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Post by teddykongcountry on Dec 27, 2017 5:40:07 GMT
Watched this film twice now, once when it shipped to me back in 2015 and last night / this morning.
Originally thought it paled in comparison to the Best of Classic Game Room but with Derek's discontinued presence on Youtube, I found this really refreshing.
I'm glad I backed this back in the day and I'm glad I took the time to rewatch it. The Undertow dream team is missed which is ironic considering how much heat Derek used to get when they were alive.
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Balder
Supreme Overlord
Trying to cut down the amount of movies I watch
Posts: 6,821 
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Post by Balder on Dec 27, 2017 6:07:31 GMT
I own this too. Perhaps I should rewatch it soon.
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dschult3
CGR Undertow Groupie
The true heir to the Monado.
Posts: 2,767
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Post by dschult3 on Dec 27, 2017 7:59:57 GMT
Nice review, teddykongcountry! That spoof of Derek took me back a bit. It really makes me wish for the CGR old days. By the way, did they mention the old "Video Game Updates" they did for a while with the only female they ever had on the show? I can't seem to recall her name, but I thought the segment was a good idea, but poorly executed. It was a little too similar to what IGN used to do. |
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Post by teddykongcountry on Dec 27, 2017 14:52:47 GMT
Thanks dschult3! I had to throw in a little sketch humor, just to bring back that old CGR feel (it's crazy calling it old). The other sections of Undertow referenced are limited to a montage of Observations and Frustrations clips, 2 top 10 videos (one on the menu screen), 1 non-Derek review (TJ) and a mini documentary about Derek's experience at Inecom. Originally, I would've expected more but nowadays, I can surmise that most of those people were either long gone or had little to no interest in contributing to the DVD. |
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dschult3
CGR Undertow Groupie
The true heir to the Monado.
Posts: 2,767
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Post by dschult3 on Dec 27, 2017 16:22:29 GMT
I liked CGR Undertow for a while. It's a shame the other contributors came and went. Derek was great, but I think he fell prey to the constant push for new material on You Tube. The lust for more content is insatiable, and You Tube satisfaction is truly unattainable. I'd love to see Derek and the old crew put out a couple of videos a year to bring back that fun they used to have.
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Post by teddykongcountry on Dec 27, 2017 18:06:23 GMT
It wasn't out of his own desire though, it was in order to keep his job. Derek stayed with Undertow because he was employed and when videos were netting views in the low thousands with already devalued monetization, he had to try and make videos more lets' play like what with the O+F series. For all we knew, Undertow might have got canned altogether even earlier but Derek and TJ stepped it up producing content more regularly. Instinct might dictate that employment was all that influenced him but in all fairness, he stayed on Youtube and did the Manthology Show for a good year+.
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Balder
Supreme Overlord
Trying to cut down the amount of movies I watch
Posts: 6,821
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Post by Balder on Dec 28, 2017 2:38:25 GMT
The DVD was very quirky, but also lighthearted and fun. I remember writing a review of the DVD in the old site, and Derek himself liked and thanked me for it.
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Post by teddykongcountry on Dec 31, 2017 2:35:33 GMT
I shared the video with Derek on Twitter and he did the same! He rarely watches videos when I share them with him so I took that to heart.
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stratogustav
Supreme Overlord
Warrior with Bandana
Posts: 7,460
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Post by stratogustav on Dec 31, 2017 16:59:33 GMT
I want a TJ channel as well. Someone should force all these guys at gunpoint to keep making YouTube reviews. I miss their input on games.
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Balder
Supreme Overlord
Trying to cut down the amount of movies I watch
Posts: 6,821
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Post by Balder on Dec 31, 2017 21:04:16 GMT
I want a TJ channel as well. Someone should force all these guys at gunpoint to keep making YouTube reviews. I miss their input on games. Give us a DonPachi review or I'll glack you in a face! The Strato way. |
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Dan E. Kool
Walking Trash Can Robot
Now With Extra Pulp!
Posts: 3,325
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Post by Dan E. Kool on Jan 1, 2018 20:33:55 GMT
I loved Derek's reviews. Derek was Undertow in my eyes. No offense to TJ and gang, but when it was a Derek review I never missed it.
It's a shame that it all came to an end, especially since I really think it didn't have to. CGR and Undertow's production values were top tier stuff. You could put their content up against any other independent gaming channel and I feel they at least match it. And yet Metal Jesus, Game Sack, Happy Console Gamer, etc etc get way more views and seem to be running fine without financial woes or drama. I dunno. He had a pretty big crew (it was almost a dozen, wasn't it?) so Mark must've been making bank at one point. But then, there wasn't really anything else like CGR in 2009. Now there's tons of retro gaming content to compete with.
I feel like, maybe if Mark did longer videos, even just once per week, highlighting a set of games from a related genre of console (as other channels do) maybe he'd pull in more views. In the old days YouTube videos were kept short and I preferred them that way, but these days I watch basically only YouTube instead of TV and I don't think I'm alone. Maybe that's why longer format videos seem to be more successful now.
Of course, I don't YouTube and it's a lot easier to make suggestions from the outside. Just my inexpert opinion.
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Post by teddykongcountry on Jan 1, 2018 21:21:09 GMT
I agree with you Dan. Derek embodied the spirit of Undertow always greeting fans as "Undertoads," bringing sketch humor to videos, and going in with powerful scripts. He's going through something of a hard time right now; read his article on Breath of the Wild at GamesRadar (turn on adblock if you can). The oversaturation of Youtube really hurt CGR, and what makes it tough is that the channel continued producing original content but lost a lot of traction. It's mostly a Youtube problem (even today) where the let's players, analyzers, corporations and livestreamers get Youtube spotlights while reviewers are thrown under the bus -- has anyone checked out Youtube gaming? Yikes. Anyways, I appreciate Derek more than ever and I'm thankful for what he did for Youtube, showing people that it's okay to be both goofy and serious on camera and still make a living off of it. |
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scipioafricanus
Swamp Ranger
Sega Does What Nintendon't... except the 32X
Posts: 3,567
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Post by scipioafricanus on Jan 1, 2018 23:54:20 GMT
Good review Teddy.
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Balder
Supreme Overlord
Trying to cut down the amount of movies I watch
Posts: 6,821
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Post by Balder on Jan 2, 2018 0:23:19 GMT
I loved Derek's reviews. Derek was Undertow in my eyes. No offense to TJ and gang, but when it was a Derek review I never missed it. It's a shame that it all came to an end, especially since I really think it didn't have to. CGR and Undertow's production values were top tier stuff. You could put their content up against any other independent gaming channel and I feel they at least match it. And yet Metal Jesus, Game Sack, Happy Console Gamer, etc etc get way more views and seem to be running fine without financial woes or drama. I dunno. He had a pretty big crew (it was almost a dozen, wasn't it?) so Mark must've been making bank at one point. But then, there wasn't really anything else like CGR in 2009. Now there's tons of retro gaming content to compete with. I feel like, maybe if Mark did longer videos, even just once per week, highlighting a set of games from a related genre of console (as other channels do) maybe he'd pull in more views. In the old days YouTube videos were kept short and I preferred them that way, but these days I watch basically only YouTube instead of TV and I don't think I'm alone. Maybe that's why longer format videos seem to be more successful now. Of course, I don't YouTube and it's a lot easier to make suggestions from the outside. Just my inexpert opinion. Longer videos is more profitable with ads also. YouTube has this limit of 10 minutes or so to have a mid-video ad. I find them incredibly annoying, and shitty YouTubers artificially make their videos longer just to hit that mark. |
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