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Letch77

Well-known member
Jan 28, 2018
1,608
353
Midwest
So, I don't have any kids of my own, but my close friend's kids are around the 5-8 age range. I guess the new rage is to WATCH someone play video games on Youtube rather than actually playing the game to experience it for yourself and, you know, getting some feeling of achievement as you progress.
Well, this may take collecting to a whole new level. Rather than chase cards that I've been hunting for 20+ years, I think I'll just watch Youtube videos of people showing off the cards that they have in their collections and see if that gives the same satisfaction as actually acquiring the card myself. For instance, I found a video of a guy who was showing off a 1952 Topps Mantle...WOW! UNBELIEVABLE! I can't believe I was lucky enough to snag such a video! It's in my video collection and is for trade if anyone wants to swap for a video of a 1996 Select Certified Mirror Gold Frank Thomas #1. I'd prefer a high quality video or even HD because this is a '52 Topps Mantle video you're trading for. Let's deal! :lol:

Obviously, this post is pure sarcasm and I'm being facetious, but I do find it sad that kids' interests are moving in this direction.
 

swish54_99

Well-known member
Dec 12, 2012
1,160
221
Happens with ripping hobby boxes too. I know there's a market for it...obviously since more and more people are posting videos doing it....but for me, I don't want to pay for a box of cards and have someone else open them for me. I'll admit, I watch them periodically to see what good pulls are out there, just never understood the rush of having someone else open a box I paid for.
 

Austin

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
5,706
41
Dallas, Texas
I guess the new rage is to WATCH someone play video games on Youtube rather than actually playing the game to experience it for yourself and, you know, getting some feeling of achievement as you progress.
Obviously, this post is pure sarcasm and I'm being facetious, but I do find it sad that kids' interests are moving in this direction.
Actually, the number of kids playing video games and game sales are higher than ever.
The gaming videos are so popular because kids can't get enough of the games they love, like Minecraft and Overwatch, for tips, ideas and entertainment, not because they're not playing games anymore.
The Nintendo Switch is selling at a record pace.
 
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smapdi

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
4,397
221
I saw an episode of South Park last week that had the kids playing Guitar Hero. When Randy pulls out his actual guitar and actually plays Carry On My Warward Son, the song they were clicking along to in the game, they told him to get lost. That episode came out a decade ago, and it's not gotten any better. I was a fair amount of MTG on Twitch because I actually play the game myself, and a large part of it is learning what is good and helps win and what's bad and doesn't. I don't get watching things like Fornite or LoL, but I don't play those games. Since I don't, it's hard to follow what's happening since it's just a blur of colors, symbols, and tiny words. It doesn't seem like you can really learn anything there, or be entertained, but I'm willing to be wrong.

The same thing with box breaks. I have watched the few I've been in on, but I don't get the people who just have them on continuously streaming. Maybe you can see a card you want get opened and maybe somehow contact the person who won it? No idea.
 

MrMet

Well-known member
Apr 6, 2010
13,556
612
The Poconos
Just don’t google that Ryan kid who has that Nickelodeon show my kid likes (Ryan’s Mystery play date) and see what he’s pulling in, pretty sure he got his start opening toys and playing with them on YouTube or whatever


Sent from my iPhone using Freedom Card Board mobile app
 

shuedini

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
2,239
30
Indiana
Around here, we've had to severely limit screen time. That goes for phones, iPads, laptops, televisions, everything. If we didn't, the kids would be mindless zombies watching this stuff and attempting to recreate it themselves. They've even gone so far as to act like they are the YouTubers and pretend that they're recording videos. I've heard them say things like, "Hey guys! Thanks for watching. If you like what you've seen, please hit that like and subscribe button and don't forget to ring the bell." Mind you, these kids here are NOT actually recording anything.

After several attempts to get them into trading cards, they've not shown much interest. The excitement level just isn't comparable to their video games I guess.
 

banjar

Well-known member
Mar 22, 2015
2,540
883
Lafayette, Colorado
Loved the OP. Sounds like the kind of thing I'd rant about too. The comment about trading videos of cards, and the whole idea of getting into watching something rather than doing it, reminded me of Hideki Matsui casually dropping a line about his **** video collection in an interview while he was with the Yankees.
 

Letch77

Well-known member
Jan 28, 2018
1,608
353
Midwest
^^^

This is what I say every time people laugh at the idea of people watching other's play video games. They always get a confused look on their face as they slowly realize there's literally no difference.

It IS different, though. You can't play baseball by yourself...and when you watch a baseball game you're watching a competition, not a few average guys hit and throw the ball around. No one goes online to watch their local rec league practice.

I've seen what my buddy's kids watch; it's not even gameplay with the purpose of completing a level. It's just a guy that likes to hear himself talk wandering his character aimlessly through a video game. I can appreciate watching a video on how to pass a certain level or beat a level boss - I've done that many times myself - but I always go back to the game to actually accomplish what I've learned. There's nothing to be learned from these videos; no story, no strategy, no hints/tips/tricks.
 

RogerMarisCollector61

Active member
Jan 26, 2010
740
26
It IS different, though. You can't play baseball by yourself...and when you watch a baseball game you're watching a competition, not a few average guys hit and throw the ball around. No one goes online to watch their local rec league practice.

I've seen what my buddy's kids watch; it's not even gameplay with the purpose of completing a level. It's just a guy that likes to hear himself talk wandering his character aimlessly through a video game. I can appreciate watching a video on how to pass a certain level or beat a level boss - I've done that many times myself - but I always go back to the game to actually accomplish what I've learned. There's nothing to be learned from these videos; no story, no strategy, no hints/tips/tricks.

My comment is in reference to people's reaction to me watching pro league of legends, which IS the same thing as watching any other pro sport. If you're talking about non pro gamers, that's different. That's more akin to listening to a podcast or a reality show or something, and its usually done because they like the streamer's personality. To you it may be an annoying guy who likes to hear himself talk but if kids are enjoying it, they probably like the person's personality. And to each his own, I don't see why it really matters whether other people enjoy harmless entertainment. We collect expensive cardboard for fun lol :)
 

Mighty Bombjack

Active member
Aug 7, 2008
6,115
12
It IS different, though. You can't play baseball by yourself...and when you watch a baseball game you're watching a competition, not a few average guys hit and throw the ball around. No one goes online to watch their local rec league practice.

I've seen what my buddy's kids watch; it's not even gameplay with the purpose of completing a level. It's just a guy that likes to hear himself talk wandering his character aimlessly through a video game. I can appreciate watching a video on how to pass a certain level or beat a level boss - I've done that many times myself - but I always go back to the game to actually accomplish what I've learned. There's nothing to be learned from these videos; no story, no strategy, no hints/tips/tricks.

I almost hesitate to respond here, but I have a lot of thoughts on the subject because my to sons love this stuff and watch it a lot. I used to totally agree with what you've said in the OP, but my views have shifted a bit. I like the analogy about watching people play baseball, but I think the better analogy is the watching of MLB highlights on Baseball Tonight or one of the various MLB shows. I say that because, for my boys at least (and according to an article about one of the gamer youtoubers that I read in The New Yorker a couple of years ago as well), the personality of the youtuber is every bit as important as the games being played in the videos. My kids have a few different youtubers that they follow, who they think are funny and whose opinions they value in terms of games to play/try. It is akin, to me at least, to when people say they stopped watching Sportscenter after Patrick and Olbermann left. It was enjoyable to watch those guys each night, to hear the repeated catchphrases and new jokes, which were a nice complement to the highlights being shown. Something that I didn't understand at first is that there is a connection between the people who watch these videos and the people who make them, which is often more important than the game being played (though the games are important too - even if the person playing isn't vey good or trying to show how to do something, the in-jokes they make in relation to the game are meaningful to the viewers). Along those lines, I will note that both of my sons started making their own videos, where they provided commentary over a screen capture of them playing a game. I think they originally did this hoping to become stars, but once they saw how much work that required and how hard it was to be noticed in the mess of content online, which was pretty quick, they both stopped, but they gained a certain amount of tech savvy in the process (which I encouraged). Along the lines of the connection point made above, I was surprised that their grandparents all complained about the stoppage of videos, saying that they enjoyed watching the videos and the connection that they could make by discussing what they'd seen when they visited and talked with us on the phone afterward.

Now, one of the things mentioned in the article I read was that a big revenue stream for a lot of youtubers (beyond what google/advertisers/game developers pay them) is the tipping system, as some viewers want to be mentioned in a video so badly that they will "tip" for that right. That part seems kinda crazy to me, and I'm glad that my sons agree.

In the end, moderation is key, just as with anything. shuedini's point about limiting screen time is huge, and ensuring that kids have "IRL" activities and friends is vital. But, for my kids at least, the watching of the gamer videos online was every bit about the people presenting the games and the community of commenters on the videos (which can be their own deep cesspool, but I digress). Once I understood that, I viewed the whole pehnomenon a little differently and am more comfortable with it.

Anyway, that's my two cents, which is probably worth about a peseta.
 

Mighty Bombjack

Active member
Aug 7, 2008
6,115
12
My comment is in reference to people's reaction to me watching pro league of legends, which IS the same thing as watching any other pro sport. If you're talking about non pro gamers, that's different. That's more akin to listening to a podcast or a reality show or something, and its usually done because they like the streamer's personality. To you it may be an annoying guy who likes to hear himself talk but if kids are enjoying it, they probably like the person's personality. And to each his own, I don't see why it really matters whether other people enjoy harmless entertainment. We collect expensive cardboard for fun lol :)

Yes! This is what I was trying to say in my post above. The thing that many non-pro gamers who make youtube videos are good at is making viewers feel like they are sitting next to them at home. As long as my kids also play with IRL friends (and with me, occasionally), I'm all good with this form of entertainment.
 

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