I strongly recommend it, even though it takes me like several playthroughs of some bits to finally understand it. I'm not a clever gamer, but I do like Matthewmatosis.
"Hello everyone, I’ll be taking a break from the channel for the rest of January. The patreon will remain open in the meantime so it’s your call whether you want to continue supporting me or not. If so, you should think of it as a contribution for the videos I’ve made rather than the videos I will make though because I can’t promise I’ll be making any more. As some of you have noticed, Meta Microvideos feels like an ending. The only question is whether it’s the end of an era or the last word altogether. I honestly don’t know yet. Sometimes people ask how much longer the channel will run and I always estimate another year or two, after which I would presumably feel comfortable quitting. It took me a while to see the contradiction there, I ALWAYS estimate another year or two. By the time those two years are up, I have another two years worth of ideas I want to pursue. My estimate will be two years forever. If it turns out that criticism is my calling in life, I can live with that. It certainly seems like the place where most of my skills intersect. Right now, I don’t think I could be as good at anything else which makes it a daunting prospect to try. Regardless, I have other aspirations which I’ve neglected so far and they’re nagging at me. Meta Microvideos seems like a good opportunity to hang up my critic hat or at least give it a little rest. Granted, I have thought about quitting before so there’s a decent likelihood things will be back to normal in a month or two. It’s not as though the channel is a TV series which needs to end on a specific episode. There’s all sorts of reasons for or against continuing, not least of which is that I still have two years of ideas - good ones - that I’d be sad not to see finished. I’ll update you again before the end of February. In the meantime I’d like you all to know that I’m doing fine and I’m delighted with the superb reception to Meta Microvideos. Apologies if this comes as a surprise but I wanted everyone to be able to enjoy that video first. Putting this in a blog post makes it seem way more serious than it is, I just figured patrons deserve to know I won’t be working on the channel for now. Needless to say, if you want to pull your pledge, that’s understandable. Whatever happens next, I’ll still be around so don’t worry too much. I’m just taking a break and assessing my options. Hope you’re all well and have a great new year. Regards, Matthew" From his patreon page, for those wondering
they weren't commenting on its "introspection" they were commenting on its meta quality, something which is also present in eoe (specifically a scene towards the end where a theater space is shown which is mirrored at 21:00 in this video). and you didn't have to call them a smoothbrain, kinda rude!!!
@taterboi Also, I finally got the The Witness review I was hoping for. @@Slyguy846 So are you saying that he is saying that Sekiro would be better if it did not have all the filler in between boss fights? :P
The best part about this video is that you really don’t need to view these thoughts in the context of video games despite that being Matt’s primary field of focus. So much of what he analyzes here easily goes beyond just the scope of video games, and really just speaks to the creative process as a whole. I think anyone with an interest in art, critical analysis & critique can benefit from many of the thoughts in this video. Replace game comparisons with comparisons relating to film, music, literature, etc. It just goes to show what an exceptional writer Matt really is. He is the only person I could expect to put something out like this and make me question so many things that I normally don’t even have a second thought about. He’s done a service to more than just the video gaming community by creating this. Hopefully more people realize that.
I just want to say that even though we will probably never talk to each other, I feel immensely grateful for your existence. This video is a masterpiece.
Same. I am always so impressed by how concise but still fully explored his arguments are. It's like he thinks for hours on a sentence for the script. You just know he thinks about these things in his spare time, being curious and insatiable for getting at the real purpose of things, for all our benefit! It is truly amazing to see his work and I feel blessed that I was/am part of this journey.
I think the fact that this video exists and how well articulated and produced it is, is a testament to Matt's mastery of and commitment to critiquing and bettering art as a whole. Matt has yet again forgone popularity to produce something that feels like a heartfelt video trying to help others better their understanding of art and criticism. What's popular is making reviews (or critiques, more specifically) of popular games (Breath of the Wild, for example). Far less popular is making an in-depth meta-analysis of game development and criticism. Though I would argue the latter is so much more beneficial to humanity and games as an art form. Many pennies have been left for others to take.
Your Magnum Opus Matthew. I pretty much never leave comments but felt I had to here, leaps and bounds above anything anyone else is doing. Keep doing what you're doing all your efforts are appreciated, maybe the subject matter isn't anything globally important but in this field this video is actual and unironic genius.
He talked about the spread of information, the consequences of actions, creativity, and critical thought. If it really is a magnum opus, then it rightly ought to be chock full of pennies. So I'd say it's fairly globally important.
Matthew is most definitely top of the food chain, but he does have company and perhaps I can be so bold as to make a recommendation to a fellow gentleman of good taste. There's a guy named Tim Rogers who does some phenomenal analysis videos for the Kotaku channel, but a few months ago he started up his own channel called Action Button that I would most highly suggest checking out when you have 3 to 5 hours to spare. Also, and I probably should have led with this, I completely agree with your comment. The effort he puts in shows and has remained consistent for YEARS! The man has integrity that is reflected in his entire body of work on RUclips. Really, it's hard to resist showering him in praise, but it feels good to do so because he absolutely deserves it.
@UC-JyjPt2nSVisFHECuh_y_w Performance art....well said, I hadn't thought of him in that way but it definitely fits. I would only compare them as far as the effort and quality of their content. They have a clear and deep understanding of the medium that is the strong foundation which their works are built upon. In my experience on RUclips this stands out. But, back to Mr. Matosis, did you happen to catch his Bioshock: Infinite analysis back when he posted it? I was lucky enough to come across it and I remember it making some waves. That game was universally praised to such an extent that to say otherwise meant immediate backlash, but I believe it was Matthew's review that sobered people up from all the hype to some degree. It utterly and completely blew me away because I hadn't seen such a measured and intelligent take on a video game until then. I've delved into highlighting what I feel to be one of his greatest hits like an 80's rock back or some shit, sorry about that haha. This current video of his has sparked some healthy dialogue and has me reminiscing. Sorry to just assume you'd hear with me on that lol.
The 15:57 Many Years Later microvideo should honestly have been an independent video on its own. It captures the very powerful and tragic reality of living in the middle of history and how it allows you to experience it in a way that will never ever be the same for future generations.
I'd say it's more like mountains eroding and subsiding like they do in reality. Waters rising kind of implies the base level of quality continuously increases.
I'm not going to lie, man, on about three different occasions while watching this video, I thought you were building up to an announcement that you were retiring! Relieved that wasn't the case!
Same. I thought maybe he had some terminal illness. This is probably because of some real-life framing on my end. I just discovered a loved one has a debilitating autoimmune disorder, which isn't terminal, but it's still made me suspicious of anything even remotely somber.
The music definitely made me think he was about to announce his retirement, perhaps due to some terminal illness. Really I think it was mostly to set up the tonal whiplash at the end.
Notice how Matthew says using "one" instead of "you" makes him sound pompous, then he proceeds to say "if ONE were to ask me" multiple times, when he would normally use "you". Little meta easter egg commentating on the amazingly pretentious nature of this great video!!
The reason we have 'show, don't tell' isn't about obfuscation of maintaining interest. Telling your audience information instead of showing it has two critical disadvantages: it disconnects them emotionally from the experience and it limits the information that you can convey, both in amount and in type. 1. You're not going to get much of an emotional response from reading the summary of a novel on Wikipedia compared to reading that same novel itself. Both of them are stories in their own way, but they have separate goals: the summary is meant to inform while the novel is meant to make you feel. Story structure has as much to do with emotional progression as much as logical progression. I'll come back to why in a moment. 2. Information conveyed in a straightforward way isn't the most efficient way of relaying it. A picture is worth a thousand words, after all. What your brain takes in when it looks at a well-crafted piece of art for a second is often more information than you could convey verbally in ten minutes. This even extends to the written word itself, though. If say that a character's room is messy, that's the only piece of information that you'd have. If I describe the room of that character for a paragraph, chances are that you'll be able to intuit all sorts of things about that character from the state of that room. To bring this back to information, I'd say that to experience something is its own type of information. Philosophers even have a word for experiencial information: qualia. If you tell someone how it feels to lose a loved one, you don't make them feel that--there's too many little details and intricacies to convey what it's like to have that happen to you, and even if you could, you still couldn't give them the information of what it's like to actually experience it. However, if you make a game about loss, where you're made to feel that experience yourself or empathize with a character who is going through it, you're able to get much closer to the reality--and I'd argue that you'd get much more information from playing that game than what you'd get if you had the experience of loss described to you. Stories or poems themselves are similar, but games are unique in their capacity to reflect reality and emotionally resonate in a way nothing else can due to the medium's advantage when it comes to empathy. You're literally putting yourself in another person's shoes, after all. Experiencing what they are for yourself, in a way. It can make you form a connection with a fictional character unlike any that's possible using other mediums. So I'd say that a game wants to convey as much information as possible to contextualize its major themes and ideas as well as to emotionally connect you to it and an experience that you wouldn't have had otherwise. Neither of those things are possible with a minimalist approach to storytelling or game design. Don't think you'll read this, but I wanted to share my thoughts on this anyway. I couldn't even finish the video before typing this all up. But on the off chance you do see this, thank you for reading.
Great explanation. It also reminds me a lot of Inception, and how they couldn't just directly implant their ideas into the dreamer's brain, as such an approach would be too transparent and overt. There had to be multiple (literal) levels of nuance and subtlety before they could convince the dreamer to understand a particular idea.
I don't disagree with anything you've said, specially in regards to a narrative's power to make you empathize with situations you may never come to experience yourself, but I do generally have a problem with how "show, don't tell" is utilized in internet discourse. It's too often idealized as this absolute standard that must always be met, rather than viewed as what it truly is: a useful tool in a creator's toolset. It is, much like many other so touted "rules of writing", a useful guideline to keep in mind but one you shouldn't be afraid to discard if the situation calls for it. So this is less a response to your post, and more just my general thoughts on this subject. You could absolutely always "organically" show how everything in your work operates, but that kind of approach comes with its own downsides too. Just because it's put on a pedestal in certain critique circles, it doesn't mean it's always going to work equally as well for everyone else. For as much as people with experience in a medium like to proclaim how they want works to "respect their intelligence", truth of the matter is a large portion of the public isn't media literate enough to pick up on lots of details you might consider obvious yourself. Sometimes you gotta weight whether what you're trying to say is more important than the risk of having that message lost on a portion of the audience (or misinterpreted outright), or if some of the nuance simply can't be explained without putting it directly into words. Like, if you watch a chess match without commentary (and let's assume for the sake of this example that you're familiar with chess and can play it relatively well, but nowhere near a professional level) you may get a general understanding of what's going on and admire how good the two players are. But then you get a step-by-step explanation of the players' mental states, the thought process behind each and every one of their moves, the logical steps they're following, how far ahead they're thinking and for how many possibilities they might be accounting for, how and why they're accounting for it, and in that explanation you may gain a perspective you never even considered before because, well, a lot of knowledge can't just be intuitively obtained without being exposed to it beforehand, and so a "tell" approach can feel just as much if not more rewarding than simply "showing". Now if that information would've been lost on our imaginary intermediate chess watcher, then imagine how much more a beginner would've missed out on. I've read stories that sometimes outright state certain things they wanted to say and I appreciated them for doing it, because the generalities of what they were saying might have been things I already knew, but the nuance/depth behind their unique perspectives weren't things I had considered or thought too much in detail about. Sometimes there is also power in putting into words something you've felt but never quite expressed out loud. A well made statement can be cathartic all on its own. I felt like I got something valuable without the author needing to "hide" it from me. Sometimes you also gotta take things like pacing into account. If it's faster and more effective to just exposit for a bit and move on rather than trying to contort the narrative around showing all the time, then power to you. Sometimes it's also just fun to minutially over-analyse and dissect stuff. This is all to say that subtlety is generally good when applied well, but also a little overrated in internet discourse. Too often we try to paint with broad strokes to arrive at absolute answers to art, and while those conclusions are genuinely useful for artists, they can also stilt creativity if taken as gospel. This is what Matthew was getting at. An approach may be bad for a large number of stories/videogames/whatever, but end up being perfect for another work. Sometimes telling is fine, good even. Sometimes an author pulls off purple prose just right. Sometimes a story eschews all conventional manner of structure and pulls it off perfectly. Art isn't science after all. The same applies to videogames, which is still a young medium with much room for growth. Which is why it specially upsets me when people try to limit what games can be by saying "videogams should always do things like this(e.g. only convey story diagetically), because this other way (e.g. cutscenes, dialogue, etc) is bad". If feels incredibly narrow minded and limits the variety of experiences we can create.
I think he was talking about *symbolism* in particular. Like, “the curtains are blue so Jane Eyre is depressed.” The perfume in Watchmen has a brand name of “Nostalgia.” That kind of thing. It’s something I’ve never understood either. I agree with your take on general implicitness.
@@brunomendonca1899 Sure. I'm an editor by trade, so I know exactly what you mean. Pacing requires that sometimes you make the reader stop and think and mull over what they've read, and sometimes it necessitates you to hurry them through a few sentences. Action scenes, for example, are often places where you see abridged and functional descriptions It's a similar thing when talking about adjectives and adverbs. You should use them seldom, since they mean to communicate general ideas instead of painting a picture or being specific, but sometimes that's what's best for your sentence/paragraph/scene. Some things can only be told, not shown. Some details are better expressed than left for the audience to figure out for themselves--often the resolution of character arcs must be clearly shown to the audience because we need to understand how the character has changed, and how that change has given him the chance to succeed where he'd otherwise failed--how it's going to make his life better. Themes, not so much, and definitely not all of them. Ultimately, you do have to pick what you say and what you leave unsaid. Sometimes telling is good. Often telling is good. But I do prefer that showing is seen as the default, and telling is done only when there's a solid reason for the author to do so. It tends to work out better that way. It's much like adverbs/adjectives in that way. Some people will tell writers to cut them out where possible, but we all understand that you need some in there. All writing rules can and should be broken when they need to be, but I don't think the concept of having rules is bad just 'cuz there are exceptions. I speak English, after all.
It's sad to see you go, youtube has a distinct lack of people will your eloquence and insight so it is quite upsetting to lose you, however whatever projects you move onto I wish nothing but success, hopefully they make you happy.
@@SuperJelbo Matthew hasn’t outright quit, per se, just on an indefinite hiatus from video production. He’s currently trying his hand at game development. He has said that he’s open to return to making videos if game dev doesn’t work out for him but nothing is certain as of now.
Thanks for the existential Crisis Matt. As someone who's put in an ungodly amount of time into fighting games, the sheer depth they hold both in terms of their systems, mechanics, and the tech created in it make it a herculean task to properly analyze. While all might share a similar set of inputs and goals, the individual character goals, meta, and pace per character vary so wildly, a sufficient expert would be appropriate on a per character basis. It seems so disjointed looking into the reality of that gameplay and how the characters interact in a fight versus the perception it receives in reviews that bewilders me. Addressing the story, graphics, music, and training options seem like the least gamey things one could address in a series who's main appeal and excitement is that integral competition between two (hopefully competent) foes. I'm sure this same line of thinking might be extended to any genre that isn't in the general eye of the populace, but it's concerning to say the least.
This is a shot in the dark, but I'm mostly commenting to appease the algorithm gods anyway: An FGC youtuber/streamer/commentator, Sajam, will try out fighting games with rollback netcode on stream. He made a video talking about the type of backlash he gets from the people who already play the game. One of the things some communities get mad about is the way he boots up the game, plays the tutorials and the character combo trials, and jumps straight into online matches, usually vs people much better than him. People want him to go watch someone's videos explaining concepts the game doesn't teach itself, and fully understand every mechanic before actually playing anyone, when that's just not how he approaches new fighting games. I only bring this up since you mentioned training options, but would that approach annoy you too? The only way anyone can get to the point where they appreciate the deeper emergent meaning of a fighting game is to somehow learn to play the game. I play melee, so I have no place telling other games they don't have good enough in-game tutorials, but it does seem like the most important part of a fighting game; without a smooth onramp for people new to the genre, they'll just go play SFV, if any fighting game at all. So it's weird to see you criticize criticism of training options in a review like this.
This is was the original purpose of martial arts. Everyone can throw the same punch. It’ll look/feel/BE different for every person. Endless possibilities
Matthew has a lot more stuff like this written on his Patreon (You don't need an account or anything). They're basically just videos like this that haven't been voiced and made into a video yet.
Here's the thing, game criticism as pretty much anything else, has been commodified, with most people rushing to "review" games as fast as possible to get clicks and get favored by algorithms. So genuine, good critique is not the norm and will not be the norm until the circumstances surrounding it changes as well.
And these circumstances will never change. Passion and effort is never the norm in anything and fighting for it to be that way is silly so it's not done. It's not reasonable to expect excellence from a majority group because that goes against the definition of excellence. We need to live with the reality that quality is called quality because it is rare and because there is present an ocean of mediocrity with which to compare it to.
That's not new. Never has been, not even for game criticism. Art and art criticism has always been subject to exactly the same constraints as every other industry. Those "circumstances" are universal. The upshot of that is that there's no need to feel down yearning for something that never existed, or disappointed when calling for change that basically can't happen.
the other problem is that a review and a critique are not the same thing, but also not everything labeled a critique is actually a critique. Also, there was never actually this time that game critique lor reviews were better - you were just younger and more ignornerant about certain things.
This video is simultaneously a finale of game journalism as whole, and a preview of the rest of our lives as consumers of entertainment. What a wonderfully constructed chapter marker between what suddenly feels like two distinct eras of critical discourse. I literally feel like my life is changing after watching this. (Also, I picked up on the "unrelated" anagram line; look at me!)
This firmly cemented you as one of my all-time favourite RUclipsrs. Been following your stuff from the very beginning and it has been a constant source of inspiration. I'm wanting to make my first foray into proper games criticism soon and this video was the one to really kick-start that drive within me. Thank you for all the informative, entertaining content over the years. Your work is a testament to the wonderful potential of games and the artistry of analysis.
If I ever make "good" video game reviews/analysis (I say if cause I've been wanting to do so for a while but never got around to it...tho that might change VERY soon) I'll see if I can remember this comment and see what you cooked up! (idk why, perhaps I just like the idea of someone POTENTIALLY staring analysing stuff not only at the same time as me but from a similar source of inspiration...makes the journey seem that less lonely I guess lol)
Matthew's increasingly strong grasp of the "Big Brain" and "Little Brain" ends of the art appreciation spectrum on display. At least, this video made me think so.
He's named it "quantumbrow" now; you can hear it during the Nobi-Nobi section (in the Death Stranding section (in the Seven Years Later section)) of the video
@@danceswithmetroids162 In his Death Stranding review, Matt said Kojima's works trekked this uncanny path of both low brow and high brow. While streaming Ghosts N Goblins later Matt divulged his phrasing of such insight was initially a little less flattering. When he first mulled over the concept, Matt burst into the room his partner was in, bellowing, "Kojima... he's big brain... but also little brain!"
Everyone knows the key to a great game is exploiting both your employees during development and some underserved minority demographic in your marketing.
Although the Cyberpunk launch was horrible, the actual devs are arguably more infuriated by corporate pushing the game so fast. I personally think there are too many basic features missing from the main game (customizing your own character throughout the game; there's a character editor in the game already, why wouldn't augmenting yourself ingame cause the same changes) for this to just not have been developed. My assumption is that the next 2 major patches are actually buckets of features that were removed at the last second because they were even buggier than the ones currently included in the game. Due to CDPR's handling of the witcher series I feel obligated to hold out on playing the game until it is corrected but if issues continue persist then my opinion of CDPR as a whole will drop considerably.
Knowing that Hades employees were literally forced to go on vaction and that Fromsoft employess also went on vacation at the beggining of covid despite Japan's stupid and soul breaking work ethic makes me happy. It's possible to make good games without making people miserable...
*"What does it mean to be a critique?"* Matthew: "Well, let me just start by making you question your own place in time and reality giving you a hugeass existential crisis. I also love videogames."
Hey, I don't know if you will be able to see this, but I just want to say that I really value these videos, and as silly as it seems to me sometimes, I feel like that they have played a part in me becoming a more complete person, especially as someone who makes art. The passion you show for the medium of games is infectious, and the way that you take time to highlight the time and care that goes into there creation has inspired me to be more thoughtful in how I approach the creative process, and I often find myself coming back to your videos in times when I am need to remind myself why art is so important. I just want to thank you for all the time and care that you put in your work, and playing a part in me finding the drive to make art with the thought and love it deserves.
Matthew, you've journeyed far past anyone I know on this entire website and this video is the culmination of your work. It highlights all the things you excel at and evokes ideas and feelings that I had previously toyed with, though in such a clear and tight package that loops back on itself - beautifully so - giving off that illusion of depth that might not be so illusionary, after all. Fascinating - is all I can concisely say, truly a superb way to end the year and as an ode for more to come. Thank you for making me experience this.
hasn't he!? he's like transcended everyone and everything....dare i say he's become, not god tier....but MATTHEWTIER. He's basically created a new tier really.
Just read Matthew might be quitting game criticism. Just here to pour one out for a real one 😔✊. Your insight has been invaluable, may your path ahead be filled with the success you deserve.
I've noticed a trend on this channel: videos ending in the word "review" usually get more views. I feel bad for all the people who miss out on this insightful commentary, and I'm glad that it doesn't deter Matthew from continuing to make videos that exceed the mainstream limitations of what's considered games media.
Sort by Most Popular: Dark Souls 2 Critique, Dark Souls Commentary, Demon's Souls Commentary, Bioshock Infinite Critique, Breath of the Wild Review, Mario 64 Review, Devil May Cry Commentary. Rethink your analysis, good sir. His recent videos are less viewed because the games are niche and/or obscure. People watch videos about things they know and like, but of course Matthew knows that. His foray into obscure titles, genres and formats was the natural course of this channel. It began with fair analysis of popular titles whose reputations have become (somewhat) removed from reality, and that fairness was extended to Matthew's criteria with which he chooses games to talk about as well as the format with which he does so. Not picking on you though, totally agree with the rest of your comment.
@@Viraus2 I will apply a little theology and extrapolate from what he actually said, and say that we should all definitely hit that bell, too. (Just kidding, I was already going to do that since I was so mad I was a day late to see this)
"There's yet to exist a game with truly infinite replayability except that one game where you fire an electrode into the pleasure center of your brain until you starve to death. But sadly that hasn't yet been ported from laboratory rats, the lucky bastards." - Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw
Honestly it's this kind of hot take that makes you go "you know what...that's kind of right, actually" that I think sets Matt apart from similar channels.
The idea of "critics" having to consume so much media, bleeds into the problem of spoilers: Some people say that "It's okay to spoil this and that, because that piece of media is 40 years old." But that implies that the person complaining about the spoiler, is expected to have already consumed all the media up to that point.
No, the only implication is you can't take infinite "spoilers" into consideration. Your enjoyment of the play Hamlet might have been heightened if no other media ever referenced a scene, but that tradeoff wouldn't be worth it. Past a certain point, we've all incorporated the piece of media in question; it's now part of culture, so catch up. Your right not to get "spoiled" is secondary to the collective zeitgeist. That's the implication.
Keep trying to find the holes in this guy's work or the smug in his tone and I come up short. Dude'll straight up *ruin* a game you love with common sense (re: something shock infinite) and you end up nodding gratefully instead of defending the dam thing... Reasonable measured bastard this guy 😂
"What gets omitted or focused on tells you as much about the critic as it does about the game" What i get from most mainstream game reviews that they dont like games, they like interactive movies and progression bars. The gameplay is sometimes never mentioned or analysed in the review
holding someone who works at GS or IGN (or even most tubers) to a certain standard is not a good idea. It's not that they don't like games, it's where they work and certain pressures, and also them probably considering their audience, which in some cases is rather large and diverse (in what it likes). Another angle - will any of those places you are thinking of get more views if they choose to focus on different things that market research has told them to focus on? (oh yeah, how they cover games is partially market research, but also a lot of "dont piss off anyone too much or they wont send us games and invited us to events" (including most tubers). If places like those do not cover games in a way that speaks to you - stop visiting them / watching them.
I think that when you play video games as a job and can't really decide which games to play for your job you're bound to rate movie games highly, since they're easy to play through, don't take that long and generally are like binging a series. Compare with a game like God Hand that actually wants to challenge you but you still have to complete it in a record time to get the reviews out in time, of course you can't appreciate the challenge and all the neat little details because you just want to get through. Basically, day 1 reviews of games are a mistake and are worth almost nothing, except to find out if a game is broken (and even then they failed to warn about cyberpunk lmao)
This is truly excellent and I hope you’re proud of it. Not only is insight on yourself and your work process really welcome, but this video just feels special on the whole. I’ll need to watch this a few times but thanks, again.
dude I'm not gonna lie, hearing you talk about your older videos with the music in the background got me kinda emotional ... your majora's mask video lead me to appreciate the game for the first time in my life, and ultimately try new experiences I would have never tried otherwise. now I'm pursuing a career in game development, and I think a major part of the reason why traces back to that video. thank you for doing what you do.
Man that talk about the need to compress information even in the grand scheme of collective human knowledge is pretty sad to think about. We already forgot about smaller peaks and we will keep forgetting about current ones that seem high enough. It doesn't matter if we try struggling by archiving as much as data as possible in one way or another. Even if we somehow manage to realize a system that can store every bit on uncompressed information, if there's nobody to bother accessing that stored data, that peak stays submerged.
I suppose, but human history is such a collaborative effort that even if a peak gets forgotten, it’ll always be there, under the surface, and its existence is what helped make the next highest peak something worth forgetting the others for. The “flooded peaks” analogy might be a bit imperfect as the phenomenon it’s describing isn’t quite as linear as it is proportional. It might be sad to think that you don’t get to experience the forgotten favorite film of a stranger from the late 1800s, but the reality is that, given you exist in an era so far into the future, it probably doesn’t have all the much to offer you, given what you know now. I think it’s fine to just appreciate that it having been made is one of the many reasons you have a favorite film today.
This is why I love and hate subversion of the media to get new attention from new larger audiences. Speedrunning is like the antitheses of everything a game is, involving exploiting, ignoring story and turning everything into a race to the finish. But hot damn is it popular and brings the attention of old forgotten games back from the dead to an audience and new generation that would likely have discarded the majority of these old games because they are not classics or have been superseded by modern versions. Same can be said for modern remakes, where many of these games which would be left on old consoles or crappy low res ports are introduced to a new audience with modern quality of life changes that can make them better games and infinitely improve their likelihood of being remembered or even given new games, like Crash Bandicoot 4.
You say this even though there is the clip of MGS2 where the AI Colonel says every (trite) piece of information is stored and available in the current, digitized world never fading, which is what they, as antagonists of the game, don't want to happen.
I suppose that's the pessimistic way of viewing it, but to me, I don't quite see it that way. Those historical Peaks never go away, they just serve as the base for an even higher Peak. Those small forgotten works of art weren't meaningless, they are the slopes that hold up the higher Peaks and keep them from being submerged as well, and in the future, our high peaks are the Pebbles that hold up even Higher Ones. Even if we don't realize it at the time, our actions affect everybody else in minute, and the act of living is collaborative. Something that's seemingly forgotten and inconsequential was special to somebody, and perhaps that person with special to someone else, and you can keep going up this chain until you get to somebody who you DO view as consequential. The Peaks analogy makes more sense if you've view each Peak as a pile of Pebbles stacked into the sky, rather than a singular Mountain. Everything is built off of something else, and these Peaks do not exist independent of all others. just because we were forgotten does not mean we were inconsequential, even if you never live to see the consequences of your actions. This is true for all the positive and negative things that we do.
Your talk about newer critics not being able to play everything does make me worry a bit. There's so many old types of games that I barely ever see anymore. Fighting games are a huge part of my life, but in the more general gaming eye, they struggle to get recognized and are often just remembered by most for the old Street Fighters or Mortal Kombats. I know they won't suddenly disappear, especially with Japanese devs and more smaller American devs continuing to create them, and big strives have been made for their recognition, but they are still much more of a niche than your random shooter or RPG.
Mega Microvideos might be one of my favorite series on the platform, firstly because I love your method of analysis but mainly because of the novelty of not knowing what I'm going to see and hear. while game specific reviews might have a (subjectively) more direct application and reason for viewers to watch, I will never stop enjoying the ingenuity you put into the explorations you do in this series. at first it was just curiosity of what games you would cover in it, but now it's just plain curiosity. of what topics you'll cover, what games, what editing style you'll apply to support your points and in what way you'll make a video somehow highly rewatchable with subtle callbacks and foreshadows. it's such a treat and something so creative which you don't see much in this line of game analysis.
I do wonder if many years from now all of our current gaming history will be perceived the same way people perceive the beginning of film. Sure, people know Chaplin and Buster Keaton, but how many have actually watched them? As someone who has, the perception of their films is not the same as more modern ones. They're great films, but they feel quaint and restrained by technology. But, like, there's so much more to old film than what most people know. Sunset: A Tale of Two Humans is considered an all-time silent classic by cinephiles, it was voted one of the 20 greatest films ever by a massive amount of filmmakers and critics in Sight & Sound Magazine, and how many of us have ever even heard of it? Are the games that we play today going to be the same weird precursor blob to people two generations from now? Are my grandkids going to have heard of Mario and Zelda but never touched one of those games? Are only massive, hyper-dedicated enthusiasts going to remember currently massive things like Metal Gear, Final Fantasy or Dark Souls? Is there going to be anyone alive who knows what something ultra beloved but not hyper mainstream like the SMT or Persona series are? How does that reflect on the design and perception of games 20, 50, 100 years from now? This is even more interesting seeing as how gaming is a much more easily lost medium than writing or film.
I think another reason for having the abstraction (10:05) would be to create a stronger understanding of the topic, not by explaining all the nuance, but by creating a situation where, instead of an author efficiently describing the themes to the viewer, the viewer is experiencing the effect of the themes themselves. MGS2 has a moment where the author very explicitly describes the themes to the viewer, but this is only after hours and hours of the viewer experiencing the effect of these themes for themselves. Without the viewer having lived in those themes for those previous hours, I don't think the explanations given would be as digestible (and to some extent, as believable).
I find myself coming back to these videos from time to time, far more than any other channel. The reviews here are incredible and these Microvideos are like a giant cherry on top of a delicious cake that is impossibly nutritious without losing any of that sweet, sweet taste. The commitment to review a game without the manipulation tactics present in most other reviews is commendable and most appreciated. I feel like a lot of critics on RUclips wind up losing something as their channel grows, and the need to keep cranking out reviews on the latest games gradually causes them to degrade in quality over time. It's understandable since ya gotta keep the bills paid, but it can be a bit disappointing when it's clear many of them could be capable of so much more. I remember finding this channel way back when ProJared gave praise to the Bioshock: Infinite review, and my opinion hasn't changed that this channel produces possibly the best reviews you could find anywhere today. There are other great channels that I hold near and dear for my review fix, but I don't revisit any of them as much as this, Perhaps my personal preference is blinding me somehow, but in the end that's really all of us to some extent, no? I don't expect anyone to read all of this but it felt important to me to type it out, regardless. I do appreciate the hard work put in to these videos and I appreciate the people supporting this channel on Patreon as well since I imagine they provide some much needed motivation. Watching videos on this channel makes me feel smarter than I actually am, and I love it.
@@joebailey8294 You're shitting me. Do you happen to know any details about the game by chance, or if he's talked about those sort of details at all? I respect him for taking a crack at developing his own game, it's not something you see too many people do after making videos that critique the works of other developers. Hopefully it works out for him, maybe he'll make the next Strand-type Nobi game.
@@johnnybensonitis7853 He’s been writing blog posts about it on his Patreon for over a year. It’s all free to read. He’s also been talking about it on streams. If I were you I’d read through the posts chronologically. Some are video quality writing
As someone who’s really only getting into Matthews videos off of some recommendations on discord, it’s surprisingly effective. But I’m missing the context of a man’s career, a decade on RUclips. It’s something I can watch watch through and do my best to enjoy, but it’s also something unreplicatable. The wait between videos is a big part of community. As this is an end, the last page of the book that I’ve skipped on over to, that wait is over. Still, there is much here for a newbie, a new viewer to enjoy in retrospect, but it will be a substantially different experience from many others down below and above me. I will probably just watch a video and forget it much easier, which is a shame. I’m glad to see what I can glean from the experience though. Can’t wait to watch the rest, glad that I liked, commented, and subscribed.
1. Being new to a creator's work does not make your experience any less valuable than anyone else...just different. 2. It is definietly easier to follow someone making new content as opposed to binge their backlog. The trick is to do it a little at a time and PAY ATTENTION if you don't want to "miss" anything...if what your watching is well written/in depth, you won't be bored...boredom is a state of mind after all. Its true you don't have the same impression, but you can get close...like how mathew was inspired to make this series from futurama of all things...just pay attention here and do that else where and your creative mind will make things click (at least...I'd hope that's why your watching this...lol) In any case hopefully that helps! I know how you feel but its best not to worry about such things too much! (or at all really) ;)
I was psyched to see Oneshot mentioned. I feel like that game doesn't get the exposure it needs as a short, thought-provoking game that can provide a lot of context or connection with similar titles.
I've seen it be reccomened quite a bunch, especially among the younger gaming circles I've delved into...AKA its getting its fair share of attention (I haven't played it yet so maybe it deserves more, but given that I only feel that one about one game (and its my favorite game so big bias there) I do doubt to some degree lol)
As I write this, I wonder if you, 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐰𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐬, will ever read it. You at least know I've listened to your video, perhaps even the whole video, but you don't know if I enjoyed it, if I thought it was any good, or if I like any of your other videos. And should I assume you're interested in my opinion? It genuinely seems you care about your viewership as a collective, but I could hardly blame you for being indifferent to the opinion of one viewer. You mention that you see flaws in your videos, and I feel it's fair to mention I see some flaws too. But that's not why I'm writing this. I began writing because I wondered if it was worth it to comment how impactful your videos have been on me. Much like the games of the past, this comment will most likely be lost to a sea of text. I'm thankful to be writing this at a time where there's a reasonable enough amount of comments, but the number of comments will inevitably increase, the water will rise, and the humble peak I stand on will be submerged. Are you still reading this? I guess all of this rambling has been an attempt to show that I understand your videos on a deeper level, hopefully putting myself into that exclusive club of people who "get it". Simply stating, "I really appreciate your videos," might be more relatable and get more likes, but my hope is that this purposeful abstraction of my feelings might be more meaningful. But at this point, I'm wondering how much longer I should continue typing. I could make more references to this video, or other videos in your "discography", but I worry that if I exacerbate my point, you might be a whole new person by the time I finally finish writing. So I guess I'll get to the point. As someone studying game design, I've learned so much from you, but it goes beyond the medium of games. Your insightful, cheeky, and well crafted videos inspire me to do better with my own work, and you have undoubtedly changed the way I think about things. I never would've written out a comment like this if it wasn't for your microvideos. I remember watching your first microvideo and realizing that the entire video was a practice of WarioWare's game design. Although I had watched you long before that, it opened my eyes to the subtly you put into all your videos. You've been a mentor to me, and I just wanted to thank you. But most importantly: like, reply, and subscribe.
"To us this is all classical music, but actually none of those men were even alive at the same time" 24:04 Most people don't realize that Moonlight Sonata was composed in 1995 for the Earthworm Jim 2 level "Jim's now a blind cave salamander"
That "Years Later" bit, when you mention about free time for the average worker being of about 50 hours to watch 20 movies or get halfway through a long JRPG, it gave me a moment of sadness for those that don't have the advantage of more free time, while also left me a little... happy for being lucky in life? In the sense that I don't have a job since last year, came back to live with my mom and now have more time to experience things I like, which also include videogames. Perhaps the saving of memories from a Mega Drive might come from a faint societal memory, or the "right" person with a lot of time.
I think it's important to keep in mind that what's taken forward in inspiring the new generation is influenced so heavily by modern design philosophies. I've played a lot of retro platformers that people claim are successors to old games because of keeping elements such as high difficulty or carrying on the same game loops. But what I feel a lot of these miss out on is the underlying philosophies that went into conceptualizing those old games. There was often a strong mechanically detached concept like "what if you were exploring an alien planet" or "what if you fought rival robots to collect their powers and become stronger" or "what if you were on quest to kill Dracula" that lead to an original experience in terms of art and gameplay loops. Now a lot of retro game's just take that artistic and mechanical mould and remix it without and effort to bring across a new experience, the fantasy that lead to these games.
i somehow missed this video when it came out. i've been watching you since before you started your mario series reviews (not sure exactly when, but thats the content that really stuck with me and put you on my mental map). it's one of my favorite youtube anythings ive watched in a long time. thanks for making it
This is far and away my favorite video you've ever made. It's videos like these that make me glad that you are the only "content creator" that I support on platforms like Pateron. Keep it up Matthew.
Yes, thank you. There's nothing easier than to break the fourth wall as both you and the author are always aware of what you're watching/playing/reading. Yet somehow people keep praising shows and games that do it like they're the second coming of Christ. Self-referentiality is the last resort if you're out of ideas or don't have any actual jokes to tell, the antithesis of substance. I'd put those efforts even below pop-culture pastiche that has infected almost every crevice of entertainment since the 90s.
Contains spoilers for Matthewmatosis.
spoilers there is no consistent upload schedule
It's very meta I must say
It contains spoilers for Cookie Clicker
And it really does.
@@CssHDmonster it's worse than berserk
"Sekiro is a terrible racing game'
Your Patreon dollars at work ladies and gentlemen.
Awesome video as always!
Imagine being such a casul at Sekiro Kart that you think it's a terrible racing game!
@@Eskinor It just couldn't hold up to bloodborne kart
Dark Souls is just straight up not a good platformer.
I don't even know why there's jumping in that game.
Finally someone on YT said that there is nothing "RPG" about J"RPG"s and they are very restrictive games.
that doesnt even need to be said
Thanks for the spoiler warning. I haven't played Matthewmatosis yet so I'm gonna hold off on watching this for now.
I think he's playing you
I strongly recommend it, even though it takes me like several playthroughs of some bits to finally understand it. I'm not a clever gamer, but I do like Matthewmatosis.
@@MAYOFORCE like a goddamn fiddle!
golden comment
"Hello everyone,
I’ll be taking a break from the channel for the rest of January. The patreon will remain open in the meantime so it’s your call whether you want to continue supporting me or not. If so, you should think of it as a contribution for the videos I’ve made rather than the videos I will make though because I can’t promise I’ll be making any more.
As some of you have noticed, Meta Microvideos feels like an ending. The only question is whether it’s the end of an era or the last word altogether. I honestly don’t know yet.
Sometimes people ask how much longer the channel will run and I always estimate another year or two, after which I would presumably feel comfortable quitting. It took me a while to see the contradiction there, I ALWAYS estimate another year or two. By the time those two years are up, I have another two years worth of ideas I want to pursue. My estimate will be two years forever.
If it turns out that criticism is my calling in life, I can live with that. It certainly seems like the place where most of my skills intersect. Right now, I don’t think I could be as good at anything else which makes it a daunting prospect to try. Regardless, I have other aspirations which I’ve neglected so far and they’re nagging at me. Meta Microvideos seems like a good opportunity to hang up my critic hat or at least give it a little rest.
Granted, I have thought about quitting before so there’s a decent likelihood things will be back to normal in a month or two. It’s not as though the channel is a TV series which needs to end on a specific episode. There’s all sorts of reasons for or against continuing, not least of which is that I still have two years of ideas - good ones - that I’d be sad not to see finished.
I’ll update you again before the end of February. In the meantime I’d like you all to know that I’m doing fine and I’m delighted with the superb reception to Meta Microvideos. Apologies if this comes as a surprise but I wanted everyone to be able to enjoy that video first.
Putting this in a blog post makes it seem way more serious than it is, I just figured patrons deserve to know I won’t be working on the channel for now. Needless to say, if you want to pull your pledge, that’s understandable.
Whatever happens next, I’ll still be around so don’t worry too much. I’m just taking a break and assessing my options. Hope you’re all well and have a great new year.
Regards,
Matthew"
From his patreon page, for those wondering
Bumping this cause I feel more people should see this!
was there any update since then?
I really don't want this to be his last video but it seems that way.
@@Crowbar he's making games now, and he's graciously let non patrons see all his blog posts and q / a recordings
@@yamagataryuto8823 ah, I stopped my pledged which is why I missed all of that, I check the stuff out now
this is probably the worst review for Bubsy 3D I’ve seen yet
He didn't even mention Knack! WTF Donkey?!
I'd be sad to see this channel go, but the idea of Matthewmatosis' final words being "like, comment and subscribe" is a little bit hilarious.
Also, the big finale vid starts with comic sans. This man's deadpan is world class.
@@N1CKSO humor dryer than the Sahara desert
Don't worry, he posted a new video
You decide to read the comments and find them fittingly meta.
Not this one
@Mr. Ocean No I meant my comment
You are meta
Finally video games analysis has its End of Evangelion.
Why do smoothbrains always bring up EoE when encountering anything remotely introspective?
@@gestaltengine6369 Try saying "Finally video games analysis has its End of Evangelion" and then reevaluate how sincere you think I was being.
they weren't commenting on its "introspection" they were commenting on its meta quality, something which is also present in eoe (specifically a scene towards the end where a theater space is shown which is mirrored at 21:00 in this video). and you didn't have to call them a smoothbrain, kinda rude!!!
@@gestaltengine6369 Don't take it too seriously my dude. Also, The End of Evangelion is a postmodern masterpiece
Its more like the final episode of Evangelion before it was remade into the movie. A neat piece in its own right
13:00 that's it folks, that's the matthewmatosis sekiro review you've been clamouring for all this time.
"Sekiro is a terrible racing game"
- Mathewmatosis 2021
He did manage to sneak in a few genuine jabs at it as well- "some titles drop the pretense of being anything but a boss rush"
@taterboi Also, I finally got the The Witness review I was hoping for.
@@Slyguy846 So are you saying that he is saying that Sekiro would be better if it did not have all the filler in between boss fights? :P
@@domustrag0z599 well not necessarily , he probably implied that everything except the bosses are unremarkable.
Cool jab tho
@@domustrag0z599 to be fair, sekiro itself has dropped the pretense with the new boss rush mode lmao
I can't believe I got caught off guard by the joke he said he was going to do at the end.
You can't keep getting away with this
Nice videos B(ruh)-Mask, keep up the good work
@@zombieman998 That's very kind, thank you! You can thank Matt for getting the ball rolling though. Still the best in his field.
Hey, ur stuff is gr8! Different appeal! But I respek the respek tho, makes ur character even more endearing lol
Greatly enjoy ur work! Keep it up!
I can see Matthew's influence in your own work, and it's been a joy to follow you both.
@@BMask you reignited my love for sly cooper games 😁
The best part about this video is that you really don’t need to view these thoughts in the context of video games despite that being Matt’s primary field of focus.
So much of what he analyzes here easily goes beyond just the scope of video games, and really just speaks to the creative process as a whole. I think anyone with an interest in art, critical analysis & critique can benefit from many of the thoughts in this video. Replace game comparisons with comparisons relating to film, music, literature, etc.
It just goes to show what an exceptional writer Matt really is. He is the only person I could expect to put something out like this and make me question so many things that I normally don’t even have a second thought about.
He’s done a service to more than just the video gaming community by creating this. Hopefully more people realize that.
Can't wait to find out exactly what this video is about.
how many times have you watched it by now?
Looool sameee
Ur mum
It's about liking, commenting, and subscribing
Many small spoken essays about the craft of analyzing videogames and this channel and this series. That's what it is
I just want to say that even though we will probably never talk to each other, I feel immensely grateful for your existence. This video is a masterpiece.
Same. I am always so impressed by how concise but still fully explored his arguments are. It's like he thinks for hours on a sentence for the script. You just know he thinks about these things in his spare time, being curious and insatiable for getting at the real purpose of things, for all our benefit! It is truly amazing to see his work and I feel blessed that I was/am part of this journey.
"Honey! Come quick! There's a new Matthewmatosis video!"
BLACK GUY! WOMAN! GET IN HERE! GET IN COSTUME!
Aww, relationship goals 😭
@@wenbluepirate3954 Fucking what? What?!
Future Divorcee
@@Gadget-Walkmen I think this is a oneyplays reference, refering to Doug Walker and his crew. meta stuff, really^^
"Hello viewer" WTF I expect to be addressed by my full name - Ladies and Gentleman
ruclips.net/video/iUzfRC6IQCM/видео.html
this has nothing to do with meta knight what the heck
I think the fact that this video exists and how well articulated and produced it is, is a testament to Matt's mastery of and commitment to critiquing and bettering art as a whole. Matt has yet again forgone popularity to produce something that feels like a heartfelt video trying to help others better their understanding of art and criticism.
What's popular is making reviews (or critiques, more specifically) of popular games (Breath of the Wild, for example). Far less popular is making an in-depth meta-analysis of game development and criticism. Though I would argue the latter is so much more beneficial to humanity and games as an art form. Many pennies have been left for others to take.
Your Magnum Opus Matthew. I pretty much never leave comments but felt I had to here, leaps and bounds above anything anyone else is doing. Keep doing what you're doing all your efforts are appreciated, maybe the subject matter isn't anything globally important but in this field this video is actual and unironic genius.
He talked about the spread of information, the consequences of actions, creativity, and critical thought. If it really is a magnum opus, then it rightly ought to be chock full of pennies. So I'd say it's fairly globally important.
Matthew is most definitely top of the food chain, but he does have company and perhaps I can be so bold as to make a recommendation to a fellow gentleman of good taste. There's a guy named Tim Rogers who does some phenomenal analysis videos for the Kotaku channel, but a few months ago he started up his own channel called Action Button that I would most highly suggest checking out when you have 3 to 5 hours to spare.
Also, and I probably should have led with this, I completely agree with your comment. The effort he puts in shows and has remained consistent for YEARS! The man has integrity that is reflected in his entire body of work on RUclips. Really, it's hard to resist showering him in praise, but it feels good to do so because he absolutely deserves it.
This comment perfectly illustrates what Matthew said right at the beginning - meta is easy.
@UC-JyjPt2nSVisFHECuh_y_w Performance art....well said, I hadn't thought of him in that way but it definitely fits. I would only compare them as far as the effort and quality of their content. They have a clear and deep understanding of the medium that is the strong foundation which their works are built upon. In my experience on RUclips this stands out.
But, back to Mr. Matosis, did you happen to catch his Bioshock: Infinite analysis back when he posted it? I was lucky enough to come across it and I remember it making some waves. That game was universally praised to such an extent that to say otherwise meant immediate backlash, but I believe it was Matthew's review that sobered people up from all the hype to some degree. It utterly and completely blew me away because I hadn't seen such a measured and intelligent take on a video game until then.
I've delved into highlighting what I feel to be one of his greatest hits like an 80's rock back or some shit, sorry about that haha. This current video of his has sparked some healthy dialogue and has me reminiscing. Sorry to just assume you'd hear with me on that lol.
"Leaps and bounds above anything anyone else is doing"?
Try reading a book sometime.
The 15:57 Many Years Later microvideo should honestly have been an independent video on its own. It captures the very powerful and tragic reality of living in the middle of history and how it allows you to experience it in a way that will never ever be the same for future generations.
I think I'm getting too dumb for his videos
That analogy about the mountain peaks and the water rising was surprisingly beautiful.
It really was. It's such a small part of the video but I'm confident it'll stick with me for years.
I missed it. Oops
I liked when he said, "abreast". heh heh
I'd say it's more like mountains eroding and subsiding like they do in reality. Waters rising kind of implies the base level of quality continuously increases.
@@TheDominitri That's better than implying that old games get worse by just sitting there, like yours.
You had to make an effort to pronounce the T in "meta" with your accent didntye
I kept hearing "mega" lmao
de mehah
Nice Radiohead pfp
I just like hearing people say "Or P G"
Meh' A
I'm watching in 2451 AD, and I think your videos are xzorbancial, Matthew!
I'm not going to lie, man, on about three different occasions while watching this video, I thought you were building up to an announcement that you were retiring! Relieved that wasn't the case!
Same. I thought maybe he had some terminal illness. This is probably because of some real-life framing on my end. I just discovered a loved one has a debilitating autoimmune disorder, which isn't terminal, but it's still made me suspicious of anything even remotely somber.
unless this is why he made a meta video specifically to pass some knowledge for inspired critics and analysts.
id be happy if it were to pursue something he wanted more :') but I hope I can see it
yeah me too
I came down here just to confirm this! Thank god it isn't true
"If you asked me" is great and I don't ever want to see it go
I'm more of a "If you're anything like me" kind of guy myself.
Matthew recorded this whole video in an armchair swirling a glass of red wine in his hand
but enough talk! Have at you!
That whole thing about kids born today will never have the time to play all of the Classics of gaming really hit hard, for some reason.
The latter half of this video gave me a very melancholic feeling. It almost feels like a eulogy for the main channel videos.
The music definitely made me think he was about to announce his retirement, perhaps due to some terminal illness. Really I think it was mostly to set up the tonal whiplash at the end.
@@deleteTF I don't hear it.
He's said on patreon this could be his last video
@@AscorbicNomad Really??? I hope not :(
@@heepy1 It is, at least for a while. He's now making a game as he said in his latest stream.
Notice how Matthew says using "one" instead of "you" makes him sound pompous, then he proceeds to say "if ONE were to ask me" multiple times, when he would normally use "you". Little meta easter egg commentating on the amazingly pretentious nature of this great video!!
The reason we have 'show, don't tell' isn't about obfuscation of maintaining interest. Telling your audience information instead of showing it has two critical disadvantages: it disconnects them emotionally from the experience and it limits the information that you can convey, both in amount and in type.
1. You're not going to get much of an emotional response from reading the summary of a novel on Wikipedia compared to reading that same novel itself. Both of them are stories in their own way, but they have separate goals: the summary is meant to inform while the novel is meant to make you feel. Story structure has as much to do with emotional progression as much as logical progression. I'll come back to why in a moment.
2. Information conveyed in a straightforward way isn't the most efficient way of relaying it. A picture is worth a thousand words, after all. What your brain takes in when it looks at a well-crafted piece of art for a second is often more information than you could convey verbally in ten minutes. This even extends to the written word itself, though. If say that a character's room is messy, that's the only piece of information that you'd have. If I describe the room of that character for a paragraph, chances are that you'll be able to intuit all sorts of things about that character from the state of that room.
To bring this back to information, I'd say that to experience something is its own type of information. Philosophers even have a word for experiencial information: qualia. If you tell someone how it feels to lose a loved one, you don't make them feel that--there's too many little details and intricacies to convey what it's like to have that happen to you, and even if you could, you still couldn't give them the information of what it's like to actually experience it.
However, if you make a game about loss, where you're made to feel that experience yourself or empathize with a character who is going through it, you're able to get much closer to the reality--and I'd argue that you'd get much more information from playing that game than what you'd get if you had the experience of loss described to you. Stories or poems themselves are similar, but games are unique in their capacity to reflect reality and emotionally resonate in a way nothing else can due to the medium's advantage when it comes to empathy. You're literally putting yourself in another person's shoes, after all. Experiencing what they are for yourself, in a way. It can make you form a connection with a fictional character unlike any that's possible using other mediums.
So I'd say that a game wants to convey as much information as possible to contextualize its major themes and ideas as well as to emotionally connect you to it and an experience that you wouldn't have had otherwise. Neither of those things are possible with a minimalist approach to storytelling or game design.
Don't think you'll read this, but I wanted to share my thoughts on this anyway. I couldn't even finish the video before typing this all up. But on the off chance you do see this, thank you for reading.
Was about to comment something similar, but you've got it
Great explanation. It also reminds me a lot of Inception, and how they couldn't just directly implant their ideas into the dreamer's brain, as such an approach would be too transparent and overt. There had to be multiple (literal) levels of nuance and subtlety before they could convince the dreamer to understand a particular idea.
I don't disagree with anything you've said, specially in regards to a narrative's power to make you empathize with situations you may never come to experience yourself, but I do generally have a problem with how "show, don't tell" is utilized in internet discourse. It's too often idealized as this absolute standard that must always be met, rather than viewed as what it truly is: a useful tool in a creator's toolset. It is, much like many other so touted "rules of writing", a useful guideline to keep in mind but one you shouldn't be afraid to discard if the situation calls for it. So this is less a response to your post, and more just my general thoughts on this subject.
You could absolutely always "organically" show how everything in your work operates, but that kind of approach comes with its own downsides too. Just because it's put on a pedestal in certain critique circles, it doesn't mean it's always going to work equally as well for everyone else. For as much as people with experience in a medium like to proclaim how they want works to "respect their intelligence", truth of the matter is a large portion of the public isn't media literate enough to pick up on lots of details you might consider obvious yourself. Sometimes you gotta weight whether what you're trying to say is more important than the risk of having that message lost on a portion of the audience (or misinterpreted outright), or if some of the nuance simply can't be explained without putting it directly into words.
Like, if you watch a chess match without commentary (and let's assume for the sake of this example that you're familiar with chess and can play it relatively well, but nowhere near a professional level) you may get a general understanding of what's going on and admire how good the two players are. But then you get a step-by-step explanation of the players' mental states, the thought process behind each and every one of their moves, the logical steps they're following, how far ahead they're thinking and for how many possibilities they might be accounting for, how and why they're accounting for it, and in that explanation you may gain a perspective you never even considered before because, well, a lot of knowledge can't just be intuitively obtained without being exposed to it beforehand, and so a "tell" approach can feel just as much if not more rewarding than simply "showing". Now if that information would've been lost on our imaginary intermediate chess watcher, then imagine how much more a beginner would've missed out on. I've read stories that sometimes outright state certain things they wanted to say and I appreciated them for doing it, because the generalities of what they were saying might have been things I already knew, but the nuance/depth behind their unique perspectives weren't things I had considered or thought too much in detail about. Sometimes there is also power in putting into words something you've felt but never quite expressed out loud. A well made statement can be cathartic all on its own. I felt like I got something valuable without the author needing to "hide" it from me.
Sometimes you also gotta take things like pacing into account. If it's faster and more effective to just exposit for a bit and move on rather than trying to contort the narrative around showing all the time, then power to you. Sometimes it's also just fun to minutially over-analyse and dissect stuff. This is all to say that subtlety is generally good when applied well, but also a little overrated in internet discourse. Too often we try to paint with broad strokes to arrive at absolute answers to art, and while those conclusions are genuinely useful for artists, they can also stilt creativity if taken as gospel. This is what Matthew was getting at. An approach may be bad for a large number of stories/videogames/whatever, but end up being perfect for another work. Sometimes telling is fine, good even. Sometimes an author pulls off purple prose just right. Sometimes a story eschews all conventional manner of structure and pulls it off perfectly. Art isn't science after all. The same applies to videogames, which is still a young medium with much room for growth. Which is why it specially upsets me when people try to limit what games can be by saying "videogams should always do things like this(e.g. only convey story diagetically), because this other way (e.g. cutscenes, dialogue, etc) is bad". If feels incredibly narrow minded and limits the variety of experiences we can create.
I think he was talking about *symbolism* in particular. Like, “the curtains are blue so Jane Eyre is depressed.” The perfume in Watchmen has a brand name of “Nostalgia.” That kind of thing. It’s something I’ve never understood either. I agree with your take on general implicitness.
@@brunomendonca1899 Sure. I'm an editor by trade, so I know exactly what you mean. Pacing requires that sometimes you make the reader stop and think and mull over what they've read, and sometimes it necessitates you to hurry them through a few sentences. Action scenes, for example, are often places where you see abridged and functional descriptions
It's a similar thing when talking about adjectives and adverbs. You should use them seldom, since they mean to communicate general ideas instead of painting a picture or being specific, but sometimes that's what's best for your sentence/paragraph/scene.
Some things can only be told, not shown. Some details are better expressed than left for the audience to figure out for themselves--often the resolution of character arcs must be clearly shown to the audience because we need to understand how the character has changed, and how that change has given him the chance to succeed where he'd otherwise failed--how it's going to make his life better. Themes, not so much, and definitely not all of them.
Ultimately, you do have to pick what you say and what you leave unsaid. Sometimes telling is good. Often telling is good. But I do prefer that showing is seen as the default, and telling is done only when there's a solid reason for the author to do so. It tends to work out better that way. It's much like adverbs/adjectives in that way. Some people will tell writers to cut them out where possible, but we all understand that you need some in there.
All writing rules can and should be broken when they need to be, but I don't think the concept of having rules is bad just 'cuz there are exceptions. I speak English, after all.
It's sad to see you go, youtube has a distinct lack of people will your eloquence and insight so it is quite upsetting to lose you, however whatever projects you move onto I wish nothing but success, hopefully they make you happy.
What do you mean go? :( Did he quit?
@@SuperJelbo Matthew hasn’t outright quit, per se, just on an indefinite hiatus from video production. He’s currently trying his hand at game development. He has said that he’s open to return to making videos if game dev doesn’t work out for him but nothing is certain as of now.
That Casual Matthewmatosis persona was actually cursed
Its only cursed cause your not used to it...if he was like that all the time you'd find his analytical "persona" to be much more cursed! ;)
Thanks for the existential Crisis Matt. As someone who's put in an ungodly amount of time into fighting games, the sheer depth they hold both in terms of their systems, mechanics, and the tech created in it make it a herculean task to properly analyze. While all might share a similar set of inputs and goals, the individual character goals, meta, and pace per character vary so wildly, a sufficient expert would be appropriate on a per character basis. It seems so disjointed looking into the reality of that gameplay and how the characters interact in a fight versus the perception it receives in reviews that bewilders me. Addressing the story, graphics, music, and training options seem like the least gamey things one could address in a series who's main appeal and excitement is that integral competition between two (hopefully competent) foes. I'm sure this same line of thinking might be extended to any genre that isn't in the general eye of the populace, but it's concerning to say the least.
This is a shot in the dark, but I'm mostly commenting to appease the algorithm gods anyway:
An FGC youtuber/streamer/commentator, Sajam, will try out fighting games with rollback netcode on stream. He made a video talking about the type of backlash he gets from the people who already play the game. One of the things some communities get mad about is the way he boots up the game, plays the tutorials and the character combo trials, and jumps straight into online matches, usually vs people much better than him. People want him to go watch someone's videos explaining concepts the game doesn't teach itself, and fully understand every mechanic before actually playing anyone, when that's just not how he approaches new fighting games.
I only bring this up since you mentioned training options, but would that approach annoy you too? The only way anyone can get to the point where they appreciate the deeper emergent meaning of a fighting game is to somehow learn to play the game. I play melee, so I have no place telling other games they don't have good enough in-game tutorials, but it does seem like the most important part of a fighting game; without a smooth onramp for people new to the genre, they'll just go play SFV, if any fighting game at all. So it's weird to see you criticize criticism of training options in a review like this.
This is was the original purpose of martial arts. Everyone can throw the same punch. It’ll look/feel/BE different for every person. Endless possibilities
Matthew has a lot more stuff like this written on his Patreon (You don't need an account or anything).
They're basically just videos like this that haven't been voiced and made into a video yet.
Here's the thing, game criticism as pretty much anything else, has been commodified, with most people rushing to "review" games as fast as possible to get clicks and get favored by algorithms.
So genuine, good critique is not the norm and will not be the norm until the circumstances surrounding it changes as well.
And these circumstances will never change. Passion and effort is never the norm in anything and fighting for it to be that way is silly so it's not done. It's not reasonable to expect excellence from a majority group because that goes against the definition of excellence. We need to live with the reality that quality is called quality because it is rare and because there is present an ocean of mediocrity with which to compare it to.
That's not new. Never has been, not even for game criticism. Art and art criticism has always been subject to exactly the same constraints as every other industry. Those "circumstances" are universal. The upshot of that is that there's no need to feel down yearning for something that never existed, or disappointed when calling for change that basically can't happen.
the other problem is that a review and a critique are not the same thing, but also not everything labeled a critique is actually a critique. Also, there was never actually this time that game critique lor reviews were better - you were just younger and more ignornerant about certain things.
"It's not good criticism when it doesn't agree with my opinions" is what I've seen most be their reasoning for there not being good criticism.
This video is simultaneously a finale of game journalism as whole, and a preview of the rest of our lives as consumers of entertainment. What a wonderfully constructed chapter marker between what suddenly feels like two distinct eras of critical discourse. I literally feel like my life is changing after watching this.
(Also, I picked up on the "unrelated" anagram line; look at me!)
I did not expect Girls Last Tour to show up. Goddamn.
@@TomO-lh9bx Hello ladies and gentlemen, this is the fifth in a series of 30 reviews I'm doing on cute girls doing cute things in dangerous settings.
"map system is noteworthy"
That deserves a gold star.
This video is absolutely breathtaking for me. The analytical skill on display here is incredible.
This firmly cemented you as one of my all-time favourite RUclipsrs. Been following your stuff from the very beginning and it has been a constant source of inspiration. I'm wanting to make my first foray into proper games criticism soon and this video was the one to really kick-start that drive within me. Thank you for all the informative, entertaining content over the years. Your work is a testament to the wonderful potential of games and the artistry of analysis.
If I ever make "good" video game reviews/analysis (I say if cause I've been wanting to do so for a while but never got around to it...tho that might change VERY soon) I'll see if I can remember this comment and see what you cooked up! (idk why, perhaps I just like the idea of someone POTENTIALLY staring analysing stuff not only at the same time as me but from a similar source of inspiration...makes the journey seem that less lonely I guess lol)
Matthew's increasingly strong grasp of the "Big Brain" and "Little Brain" ends of the art appreciation spectrum on display. At least, this video made me think so.
I'd like to grasp what that means
He's named it "quantumbrow" now; you can hear it during the Nobi-Nobi section (in the Death Stranding section (in the Seven Years Later section)) of the video
Midwits, when will they learn?
@@danceswithmetroids162 In his Death Stranding review, Matt said Kojima's works trekked this uncanny path of both low brow and high brow. While streaming Ghosts N Goblins later Matt divulged his phrasing of such insight was initially a little less flattering. When he first mulled over the concept, Matt burst into the room his partner was in, bellowing, "Kojima... he's big brain... but also little brain!"
@@nothing4mepls973 nice word did your mum buy you it?
I get the feeling that this video will spawn a whole lot of "The encounters in Sekiro are actually puzzles"-hot takes.
"The delusion that more work leads to a better product..."
Is this your stealth review of Cyberpunk 2077?
Everyone knows the key to a great game is exploiting both your employees during development and some underserved minority demographic in your marketing.
Although the Cyberpunk launch was horrible, the actual devs are arguably more infuriated by corporate pushing the game so fast.
I personally think there are too many basic features missing from the main game (customizing your own character throughout the game; there's a character editor in the game already, why wouldn't augmenting yourself ingame cause the same changes) for this to just not have been developed.
My assumption is that the next 2 major patches are actually buckets of features that were removed at the last second because they were even buggier than the ones currently included in the game.
Due to CDPR's handling of the witcher series I feel obligated to hold out on playing the game until it is corrected but if issues continue persist then my opinion of CDPR as a whole will drop considerably.
Knowing that Hades employees were literally forced to go on vaction and that Fromsoft employess also went on vacation at the beggining of covid despite Japan's stupid and soul breaking work ethic makes me happy. It's possible to make good games without making people miserable...
@@Yama-qg3il Not only possible, but more often than not beneficial to making anything and everything better.
Except the problem with Cyberpunk 2077 development wasn't the work put into it, it was how terribly managed the work was.
Dang it was cool seeing the girl's last tour bit. Caught me off guard
Never expected that many to have read the manga
I'm still hoping for season 2 but i'll eventually give up and read the whole thing.
@@night1952 reading from where the anime left off to the end will probably only take an hour
@@HidinginPublic Nah, i'll read the whole thing, i'm in no hurry with that manga.
Holy shit thank you for confirming my suspicion.
Ooo~ This is goin' in the "Watched at least 12 times" list
*"What does it mean to be a critique?"*
Matthew: "Well, let me just start by making you question your own place in time and reality giving you a hugeass existential crisis. I also love videogames."
You’re fucking everywhere dude, even dating back to Bonfire Lit days
@@treedland5763
I miss Bonfire Lit :(
Hey, I don't know if you will be able to see this, but I just want to say that I really value these videos, and as silly as it seems to me sometimes, I feel like that they have played a part in me becoming a more complete person, especially as someone who makes art. The passion you show for the medium of games is infectious, and the way that you take time to highlight the time and care that goes into there creation has inspired me to be more thoughtful in how I approach the creative process, and I often find myself coming back to your videos in times when I am need to remind myself why art is so important. I just want to thank you for all the time and care that you put in your work, and playing a part in me finding the drive to make art with the thought and love it deserves.
Matthew, you've journeyed far past anyone I know on this entire website and this video is the culmination of your work. It highlights all the things you excel at and evokes ideas and feelings that I had previously toyed with, though in such a clear and tight package that loops back on itself - beautifully so - giving off that illusion of depth that might not be so illusionary, after all.
Fascinating - is all I can concisely say, truly a superb way to end the year and as an ode for more to come.
Thank you for making me experience this.
hasn't he!? he's like transcended everyone and everything....dare i say he's become, not god tier....but MATTHEWTIER. He's basically created a new tier really.
You know someone's good at their job when you not only feel smarter by the end, but strive to be smarter as well.
In a word, I'd call him inspiring.
This is an incredible piece of work, Matthew. Genuinely.
I can HEAR the smirk on the last five seconds of the video
Just read Matthew might be quitting game criticism.
Just here to pour one out for a real one 😔✊.
Your insight has been invaluable, may your path ahead be filled with the success you deserve.
I've noticed a trend on this channel: videos ending in the word "review" usually get more views. I feel bad for all the people who miss out on this insightful commentary, and I'm glad that it doesn't deter Matthew from continuing to make videos that exceed the mainstream limitations of what's considered games media.
Sort by Most Popular: Dark Souls 2 Critique, Dark Souls Commentary, Demon's Souls Commentary, Bioshock Infinite Critique, Breath of the Wild Review, Mario 64 Review, Devil May Cry Commentary. Rethink your analysis, good sir. His recent videos are less viewed because the games are niche and/or obscure. People watch videos about things they know and like, but of course Matthew knows that. His foray into obscure titles, genres and formats was the natural course of this channel. It began with fair analysis of popular titles whose reputations have become (somewhat) removed from reality, and that fairness was extended to Matthew's criteria with which he chooses games to talk about as well as the format with which he does so.
Not picking on you though, totally agree with the rest of your comment.
That final message really hit me deep.
damn, you're right. just gotta find your path.
We all know that we should like, but somewhere along the line most of us forget that we should also subscribe
@@Viraus2 I will apply a little theology and extrapolate from what he actually said, and say that we should all definitely hit that bell, too.
(Just kidding, I was already going to do that since I was so mad I was a day late to see this)
When my family asked me what I wanted for christmas I couldn’t tell them it was really a MatthewMatosis video about Cookie Clicker
Did not expect the hot take of "Clicker games are basically RPG's" but I totally am here for it.
"There's yet to exist a game with truly infinite replayability except that one game where you fire an electrode into the pleasure center of your brain until you starve to death. But sadly that hasn't yet been ported from laboratory rats, the lucky bastards."
- Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw
Super Paper Mario made this commentary all the way back in 2008.
Honestly it's this kind of hot take that makes you go "you know what...that's kind of right, actually" that I think sets Matt apart from similar channels.
I've still yet to see a gaming RUclips video as profound as this one. Thanks, Matthew. God, I love videogames
THIS IS A CERTIFIED HOOD CLASSIC
no
The idea of "critics" having to consume so much media, bleeds into the problem of spoilers:
Some people say that "It's okay to spoil this and that, because that piece of media is 40 years old."
But that implies that the person complaining about the spoiler, is expected to have already consumed all the media up to that point.
There are big differences in analysis and review. You don't watch an analysis to decide whether you want to buy the product.
No, the only implication is you can't take infinite "spoilers" into consideration. Your enjoyment of the play Hamlet might have been heightened if no other media ever referenced a scene, but that tradeoff wouldn't be worth it. Past a certain point, we've all incorporated the piece of media in question; it's now part of culture, so catch up. Your right not to get "spoiled" is secondary to the collective zeitgeist. That's the implication.
Keep trying to find the holes in this guy's work or the smug in his tone and I come up short.
Dude'll straight up *ruin* a game you love with common sense (re: something shock infinite) and you end up nodding gratefully instead of defending the dam thing...
Reasonable measured bastard this guy 😂
If one were to ask me, I'd say this is quite the exceptional video.
I read this comment exactly at 6:08
…meta, dude
Who else noticed "Wario's Bakery" in the cookie clicker footage
The entire video was a warioware joke.
"What gets omitted or focused on tells you as much about the critic as it does about the game"
What i get from most mainstream game reviews that they dont like games, they like interactive movies and progression bars. The gameplay is sometimes never mentioned or analysed in the review
holding someone who works at GS or IGN (or even most tubers) to a certain standard is not a good idea. It's not that they don't like games, it's where they work and certain pressures, and also them probably considering their audience, which in some cases is rather large and diverse (in what it likes). Another angle - will any of those places you are thinking of get more views if they choose to focus on different things that market research has told them to focus on? (oh yeah, how they cover games is partially market research, but also a lot of "dont piss off anyone too much or they wont send us games and invited us to events" (including most tubers).
If places like those do not cover games in a way that speaks to you - stop visiting them / watching them.
I think that when you play video games as a job and can't really decide which games to play for your job you're bound to rate movie games highly, since they're easy to play through, don't take that long and generally are like binging a series. Compare with a game like God Hand that actually wants to challenge you but you still have to complete it in a record time to get the reviews out in time, of course you can't appreciate the challenge and all the neat little details because you just want to get through. Basically, day 1 reviews of games are a mistake and are worth almost nothing, except to find out if a game is broken (and even then they failed to warn about cyberpunk lmao)
This is truly excellent and I hope you’re proud of it. Not only is insight on yourself and your work process really welcome, but this video just feels special on the whole. I’ll need to watch this a few times but thanks, again.
dude I'm not gonna lie, hearing you talk about your older videos with the music in the background got me kinda emotional ... your majora's mask video lead me to appreciate the game for the first time in my life, and ultimately try new experiences I would have never tried otherwise. now I'm pursuing a career in game development, and I think a major part of the reason why traces back to that video. thank you for doing what you do.
Matt achieved CHIM
This comment gave me horrible .hack//G.U. flashbacks.
You'll always be the best video game critique channel. Nowadays there's some imitating your work, which is good, but nothing can top what you made.
Man that talk about the need to compress information even in the grand scheme of collective human knowledge is pretty sad to think about.
We already forgot about smaller peaks and we will keep forgetting about current ones that seem high enough.
It doesn't matter if we try struggling by archiving as much as data as possible in one way or another. Even if we somehow manage to realize a system that can store every bit on uncompressed information, if there's nobody to bother accessing that stored data, that peak stays submerged.
I suppose, but human history is such a collaborative effort that even if a peak gets forgotten, it’ll always be there, under the surface, and its existence is what helped make the next highest peak something worth forgetting the others for.
The “flooded peaks” analogy might be a bit imperfect as the phenomenon it’s describing isn’t quite as linear as it is proportional. It might be sad to think that you don’t get to experience the forgotten favorite film of a stranger from the late 1800s, but the reality is that, given you exist in an era so far into the future, it probably doesn’t have all the much to offer you, given what you know now.
I think it’s fine to just appreciate that it having been made is one of the many reasons you have a favorite film today.
There are many kinds of death we must come to understand; their inevitability must give us comfort.
This is why I love and hate subversion of the media to get new attention from new larger audiences. Speedrunning is like the antitheses of everything a game is, involving exploiting, ignoring story and turning everything into a race to the finish. But hot damn is it popular and brings the attention of old forgotten games back from the dead to an audience and new generation that would likely have discarded the majority of these old games because they are not classics or have been superseded by modern versions. Same can be said for modern remakes, where many of these games which would be left on old consoles or crappy low res ports are introduced to a new audience with modern quality of life changes that can make them better games and infinitely improve their likelihood of being remembered or even given new games, like Crash Bandicoot 4.
You say this even though there is the clip of MGS2 where the AI Colonel says every (trite) piece of information is stored and available in the current, digitized world never fading, which is what they, as antagonists of the game, don't want to happen.
I suppose that's the pessimistic way of viewing it, but to me, I don't quite see it that way.
Those historical Peaks never go away, they just serve as the base for an even higher Peak. Those small forgotten works of art weren't meaningless, they are the slopes that hold up the higher Peaks and keep them from being submerged as well, and in the future, our high peaks are the Pebbles that hold up even Higher Ones.
Even if we don't realize it at the time, our actions affect everybody else in minute, and the act of living is collaborative. Something that's seemingly forgotten and inconsequential was special to somebody, and perhaps that person with special to someone else, and you can keep going up this chain until you get to somebody who you DO view as consequential.
The Peaks analogy makes more sense if you've view each Peak as a pile of Pebbles stacked into the sky, rather than a singular Mountain. Everything is built off of something else, and these Peaks do not exist independent of all others.
just because we were forgotten does not mean we were inconsequential, even if you never live to see the consequences of your actions. This is true for all the positive and negative things that we do.
I know you're reading this.
Your talk about newer critics not being able to play everything does make me worry a bit. There's so many old types of games that I barely ever see anymore. Fighting games are a huge part of my life, but in the more general gaming eye, they struggle to get recognized and are often just remembered by most for the old Street Fighters or Mortal Kombats. I know they won't suddenly disappear, especially with Japanese devs and more smaller American devs continuing to create them, and big strives have been made for their recognition, but they are still much more of a niche than your random shooter or RPG.
Mega Microvideos might be one of my favorite series on the platform, firstly because I love your method of analysis but mainly because of the novelty of not knowing what I'm going to see and hear. while game specific reviews might have a (subjectively) more direct application and reason for viewers to watch, I will never stop enjoying the ingenuity you put into the explorations you do in this series. at first it was just curiosity of what games you would cover in it, but now it's just plain curiosity. of what topics you'll cover, what games, what editing style you'll apply to support your points and in what way you'll make a video somehow highly rewatchable with subtle callbacks and foreshadows. it's such a treat and something so creative which you don't see much in this line of game analysis.
the penny analogy was amazing
I do wonder if many years from now all of our current gaming history will be perceived the same way people perceive the beginning of film. Sure, people know Chaplin and Buster Keaton, but how many have actually watched them? As someone who has, the perception of their films is not the same as more modern ones. They're great films, but they feel quaint and restrained by technology. But, like, there's so much more to old film than what most people know. Sunset: A Tale of Two Humans is considered an all-time silent classic by cinephiles, it was voted one of the 20 greatest films ever by a massive amount of filmmakers and critics in Sight & Sound Magazine, and how many of us have ever even heard of it? Are the games that we play today going to be the same weird precursor blob to people two generations from now? Are my grandkids going to have heard of Mario and Zelda but never touched one of those games? Are only massive, hyper-dedicated enthusiasts going to remember currently massive things like Metal Gear, Final Fantasy or Dark Souls? Is there going to be anyone alive who knows what something ultra beloved but not hyper mainstream like the SMT or Persona series are? How does that reflect on the design and perception of games 20, 50, 100 years from now? This is even more interesting seeing as how gaming is a much more easily lost medium than writing or film.
I think another reason for having the abstraction (10:05) would be to create a stronger understanding of the topic, not by explaining all the nuance, but by creating a situation where, instead of an author efficiently describing the themes to the viewer, the viewer is experiencing the effect of the themes themselves. MGS2 has a moment where the author very explicitly describes the themes to the viewer, but this is only after hours and hours of the viewer experiencing the effect of these themes for themselves. Without the viewer having lived in those themes for those previous hours, I don't think the explanations given would be as digestible (and to some extent, as believable).
Good night, sweet prince. May the flight of angels sing thee to thy rest
I find myself coming back to these videos from time to time, far more than any other channel. The reviews here are incredible and these Microvideos are like a giant cherry on top of a delicious cake that is impossibly nutritious without losing any of that sweet, sweet taste. The commitment to review a game without the manipulation tactics present in most other reviews is commendable and most appreciated. I feel like a lot of critics on RUclips wind up losing something as their channel grows, and the need to keep cranking out reviews on the latest games gradually causes them to degrade in quality over time. It's understandable since ya gotta keep the bills paid, but it can be a bit disappointing when it's clear many of them could be capable of so much more. I remember finding this channel way back when ProJared gave praise to the Bioshock: Infinite review, and my opinion hasn't changed that this channel produces possibly the best reviews you could find anywhere today. There are other great channels that I hold near and dear for my review fix, but I don't revisit any of them as much as this, Perhaps my personal preference is blinding me somehow, but in the end that's really all of us to some extent, no? I don't expect anyone to read all of this but it felt important to me to type it out, regardless. I do appreciate the hard work put in to these videos and I appreciate the people supporting this channel on Patreon as well since I imagine they provide some much needed motivation.
Watching videos on this channel makes me feel smarter than I actually am, and I love it.
I hope you’re aware he’s making a game now
@@joebailey8294 You're shitting me. Do you happen to know any details about the game by chance, or if he's talked about those sort of details at all? I respect him for taking a crack at developing his own game, it's not something you see too many people do after making videos that critique the works of other developers. Hopefully it works out for him, maybe he'll make the next Strand-type Nobi game.
@@johnnybensonitis7853 He’s been writing blog posts about it on his Patreon for over a year. It’s all free to read. He’s also been talking about it on streams. If I were you I’d read through the posts chronologically. Some are video quality writing
This might be my favorite bit of writing of this year. This is an essay so introspective that it becomes universal. Big props.
That "Many Years Later" segment was wonderful. Legit got me a little whispy.
Sekiro is a terrible racing game
"Many Years Later"
oomph this essay is not for the faint of heart, but it's so true.
yeah that part hit me quite a bit
Honest to god, that section made me cry.
As someone who’s really only getting into Matthews videos off of some recommendations on discord, it’s surprisingly effective. But I’m missing the context of a man’s career, a decade on RUclips. It’s something I can watch watch through and do my best to enjoy, but it’s also something unreplicatable. The wait between videos is a big part of community. As this is an end, the last page of the book that I’ve skipped on over to, that wait is over. Still, there is much here for a newbie, a new viewer to enjoy in retrospect, but it will be a substantially different experience from many others down below and above me. I will probably just watch a video and forget it much easier, which is a shame.
I’m glad to see what I can glean from the experience though.
Can’t wait to watch the rest, glad that I liked, commented, and subscribed.
1. Being new to a creator's work does not make your experience any less valuable than anyone else...just different.
2. It is definietly easier to follow someone making new content as opposed to binge their backlog. The trick is to do it a little at a time and PAY ATTENTION if you don't want to "miss" anything...if what your watching is well written/in depth, you won't be bored...boredom is a state of mind after all. Its true you don't have the same impression, but you can get close...like how mathew was inspired to make this series from futurama of all things...just pay attention here and do that else where and your creative mind will make things click (at least...I'd hope that's why your watching this...lol)
In any case hopefully that helps! I know how you feel but its best not to worry about such things too much! (or at all really) ;)
I hope when I die, there's a video on the analysis of Earth waiting for me.
That ending was like a hilarious slapstick punch to the gut.
I am no critic, but I could see this video as inspiration for aspiring critics. Well done Matthew, and thanks for all the hard work.
This is an inspiration for anyone who wants to make ANY art period! lol
27:48 That's some real life facts/advice right there as well. I needed to hear that, thank you.
I was psyched to see Oneshot mentioned. I feel like that game doesn't get the exposure it needs as a short, thought-provoking game that can provide a lot of context or connection with similar titles.
I've seen it be reccomened quite a bunch, especially among the younger gaming circles I've delved into...AKA its getting its fair share of attention (I haven't played it yet so maybe it deserves more, but given that I only feel that one about one game (and its my favorite game so big bias there) I do doubt to some degree lol)
As I write this, I wonder if you, 𝐌𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐰𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐬, will ever read it. You at least know I've listened to your video, perhaps even the whole video, but you don't know if I enjoyed it, if I thought it was any good, or if I like any of your other videos. And should I assume you're interested in my opinion? It genuinely seems you care about your viewership as a collective, but I could hardly blame you for being indifferent to the opinion of one viewer. You mention that you see flaws in your videos, and I feel it's fair to mention I see some flaws too. But that's not why I'm writing this. I began writing because I wondered if it was worth it to comment how impactful your videos have been on me. Much like the games of the past, this comment will most likely be lost to a sea of text. I'm thankful to be writing this at a time where there's a reasonable enough amount of comments, but the number of comments will inevitably increase, the water will rise, and the humble peak I stand on will be submerged. Are you still reading this? I guess all of this rambling has been an attempt to show that I understand your videos on a deeper level, hopefully putting myself into that exclusive club of people who "get it". Simply stating, "I really appreciate your videos," might be more relatable and get more likes, but my hope is that this purposeful abstraction of my feelings might be more meaningful. But at this point, I'm wondering how much longer I should continue typing. I could make more references to this video, or other videos in your "discography", but I worry that if I exacerbate my point, you might be a whole new person by the time I finally finish writing. So I guess I'll get to the point. As someone studying game design, I've learned so much from you, but it goes beyond the medium of games. Your insightful, cheeky, and well crafted videos inspire me to do better with my own work, and you have undoubtedly changed the way I think about things. I never would've written out a comment like this if it wasn't for your microvideos. I remember watching your first microvideo and realizing that the entire video was a practice of WarioWare's game design. Although I had watched you long before that, it opened my eyes to the subtly you put into all your videos. You've been a mentor to me, and I just wanted to thank you. But most importantly: like, reply, and subscribe.
I can just imagine how fucking self satisfyingly smug you were with that final sentence Mathew.
I'm not sure I understand even a quarter of what you are talking about, but oh well... gotta rewatch a fifth time.
CLAIRE DE LUNE... you know shit is going down when you hear claire de lune in a video about games.
You forgot the third kind of audience. Those who never watched the other Microvideos because they somehow did not trigger a click.
Guilty. I just commented about that as well. Now I will have to go watch both to have the rest fall into place.
"To us this is all classical music, but actually none of those men were even alive at the same time"
24:04 Most people don't realize that Moonlight Sonata was composed in 1995 for the Earthworm Jim 2 level "Jim's now a blind cave salamander"
That "Years Later" bit, when you mention about free time for the average worker being of about 50 hours to watch 20 movies or get halfway through a long JRPG, it gave me a moment of sadness for those that don't have the advantage of more free time, while also left me a little... happy for being lucky in life? In the sense that I don't have a job since last year, came back to live with my mom and now have more time to experience things I like, which also include videogames. Perhaps the saving of memories from a Mega Drive might come from a faint societal memory, or the "right" person with a lot of time.
But really though, Matt's dedication to the craft itself is damn inspiring
I think it's important to keep in mind that what's taken forward in inspiring the new generation is influenced so heavily by modern design philosophies. I've played a lot of retro platformers that people claim are successors to old games because of keeping elements such as high difficulty or carrying on the same game loops. But what I feel a lot of these miss out on is the underlying philosophies that went into conceptualizing those old games. There was often a strong mechanically detached concept like "what if you were exploring an alien planet" or "what if you fought rival robots to collect their powers and become stronger" or "what if you were on quest to kill Dracula" that lead to an original experience in terms of art and gameplay loops. Now a lot of retro game's just take that artistic and mechanical mould and remix it without and effort to bring across a new experience, the fantasy that lead to these games.
i somehow missed this video when it came out. i've been watching you since before you started your mario series reviews (not sure exactly when, but thats the content that really stuck with me and put you on my mental map). it's one of my favorite youtube anythings ive watched in a long time. thanks for making it
This is far and away my favorite video you've ever made. It's videos like these that make me glad that you are the only "content creator" that I support on platforms like Pateron. Keep it up Matthew.
For some odd reason this video makes me feel sad.
When you break things down and dissect something you perceive as magical fun entertainment, the messy insides can be quite disturbing.
The older you get, the more you see it.
Thank you for the many years of laughs and analyses, love you dude. Best of luck with the rest of your ventures!
Yes, thank you. There's nothing easier than to break the fourth wall as both you and the author are always aware of what you're watching/playing/reading. Yet somehow people keep praising shows and games that do it like they're the second coming of Christ. Self-referentiality is the last resort if you're out of ideas or don't have any actual jokes to tell, the antithesis of substance. I'd put those efforts even below pop-culture pastiche that has infected almost every crevice of entertainment since the 90s.