Kotaku: ben croshaw

Yahtzee's GameDamage Evolves And Improves

Mike Fahey — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 12:00:00 MDT

Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw of Zero Punctuation fame and pals Yug and Matt polish off their GameDamage television show, removing a bit of the awkward in favor of more funny.

When Crecente wrote about the original GameDamage pilot in December of last year, he suggested the dynamic trio keep at it and polish up the writing a bit. After watching the trailer that was just released on the GameDamage.net web page, I'd say they took that advice. They also seem to have found some extra money as well, as the production values are much higher than they were previously. This is a show I could see myself watching.

And I might just get to see it. GameDamage is being showcased at the MIPCOM media content event in Cannes, France, where the team is finalizing distribution deals for the program. Looks like we could be seeing a lot more of Yahtzee in the near future.

Zero Punctuation Reviews Condemned 2 (And Indigo Prophecy)

Mark Wilson — Wed, 16 Apr 2008 13:30:00 MDT

This week, Yahtzee officially reviews Condemned 2. And that's great. But then, in the heat of passion, he breaks into a mini-review of Indigo Prophecy. Plus, if you really think about it, there's actually a good amount of rhetoric on the original Condemned, too. So you are actually getting like 2 to 2 1/2 Zero Punctuations this week. And it's all coming at you for a low, low price of just $100 an episode. Oh, didn't you know? Then you're fucked, man. But at least you get some steak knives (for only $8.95 S/H).

Zero Punctuation: Condemned 2: Bloodshot [The Escpaist]

Zero Punctuation Previews Going To X-Play

Mark Wilson — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:40:34 MST

Wow Yahtzee, you've done the impossible. You have a television program running previews of a freaking 3-minute review. Yeah, did you hear? X-Play will be running a snippet of your upcoming Zero Punctuations every Tuesday night. And including the clip's introduction, run time, and accompanying in-show bumpers, we wouldn't be surprised if this Tuesday teaser took just as long as your actual Wednesday review.

It's ludicrous media piggybacking, but we don't blame you...pending that you sleep on a big pile of greenbacks after a hard day's work.

"X-Play" to Feature World Premieres of New "Zero Punctuation" Videos
With Weekly Sneak Previews

Previews of The Escapist Magazine's Popular Web Video Series Debut on "X-Play" Tuesday, Feb. 12 at 8 pm

LOS ANGELES, February 11, 2008 - "Zero Punctuation" is coming to "X-Play," giving viewers of the most-watched video game show on television an exclusive sneak peek at each new episode of the Web's most popular video game review series. Beginning Tuesday, February 12, short previews of the wildly popular videos from creator Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw and The Escapist magazine will become an ongoing "X-Play" feature. Previews of "Zero Punctuation" videos will premiere exclusively on "X-Play" every Tuesday evening, before the Wednesday premiere of the full, uncut reviews at www.escapistmagazine.com, which will remain the series' online home. "Zero Punctuation" makes its world broadcast premiere on "X-Play," February 12, 2008 at 8 pm ET/PT, only on G4.

"Zero Punctuation" has become one of the video game world's most popular and infamous sources of criticism, unleashing reviews that combine humor and scathing insight with uproarious results. Each review combines deceptively simple animation with breathlessly blunt language, mercilessly mocking the weakest points in even the most critically acclaimed games.

"Every game has its faults, even the truly great ones," said Morgan Webb, host of "X-Play." "Nothing is funnier than seeing the mighty mocked."

"I was already really excited about the new 'X-Play' format," said Adam Sessler, host of "X-Play." "Now I can barely contain myself. We're dedicated to giving gaming fans what they want and we know they want 'Zero Punctuation.'"

"'Zero Punctuation' is game reviewing like it's never been done before," said Russ Pitts, Acquisitions and Production Manager at The Escapist. "We're pleased to share the schizophrenia with 'X-Play's' audience."

The "Zero Punctuation" previews are the newest addition to the updated "X-Play" format, which features a daily comprehensive overview of video game news and culture, in addition to the brutally honest reviews for which the show is known. Every weeknight at 8 pm, new, half-hour episodes of "X-Play" will give viewers a comprehensive update on each day's videogame-related developments, along with a wide range of new features, including behind-the-scenes sneak peeks at games in development; interviews with industry luminaries; live, hands-on demonstrations of games before they hit store shelves; and in-depth analysis of the latest videogame trends. More information is available at http://www.g4tv.com/xplay.

Zero Punctuation Takes on Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles

Mark Wilson — Wed, 30 Jan 2008 13:40:41 MST

When Capcom released a rail shooter as their next installment to Resident Evil, it was almost asking for a once over by Zero Punctuation's Ben Croshaw. All in all he's pretty fair to the game and the concept, though thank goodness for black boxes covering cartoon privates.

Favorite line (abridged): "Do you remember what those villains from Captain Planet were like, how they'd steal an oil tanker and deliberately crash smack into a beach just to teach the sea lions a lesson in complacency ...well that's basically the Umbrella Corporation."

Zero Punctuation: Resident Evil: Umbrella Chronicles [theescapist]

The Secrets of Zero Punctuation Revealed!

Mark Wilson — Fri, 25 Jan 2008 12:20:18 MST

We're all big fans of Zero Punctuation around here, so we were pretty eager to read Boing Boing Gadgets' interview with auteur Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw (why we didn't do one ourselves...hindsight). In addition to talking about his favorite games (Silent Hill 2, Prince of Persia: Sands of Time and Portal), Croshaw finally laid to rest the debates we've had over how long these spots take to produce.

I usually take a few days to play through the game and I'll usually finish it, or get as far as I can before I feel I can formulate an opinion. After that I'll devote a day to writing the script...Then comes making the images, which usually takes me 2 or 3 days. I used to record the speech first, but I found that I'd sometimes want to make changes to the script while making the images, especially if I wanted to reword a phrase that I found too hard to visualise. Once the images are done, recording the narration and stringing it all together in Windows Movie Maker is the easy part.

We'd always known it: when the project's said and done the time approaches a full work week. For those interested in the rest of the interview, hit up BBG.

A Nice Little Q&A with Zero Punctuation's Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw [boingboinggadgets]

Zero Punctuation Invades GDC Awards

Brian Crecente — Wed, 23 Jan 2008 12:56:24 MST

Zero Punctuation, everyone's favorite video game rant reviewer, will be making a guest appearance at this year's Game Developer Choice Awards during the GDC next month.

Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw is producing three new Zero Punctuation shorts to be played during the ceremony to present his personal awards for video game achievements last year. Hopefully, they won't lose any of their bite just because they're being made specifically for a group of developers. I suspect they may, in fact, be even more sharp-tongue and witted.

The three videos will pop up on The Escapist online magazine shortly after being shown during the ceremony.

The Escapist and Zero Punctuation Join 8th Annual Game Developers Choice Awards
Animated videos created to honor 2007 industry achievement

Durham, N.C., San Francisco, C.A. - January 23, 2008 - The Escapist, the cutting edge online interactive entertainment publication, is excited to sponsor this year's Game Developers Choice Awards at GDC. The magazine will also be producing three unique Zero Punctuation video shorts to be played during the awards ceremony.

"We're delighted to be a part of an event highlighting the excellent and innovative work of the field we cover," said Julianne Greer, editor-in-chief of The Escapist magazine. "And of course we're going to throw in a little of our own commentary as well, just to spice things up a bit."

The Zero Punctuation videos will debut at the ceremony and feature Ben "Yahtzee" Croshaw presenting his lively review and personal awards of video game achievement in 2007. Fans will be able to find the exclusive videos, amongst Yahtzee's weekly reviews, after the awards on The Escapist. Along with laugh-inducing video content, the magazine is a leader in providing breaking news updates, riveting editorials and reviews from the industry's most accredited writers.

CMP's Game Developers Conference (GDC) produces and hosts the Game Developers Choice Awards, presented by Gamasutra.com and Game Developer Magazine. Held February 20 during GDC, the Game Developers Choice Awards honor the developers of the best video games released in the past year along with key figures from the video game community.