Gamer's Week Chat with Joystiq on Xfire: November 18th, 2006
Return to the Gamer's Week page on Xfire
Joystiq Chat
[Xfire] Chatteox: Hi everybody and welcome to the chat with Joystiq.
[Xfire] Chatteox: We are joined by Chris and James today, who will now introduce themselves and start taking your questions.
joystiq: Hi everyone! This is Chris from Joystiq. I'm the site's managing editor, which means I basically am responsible for all the writers, and all the writing on the page. I started as a blogger there, but sadly don't have enough time to blog as much as I used to.
lawlessness: Hi all! James here. I've been blogging for Joystiq since July '04.
joystiq: Question: Agentdre: Ok so joystiq How much bandwidth do you use on a monthly basis to keep the site up?
Answer: Well, one of the major benefits to us, as writers, with the AOL purchase last year is that we'll never have to worry about that again! Pre-acquisition, the tech couldn't keep up with our network's growth. Every time Engadget would blog an Apple keynote, we'd go down!
joystiq: Question: Why was Joystiq made?
Answer: Basically, the site was created as a gaming spinoff of Engadget, who had too much gaming news to cover in any given day ... and they were just talking hardware! Our readers appreciate the way we cover the news and culture of gaming in a quicker, real time way.
lawlessness: Question: =AG=Beaker1835: James here is a question for you I like the site illwillpress.com I enjoy the humor in do follow this and your favorite charter would be mine is Pilz-E?
Answer: some of the other bloggers have covered illwill, but I'm not up on that particular site.
joystiq: Question: {HUD} Mascott: Heres my first question- With blogs like kotaku and joystiq, how can you trust the news stories people send in?
Answer: Great question! This is one of the hardest parts of being a video game blogger. The amount of BS out there is staggering. We try to approach everything skeptically, and always look for the real story under the surface. Trust me, if we ran every tip we got, in the form they were submitted, the site would be much different.
joystiq: Question: Jordan: Has Joystick ever been on the verge of Bankruptcy?
Answer: JoystiQQQ is profitable, they tell me. Not really my specialty. I leave that to the suits ;)
lawlessness: Question: |FMZ|RageOverdose: Have or do any of your readers ever get on your last nerve and make you want to tell them off? How do you control yourselves so well?
Answer: it's important not to take anything the negative commenters say personally. besides, lashing back just fuels the fire.
joystiq: Question: =AG=Beaker1835: so what is your expectations of the ps3 launch today do you think back to the day the playstation launch was late then the ps2 was late and now the long awaited ps3 is late to do you see a trend in the way they bring systems out or do you think that they got as far as they can for awhile
Answer: Well, the delay in launch arguably sold the PS2. Sony effectively convinced consumers to wait it out. The Dreamcast sat on shelves as consumers waited to see what Sony had in store. We'll have to wait and see if Sony can duplicate that with the PS3. From our vantage point, Microsoft has been doing an incredible job of providing a strong alternative to the PlayStation brand.
lawlessness: Question: Rumble: Have you ever played a new game that got you so mad you thought about quitting?
Answer: Yep, Full Auto -- and I did quit.
joystiq: Question: [U|B] Deadbolt: What is your guy's favorite outdoor sport?
Answer: joystiq: Outdoor sport? Uh ... video games? :)
Answer: lawlessness: Outdoor? Football, unless you count basketball (on the blacktop).
joystiq: Question: severn: How many blogs a day do you averagely sort in a day?
Answer: Depends on the day. We'll run anywhere from 20-45 in any given day, on Joystiq.com. We also have about 10-15 per day going up on each of our Fanboy blogs.
joystiq: Question: Pereztech: could you describe you rig?
Answer: Glad you asked! I game on a MacBook Pro! :) I gave up PCs some time ago, and love that I can run Windows on this thing using Boot Camp. My old Athlon 1900+ GeForce 4200 has officially been retired. ps-I have 2GBs of RAM and the 256Mb graphics upgrade. Not SUPER fast, I know, but it gets the job done, and I can travel with it!
joystiq: Question: badbadhorsedan: Hey guys whats your opinion on YouTube & its effects on the entertainment industry?
Answer: Interesting! It's huge! Look at how quickly YouTube has taken over the blogosphere. The growth scale on that company is amazing. As a video game blogger, YouTube provides an incredible amount of content, from retro videos to gameplay to trailers. It's a transformative force and another sign of Web 2.0's influence.
joystiq: Question: Dark Chili: Do you guys have an opinion on software piracy?
Answer: Yeah! It's bad. Developers work hard to make games, the least we can do is pay for them. Don't want to pay full price, buy em used. Can't buy used PC games? Buy a console :)
lawlessness: Question: Agentdre: Simple question which of the next gen consoles will you guys be personally buying ?
Answer: I bought 360 soon after launch, but I'm gonna wait on PS3 and Wii -- until the software options grow. I hope to own all three by early 2008.
joystiq: Question: [H]Abyss_of_Borg: What do you guys think of micro transactions and episodic gaming?
Answer: I love episodic gaming, and downloadable gaming. I see a serious future in it. Sam & Max may be the first title we see with a real model here, that could work. Monthly installments, regularly. Sorry HL2 episodes, but the wait hurts so bad! Microtransactions are different. I see no problem with them fundamentally (XBL) but when pubs and devs abuse it, it's really unpalatable. See: horse armour ... or anything EA does
joystiq: Question: Pvt Stevens [1st ID]: do you think microsoft will extend its borders and look into hand held consoles???
Answer: The Zune would certainly make you think MS has their eye on handhelds. People that know say they are. There's been so much smoke on this topic, there's bound to be fire somewhere. Even if nothing comes out, you can be rest assured they've got top men on it ... TOP MEN.
joystiq: Question: badbadhorsedan: I've been gaming since the early days, programming my first pc a tandy (T1000), Do you guys have any Favorites from the past of games on ancient systems
Answer: I'm a big fan of text adventure games. I'm wearing my Infocom shirt right now. Zork is a classic. I also love the old Sierra adventure games, like King's Quest.
joystiq: Question: ©h1n€s3-Ю1v3b¥: What is your view on all these new video game violence regulations?
Answer: Well, there's not too many regulations. Remember, all their attempts have been met judicially as unconstitutional.
joystiq: Question: |FMZ|RageOverdose: Have or do any of your readers ever get on your last nerve and make you want to tell them off? How do you control yourselves so well?
Answer: Haha, it can be hard sometimes. It's easy to remind ourselves that most of our readers don't comment, and some people just can't be appeased. We do the best job we can, and hope people like it. You can't pay too much mind to the griefers.
lawlessness: Question: [=NA=]CrashRoden: What is the first game you ever played online with?
Answer: lawlessness: Suprisingly, it was for Xbox Live: Wolfenstein
Answer: joystiq: For me it was Decent, connecting directly to my friends over dialup. Or maybe it was Duke 3D ... or maybe an old BBS game, or a MUD.
lawlessness: Question: badbadhorsedan: Do you guys feel there is a vast void of Gaming IDeas much like hollywoods Ideas for scripts IE Original content?
Answer: I think publishers like to encourage safe bets: sports sims, gta clones, generic fps titles, etc.
lawlessness: Question: Dark Chili: What is the worst game you ever played?
Answer: As a kid, I really hated Milon's Secret Castle (NES)
joystiq: Question: {HUD} Mascott: What is your opinion on pay-per-month game services like gametap; and are they worth the money?
Answer: Depends on if you'll use it. GameTap is a great value for the money, and if you add in (timed) exclusives like Sam and Max, they're great. Too bad they don't make a MacOS client or I would use it a lot more.
joystiq: Question: Dark Chili: do you guys play WoW or Guild Wars and has anyone in the office addicted to them/it?
Answer: Some of our bloggers have flirted with MMO addiction ... we send them to WoWInsider.com or SecondLifeInsider.com
joystiq: Question: severn: Do any large corporations ever call you guys and complain that you wrote false or bad information on their products?
Answer: Yeah, sure. We don't write for them though, we write for our readers. We don't pull punches to get that next big exclusive. We can operate independently of them, so we don't feel the need to capitulate to any demands. We've had some run-ins, but for the most part companies respect our position.
lawlessness: Question: badbadhorsedan: How much work is involved in producing the content on Joystiq .com, hours per week do you put in?
Answer: lawlessness: I currently blog full-time (40-50 hours/week)
Answer: joystiq: I put in over 60-70 hours a week. When I'm not running the site, I'm checking my email about the site, or thinking about the site. It can be exhausting, but also exhilirating.
joystiq: Question: severn: Does joystiq have a large head questers facility or just a local office?
Answer: No offices (we're a blog man!). We all write from home or work or wherever.We have a writer in South Africa, writers in the UK, the US, Japan. Weblogs Inc. has offices, and AOL has offices, but we don't need em.
joystiq: Question: {HUD} Mascott: How does one get invited to write for the site?
Answer: It's a writing job. Be a good writer. It doesn't matter how well you game (I'll prove that later!!), or how much you know, but you have to be able to easily communicate that information to a very large audience.
joystiq: Question: Dark Chili: How do you feel about the fact people are getting into gun fights over a PS3?
Answer: Uh, like people are strange, strange creatures. I have one over there behind me ... and the launch games I have just aren't that good.
joystiq: Question: [=NA=] §àrgôn: What has been your favorite time for video blogging (ex. release of a certain console, or controversies)
Answer: These past couple months have been crazy, but really exciting. How many times does something like this happen, and we're here to capture it all.
joystiq: Question: [=NA=]CrashRoden: What was the first gaming console you set your hands on?
Answer: Atari 2600 FTW!!!
joystiq: Question: Agentdre: If joystiq was non-existent what would you guys be doing today?
Answer: I don't know! I was a carpenter before I started blogging, might still be building houses :)
lawlessness: Question: fox318: Another question I must ask Do you guys feel like you are biased towards a system, game type(ex:WWII), and developer/publisher?
Answer: lawlessness: No, we're not biased -- but we are critical!
Answer: joystiq: Some of our more vocal readers say we're "BIAS!!!!111!!1one!" but I think we're as fair as we can be. Do we have an opinion? Yes! That's why people read us and not a boring news site, but that opinion is informed and reasoned, not irrational and emotional.
joystiq: Question: badbadhorsedan: Arcades, lol Do any of you miss the quarter crunching days?
Answer: Meh. I was never much of an arcade kid. I grew up in the woods, so it was PCs and home consoles for me.
joystiq: Question: badbadhorsedan: Are there any plans for a magazine or quarterly?
Answer: Print's dead! Well, not yet, but magazines are closing down, not opening up. We've talked casually about a web magazine, but we've still got a lot of work left just blogging!
joystiq: Question: If you could blog about a non-gaming related topic, what would it be?
Answer: Movies I guess. I went to school for English and Film (both Cinema Studies and Production). I've seen thousands of movies, and follow them voraciously ... less so with Joystiq and all, but I'm still very passionate about movies.
joystiq: Question: [=NA=] §àrgôn: How do you think the competition for game consoles now compares to competition in the early console days?
Answer: Much different! The world's largest consumer electronics company and the world's richest software company are spending billions to win this race! It's a truly incredible confluence of events, something far larger and more important than a simple "console war"
joystiq: Question: [H]Abyss_of_Borg: Do developers and publishers send you stuff?
Answer: Sure, we get stuff sent in all the time. What we don't give away on the site to readers, we stick in a box o' swag which you'll all be seeing more of very soon.
joystiq: Question: Dark Chili: Did you guys go to and/or graduate college?
Answer: I have undergraduate degrees in both English, History, and Cinema Studies. Never made it back to grad school ... one of these days, Mom. I swear!
joystiq: Question: badbadhorsedan: How much do you think the power of the new Gen consoles with internet capabilities is going to disrupt the PC market?
Answer: I think they definitely will. I think they already have. I've been a console gamer primarily for the last 4-5 years and don't really feel like it's hurt me ... I do need to spend more time with WoW though. Just not TOO much!
lawlessness: Question: [=NA=]CrashRoden: Would you play on xbox live with the 360 or when vista comes out, will you play on live with the PC?
Answer: I'm sticking with Live on 360
joystiq: Question: Agentdre: Have you guys ever had to pull an article from the site, if yes what was the article and why was it pulled ?
Answer: There have been times when we've published things due to a misunderstood embargoe that we remove as a courtesy to the publisher, even if they erred. It depends. We try VERY hard to never remove content. If we do, you'll see an explanation of why it was pulled in its place. We always restore the post when the embargoe is up, and note that it was removed and later restored.
joystiq: Question: |̲̅Midnitte̲̲̲̅̅̅|: How long will you stay on windows XP to allow for vista to stabilize?
Answer: Very long! I've had many years of bad experience with Windows, so I'll always err on the side of caution (read: I'm a MacOS user now).
joystiq: Question: Agentdre: most major sites have a podcast.. will there be a joystiq podcast soon?
Answer: I know, we've been delinquent! We're always considering it but, like you said, most sites already have one. What can we do to make our offering unique, and attractive in a crowded marketplace. When we answer that question, you'll see a Joystiq podcast. (Joycast? Stiqcast? Hrm.... )
joystiq: Question: Carand: Question: Which of PCs and Consoles will win the games "war", or will they just end up merging into the same product?
Answer: Sony says the PS3 isn't a game console, but a computer. What? You don't believe them? ;) Not sure though. I think, eventually, they'll merge ... but eventually, we'll merge with our computers as well and the entire planet will be one large, living, pulsating organic computer. Awesome for Halo 72
joystiq: Question: badbadhorsedan: What is it about Macs that gives nod in favor over Microsoft based PC's? Do they do the business side better & How much gaming do you handle on those systems? Mac ignorant question
Answer: Developers will develop where the gamers are, and they're not on Mac. There are some Mac games, but Windows, as an OS, is far more optimized for gaming. With the newest Intel Macs, I can install Windows on a partition (like I have here) and game all I want, but not be stuck using Windows when I actually need to get work done. MacOS is more stable, Apple's hardware is nicer, and I don't have to worry about it crashing every day ... or viruses .... or spyware.
joystiq: Question: Agentdre: What does joystiq have to offer in the years to come, you guys said you like movies could we start seeing more stuff on the site other than gaming?
Answer: Well, the company we write for, Weblogs Inc, has a movie blog already! Cinematical.com is a great site for movie stuff. I'd like to cover more Machinima on Joystiq, but it's a matter of waiting for the audience to want more of it.
joystiq: Question: fox318: What review site do you guys hold as the most accurate in reviews?(gamespot, ign, or do you just hold metareview as the standard) Also would you guys possible do game/system reviews in the future?
Answer: joystiq: We like to do our own metareviews, and actually weigh the details of what each outlet is saying. The numerical metareviews aren't necessarily any more accurate than just choosing one review. And we do do game reviews, when the game interests us enough. It's not our bread and butter.
Answer: lawlessness: I tend to browse metareview. it's not that i think ign and gamespot lack credibility, but, in general, i think that review scores are inflated (everywhere) -- look at other industries (film, music, book, etc.); the average reviews in those industries are much lower.
joystiq: Thanks for all the questions guys! There were some really great ones in there! Don't be a stranger at Joystiq.com. Leave a comment (as long as it's nice).
[Xfire] Chatteox: That concludes our chat with Joystiq! Thanks again to James and Chris for stopping by.
[Xfire] Chatteox: Chris will be hanging out with us tonight to play some COD2. To play with him add the account gamerscod11 now!
[Xfire] Chatteox: Thanks again to Joystiq!