How has James Rolf (aka AVGN) influenced you as a gamer?

[Sideroller]

not at all...


But I like his videos.

[final fight cd]

If you check out cinemassacre.com you can see a lot of his non-Nerd related work, like his spike tv movie reviews and several short documentaries.

besides over analyzers and "you know what is bullshit videos," i like most of his non video game related videos. he doesn't try to be funny or try to act angry about something stupid. it seems like he is just being himself, which is a good thing.

What is there to ... do with the character?

to be honest, i am kind of excited about this movie because i think this will really show what kind of a writer/direct he is and if he actually has a film career outside of AVGN. it won't be done for another few years probably, so he will have to milk the AVGN character even longer. and i have no idea how he will do this. the character is so played out.

[Breetai]

It was my understanding that he is largely credited with reviving old school gaming among the mainstream audience.

WTF? I'd say the appearance of emulators in the mid to late 90s is what really gave retro gaming a huge boost. Then again, there has ALWAYS been a retro game market. People were collecting cheap 2600, Intellivision and Colecovision games when the NES was popular. Maybe he has had some minor influence in getting some kids into retro gaming, but I really think you need to back up your claim that "he is largely credited with reviving old school gaming among the mainstream audience." Do you have any sources to back up that statement?

To answer the original question; not at all. Well, maybe it encouraged me to give Castlevania II and Fester's Quest another run-though. I like both of those games. I DO find his videos entertaining and enjoy watching them. He comes off well when he gives his background information about whatever game he is playing. Also, his problems hooking up the Sega CD, 32X, 5200, etc. are hilarious.

I find the Happy Console Gamer much more enjoyable. Classic Game Room as well, although his more recent videos are way off the mark (no pun intended!) in my opinion. Let's get back to retro gaming! I really don't care about toy cars and modern gaming. I want more Saturn, Genesis and TG-16.

[Ack]

I've actually never watched any of his reviews.

That said, I have seen a few interviews with the real guy, and he's supposed to be a really nice guy who does enjoy games. The money he's made from AVGN has helped him build a complete NES collection.

Honestly though I don't watch or read game reviews. The closest I get is watching Gamester81 showcase obscure hardware he's gotten.

[Xeogred]

Wow I missed a big and hilarious thread. I think this sums up my reaction.

I'm a big fan of AVGN, I don't follow his stuff all the time but sometimes when I'm just hanging out with some friends will turn on a few videos and have a good time with them. Keith is amazing as well. Napoleon Dynamite + gaming = awesome. His best moments are when he's out in public, like the E3 2010 videos... my god those were pure gold, and him climbing on shit.

Just to fuel this goofy thread even more though, I hate Yahtzee. Can't stand him.

[Curlypaul]

I've got really tired of yahtzee lately, I occasionally watch one when I'm bored but I used to watch them religiously.

I also love spike moview reviews and the location hunts that James Rolfe has done, I agree that it showcases his talents a lot more than AVGN does. Having said that I do like his videos.

If he's influenced me at all he's made me play crap or unfairly hard games for longer. I was always impressed in how many horrible games he manages to finish and its made me do the same. It really makes you appreciate a well designed game more and the frustration is rewarding for me.

[Erik_Twice]

I think that he is much better when he talks seriously about games than when he tries the comedy routine. He is pretty knowledgeable about videogmes as a whole and his video are actually pretty well done, with good sound and good cuts between he and the game.

It looks like his potential is limited by the AVGN's review format, specially since many games' flaws are pretty much the same (Bad controls, broken platforms, impossible difficulty, short-ranged projectiles...etc).


I also don't think he has particulary influenced me as a gamer.

[Balasubbie]

I like his gimmick on the odd occassion, but he's one of those 'netlebrities who,
while having proper talent, could really do with an external, neutral editor. Just to
keep him in check.

[Incognito D]

His retrospective on the Castlevania series was really cool and introduced me to the series.
For that, I can thank him.
I also enjoy his reviews. It's always fun to take a look at terrible games - thankfully most of which I will never play.

[Hatta]

I like the AVGN. You have to keep in mind that he's not a reviewer, he's a parody reviewer. Talking shit is funny, that's really all there is to it. He's no comedy genius but he's better than most of what you see on TV.

Also, the dude is a pretty hard core gamer. He legitimately beats most of the games he covers, and if he doesn't he says so in the show. Considering the difficulty of the fare, that's nothing to sneeze at.