Calgar Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Hey fellas, I have never been very active in this forum but allways appreciated the dedication the developers and members show for the game. I was hoping I could pay a little back by providing a bit more "Media Exposure" for this game and our hobby in general by creating a (-nother) Youtube Channel that is dedicated to wargaming. The first videos that are going up is a PBEM of the Loamshire Scenario (Commonwealth Forces). A BFN Review will also follow during the next week. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZRV3nhy2TeA hope you enjoy it, A 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sfhand Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Thanks, Keep it up! 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletpoint Posted January 28, 2015 Share Posted January 28, 2015 Thanks for sharing. My first impression is that it's an ugly map, maybe I've been spoiled rotten with the many maps that look and feel like real places this looks a lot like a wargaming table... 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgar Posted January 28, 2015 Author Share Posted January 28, 2015 @ sfhand, Bulletpoint Thank you for your feedback, aaaaaaaallways appreciated and very much welcome. This is my very first "Let's Play", or YT upload to that extend, and I am still experimenting. Maybe I chose this scenario because it looks a little like a wargaming table, since I have a tabletop background (Flames of War) and wanted to try a "generic" scenario first. Hope you will enjoy it anyway. I will take your criticism into account Regards, A 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bulletpoint Posted January 29, 2015 Share Posted January 29, 2015 Btw, it's nice that you have a calm voice. Some AAR videos I've seen seemingly have some character from South Park doing the voiceover 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgar Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 Thanks again! I have now uploaded my review for BfN. I know it has many issues (sound, editing, structure etc pp.) but this is my very first attempt in creating such a review. Feedback always appreciated. http://youtu.be/gxw6eays0jg Cheers 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JonS Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 This video has been removed by the user. :/ 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgar Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 Sorry, there was an upload error, hence I had to reup it a few minutes ago :-) Sorry for the inconvenience https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p5W4mX2Megs&feature=youtu.be there you go! Cheers 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
womble Posted January 30, 2015 Share Posted January 30, 2015 (edited) Well, that's a surprise. You're a harsh critic, giving such a low score to one of your favourites! Some constructive criticism, perhaps, given in the light of your expressed desire to improve the media profile of the game.The interface chaos is probably due to your mods being present when you upgraded your game. Starting with a clean install would make things less confusing. Contrary to your assertion in your comments, this does affect the review. Firstly, it erodes your credibility as a commentator, when you don't query the presence of 50mm ATG in indirect fire mode during your discussion of the support assets. Secondly, it erodes the credibility of the product when its interface is broken. While you mention that you're using a mod, it isn't clear what that adds, and it isn't clear what is broken because of it (or, rather, because the mod was present when the game was upgraded, probably).So it might even be worth having a section on mods and what they can and cannot bring to the game; you obviously appreciate the things mods add (since you use them), so addressing that aspect could be informative.Explicit mention of the Realtime vs turn-based option would cover a significant aspect of the game's uniqueness. You mention it in passing when you are discussing acquiring resupply from trucks, but not, that I noticed, anywhere else.It was a surprise when half way through you started handing out scores for categories. Hearing your reasons for some of the low scores laid out in summary would have been informative, as it was for the later score categories.You mention the release method of families and modules, but have omitted packs and, most importantly, neglected to mention that even the oldest family has its engine updated when a new engine version is released. You just said "new families often come with new features" (to paraphrase); it would be easy to infer from this that those features are not included in v3.11 of BN. It might also be worth mentioning that there is now a master installer to handle the sometimes tricky process of keeping your game patched and upgraded.It's probably worth mentioning the level of detail of combat resolution: that every single bullet is individually tracked is no small thing.Related, you don't do much stooging about at level 1. That's where much of the loving detail of the game is best seen; avoiding it reduces the visual impact of your piece. While I appreciate that you're giving an overview, that overview could handily refer to the various levels at which the action can be watched. Ties in to LOS, too.If I was a newb, wondering whether to buy, I'd be interested to know about the tutorial mechanism, and that there is a demo.Last, and least important, there are a few factual errors in the review. That's not important if you are presenting a "first look" type review, since it's a fair reflection of what you might glean from a bit of futzing about, a couple of games and a cursory reading of the manual in a language other than your mother tongue. But omitting two of the methods of camera control, for example, in the UI section (mouse and screen edge), short changes the game in the "ease of operation" category, for example, and would be important if you were presenting the viewpoint of someone deeply familiar with the game.Edit: Addendum. Giving some personal opinion on why, even though you gave the game such a relatively low score, compared to many "top ratings", BN remains one of your favourites would be excellent grist for the review mill. A personal touch to cap off an objectively framed review would help connect with your viewers. Edited January 30, 2015 by womble 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgar Posted January 30, 2015 Author Share Posted January 30, 2015 (edited) Hey Womble! Thank you very much for your comment! Yes, the low score came surprising to me too. I am thinking about revising the rating system and might reup a new video. This was very much a test run for "first time editing a bigger project". nevertheless, I think when the overall score is a little low, we would need to have a look at the single categories and their scores. And I don't think that any particular category score feels off. Also, I wanted to make a cut with other review magazines, where anything below a 7 (or 70%) is basically not happening. I absolutely agree with your point here: The interface chaos is probably due to your mods being present when you upgraded your game. Starting with a clean install would make things less confusing. Contrary to your assertion in your comments, this does affect the review. Firstly, it erodes your credibility as a commentator, when you don't query the presence of 50mm ATG in indirect fire mode during your discussion of the support assets. Secondly, it erodes the credibility of the product when its interface is broken. While you mention that you're using a mod, it isn't clear what that adds, and it isn't clear what is broken because of it (or, rather, because the mod was present when the game was upgraded, probably). For this reason I have taken down the review and will do a new one in due time. You are right. Many of the things that I did not mention came to me too late, and I wasn't sure how to "retro-upgrade" the already edited video. But I agree that it should be mentionet that..... [...] the Realtime vs turn-based option would cover a significant aspect of the game's uniqueness. You mention it in passing when you are discussing acquiring resupply from trucks, but not, that I noticed, anywhere else. ][...] it might even be worth having a section on mods and what they can and cannot bring to the game; you obviously appreciate the things mods add (since you use them), so addressing that aspect could be informative. It's probably worth mentioning the level of detail of combat resolution: that every single bullet is individually tracked is no small thing. [...], you don't do much stooging about at level 1. That's where much of the loving detail of the game is best seen; avoiding it reduces the visual impact of your piece. While I appreciate that you're giving an overview, that overview could handily refer to the various levels at which the action can be watched. Ties in to LOS, too. This is something for the content segment, good point: If I was a newb, wondering whether to buy, I'd be interested to know about the tutorial mechanism, and that there is a demo. [...] But omitting two of the methods of camera control, for example, in the UI section (mouse and screen edge), short changes the game in the "ease of operation" category, for example, and would be important if you were presenting the viewpoint of someone deeply familiar with the game. After rewatching the vid, I did not omitted the two other camera control methods. I just did not address them in detail. It was a surprise when half way through you started handing out scores for categories. Hearing your reasons for some of the low scores laid out in summary would have been informative, as it was for the later score categories. Good point. I explained in my "how I rate" video the...well...rating system. But I should be more consistent. Edit: And don't expect people to actually watch it. You mention the release method of families and modules, but have omitted packs and, most importantly, neglected to mention that even the oldest family has its engine updated when a new engine version is released. You just said "new families often come with new features" (to paraphrase); it would be easy to infer from this that those features are not included in v3.11 of BN. It might also be worth mentioning that there is now a master installer to handle the sometimes tricky process of keeping your game patched and upgraded. I thought about how to "introduce" the CM series, and am still quite unsure how to. The whole "base module-patch-add-on" relationship might be something over the top, but the customer should be aware about a non-standart retail-system...I know you agree, I am just wondering how much in-depth this explanation should go. Thank you Womble Really appreciated! The criticism is very justified. I will try and better organize the review itself beforehand the next time, many things that didn't got the love it deserved didn't got it because I have not properly structured the review and was more focused on getting my **** done in the editor. Lesson learned! BTW: What do you guys thing in general of the "wargame specific" approach in reviewing? Is that something you would be interested in watching, instead of talking about graphics, rather talk business and have a look at specific "wargame characteristics"? I certainly have more respect now for professional reviewing magazines ;-) Cheers, A Edited January 30, 2015 by Calgar 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgar Posted February 15, 2015 Author Share Posted February 15, 2015 Just uploaded Part 2 of the DAR. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtZ4engcUg0 Enjoy. Feedback appreciated. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calgar Posted August 18, 2015 Author Share Posted August 18, 2015 After I was busy with university, I finally uploaded Part 3. For those of you who watched my videos so far: Thank you, and sorry for the long wait! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rXM5mVVOUPY As always, crticism is appreciated. cheers, A 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lethaface Posted August 23, 2015 Share Posted August 23, 2015 (edited) Thanks for the vids. As for review models, like any other model, don't let the model distort (your view of) reality! There is plenty of room to improve for CM, especially in the more standard area's like graphics and UI but imo the gameplay is one of its kind. Sometimes the averaged sum of all parts != akin to the complete experience. This goes for spouses, games and life in general. ;-) Edited August 23, 2015 by Lethaface 0 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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