should a Let’s Player tone down their style of critique to keep from discouraging small developers, or do developers need to be better at taking criticism in any form? Let us know in your tags or reblogs!
“So best piece of advice that I could give you is to exhaustively connect with your audience. If you have a single person that truly enjoys your videos and messages you, you have to engage them personally. They are your champion early on and you need to make sure that they feel like it.
Then, more people will join you because they see how eagerly your champion promotes your material. Always try to think of new ways to keep your audience engaged and active because besides tagging and searching, your channel is going to grow primarily through word-of-mouth.”
— Youtuber Markiplier on building a gaming channel.
Channel description: Â This channel is a PS4 gaming channel. Content includes walkthroughs, tips and tricks, early looks at games and much more.Â
The channel features content for games like Farcry 4, Farcry primal, NBA2k16, Assassins Creed Syndicate, Star Wars Battlefront, Tom Clancy Rainbow Six Siege, GTA 5, COD Black Ops 3, Dying Light, Dying Light The Following, Just Cause 3, Battlefield Hardline, Battlefield 4, Madden 16, Fallout 4, Batman Arkam Knight, Mindcraft and much more.
Why you should check it out: AlwaysBeGaming offers a range of videos in different genres for PS4 games. The channel has long Let’s Plays that showcase the gaming experience,  quick mission playthroughs as well as tips and tricks for various games.Â
The channel also takes requests on games to play, so if there’s a game you’d like to see played, just send a request!
eSports betting is a fairly recent phenomenon, sparked by the increasingly popularity of eSports. Years ago, people might have laughed if you suggested video game competitions would be the sort of thing fans would watch live and place bets on, but these days eSports are really popular.
And yes, you can now bet on them. If you’re at all familiar with sports betting, it will be a familiar concept to you. You can learn about different eSports games and place your bets at online sites (sometimes the same sites that handle sports betting). There’s more to bet on than just the outcome of a single match, but that’s probably where you’ll begin.
You can find out more about eSports betting in the video above. Basically, what you need to do is research the teams (and matches) beforehand. Read about them, watch them play, etc. The more familiar you are with them, the better you’ll be at accurately predicting who will come out on top when the teams face off against each other. Then you’ll want to get the best odds you can find without making too risky of bets. If you balance it correctly, you can profit from eSports betting.
Focus on the games you’re most familiar with. After all, if you only have a basic idea of how the game plays, you might miss important details when trying to judge the teams’ prowess.
That may sound like a lot to keep track of, but you don’t have to do it alone. You can go to sites like Odds Camper ( https://www.oddscamper.com ) to gather information about upcoming matches and the teams involved. It also has more tips for eSports betting. There, you can also watch games live and chat with other visitors.
Having a good site like Odds Camper is important because of how much goes into eSports betting. It isn’t just a matter of luck, like you might think at first. If you take all this advice to heart and make the most of the resources at your disposal, you can win your bets—and have a lot of fun while doing so.
Do you have anything—tips, ideas, personal experiences—you’d like to add to our discussion on eSports better? Feel free to share any and all of your thoughts in your reblogs!
ESBets - bet on your favourite e-sports teams for fun and profit!
Betting on sports is a beloved hobby for many sports aficionados. Now e-Sports gets their own betting platform with ESBets.Â
ESBets is an e-sports entertainment platform that allows you to win a variety of digital and physical prizes by betting on your team and event of choice against other players. The platform is based on a real-time mechanism synchronized with the hottest CS:GO, League of Legends, Starcraft II and Dota II matches from live tournaments.
When your favourite team wins, you stand to gain game skins, game codes, computer hardware and much more.Â
ESBets goes live on March 1st. Sign up to be first in at launch!
