All podcast feeds are live (with iTunes links)

February 4th, 2009 •
Tags: podcast, vidcast, Video, video podcast, vodcast

I have added two new podcast feeds. I now offer raddevon video in standard definition QuickTime and audio-only formats. With the original two formats (HD QuickTime and iPod), this should cover the gamut of video needs for the majority of viewers. If you need another format for whatever reason, feel free to contact me.

You can always find the podcast feed links and the iTunes links in the sidebar on the right-hand side of the page. Enjoy this week’s episode which is coming up Friday at 8pm Eastern!

Gaming podcasts: What to do in the aftermath of the 1Up Show

January 23rd, 2009 •
Tags: 1Up, 1Up Show, Area 5, Bytejacker, EGM, games, Gameular, Jeff Gerstmann, podcast, Rebel FM, reviews, Totally Rad Show, video podcast

It’s still hard to believe the 1Up Show is gone. Its audio got me through many commutes; its video tantalized me into buying countless games I could not afford. But no more. What the hell am I doing getting sappy about a video podcast? Instead we’ll solve this little problem by finding some excellent substitutes to fill the gaping hole in my soul.

The first show I want to mention doesn’t really replace the content provided by the 1Up Show which only covered indie titles occasionally, but chances are if you enjoyed the 1Up Show, you may also enjoy a little show called Bytejacker. Episodes are short and present a few cool indie titles in rapid succession during the show’s cornerstone segment, the aptly named Free Indie Rapid-Fire. The show offers up two episodes weekly. The first presents three indie titles and asks users to return to the site after playing all of them to vote for their favorites; the second reveals the results. The host Anthony Carboni is great and the entire show is wonderfully produced with a quality not unlike the 1Up video podcast.

The immensely popular and often hilarious Totally Rad Show doesn’t cover the number of games covered by the 1Up Show. It’s probably because they also review movies, TV shows, and comic books. It makes up for the lack of breadth with wonderful style and offers a great time. Like 1Up, the totally rad hosts (Alex Albrecht, Jeff Cannata, and Dan Trachtenberg) cover major releases along with the occasional downloadable title or iPhone game. The hosts each seem to have differing opinions about what they like in a game. So, there’s a good chance you will find one of them whose taste will align more with your own.

If you were paying attention when the Jeff Gerstmann/GameSpot controversy broke and felt the outrage many of us felt, you may be interested in some truly independent gaming journalism. Most everyone from 1Up/EGM is now part of some smaller project which makes me more confident that they will not be pressured to compromise their journalistic integrity to grease the wheels of the ad revenue machine. However, nothing gets more independent than Gameular—a YouTube-like site for game reviews. Watch reviews by other members and post your own. The reviews you see here are less likely to have been bought, but they are also likely produced by someone who is not a professional. In fact, they are most likely far from it.

Last but definitely not least, the best way to approximate the experience of enjoying an hour-long episode of the 1Up Show is by following the makers to their next projects. So far we already have two excellent projects—one audio and one video—from the same tireless individuals that brought you an hour or more of gaming goodness weekly. Rebel FM is an audio podcast devoted to video games, as you might have guessed. The guys seem to have no problem talking about games that aren’t necessarily new releases which makes this feel more authentic in a way. You and I know that the games we play aren’t always those that have hit store shelves within the past two or three weeks. The shows have run about an hour each so far and will be very satisfying to fans of 1Up’s various podcasts. The video podcast, Area 5 will be wonderfully familiar to 1Up Show fans. It is really difficult to tell it from its predecessor. Much of the old gang is here, it is funny, informative, and entertaining. The first episode is currently available at the web site. The guys are also working on some way to make the gig sustainable so there may be money involved at some point, but, to be quite honest, I would much prefer a reviewer take money from me directly rather than from the entities that create the works which they are reviewing.

I hope these options will get you through all the sleepless nights, the boring drives to work or school, the seemingly endless flights with much the same joy as the gaming show we all loved. I think I can speak for most of the gaming community in saying we are glad to have our old show back so soon in some form—in many forms actually—although even the alternatives in this space are no slouches.