Ducky Obrien Show 025 - How Kick Can Take Over

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

I don't know why platforms always pay millions and go after a few of the biggest streamers when you can save a lot of money and go for way more smaller/medium sized streamers in a wide variety of categories to create an instant healthier ecosystem. Mixer signing Shroud and Ninja didn't work so well.

YouTube ► https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSgvuiIt3iw Blog ► https://duckyobrien.com/

Ducky Obrien Show 024 - Unwanted Feedback - Vampire Hunters

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

Vampire Hunters has so much potential but is marred by tedium and contradictory design elements.

►Steam Store Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2206270/Vampire_Hunters/ ►YouTube Video: https://youtu.be/zZ2I88hUadE ►Blog Article: https://duckyobrien.com/2023/08/11/unwanted-feedback-vampire-hunters/

Ducky Obrien Show 023 - Revisiting Alien Life Simulator

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

The developer reached out to me 2 years after I first covered the game letting me know they're still working on the game. I checked it out and they did great work. The game is still janky and needs work but the developer is actively taking feedback and making changes right away.

The game is a third person roguelite that's heavy on action.

►Dev Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/justinsix ►Dev YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTF55vLsfcuI2epJShoZa0Q ►Steam Store Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1478310/Alien_Life_Sim ►YouTube Preview: https://youtu.be/Fb2RToHJkts

Ducky Obrien Show 022 - The Adpocalypse is upon us

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

YouTube has allegedly been found to be pushing what they call "true view" ads to other outlets. This is a pretty big deal because large corporations are paying YouTube big bucks to advertise what are usually those skippable video ads that play before, in the middle, or at the end of videos. These ads perform better than forced auto playing ads on other sides/games. The result, if corporations don't trust YouTube enough to buy ads anymore, there's less money going out to content creators.

Ducky Obrien Show 021 - Is YouTube fake?

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

This is the audio from my YouTube video talking about the possibility that YouTube is fake. What do I mean by fake? The numbers of views can definitely be manipulated to favor YouTube in terms of obtaining more ad revenue for themselves or go the other way and force creators to pay more money for discoverability and hold their past performance hostage.

It's all speculation!

►YouTube Video Essay: https://youtu.be/0ouScktwv1A ►Blog: https://duckyobrien.com/

Ducky Obrien Show 020 - Ranked Matchmaking is a Scam

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

Lately I've been engaging with only the ranked and competitive modes in video games. I guess I just don't like fun anymore, suffering is the only way I feel alive. However, after spending hundreds and even thousands of hours playing competitive modes across a wide variety of genres, I came to a singular conclusion: ranked and competitive matchmaking is a scam.

Now some of it is defintely a case of what modern gamers would call "a skill issue" and the solution is to "git gud" and I realize that. But, there is something larger moving in the shadows of game development that is more nefarious in nature. In order to show my point we can go back and observe what ranked and competitive matchmaking looked like in the past and compare it to present day matchmaking.

YouTube Video Essay: https://youtu.be/uQ_q6J62TSg Written Blog Article: https://duckyobrien.com/2023/06/29/competitive-matchmaking-is-a-scam/

Ducky Obrien Show 019 - The Finals is pretty fun

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

I managed to play some of The Finals closed playtest. It was pretty fun! It's a 3v3v3 (or 3v3v3v3) first person shooter where the goal is the get the money and cash out with it. It's pretty fast paced with super hectic game play thanks to all the different weapons, gadgets, and level destruction.

Steam Store Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/2073850/THE_FINALS/

YouTube preview: https://youtu.be/yFl3Q98l2m8 Full Match: https://youtu.be/dCqqpXL-W20 Written Article: https://duckyobrien.com/2023/06/27/i-had-fun-with-the-finals/

Ducky Obrien Show 018 - Does Kick have a bot problem, and the future of the platform

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

This episode goes over Kick signing one of the largest streamers, xQc, to its platform for allegedly 70-100 million dollars. That is a lot of money. That begs the question, will this actually bring new viewers to the platform once xQc goes offline.

This is reminiscent to when Ninja and Shroud were signed by Microsoft to Mixer. Unfortunately it did not end well for Mixer but will Kick suffer the same fate?

As I checked the analytics for Kick, I found a long list of what were most probably scam streams that were botted. The site was infested with them.

Despite the bots, Kick does seem to have a noticeable increase in traffic thanks to xQc as well as Amouranth but only time will tell.

►YouTube preview: https://youtu.be/IKdqYsvZ2Qo ►Blog: https://duckyobrien.com/2023/06/19/does-kick-have-a-bot-problem/

Ducky Obrien Show 017 - Starship Troopers Extermination - I'm doing my part

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

This episode goes over Starship Troopers: Extermination. Starship Troopers: Exterminations was developed and published by Offworld Industries. Released on 05/17/2023 with a MSRP of $24.99. Steam Store Page: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1268750/Starship_Troopers_Extermination/

Starship Troopers: Extermination is a pretty fun but janky 16 player co-op pve experience where you fight never ending waves of giant space bugs. It's unpolished and definitely early access but I find it genuinely fun, especially when people use the in game voice chat and role play as space marines.

For full transparency, I received a free review key from Terminals.io. I spent 4.3 hours as of this podcast.

►YouTube preview: https://youtu.be/3vJm2eCct0I ►Blog: https://duckyobrien.com/2023/06/15/starship-troopers-extermination-gameplay-preview-im-doing-my-part/

Ducky Obrien Show 016 - Movies with Captain (Sisu, John Wick 4)

Video Game News, Reviews, and Guides (and sometimes random things)

Captain Passive Aggressive returns to the Ducky Obrien Show to cover action movies Sisu and John Wick Chapter 4.

Sisu (2022) - Directed by Jalmari Helander, stars Jorma Tommila, Aksel Hennie, Jack Doolan and many more

John Wick: Chapter 4 (2023) - Directed by Chad Stahelski, stars Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, George Georgiou, Donnie Yen, Hiroyuki Sanada, Rina Sawayama, and many more

We both liked these movies. They are action packed and definitely filled with a lot of gratuitous violence so they're something you may not want to watch with youngins.

►YouTube Version: https://youtu.be/-hwNLAxo4mo