One of my favorite things to watch/listen to are Let's Plays. There's so many games out there that either slipped my notice, or of a format/style that I just don't do well with. Not to mention that there's such a vast amount of games out there that it'd be hard to play them all.
Which is why I like LPs and speedruns/longplays/etc. It lets me experience the games (and their secrets, in many cases), and sometimes even shows off new approaches and hidden tricks that I might not have even known. LPs of the Disgaea series lets me enjoy the amusingly written characters and plot without having to spend hours grinding the characters up to ridiculous levels. NieR is another game that, due to its Cavia-driven nature, I was only able to fully enjoy through someone else playing through (and even 100%!) it.
There's a few places to find these things. Let's Play was "born" (citation needed?) on the Something Awful forums, so that's always one place to look them up. Along with that is the LP Archive where many of the SA LPs are placed upon completion. There's also a Let's Play Forum somewheres, I believe, and there's always sites like YouTube.
But that's a lot to go through, so I figured I'd make a thread where folks can link and talk about their favorites (or even some of the not-so-favorites) amongst the LP Sea. And, just because there's a couple speedruns that I found really interesting in a similar way, I figured I'd include them on the list as well.
Personally, one of my go-tos for LP entertainment is Chip Cheezum. I actually started watching his stuff way back when he was doing his MGS2 LP, and he's only gotten better since. He shows a lot of skill, and his Experienced Player-and-New Guy dynamic with Ironicus works really well. It allows you to see a skilled playthrough of the game, and yet still get that "first time" reaction as well. His Revengeance LP is probably the best example of this, as Ironicus LOSES HIS MIND over the first boss of the game. It's great.
I've followed a few other SA LP regulars like Feinne and his screenshot LPs for basically every Nippon Ichi game, Chorocojo for his Pokemon antics, and Deceased Crab (Huzzah!). But beyond that, I don't know or watch some of the other big names. Folks like Markiplier seem to be about their own performances rather than the content of the game, and a focus on that rather than paying attention to the game is what has turned me off of the Game Grumps. There's something to be said about watching a group of folks play together that makes for a fun dynamic, though, so I still try to follow The Runaway Guys (even if Chugga's shouting gets abrasive really fast).
With more horror-related games, I usually stick to Voidburger and her comprehensive, atmospheric Silent Hill LPs, though SheSellsSheShells did a phenomenal job on Homecoming. I've also recently re-discovered Cryaotic through his Ao Oni run-through and am currently watching him fumble through Silent Hill 2. I think I gave PewDiePie one shot and immediately closed the video.
So, any other recommendations? Is there a particular LP you thought was done really well? Or an LPer or group of LPers that you find to be generally good viewing? Let us know!
Also, to stick with the tacked on bit about Speedruns, let me show you one of my personal favorite Speedruns of all time (be forewarned, though, it's a two hour trip - and I do mean a trip, they do some wild stuff):
[youtube]Jp7Z2zdu9Zw[/youtube]
Which is why I like LPs and speedruns/longplays/etc. It lets me experience the games (and their secrets, in many cases), and sometimes even shows off new approaches and hidden tricks that I might not have even known. LPs of the Disgaea series lets me enjoy the amusingly written characters and plot without having to spend hours grinding the characters up to ridiculous levels. NieR is another game that, due to its Cavia-driven nature, I was only able to fully enjoy through someone else playing through (and even 100%!) it.
There's a few places to find these things. Let's Play was "born" (citation needed?) on the Something Awful forums, so that's always one place to look them up. Along with that is the LP Archive where many of the SA LPs are placed upon completion. There's also a Let's Play Forum somewheres, I believe, and there's always sites like YouTube.
But that's a lot to go through, so I figured I'd make a thread where folks can link and talk about their favorites (or even some of the not-so-favorites) amongst the LP Sea. And, just because there's a couple speedruns that I found really interesting in a similar way, I figured I'd include them on the list as well.
Personally, one of my go-tos for LP entertainment is Chip Cheezum. I actually started watching his stuff way back when he was doing his MGS2 LP, and he's only gotten better since. He shows a lot of skill, and his Experienced Player-and-New Guy dynamic with Ironicus works really well. It allows you to see a skilled playthrough of the game, and yet still get that "first time" reaction as well. His Revengeance LP is probably the best example of this, as Ironicus LOSES HIS MIND over the first boss of the game. It's great.
I've followed a few other SA LP regulars like Feinne and his screenshot LPs for basically every Nippon Ichi game, Chorocojo for his Pokemon antics, and Deceased Crab (Huzzah!). But beyond that, I don't know or watch some of the other big names. Folks like Markiplier seem to be about their own performances rather than the content of the game, and a focus on that rather than paying attention to the game is what has turned me off of the Game Grumps. There's something to be said about watching a group of folks play together that makes for a fun dynamic, though, so I still try to follow The Runaway Guys (even if Chugga's shouting gets abrasive really fast).
With more horror-related games, I usually stick to Voidburger and her comprehensive, atmospheric Silent Hill LPs, though SheSellsSheShells did a phenomenal job on Homecoming. I've also recently re-discovered Cryaotic through his Ao Oni run-through and am currently watching him fumble through Silent Hill 2. I think I gave PewDiePie one shot and immediately closed the video.
So, any other recommendations? Is there a particular LP you thought was done really well? Or an LPer or group of LPers that you find to be generally good viewing? Let us know!
Also, to stick with the tacked on bit about Speedruns, let me show you one of my personal favorite Speedruns of all time (be forewarned, though, it's a two hour trip - and I do mean a trip, they do some wild stuff):
[youtube]Jp7Z2zdu9Zw[/youtube]
~