Gamespot Will Play Oblivion for 12 Hours Straight

[Rirath]

Gamespot (http://www.gamespot.com/news/6146174.html) will be broadcasting a live streaming 12 hour play session of Oblivion on March 20th, for subscribers only.

Early next week, GameSpot subscribers will have a chance to get an extensive firsthand look at Bethesda's next highly anticipated role-playing game, The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion...or rather, a secondhand look. We'll be bringing you a live feed of our first marathon stretch playing the retail Xbox 360 version of the game (prospective players should be wary of potential spoilers).
Worst Gamespot idea, ever. Who wants to watch someone else play and spoil 12 hours of Oblivion, one day before it hits stores?

[fitbabits]

Holy crap, this has to be the worst idea ever. As rirath says, who the hell wants to watch some wannabe hack and slach their way through a game they've been itching to play for themselves?

I wonder who the audience for this is.

[ldi222]

Sometimes I wonder if game journalism is really about bringing information to the gamer or going "nah nah I got to play it first."

[Deathbane27]

Sometimes I wonder if game journalism is really about bringing information to the gamer or going "nah nah I got to play it first."

You still wonder that? :p

[Everlost_MI]

I wonder who the audience for this is.

Those who don't have a 360 or a rig that can run it? But still.

I guess it would be like being eight again with no money to speak of and going to watch the teenagers play arcade games.

Or was I the only kid who did that?

[laggerific]

No...I used to watch people play games...

I still enjoy watching people play games...

In boarding school many a fun evening was enjoyed at the hands of watching people play games...and vice versa.

[lockwoodx]

If I saw that much of oblivion before I got to play the game I'd cancle my preorder.

[fitbabits]

Sometimes I wonder if game journalism is really about bringing information to the gamer or going "nah nah I got to play it first."
Sadly, the latter is true more often than not. :(

[fitbabits]

Those who don't have a 360 or a rig that can run it? But still.
True, but if you have any intention of buying or renting it, watching some bozo play 12 hours of it would be akin to watching the cliff-hanging end of a movie before even seeing the opening credits.

[Heretic Machine]

I could see watching it for an hour or so, to get a feel for how good it would be. If you weren't already set on buying it, anyway.

[Savok]

I kind of enjoy watching, games of skill especially and crazy stuff like speed runs. RPGs though, watching someone else play those makes no sense whatsoever.

[zeeeg]

I dunno, do people really care about the plot of Oblivion? The only reason I want to play it is because of the "do whatever the hell you want" factor. In that spirit, it might be fun to watch someone else play. But.. not for 12 hours. I'll probably watch it on and off, since I'm awake all night anyway. (plus we could see Greg Kasavin slowly drift into madness as the hours wear on. that's entertainment!)

[Suicidal ShiZuru]

I bet this will make some people cancel preorders once they see the simplistic fighting.

[Savok]

And here come the trolls...

[Kefkataran]

I'd be interested in seeing some of this if it was offered to non-subscribers. Gues that puts me in the minority. As it is, though, oh well. :) I'll have the game Wednesday.

[The Continental]

In an equally exciting venture, I'll be offering up 12 samples of my own used toilet paper to subscribers of my pay site so that they may post their interpretations of my ass wipe. It's kinda like a Rorschach test... with feces.

This idea is stupid.

[Sloth]

people seem to be assuming Gamespot will be doing anything that would spoil the game at least plot wise.

[Megalith]

Get a Life live.

[Mozgus]

Worst Gamespot idea, ever. Who wants to watch someone else play and spoil 12 hours of Oblivion, one day before it hits stores?

1) Those who have no intention of buying the game, whether they just aren't interested or whether they don't have the hardware for it.

2) Those who want to have a good laugh when the game crashes on them 20 minutes into it, and to watch the editors scramble.

[Cha-Ka]

I'd watch if there was some element of danger to the players themselves. Like if it were filmed in a snakepit with hungry mongooses. Just sayin'

[destoo]

I guess it would be like being eight again with no money to speak of and going to watch the teenagers play arcade games.
Or was I the only kid who did that?

yup. Been there.

Just to 1-up a little, there was a channel on cable where you called and used the touchtone pad to control some game machine remotely.. I used to watch hours and hours of that. The best game was Star Trek. There was also stuff like othello and mastermind. Good times.

[jacktion]

Worst Gamespot idea, ever. Who wants to watch someone else play and spoil 12 hours of Oblivion, one day before it hits stores?

Jesus, don't you have an ounce of imagination? This is a great idea. Their server will probably go down from too many hits. You are aware that video game companies put out promotional video of games that they want people to buy? And I assume you are aware that people cannot get enough of these videos? It is necessary to put up mirrors and have multiple worldwide distribution of these crappy 10 second videos? Well, this is a 12 hour video, of consecutive playtime. People are going to kill themselves to see it. And people aren't going to sit there for 12 hours. They will tune in, check it out, go check their email, tune back in and see if something cool is going on. Etc. Awesome idea. Kudos to Gamespot.

[LilAbner]

Anyone who watches this is a serious nerd/loser.

[bean19]

Holy crap, this has to be the worst idea ever. As rirath says, who the hell wants to watch some wannabe hack and slach their way through a game they've been itching to play for themselves?

I wonder who the audience for this is.

*raises hand shyly*

I'm not going to watch for all 12 hours, but I'll totally tune in for a few minutes to check it out. However, if it has that tiny bullshit screen they are using for "On the Spot" now, I'll not even wait for it to load-in.

Besides won't people have the game in metropolitan areas then? It comes out on the 20th, so a lot of people will just get to play it themselves.

[ElectricMonk]

i think it'd be good to check in for a few minutes to see what the graphics are like

[fitbabits]

i think it'd be good to check in for a few minutes to see what the graphics are like
No mention of gameplay. Sometimes I despair... :rolleyes:

[IagoTheHunted]

'eh. maybe it's not the worst idea of all time... I mean I've had fun watching other people playing games... but an RPG? A game based on roleplaying and individual character development? So for 12 hours we're going to see tiny text and armor swapping while these guys build a character we'll never see again? Flawed idea methinks.

[Claus DuBois]

I wonder who the audience for this is.

Probably a hell of lot of the dweebers over at the Oblivion forums. Good god, have you checked out that forum. I don't think I've ever seen so many 11 year old dweebers in one place.

[Atepsflame]

Hilarious. Get all those lonely teenage gamers on spring break to sit in front of their PC's all day long as they wait for Oblivion to arrive. God I'm glad I don't have a 360 yet.

[Nite_Moogle]

Why are people bashing the idea of watching this? They want to run a game like Oblivion for 12 hours straight? I'll tune in just to watch the 360 burst into flames during the eleventh hour!

[Kefkataran]

However, if it has that tiny bullshit screen they are using for "On the Spot" now, I'll not even wait for it to load-in.

That's why I get On the Spot in podcast form. :) Now if only this were offered that way.

[Mason]

Eh, Gamespot is trying something new, untie the noose. If the subscribers don't go for it, then they won't do it again, and most of us don't have a choice to watch it in the first place. Faulting a gaming site for trying to add value to their premium service is pretty pointless.

People on this site constantly bitch about review sites and their over-hyped, pre-processed, bought and biased opinions. Then a review site tries to present you with simply the raw gaming experience so you can make up your own mind, free of an interpretive lens...and everyone bitches about it.

Guess I shouldn't be surprised.

[Crabby]

I would watch, but I wouldn't pay.

[LiquidRain]

Actually this is fascinating.

Recently I've begun doing what I call "LiquidTV" for friends in a chat session. I pop a game into my system, and use Windows Media Encoder and my ample upload bandwidth to broadcast it live to them. For some reason it's an absolute hit and every day a few people watch for a while to see what I play. I was curious as to *why* they enjoyed watching and got the following responses:

1) It was interesting to see how I played the game differently from them
2) They liked making fun of me when I screwed up
3) They liked seeing the progression of a game they didn't want to play anyway. This was especially popular with Grandia 3, as nobody wanted to *really* go through the horrendous story for themselves. It was also helpful with Black. With the buffering delay I would say "EXPLOSION" in the chat and everyone would look and 10 seconds later go "ooooh" then go back to whatever else they were doing.
4) They wanted to help me along or watch me be "forced" to play their favourite games
5) They liked seeing the game being played unedited by a normal gamer. Not a demo, not something setup, not something edited together. They get the whole experience: the load times, the options, the framerate problems, menus, all other things that downloadable movies and trailers cut out to maximize game highlights or file size.

The huge difference is that you truly get an idea of what the game is like. The good, the bad, and the ugly. Unedited, as it's supposed to be.

Now, there's a key difference in what I do: I play the game and chat with these people at the same time. It's a social thing. Grandia 3's cutscenes make for some pretty good laughs around the chat, as was when I unlocked and played Mesal Gear Solid. (the Ape Escape 3 minigame) It's a little difference for me though, since Gamespot does not seem to be providing a way for their player to directly interact with the audience - nor can I blame them. I deal with a few/handful of people at a time, there's no way they can deal with hundreds or thousands and play the game at the same time. Thus, an aspect of the social element is lost.

Regardless, I was recently thinking: "What if game sites offered this kind of thing? A live stream of whatever game their reviewer was currently playing?" The only problems are: NDAs/embargoes on unreleased games and, as the original post noted, spoilers for people who actually do want to play the game.

Other than that it's a fantastic idea if you ask me, really. As I said above it's been a huge hit among my friends. It'll be interesting to see how it pans out on a large gaming site.

[Kefkataran]

Liquid, actually I'd be surprised if Gamespot didn't offer a way to interact. They do that with On the Spot, so...

I'd be way fascinated with LiquidTV. When and how can I tune in?! :D

[jeffool]

So, does this mean that my idea is going to flop? I'm going to write a diary (yes, in blog form,) telling my "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy in a fantasy setting" story:

"Hello! I'm Frank Smith. Long ago I set up shop in the small town of Seyda Neen, but during a trip to Tamriel to score some of their excellent beer, I was ushered into the role of savior. I wasn't confident I could do it, but the gods decided it was my fate, so who was I to argue?

This is my diary. The story of how I went from Frank Smith, shopkeep, to The Amazing Legendary Frank, savior."

[Kefkataran]

I'm so loving that blog, Jeffool.

[Savok]

A diary can work because the player is adding their own material and thoughts to it. Why Animal Crossing blogs can be very popular.

[TrackZero]

Worst Gamespot idea, ever. Who wants to watch someone else play and spoil 12 hours of Oblivion, one day before it hits stores?

Me.

Since I don't own a 360 and won't have the game for some time, I wouldn't mind watching it for a bit.

[TrackZero]

Those who don't have a 360 or a rig that can run it? But still.

I guess it would be like being eight again with no money to speak of and going to watch the teenagers play arcade games.

Or was I the only kid who did that?

I still remember watching those teenagers playing R-Type and me without a cent to my name.

Then one of them stole my bike and returned it damaged, days later.

(Edit: Sometimes) Being a kid sucked.

[notmetalenough]

It's not like anyone is going to watch the whole 12 hours. I'm sure it's just so you can watch about 20 minutes of real game play to see if they lived up to the hype.

[Paranoia]

Metal Gear Solid would be perfect for this. Its nothing but cutscenes after cutscenes.

[bean19]

Metal Gear Solid would be perfect for this. Its nothing but cutscenes after cutscenes.

I SOOOOO wouldn't watch that.

The thing about Oblivion is that it is open-ended and choose-your-own-path, so seeing a few minutes of someone else playing won't spoil it.

While you are very wrong about MGS just being cutscenes, the gameplay is mostly puzzle-solving and exploration. Watching someone even just move through a level would spoil a bunch of puzzles, and if they were alert and looking for easter eggs, they could also spoil those for you. That whole game is a spoiler!

The difference is that one is open and the other is very heavily scripted.

[JG_ZERO]

"worst gamespot idea ever" about sums it up

[MSUStud911]

I'll probably check in and watch some of it. My hype for Oblivion will be at fever pitch by then.

[Rirath]

I think the main point for me though is that open ended as it is, this is an RPG with a story none the less. I'd personally rather not have the opening sequence spoiled completely. I want that breathtaking vista to be new to my eyes. I want the events to have some surprise. I want the character creation to be untainted, not deja vu.

And yes, they will most likely be doing very spoiler filled things. This almost certainly doubles as a play test for them. I'm shocked Bethesda is allowing this, honestly. I don't want the guild quests spoiled, nor to see what's in all the early caves. If I wanted to see such spoilers I'd simply buy the early released strategy guide.

I can see how some bits of this would be useful... knowing how long loading takes, if there's any stuttering, and so forth, but for crying out loud the game comes out the very next day! I wouldn't be surprised if people on the west coast have it on the 20th. It'd /almost/ be interesting to see how someone else plays Oblivion since each character plays different, or to see the 360 version if your a PC gamer, but there's just so many holes in the logic of both the timing and the concept that it sinks like a stone.

I suppose I can only see this as useful if you're completely going to disregard the main plot, AND the various guild plots. If you read walkthroughs before you play the game, go for it I guess. Otherwise a few new video clips and a detailed writeup could have provided much of the same information.

[The Continental]

I think the main point for me though is that open ended as it is, this is an RPG with a story none the less. I'd personally rather not have the opening sequence spoiled completely. I want that breathtaking vista to be new to my eyes. I want the events to have some surprise. I want the character creation to be untainted, not deja vu.

And yes, they will most likely be doing very spoiler filled things. This almost certainly doubles as a play test for them. I'm shocked Bethesda is allowing this, honestly. I don't want the guild quests spoiled, nor to see what's in all the early caves. If I wanted to see such spoilers I'd simply buy the early released strategy guide.

I can see how some bits of this would be useful... knowing how long loading takes, if there's any stuttering, and so forth, but for crying out loud the game comes out the very next day! I wouldn't be surprised if people on the west coast have it on the 20th. It'd /almost/ be interesting to see how someone else plays Oblivion since each character plays different, or to see the 360 version if your a PC gamer, but there's just so many holes in the logic of both the timing and the concept that it sinks like a stone.

I suppose I can only see this as useful if you're completely going to disregard the main plot, AND the various guild plots. If you read walkthroughs before you play the game, go for it I guess. Otherwise a few new video clips and a detailed writeup could have provided much of the same information.

Got it in one.

[Royal Fool]

Awesome. And part of those 12 hours will be spent watching the pause screen while they player goes to the bathroom, has something to eat or rests.

[RandomViolence]

Wow. No one is making you watch it, it's a games journalism site offering a real-time preview of a game instead of a verbal version. I view it as GameSpot trying to bring something creative to the table that people may or may not enjoy. Good for them for trying something new. Enjoy it if you want, don't if you don't. A lot of you seem pretty upset about this, but then it's your choice to watch it. Don't choose to watch if you don't want to, but don't say it's stupid of them for offering the choice to others.

[Rirath]

Here's a free version... some guy named Block8 with a webcam in front of his TV playing it on the 360. Horrible quality, takes forever to load (but it will!)... you don't have to worry about spoiling much at this rate. :D

Funny though, and it does work!

[LiquidRain]

Liquid, actually I'd be surprised if Gamespot didn't offer a way to interact. They do that with On the Spot, so...

I'd be way fascinated with LiquidTV. When and how can I tune in?! :D

Heh, I wish I had a fat enough pipe to open this up to EvilAvatar folks. :) Unfortunately, Windows Media Encoder is just that. An encoder, it lacks any way for me to limit the number of incoming connections or any other fancy server options, and will just keep accepting connections until my cable modem collapses. The problem is I can take 3 people at a time max, and that's at a rock bottom bitrate. I usually go 2 people or for graphically intensive games 1 person at a time so that people can actually see what's going on.

Maybe I'll pop in the EA chatroom (is that still around?) and we can give it a go in there some day. :) Not to mention there is no schedule - whenever I'm playing games is whenever it goes on! And this of course varies wildly day to day.

[Kefkataran]

And part of those 12 hours will be spent watching the pause screen while they player goes to the bathroom, has something to eat or rests.

They'll probably just switch off players, yo.

Maybe I'll pop in the EA chatroom (is that still around?) and we can give it a go in there some day. Not to mention there is no schedule - whenever I'm playing games is whenever it goes on! And this of course varies wildly day to day.

We use the chatroom for the podcast recording every week. Besides that, I think people hop in a couple times a week at night usually just to see what's going on.

[Magnanimous Gnome]

I actually wish that I could catch some of this. I absolutely have to try out this game before I buy it. I want to know if the problems that I had with Morrowind have been addressed or not. Getting to watch the game for a while would help me see how it really plays.

Since I can't watch this I am going to try to give it a go on my friend's PC when I visit Nebraska in May. Other than him I don't know anyone who has it. Renting it isn't an option as I don't have a 360, and if the game has Morrowind's problems I won't be buying a 360 for some time to come, if ever.

Anyway, something like this would give me a chance to see what the game is actually like.

[Mason]

Wow. No one is making you watch it, it's a games journalism site offering a real-time preview of a game instead of a verbal version. I view it as GameSpot trying to bring something creative to the table that people may or may not enjoy. Good for them for trying something new. Enjoy it if you want, don't if you don't. A lot of you seem pretty upset about this, but then it's your choice to watch it. Don't choose to watch if you don't want to, but don't say it's stupid of them for offering the choice to others.

Precisely.

1) It hurts no one.
2) Avoiding unwanted spoilers for a single day isn't all that tricky.
3) It's an attempt to add value to their premium service, so if you aren't a subscriber, they don't care about your opinion anyways.
4) It is a form of reviewing that just presents the gaming experience and lets you make up your own mind about it. People cry about hype and bias, now they cry about game info completely free of hype or bias.
5) Stop crying.

Plus, if this catches on, games won't be able to get away with tedious or poorly-designed gameplay so long as they can put out pretty screenshots, as video compression will blunt visual quality, and the only thing worse than futzing around in confusing sub-menus or struggling with controls is watching someone else do it.

[Kefkataran]

Plus, if this catches on, games won't be able to get away with tedious or poorly-designed gameplay so long as they can put out pretty screenshots, as video compression will blunt visual quality, and the only thing worse than futzing around in confusing sub-menus or struggling with controls is watching someone else do it.

Very good points on that one. You think this will catch on?

[Steele Johnson]

why is this a bad idea? I think it's great. I despised Morrowind and I purchased it based on reviews and hype (my bad). So this will at least let me check out some live gameplay and hear what they have to say about it while they play. Only an idiot would think that someone who decides to buy will watch the whole 12 hours.

Gamespot's best idea EVER!

[endrom]

I love how the moderators on the gamespot comment for the new article removed all the negative ones! XD But really now, this is easily just a ploy, when they see how little people will log on to see it, they'll be like "oh shit, lets never speak of this again".

[Kefkataran]

But really now, this is easily just a ploy, when they see how little people will log on to see it, they'll be like "oh shit, lets never speak of this again".

A ploy for what? I'm not sure how you could describe something designed to be useful and entertaining to their subscriber base, whether it turns out a success or not, as a "ploy".

[AspectVoid]

You know, if I'm actually home, I would watch the first hour of this so I can see the character creation. That's what I love about The Elder Scrolls games, the kick ass character creation.

[Claus DuBois]

So, does this mean that my idea is going to flop? I'm going to write a diary (yes, in blog form,) telling my "Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy in a fantasy setting" story:

"Hello! I'm Frank Smith. Long ago I set up shop in the small town of Seyda Neen, but during a trip to Tamriel to score some of their excellent beer, I was ushered into the role of savior. I wasn't confident I could do it, but the gods decided it was my fate, so who was I to argue?

This is my diary. The story of how I went from Frank Smith, shopkeep, to The Amazing Legendary Frank, savior."

LOL, sorry but I'm breaking out in pimples just reading your post about your idea. But to each his/her own.

cheers

[Kefkataran]

LOL, sorry but I'm breaking out in pimples just reading your post about your idea. But to each his/her own.

cheers

Calling people nerdy on a gaming forum seems just slightly redundant and a little hypocritical.

[NeuroMan42]

Your surprised?!? Gamespot, Gamespy, and almost all other Corp Gaming sites suck. Most of the news is dog old by the time they get it. The Indie Gaming sites rock normally. Hell, I don't even read or buy any of the Gaming magazines anymore.

[PhilR8]

I think it's a cool idea. No one is going to watch it twelve hours straight - don't be silly. People have different schedules and live in different time zones and may want to see a live unfiltered view of the game, and this way, no matter what your daily schedule, you can probably find the time to fit in a live viewing.

[Mason]

Very good points on that one. You think this will catch on?
For certain types of games, yeah, it'd take some experimentation to see when the technique was useful. MMORPGs, I could see it working great. I imagine lots of people would like to get a feel for those games before diving into the account/registration/"expensive client but free first month" nonsense. And again, if a game is too damn boring to watch someone else play for 5 minutes, maybe we should reconsider the purchase.

Some games would require more narration than others. But I think a running commentary with the player and someone else would probably enhance the experience. Actually, the best setup would be a player who has never played the game, with a non-playing partner who is familiar with it. It wouldn't get bogged down if the newbie couldn't figure something out, but then if they had to consult for outside info, the viewers would hear about it.

[Heretic Machine]

Personally, I would of loved to of seen someone play through Ultimate Spider-man for 12 hours. I would of found that they beat it in 4 1/2, and then spent the rest of the time standing around scratching their Spider-ass. Then I wouldn't of wasted $50, and returned it a week later for $30 worth of trade in on used games.

[Grimmjow]

Personally, I would of loved to of seen someone play through Ultimate Spider-man for 12 hours. I would of found that they beat it in 4 1/2, and then spent the rest of the time standing around scratching their Spider-ass. Then I wouldn't of wasted $50, and returned it a week later for $30 worth of trade in on used games.

thats weird, alot of people liked that game (including me) but anywho why would they play a action/adventure game for 12 hours straight when majority arent even that long? its the rpgs that are LONG!

[GodFather]

Here comes the bus, everybody is jumpin' on

[Heretic Machine]

thats weird, alot of people liked that game (including me) but anywho why would they play a action/adventure game for 12 hours straight when majority arent even that long? its the rpgs that are LONG!

Well, Ultimate Spider-man was WAY too short, even considering it's genre. Not only that, but it was based on the Spider-man 2 engine... yet they took out EVERYTHING that was good about Spider-man 2, and got rid of none of it's problems. I personally think that is a bad thing, though I could understand how someone who didn't own Spider-man 2 could get more enjoyment out of it.