Why do you follow Content Creators?

[Inculpatus cedo.9234]

I've never seen ads on the videos I watch.  Is that a thing?

Or maybe they are only on certain videos; I only watch the analysis/news ones.

Rarely build stuff, or how to make Gold, or deep lore, etc.

I did watch the one on how to get the best FPS, though. 

 

Oh, and the creator I watch doesn't gush about Guild Wars 2 or ArenaNet.

In fact, is often critical.

I also watched a bit...just a bit...of his videos on other games, as well.  Just to see what they were like.

 

Edit:  I used to watch another creator, as well, but he almost entirely stopped doing Guild War 2 videos.  Shame, as I even 'Patronized' him.  Now, it's just the occasional new Black Lion Weapon video.  Pity.

Edited August 13, 2021 by Inculpatus cedo.9234

[Xanadrine.4352]

I subscribe to MukLuk and WP. I really like those two, they are funny and explain things well, and i love their style.

[Stelawrat.6589]

39 minutes ago, Inculpatus cedo.9234 said:

I've never seen ads on the videos I watch.  Is that a thing? ...

 

Oh, and the creator I watch doesn't gush about Guild Wars 2 or ArenaNet.

In fact, is often critical. ...

I sometimes watch GW2 content on Twitch, but mainly on YouTube, where there are a fair amount of ads. There are times when you have no choice but to watch, but usually there is a "Skip Ad" icon to move right past them.

 

I appreciate the creators who give their honest opinions as well, whether that's credit or criticism, as long as it's deserved. 

[Stalkingwolf.6035]

Only WP for informations.

[Omega.6801]

I only follow WP and Teapot if by following you mean watching their YT stuff. I don't use twitter, reddit or twitch in any capacity. I follow them to hear second opinions or different takes and because they both seem like reasonable persons. Also, at least the YT vids are focused around content. I can't take "creators" serious if all they do is open chests and do giveaways.

[ArchonWing.9480]

I enjoy people creating new content for subjects I'm interesting. The effort is what matters to me the most.  Information is of course the most useful for practical needs but creativity is always appreciated.

 

I dislike low quality memes, excessive toxicity,  and lame efforts to fit in or be trendy. Those things tend to go hand and hand. For example, if the content is just mostly the player going "Omg this kid is trash omegalul kekw", and the chat just spamming frog emotes, I would find that to be pretty unwatchable.

Edited August 13, 2021 by ArchonWing.9480

[Obfuscate.6430]

I follow 2 Guild Wars 2 content creators on Youtube: 1 because I find it easier to keep up with  updates through them. I don't have Twitter and updates aren't always on Guild Wars 2's main web site. So I can usually rely on this content creator to let me know whats new.  I also enjoy when they have their friend on and they brain storm theories and build craft together.  I don't always agree with their opinions and sometimes am so off put by their complete lack of awareness of their privilege that makes their experience VERY different from the average player. 
 
The other I follow because they are charming, and always have funny stories to tell or show and they just have a good vibe. 

I used to follow artist content creators on Tumblr but there is some unpleasant aspect about the tumblr Gw2 community so I generally avoid it now. 

[Doggie.3184]

I actually don't follow any, unless "that_shaman" counts cuz I like to know the future that Anet always keeps secret.

He's a good lad doing his best.

 

Edited August 14, 2021 by Doggie.3184

[Kalocin.5982]

Not even really just GW2 but I just like the content to be straightforward and decent enough quality. There was a WoW content creator I used to watch a few years ago and he used to have most of his videos just be a low-key blog style video which were pretty relaxing when doing other stuff. With the recent drama I decided to watch some of them again out of curiosity for opinions and what not but these days he uses a radio voice and the whole video feels weirdly unnatural. In other words, if the personality is mostly themselves and they don't sound like they're using a mic from 2003 I'll probably like it enough. That being said, I still need to want to watch the video, not going to watch how to make soup when I'm in the mood for a sandwich

[Sovarica.4368]

I like wp I can listen and play or listen to it at work and Lord Hizen is pretty funny but most of the yt gw2 videos have a lot of unappealing blur sometimes the blur is so bad it looks like a mobile game I guess that's why everyone gave up on making machinima's

[Just a flesh wound.3589]

I watch a few on a semi regular basis. There are 3 types that I like.
 

The Informational: the ones that discuss upcoming releases. 
 

New player: it’s interesting to see the game from their viewpoint and see what parts of the game they struggle with and why. 

 

The Adept: someone who is good at part of the game and videos themselves playing, for example one I started watching, a warrior in WvW. A video of his was recommended by YouTube and it showed him fighting multiple opponents and winning. I find it both interesting and informative. 
 

 

 

 

Edited August 14, 2021 by Just a flesh wound.3589

[LSD.4673]

Just the phrase "content creator" is enough to make me switch off.

[killerkram.5129]

15 hours ago, Mungrul.9358 said:

Since coming back to GW2, I've been regularly watching a few well-known GW2 streamers, and one new one.

 

A couple of the ones I see as being the most knowledgeable, I can't actually stand their personalities (they're both fellow Brits, so you can probably guess who), so I tolerate them enough to get what I need out of them.

 

The other fairly knowledgeable one is one who I really like and has a great personality. I find him genuinely funny and substantially less toxic.

 

And the fourth is one who recently started playing, and I'm enjoying watch her go through the game with fresh eyes. It's always worth seeing how new players approach content you're already familiar with. It helps remind you why you started playing in the first place, and can shake you out of being cynically jaded.

I literally know who you are talking about and what h the same folks. Big streams, big content, big gamine, big memes

[Ellye.9123]

I don't watch streamers or youtubers or stuff like that and I frankly don't even understand why people do. Clearly a lot of people enjoy watching them, and I'm not gonna try be a buzzkill for them no reason, but I just "don't get it".

 

Not wanting to sound all  "kids those days with their new habits, back in my day yadayada", but I do suspect it's simply a generational difference.

[Ellye.9123]

2 hours ago, LSD.4673 said:

Just the phrase "content creator" is enough to make me switch off.

I find this phrase so misused, since many of those people don't seem to be creating any content themselves at all.

 

They are just consuming content that other people created and commenting about it - that's not content in itself.

 

Unless we are all being "content creators" right now just because we're commenting on a forum; but that' silly.

Edited August 14, 2021 by Ellye.9123

[Stelawrat.6589]

5 hours ago, LSD.4673 said:

Just the phrase "content creator" is enough to make me switch off.

I used that term in the subject line, largely because ArenaNet uses it relative to the participants in their Partner Program, but also because I think it has become the most widely accepted descriptor, of the people generating the various kinds of social media today. 

 

Honestly, I don't remember what term was used in the 90s when bloggers were a big thing & people uploaded videos to YouTube. I'm pretty sure that most people did it for fun, as a hobby, for free. 

 

I think "content creator" signifies this is someone trying to earn a living, or trying to supplement their earnings from other sources, by providing content of interest, of value to others. 

 

I've watched countless videos by some of the most amazing, knowledgeable players, players whose unrelenting passion for the Guild Wars / GW2 franchise is tangible. I believe that their dedication, the time & effort they've invested is beyond question. 

 

Others not so much, but that is the way with everything.  

[Rogue.8235]

I only go to content creators for objective information on how to do something in-game.  More so, I only go to those that narrate very well, because I can't rely on visual-only information.

 

As for anything else, I have yet to see a single content creator that uses actual objective-based analysis with empirical support from game design, software development, information systems architecture, or really any other evidentiary-based research.  It's always opinions masked as factual truth from what I've seen.  

I don't care to watch videos of other people's opinions.  I have my own subjective takes on things, and listening to someone with the same opinion does nothing.  Neither does listening to someone with contrary opinions without any objective findings.  Such contrary opinions are pretty much just "cool bro, different people have different opinions."  Essentially, different people like different things and I don't need to watch videos to understand this.

 

The biggest use is if I'm not sure about something on the wiki and need further explanation, or if I have questions not covered by information in the wiki.  Then I watch those videos for clarity, which is awesome stuff from the content creators.

[Stelawrat.6589]

3 hours ago, Ellye.9123 said:

I don't watch streamers or youtubers or stuff like that and I frankly don't even understand why people do. Clearly a lot of people enjoy watching them, and I'm not gonna try be a buzzkill for them no reason, but I just "don't get it".

 

Not wanting to sound all  "kids those days with their new habits, back in my day yadayada", but I do suspect it's simply a generational difference.

 

I've been playing MMORPGs, PvE & PvP, for a long time, but I've always been a mediocre player at best & don't want to be a liability to others succeeding in the game. 

Guild Wars & Guild Wars 2 are the only games that I've ever spent money on. These games represent the total package for me, so in an effort to really improve, to be able to participate in everything the games have to offer, I started to look online for help, because I really want to "get it"! ☺️

 

I was amazed at the sheer amount of information there was, spanning years! I settled on, what I consider to be, some of the best presenters. Unfortunately for me, while I've soaked up lots of information from them, like a well-worn sponge, much of their brilliance has seeped through.

 

As a boomer, clearly most of these presenters are from a different generation, but still, their enthusiasm, the joy they take in the game, their honest criticisms, the way they express themselves... all appreciated. 

 

 

[Goettel.4389]

Nothing, don't care about social media

[LSD.4673]

6 hours ago, Ellye.9123 said:

Unless we are all being "content creators" right now just because we're commenting on a forum; but that' silly.

Oh, but that's the thing: we are!

Instead of a "post count", this popular InvisionBB uses a "content count". You'll see in the nav bar "content you posted in", so you can keep up with all your content-needs.

 

It's such a corporate buzzword, which can apply to literally anything: because that's what "content" is.

For example, i generated content in the toilet last night; i ate content for breakfast while watching content on the TV; and later this afternoon, i'll take part in content on the internet while managing my content portfolio in order to generate content i can consume (also known as dinner).

3 hours ago, Stelawrat.6589 said:

I'm pretty sure that most people did it for fun, as a hobby, for free. 

They tend to be the only reliable ones, i find. For example, Dulfy's website always had answers that the wiki lacked. All that was on there were adverts to maintain the site. No self-important self-advertising, or "brand representative" remarks ("as a major contributor to the GW2 community..."), or sneaky-sneaky endorsements to make money on the sly.

Hobby stuff means passion. When you mix in the £££, you turn it into work, and end up with the literal meaning of "generating content" -- which is to say, making stuff for the sake of making it, to keep up the income. 

[yann.1946]

I do, mostly because I like my opinions to be challenged. 

[Tuna Bandit.3786]

For solid information, I obviously go to Noxxi, the Noxxian. 😄

 

Meme's done right

[Donari.5237]

I don't follow any content creator as such.  I do head to Ayinmaiden's help pages for achievement guides (she's the new Dulfy).  I have watched WP in the past but gave up due to motion sickness from non zoomed out video of a character running around doing things unrelated to the narration.  When new cosmetics come out I google up someone doing a demo of them, looking for the shortest video on the theory it will just show me what I want to see and not pad it out with irrelevant fluff.  Same rule of thumb for looking at gold adventure guide videos.

 

That said, what makes a content creator's work valuable to me is their cutting to the chase.  Present me what you're demonstrating in an organized and succinct fashion, without blaring nerve wracking music or nauseating camera zooms, perhaps with added text and arrows on the feed to help explain what's being shown, and you're the one I'm going to look for next time I need assistance with something I don't already know.

[HnRkLnXqZ.1870]

Content creator is mostly translated to streamer and youtuber, but we have a lot of people who create content to make the life easier for other players. This can be in the form of websites, tools (API stuff), videos but also being helpful on the forums and reddit. I consider all of them content creators. 

 

I watch three on youtube once in a while, have a few favorite resource pages that are up-to-date and I have a few forum-members, I gladly read their contributions on certain topics. Whether a content-creator is worth following or not depends on a few factors:

 

1.) Easy to understand and not too long. I enjoy reading a good text, listening to a nice speech or watching a good video. But talking 1h+ to explain something that can be done in 3 small sentences is a joke. 

 

2.) No superiority complex. They are famous and important to certain parts of the community. But that does not mean they are allowed to treat regular players like trash.

 

3.) Reliable information.

 

In addition I try to avoid videos where the visual content does not fit to what they say. Especially talking for an extended period of time, with some random ingame-footage played on repeat is annoying. I like when they explain patch-notes, going into detail of what impact everything can have with examples and summaries of ANet official footage.

 

Something I always ponder about is how they learn about certain 'secrets'. In my early years I had the guess that some content-creators are allowed to beta-test releases and create their guides while the thing is still officially closed. I do not know how they do it. But when a new content-creator pops out of nowhere and tells me about a mechanic that is in the game since 2012, which was never talked about at all, I am a little suspicious. Content creators rarely talk about their sources. I've been copied a few times as well. 

 

[Mungrul.9358]

One thing that annoys me about a lot of the more obnoxious YouTubers is how they completely misunderstand the word "meme", and throw it around as a replacement for something like "lulz".

 

But maybe I'm just being old and complaining about the misappropriation of language, ineffectually shaking my fist at the clouds.