Cup of Jones - April 3, 2018

All of the news on the Spider-Man game has got me thinking about my favorite superhero, Superman. While I really enjoyed the last few Superman games I also recognize their faults. What do you think would make a truly great Superman game?

Mr Jones, I find before leveraging criticism, it's always best to seek understanding. I have a handful of questions relating to the scripted content Easy Allies puts out on your Youtube channel. To start, what's the script editing process like among the group? How many drafts and peer reviews would you say something like a review receives before it's sent over to you for voicework? How many people are involved in the process? What about something more meaty like a retrospective? On the subject of a retrospectives, what do you see as the objectives of that work? What are you trying to achieve in each video, and who specifically is the target audience? Is there a template or guideline you follow, or does everything depend on the game? Thanks for your time, Jay

Jay Zifer

Recently, the official Animal Crossing site was 'under construction'. For a while, the placeholder text on the site were quotes from Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis, at least until Nintendo updated it with their official copy. Do you think that there was any symbolic meaning to the choice of placeholder? Is this not a cruel joke?

discardedDigit

Regarding the potential survey: I think it is a great idea and I hope you implement it to great results. I do have a few questions about it: 1) Have you considered an incentive to get more people, specially non-patrons to fill out the survey? I don't know how easy or difficult it would be but I think a 1 month free 5$ tier benefits might entice more non-patrons to fill it out. 2) You mention some of the allies support the survey idea. I wonder if Ian is one of them, how much sway do you have to "propose" he makes it in game form? 3) Would you share the results with us here in Cup of Jones? Just in case it sounds (read) like I'm assuming that the survey is a given, I understand you haven't promised it will happen.

AsGenesis

So, Ubisoft just announced Splinter Cell’s Sam Fisher for Ghost Recon Wildlands. Will you be partaking in this crossover?

Erunion

Hi Jones, I absolutely loved The Busted Trifecta (although I'll admit I'm a sucker for anything remotely noir-adjacent), and I feel like it has somewhat flown under the radar. How has the reception been on your end? I'm sure there's no lack of ideas for different Patreon goals being tossed around, but would the "Easy Allies Seasonal Scripted Show Goal" be feasible? I ask that more from the perspective of, are you guys overflowing with ideas like that, or is Busted Trifecta more of a diamond in the rough? I wouldn't want anything to feel forced. I also wouldn't want to ask for something when the overall demand is not there.

RobBobWill

Mr. Jones How would you you describe your current stage in life and what you want out of your next one? Please take a moment to reflect on this question and answer as honestly as you are comfortable. L&R Morgan Mohalla

Morgan Mohalla

Howdy Jones, Over the last 2 years or so I've started playing through the Final Fantasy series for the first time. I decided that this franchise was one I needed to play, since I've avoided jrpg's for so long. I'm playing through them chronologically from 1-13 (excluding 15, since I wanted to play it when it released) and skipping mmo's. To date, I've completed: 15, 1 - 3, and I'm currently about 1/3rd of the way through 4 if I had to guess. My question is this: Is there a games franchise you have missed out on that you have plans (no matter how vague) of eventually getting around to?

realwar44

Hi Jones, I completed Resident Evil 2 for the first time this weekend. I played as Claire first, enjoyed the game so much I completed it a second time as Leon. Any chance for Resident Evil 2 Remade being shadow dropped at E3? Also a Parappa cover coaster for Kyle and a surprise Capcom game cover coaster for you is on it's way.

bjørnar haraldsvik

Brandon and Amanda have the occasional Spouse Quest series. If you haven't seen them I highly suggest checking them out. The first game they played was the old Space Quest game and it was hilarious if only for Jones making faces and talking about how much he despises the genre.

Hey Jones, I want to make a case for changing the sponsorship tiers, your audience has expanding since forming EZA and that tier came from a time you believed 500 patrons would join you but now it's 6000 and over 150,000 youtube subscribers. This isn't an idea to get you guys more money to $45K but to stop undermining your value to your sponsors. You can have 1 or 2 $500 sponsors for the other podcasts such as Frame Trap/Friend Code/Table Top Escapade/ Reaction Shots, 5 $1000 EZA podcast sponsors and 1 $1500 major sponsor.

Ibrahim Sozer

Is there any buzz in the office for Wipeout VR on PSVR? Plenty calling it the killer app for the headset and raves from Digital Foundry and critics across the board. When I encouraged my buddy to try it, all he could say was “Now THIS is podracing!”

hellsfoxes

Hey Jones, want to reach your 50k goal and get the office so you can produce the content we all know and love? Easy, get Kyle to bring back Final Bosman.

Hi Brandon, Thanks for answering my comment about the Switch last week. I was wondering since you always happily speak about Disneyland and Disneyworld, if you visited in the past Disneyland Tokyo and Disneysea and which you enjoyed more. I am often told by other people who visit Japan that Disneysea is kind of unique and they enjoyed both parks, but the opinion mostly differs when it comes to the one they enjoyed more. Did you had also the chance to visit FujiQ Highland in Japan, which is often compared with Six Flags Magic Mountain, which I immensely enjoyed during one of my trips to California. Also, I was wondering if you ever visited Europa Park in Germany, which got in the past some awards for the best amusement park in the world. I often visited it, when I was still living in Germany until 9 years ago and its one of the things I miss sometimes. Best Regards, Karsten Koller

Karsten Koller

What is your favourite workout music?? I always listen to the Rocky soundtrack to get me pumped. Do you even listen to music while working out?? Sometimes I listen to my Audio book or Cup of Jones while jogging. How about you?

Tim Bechen

Hi Jones, If you recalled during one of the episodes of Cup Of Jones, I mentioned my skeptism about Sea Of Thieves. Well, it’s finally out and just as I expected, the game is not well received. Same goes to games like No Man’s Sky and Evolve where it sounds too good to be true, only turn out to be a huge disappointment upon release. Do you think that gamers and journalists like yourself should be more skeptical (as opposed to be just excited) for future games that received so much hype for being so called groundbreaking or promising features that are too good to be true, rather than acting like 10-year olds? I do agree when you mentioned that it is dangerous to describe a game as one where “you can do anything”, which implies that the game lacks direction to determine the type of game it wants to be. On a lighter note, have you seen the Mandatory Update compilation created by YouTube user SomeGameNews? If you haven’t, give it a watch, I was laughing the entire video watching you guys being ridiculous and loose with your shenanigans.

Hey Jones! Would it be okay if people sent challenge gifts? Like the ones that require two allies to face off, but a single challenge for a single ally. As in, can an ally complete a certain game challenge? And if that ally doesn't win, the gift becomes a tournament prize. I know this shouldn't be done for everything, but I thought something like thing may be appropriate for those....really large or costly gifts, maybe as a way to reduce any guilt you may feel? Just an out there thought.

Parasitepaladin

I think it would be cool if you reviewed Save the World and Huber reviewed Battle Royale but they were in the same video some how :P

Mac

I'm so happy about the editorial this week! As someone whose passion for video games is only rivaled by Theatre, I don't find many times the two worlds crossover. Do you ever think about what life would have been like had you pursued that further? Especially with Amanda currently being a working actor! Or at the least, do you ever get that 'itch' to perform back on stage at any point? Say at a local theatre or so (I'm honestly not too sure how the 'scene' is there) Whenever I finish a show, the delay between the next gig is BRUTAL - so I can imagine a years long gap could foster some mighty strong nostalgia for the stage. I, for one, would love to see a game take on the world of theatre - in some shape or form. The Witcher 3 had an excellent segment where Geralt has to perform in a small play and I thought it was so wonderfully done and I've been CRAVING more of the theatre/gaming crossover. If I had the skills, I would love to create a game that let players delve into the many facets of theatre - technical, auditioning, memorizing - that most don't realize how in depth they actually are. Maybe ala a sim of sort? One can dream. To wrap this ramble up, thank you for bringing in a world that I usually have to enjoy separately. Oh, and fantastic stage presence!

AnActualSadTaco

I think First 15 would be a good series to return to as well, I know you don't have the entire GT library to go through but there's plenty of odd games on Steam that could make for interesting first 15s. And please consider changing the name, "Fancy" just isn't a good descriptor for what the video is about. Seeing it on the Youtube thumbnails makes it seem like a top 15 list or something.

Ehie Yovach

I know you are probably sick of hearing this idea but I've got another suggestion for crowd-sourcing the editing, which seems to be among the top logistical hurdles at EZA. When I was in college I was able to do an internship on a short film being produced in the area, it was a one-off event and only lasted one semester. I wonder if you could work with a local university or community college to have an editing internship where students edit videos for you guys. I think this would be more reliable than crowd-sourcing to the community (no offense) because students would have much more incentive to get projects done on time and correctly if they wanted a good grade. There would probably be a decent time commitment at the beginning getting the students started with your process but after that first month not only would you have additional help editing you'd be helping students get ready for the real world.

Ehie Yovach

Hey Brandon, Just a quick Idea I had for you guys. I have finally become tapped out on podcasts. I still love all your Content but After seeing the Mandatory Update compilation it made me really miss the more scripted content of GT. I know that this type of Content is much more time consuming and would mean less content for EZA overall. This made me think of ways that you could possibly fill the void of scripted content. I know that "Settle It" or "Defend it" has been an Idea that was thrown around for a while now, but with the way you guys have been doing "Checking Out" it gave me an idea. What if you did "Settle it" as a "Let's Play" style series? You could get 2 people in a room with a Game they disagree on. Play the game for maybe 3 Hours? cut them into 10 - 20 min Episodes and release them daily? or Weekly? Maybe shoot something of a post mortem having the 2 players discuss what has changed for them and what's the same? If you feel like this is something that would be easier to stream that could be an option, as long as chat is cool with breaks every so often to make it easier to chop up and put on Youtube in an episodic format later. This gives you a good chunk of content. Streams for those that can be present, an Archive for those that Have the time, and Episodic content for those that don't. Just a thought. If it's not your cup of tea that's totally cool. Hopefully it gives you ideas of your own for easier ways to produce more short format content. Love and Respect! PS. Sorry I'm usually more concise.

Hello Brandon, so I've never written in to Cup of Jones before but this thought has crossed my mind several times now an I want to put it out there. It's in regards to you preferring to hear the "negative Nancy's" than those being complimentary, this strikes me as a case of "the squeaky wheel gets the grease" and isn't necessarily the most constructive way to get feedback. I've always seen contributing to a Patreon as supporting someone because you already like their output, and not because you want them to make things that you I like. I don't personally watch absolutely everything you guys make but I'm happy it's there for those who do. When I sent in my gift I said in the note that I don't think you put many steps wrong and what I meant by this is that I think you are most successful when you are just being you and while your relationship with your community is one of your greatest strengths I think there Is potential to compromise yourselves only by listening to the loudest voices. This is meant to be a positive comment even if it has not come off as one, and yes, I do appreciate the irony of me writing a message suggesting you don't always listen to those that write in telling you what to do! As always, Love & Respect, Dave Cleland

Just to piggyback off this, I’d been having similar thoughts about incentives, in particular exclusive content. I used to be somewhat against the idea of having too much Patreon exclusive content, especially if it’s something at a higher tier, like the Q&A for example, and was in favour of that being made public after the fact. The worry I had is that it might make people who couldn’t afford to support at that tier feel, well, excluded. As time has passed, I’ve started to wonder if it’s actually needed to a degree, as it seems to work for COJ and the podcast, the two highest supported tiers. In the same vein as Olf’s bonus L&R suggestion, my idea was to once a month, have a bonus 40 minute or so L&R episode of the podcast, that would be exclusive to $5 Patrons. That way those already supporting at that tier are not affected, but it might encourage more new people to sign up for that tier. It could still be made public a few weeks later, if you didn’t want to lock people out completely.

BeatenDownBrian

Can you sell me on SSX Tricky? I’m someone who enjoyed the most recent SSX on PS3 but when it comes to the series I mainly just keep hearing about Tricky. I know you know next to nothing about my taste in games but I’m interested in why you think Tricky (or if I’m wrong a different SSX game) is the best one.

Kian Jahromi

Hey Jones, while my personal opinion differs I see a fair amount of discontent from some of the community with the progression of EZA. EZA started just a little over two years ago with a successful and impressive funding campaign, and since its inception it has kept a pretty consistent stream of revenue even counting the small dip recently. Still despite being a relatively new company in what I still consider to be in the nurturing phase. I see lot of people perceiving this as "stagnation", with the sentiment spreading that the 50k goal won't be reached and the studio will never come to fruition. I disagree with this conception but it raised an interesting question. In the alternate reality where EZA actually stagnated and never reached 50k what would the company look like? Would it remain in your garage indefinitely, with minor improvements to lighting production and sound etc? Would shows like Reaction shots, Friend Code, and Trailer Jones just never be produced? Apologies if this has been answered already in this or some other format, just a topic I thought it interesting to get your thoughts on. PS: I'm over 50 hours into NNK2 really enjoying the gameplay loop so far but the story less so. Its passable as a reason to keep progressing but the childlike fairy-tale without the more mature subtext hurts it for me. Also the consistent voice acting and contributions studio Ghibli provided to the first are sorely missed.

WarmFeelings

The merchandise link at the top of the Easy Allies website only goes to your spreadshirt page. You should add a link to your Fangamer page as well.

Kenneth Childs

Hey Jones, first, I just want to say my last name is pronounced "reif" (german decent). And second, small spoilers for Far Cry 5, there is a mission where the game outright makes fun of the creator of Far Cry: Blood Dragon to the point of immersion breaking. What did you think of this mission? Personally, I found the whole thing petty and a cheap shot at someone who many think made the best Far Cry to date.

GenWoofles

i think you've given it a good shot with Patreon, but do you really beleive 2 years in and going forward that the figures show anything other than what your achieving now +- a couple of K?

Is Amanda officially considered one of the Allies? I love seeing her on streams and Fiasco and would love to see her on podcasts and other stuff you guys do, if she wants to of course.

Evan Charles Teague

Great stuff.

Johnny A

Ahoy Mister Jones, I feel like I'm calling into a radio show; "first time caller, long time listener." Cup of Jones is the piece of EZA I look forward to the most each week, so good on you for a job well done. Has there been a community you've interacted with, passively or actively, that has made your life markedly better? I ask because my answer to that same question would be yes; the Easy Allies. A little bit about me; I'm 33, married with 4 kids. I work full time, play in the band at my church, play in a band with some friends and record arrangements of my favorite video game songs for a small audience of followers on youtube. I grew up playing video games and still enjoy them immensely, although the methods through which I engage with them has changed drastically due to my time being spent elsewhere. I cannot express thoroughly enough my gratitude to you and the other allies for the thoughtful, timely, interesting content you produce both in game news coverage and unique creative experiences. I do not create time in my schedule to play every new game, but I feel I get a good handle on things by tuning in to the Easy Allies Podcast or by watching reviews on my lunch break (Checkin' Out & Don't Skip also help). I have a lot of mundane things to take care of (dishes, laundry, yard work, daily commute etc) and I am able to laugh and enjoy my time doing those things by listening to Frame Trap or Friend Code. My family and I moved last year and during that intensely stressful time I was able to stay grounded and enjoy my favorite video game of all time through your playthrough of Final Fantasy VI. The jolly shenanigans of Don's Design Lab are enough to keep me positive through a long work day. The deliberations during Hall of Greats reminds me of discussions I have with my own friends. When I'm feeling drained creatively, an episode of Easy Update acts as a form of inspiration. If I feel the need to get hyped about something, Huber Syndrome never disappoints. With all of the work You (the Easy Allies) do, I struggle to find anything to complain about or ask for. Thanks for reading. Cheers.

Matt Bollenbach

That sounds like something that can be brought up on the Podcast (if it's a news story) or possibly FrameTrap (if anybody bothers to go back and try it, which I doubt) The landscape of having games with major updates or balance changes is hardly a new one and most all reviewing or media outlets follow the same policy - the review is a critique of the game as it was when the review was published, so don't release bad things if you don't want bad scores that will always stand. Sites with more resources might publish an update article or do a video if it's a game people care about, or don't if nobody does anymore (I'd argue that it's way too late for Battlefront 2).

VGJunky

I get what you’re saying, and there are certainly places that not only overdo it, but that can be almost overbearing when it comes to that stuff, especially if you’re a new viewer of their channel (like you say, you want a chance to see if you like what an outlet is making first). However, I think the suggestion put forward about including one simple line in the opening sentence of the podcast seems about as non-intrusive as you could make it. These plugs are not always just intended for the new viewers, like the commenter that made the suggestion mentioned, the podcast gets roughly 30K views (and that’s not even including listeners), but only has 6k Patrons, and so, a simple plug at the start might help remind them that they could have this thing that they already enjoy, 2 days early for $5 a month. Honestly, I have no idea if plugging this stuff works or not, and I can only speak for myself when I say that consistently good content is the thing that will get me supporting someone, more so than any plug ever will, but at the end of the day, if this is something that could help the allies bring in new Patrons then I’m all for it.

BeatenDownBrian

Jones, the 90s-you so reminds me of a young Will Wheaton!

Fortnite is slated for a 2018 release date <a href="https://www.epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US/faq" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">https://www.epicgames.com/fortnite/en-US/faq</a>

Ibrahim Sozer

Tiers seem a little backwards. Taking away shows only seems like it would make things drop even more. With that said, perhaps those incentives weren't good enough (given that people are dropping). And this is coming from someone who upped my pledge to support Friend Code.

Andrew Chalmers

Hey Brandon, this is my first time commenting here since becoming a patron, so I'm not quite sure if there's a formality or something I'm missing, but I'll do my best to be respectful. Finding EZA has been a massive relief for me, as it's rejuvenated my interest in video games criticism and gaming as a whole. I literally grew up throughout elementary and high school watching GameTrailers, so finding you guys back and being more real and engaging has been cathartic. That being said, I'm disappointed to hear about the numbers drop. More and more different content creators have patreons going online everyday, and dedicated fans only have so much money to spend. However, I'm sure that things will certainly pick up, as few other creators deserve more than Easy Allies. My question is small, but I was basically wondering about, considering you went to university for film, did you ever watch any foreign films that you really enjoyed? If so, any that you'd recommend? Thanks again, Brandon. You've been a voice and personality that I've been consistently entertained and informed by for a long time, and hopefully that doesn't end any time soon. All the best, Anthony

Yes Please!

Mikehook1

G'day Brando, hope the morning has been going well for you today. Firstly I wish to quickly apologize for not changing my reserved post on in the previous 'cup of jones' episode, I figure you might kinda brush it off here as no drama but it's worth acknowledging none the less as fairly inconsiderate &amp; rude. Next up I wanted to ask what you valued most about being involved with the scouts in your youth. Perhaps there may be some memorable tales either positive or negative that you may be willing to share. Speaking from one scout troupe leader to another I can honestly reflect very positively on my memories and how formative they were to my character today. But yet I have almost forgotten every knot they expected us to master so it's safe to say some of it refused to stick :P. All the best to you and the rest of the allies this evening.

Christian Thomas

Hi Brandon! Any thoughts about an east coast event for us EZA fans? I'd love to go to a concert and support, but can't fly out to CA.

Steve S

They lost two podcast sponsors this month which is a thousand dollars alone. Honestly the amount of "regular people" who sponsor the podcast is kind of worrying to me. It seems very unstable since 500 bucks every month is a lot of money for someone who doesn't have a business to back them up.

Olf Himself

Mr Jones, good day, when did you learn to look into the camera? meaning the lens, like talking to people, was odd at the beginning? what advice would you give to improve talking into camera?

Daniel Garza Andrade

Hey Mr. Jones! Per the discussion regarding the dip in money and Patrons, I have only a simple question about something I'm surprised you didn't touch on: What, in your estimation, is the cause for this? Stagnation? Did EZA say or do something that caused such a drop? This feels out of the blue, because as I recall, there wasn't anything of any real financial consequence that would move the needle at all, much less in the opposite direction. I'm sure the upcoming announcements will help entice new or returning Patrons, but with finances, especially the loss of them, is still concerning, however slight (relatively speaking). Thanks for addressing this and taking my question. Have a great day and Cheers! P.S. Wow. I was out of it last week.

Brandon K Gann

Hello Jones Have you guys thought about increasing the benefits of the lower pledge tiers as an incentive to get new Patrons? The average of each EZA Patron's pledge is fairly high which means if some drop off, for whatever reason, your monthly income can swing a fair amount. One idea for incentives I've thought about is recording a bonus Love &amp; Respect question each week and make it exclusive to Patrons. It probably wouldn't be that much more work since you could record it together with the Podcast. It might sound weird coming from a consumer of your content but I think you give too much away for free. Exclusives are enticing to a lot of people.

Olf Himself

Hey Jones my favourite content from the easy allies is the long form content and all this talk about perhaps moving away from it has me a little worries. Are you able to confirm that you and the allies will still be committed to creating long form content? Thanks ~ Jesse.P

Jesse.P

Someone made a request this week (3rd) to advertise Patreon at the start of the video. IMO this is a bad idea. If it is my first time in a video by someone and they are pushing likes, subscribes or patreon at me, then I am put off. I haven't watched it yet, I have no idea if it is good, why would I like or give money. If it happens in all their videos, then I will stop watching their content after seeing the begging too many times

BeardedScotsman86

Hey Jonesy, what do think about these quotes in regards to the current social climate? (I feel like I'm asking very similiar questions and pushing some agenda with my Cup of Jones questions for the last few weeks ^^ I think I'll ask something jolly again next week ^^) "If all printers were determined not to print anything till they were sure it would offend nobody, there would be very little left tp print." - Benjamin Franklin "There is no such thing as a moral or an immoral book. Books are well written or badly written. That is all." -Oscar Wilde "If we don't believe in freedom of expression for people we despise, we don't believe in it at all." - Noam Chomsky "What is freedom of expression, without the freedom to offend? It ceases to exist." - Sir Ahmed Salman Rushdie "The only valid censorship of ideas is the right of people not to listen." Tom Smothers "The dirtiest book of all is the expurgated book." - Walt Whitman With Love, DiamondCrusader + in regards to last weeks question: Just like always, you articulated your opinion very well! Especially the part about exploring the "human experience" sounds exactly like what I'm so interested in. Like I said, I don't want to "evil" stuff in real life, but exploring why fictional characters do what they do (like the americans under Father Comstock in Bioshock Infinite to other races) and just trying to get their mindset. I think that's kinda similiar to detective shows, where the detective tries to get into the mindset of the murderer to find out who the murderer is. But you say that maybe not everybody is comfortable with "taboo" topics in videogames, yet the game I mentioned (Bioshock Infinite) has a very "taboo" topic in it (racism) and as far as I know, it is a very well regarded game, right? So, there are other people beside me, who seem to enjoy "taboo" topics in videogames, right? (or at least racism?) Other than this part I mostly get what you're saying (not agree on everything though ^^). Once again, delightful argument! ++ and yeah, I don't have kids ^^

Baniel Dloodworth. It's really fantastic writing ;)

TravelingSnowman

Who edits Blood's script when he write a review?

Alexander Zyryanov

Very happy to hear you're adressing this, Brandon.

Alex McMillan

Just wanted to say thanks for all the things you Allies have done and will do in the future.

Professor Metal Gear