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Feb 24, 2018
5,238
Is that why he posted his drunk review of Ghost Recon Breakpoint bashing the game throughout it instead of putting up a review for an indie gem that he might have otherwise enjoyed?
He's said he has and they nearly always get way less, it's why he adds postive pushes for good indie games he's played in the Jimquisistion itself to give them limelight people will see. Also you know he also just didn't like Breakpoint... Like a lot of people did.
 

oni-link

tag reference no one gets
Member
Oct 25, 2017
16,032
UK
I never said they were or were not fragile.

Not sure what your point is then, you think he liked it more but pretended not to like it as much to get more views?

Because if he honestly thinks it's a 7/10 then that's not being negative on purpose to get more views, is it?

I mean, he's wrong, it's a 10/10 game but he's entitled to his opinion, but like I say, I don't get your point
 

Mercador

Member
Nov 18, 2017
2,840
Quebec City
I think he doesn't understand how AI algorithms are made, no one at Youtube decide what's popular or not. If 95% of his content is negative content, it will bring people watching his negative content. When I'm watching Jim Sterling videos, I expect something, it's his trademark.
 

angel_deamon

attempted ban circumvention by using an alt
Banned
Jan 8, 2018
248
it's PEOPLE !!!! no Youtube/Twitter/Facebook


If we all want to see flowers rain, that's what YouTube will provide!
 

Sanctuary

Member
Oct 27, 2017
14,229
It's pretty telling too how a popular thread on the first page here is titled "Gears 5 controls like garbage."

It reads like a youtube video title. You can even see the red banned circle icon in front of an xbox controller in the thumbnail video right now.

Not really seeing how that's the same issue though since the main reason that thread is so large is because 90% of the replies are in defense of the game. Not because people agree with the negativity, or want to read it. More seem interested on just telling the OP that their opinion is wrong, and that they are all right...

If your only point is that a hyperbolic and negative title will attract people, then I suppose there's that, but the thread itself isn't too terribly focused on being negative. Unless the opposite opinion of the OP is considered being negative.
 
Oct 25, 2017
12,192
My account says different.

I have seriously never gotten ANY of these alt-right, bigoted, videos pushed to me. Again though, I watch lots of live music (so I get lots of live music recommendations), I watch lots of Giant Bomb and some Polygon videos, so I get those recommended, and I watch lots of cooking so I get lots of Bon Appetit and Munchies and stuff. That's literally 90% of my recommendations. I just find it hard to believe that i'm the only one that this algorithm doesn't apply to...or maybe it's that a lot of people watch a lot of toxic, negative youtube channels/people, who you don't really realize how they fit into that toxicity.
 

mael

Avenger
Nov 3, 2017
16,812
It's his channel and I guess he has to do what for views. I wonder how a video that's half shitting on a game and half praising another would go.
I would keep watching myself but that's certainly interesting.
Good thing with Jim is that he doesn't deal with conspiracy shit like some other to steer shit.
He's gonna report on the shit steering but not add to it...unless that's fucking GearBox throwing shit at him I guess.
 
Oct 25, 2017
12,192
I think he doesn't understand how AI algorithms are made, no one at Youtube decide what's popular or not. If 95% of his content is negative content, it will bring people watching his negative content. When I'm watching Jim Sterling videos, I expect something, it's his trademark.
it's PEOPLE !!!! no Youtube/Twitter/Facebook


If we all want to see flowers rain, that's what YouTube will provide!
This is insanely naive and ignorant of studies made in multiple countries on how YT's algorithms naturally gravitates towards racist, violent, extremist and fabricated controversy videos.
 
Feb 24, 2018
5,238
Like five days ago, didn't he suggest that game developers were making file sizes big because of a conspiracy to keep you from buying other games by filling your harddrive and it took multiple developers, including Rami Ismail, making fun of this take before he went "Whoops! That might not be right then!"

Like, I don't know how much more cynical and for-profit negativity you can get than the take of "These games don't have to be that big, developers just hate you and are manipulating you with file sizes."
He made an apology for a tweet that he even he said was made too fast and ill tempered as him being cynical and for-profit. Like it was a reply discussing this and it was something even Kotaku (ResetEra had it's own thread about file size getting too big then as well) and other places were talking about.

Also good to know some game devs also act like petty gamers sometimes as well if that's true about Rami.
 
Oct 25, 2017
5,637
This reminds me of a story.

I once posted a photo of a newspaper ad from my lunch table online.

It was a tweet in that it depicted a Toy Sale with various Peppa Pig/Paw Patrol toys and videos, and next to it was the PS4/Xbox One versions of....

Grand Theft Auto 5.

It even had the 'R18' rating slapped next to it.

At the same time as my dumb remarks about it and maybe a 'tiny' bit of 'going viral' - there was action to stop games rated R18 being sold from traditionally family-orientated department stores.

These two events were quickly meshed together as one, not in the least by a very influential and 'negativity-is-my-talent' centric Youtuber of the time.

The guy co-opted my original photo - but didn't attribute anything to me.

He used the 'furore' - which it never was - and got maybe a fortnight or two's worth of content out of it across social media, videos, podcast etc.

I had been used to seeing my tweet/photo picked up in one or two places, but it never really went anywhere.

But then one of the most famous snarky Youtubers tweets a photo of my table with this bloody newspaper on it, and goes off on a false narrative.

I never liked the Youtuber in question - I respect those who do. I won't name him, most can probably guess who.

My point here is gaming as a medium owes a great debt to the way 'Internet 2.0' evolved. Do we even still call it that?

For better or worse, gaming and the internet (streaming media in particular) are now intrinsically linked. Social media too.

Why is this? It's because gaming went all in on the internet whereas other entertainment mediums have been savvy enough to retain some remnant of their former selves or after spending so much time raising capital in the internet space are now venturing out and 'back' into old territory.

Sorry for the rambling thoughts, it's very early here.
 

Deleted member 82

User requested account closure
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
2,626
In response to some of the replies here, I just have a few questions:

1. Why should a video/channel not be negative or critical?
2. Conversely, why should positivity and praise necessarily be good or better than negativity?
3. If you have a point and are putting forth arguments that warrant negativity, what's the problem?
4. There are countless positive videos about games, companies and the industry out there; where is the need for Jim to be positive when the market for positive gaming videos is already more than well-served elsewhere?
5. Why would you harp on a guy who's calling out predatory industry practices in defense of you, the consumer? I'd understand the hate if he kept insulting consumers, but he's on our side.
6. Why won't you let the guy have his thing? You know, the thing he's good at? Is he contractually forced to cater to your interests?

Some people here are acting like Jim's content is in the same vein as the garbage whiny anti-SJW horseshit idiots like TheQuartering peddle, when in reality there are very few channels out there that truly home in on corporate greed and shady business models on a systemic level the way Jim does. As far as I know, not only was he a pioneer on that front, he's still - much to my dismay - very unique. There's no channel like his out there. And I like the fact that he's becoming more and more open about his leftist angle; I'm sure that if you were to chart the number of times he says "capitalism" in a video throughout the years, the curve would be trending higher and higher. Good on him. It's something that, again, makes him very unique among gaming-focused YouTubers; far too few YouTubers engage in systemic criticism of the industry.

And I can't help but agree with him: why wouldn't he talk about the same topics over and over when the industry keeps pulling the same shit over and over? It's not like he's regurgitating controversies from 10 years ago. The industry keeps outdoing itself, and so shall Jim. The corporate fuckers want to fuck us, and people like Jim won't let them off the hook. Good.
 

Imran

Member
Oct 24, 2017
6,586
He made an apology for a tweet that he even he said was made too fast and ill tempered as him being cynical and for-profit. Like it was a reply discussing this and it was something even Kotaku and other places were talking about.

Also good to know some game devs also act like petty gamers sometimes as well if that's true about Rami.
The issue isn't that he said something dumb and apologized. This isn't "Jim Sterling is a bad person because he engages in a wild conspiracy and refuses to apologize!" and thus the act of admitting it was a wild conspiracy and apologizing for it totally undoes, like, saying it.

The point is that bemoaning negativity as selling better while simultaneously being so desperate to find it wherever you can because it's quite simply part of your brand is, regardless of the sincerity of an apology, feeding in to the exact same thing you're complaining about. "Sorry I said bad things into a megaphone, I didn't realize it was on" fucking sucks, because that sound carries on pretty far.

And no, Kotaku did not say that game file sizes were big because [evil conspiracy] and blaming game developers for dunking on that take is absolutely insane.
 
Oct 1, 2019
191
Not sure what your point is then, you think he liked it more but pretended not to like it as much to get more views?

Because if he honestly thinks it's a 7/10 then that's not being negative on purpose to get more views, is it?

I mean, he's wrong, it's a 10/10 game but he's entitled to his opinion, but like I say, I don't get your point


In my first post I was refering to this:
If he started to be negative on those things just for the sake of 'negativity equals more views' and now he's compromising the integrity of his content simply -to be negative- then that would suck.

and saying I believe he was intentionally being negative to attract attention. It's pretty clear by his video that he was misrepresenting the weapon durability on purpose (showing himself picking up a new weapon and then cutting to video of him switching to that weapon and it breaking in 3 hits, which he obviously used more in unseen gameplay in order to get the weapon durability down so it'd break in 3 hits) while simultaneously insulting the fanbase AND saying they would overreact to his comments. This is the internet, insult a group of people and a percentage of them will react. A large group will have more people react. When people reacted as expected he got to point out how right he was and people kept talking about him. He created drama and milked it as long as he could. That's pretty much his job.

And before you think I fall into that category of fragile fanbase, just know I also found the weapon durability to be annoying at times. Also, I feel like I need to say I don't think it was morally wrong to do something like this. The video was more entertaining than it would have been if he didn't do these things, and he's an entertainer.
 

Goldenroad

Attempted to circumvent ban with alt account
Banned
Nov 2, 2017
9,475

Did you actually read any of these? I've read through four of the five so far. It's typically, and I quote; "The researchers used a set of keywords to search for content related to these three categories and then monitored the first 200 English results. Channels with most related content to the topic were also added along with names of individuals associated with alt-right." OR " We followed YouTube's recommendation algorithm wherever it took us. We started off with 329 channels from the right, 543 from political parties and politicians, the top 250 US mainstream channels (from Socialblade.com), and 234 channels from the left."

No one gets "randomly" recommended Alt-right, or Alt-Lite or "IDW" videos out of the blue. You have to start somewhere to get there. They are either using search terms that would make them more likely to be recommended those videos, or "started off with 329 channels from the right, etc". Stay away from those keywords. Stay away from those channels. Stay away from that type of content and it mostly won't find you. Yes, the rabbit hole is slippery once you go down that patch, but it does not just recommend you an Alex Jones or Logan Paul video just because you watched the Beatles Rooftop concert. You have to either start with videos about politics, or videos from people who have posted videos of said politics, or people who have lots of commentators who post a lot of comments on alt-right videos or whatever. Again. I don't get recommended those types of videos because I don't watch that type of content.

My point is just that you don't get randomly recommended alt-right, or even "negative", videos. None of the links you posted argue otherwise. You are recommended videos based on the videos you watch. You don't get recommended Phish concerts all the time if you've never watched a Phish concert or song on Youtube.
 

EvilBoris

Prophet of Truth - HDTVtest
Verified
Oct 29, 2017
16,684
He earns $12000 per month from Patreon, why does he need to intentionally generate negative content?

create the content you love, you get paid either way....
 

SugarNoodles

Member
Nov 3, 2017
8,625
Portland, OR
Whine about YTers being negative all you want, but someone is viewing that content enough that it's a profitable business to be in. People love a good car crash and to see someone being trashed and destroyed publically. This place has been guilty of it plenty of times before. Want YTers to make more positive videos? Start watching their more positive content and push them to make more positive content.
For the love of libertarians are so exhausting.
 

IamFlying

Alt Account
Banned
Apr 6, 2019
765
I think he doesn't understand how AI algorithms are made, no one at Youtube decide what's popular or not.

People act as if AI algorithm are not "biased". AI are not "better" or more objective than humans. My YouTube or Netflix recommendation are often completely wrong.

Its like the Google algorithm for image recognition, that decided that images of black people are animals (gorillas) because he was mainly fed with white human images.
 
Oct 25, 2017
12,192
Did you actually read any of these? I've read through four of the five so far. It's typically, and I quote; "The researchers used a set of keywords to search for content related to these three categories and then monitored the first 200 English results. Channels with most related content to the topic were also added along with names of individuals associated with alt-right." OR " We followed YouTube's recommendation algorithm wherever it took us. We started off with 329 channels from the right, 543 from political parties and politicians, the top 250 US mainstream channels (from Socialblade.com), and 234 channels from the left."

No one gets "randomly" recommended Alt-right, or Alt-Lite or "IDW" videos out of the blue. You have to start somewhere to get there. They are either using search terms that would make them more likely to be recommended those videos, or "started off with 329 channels from the right, etc". Stay away from those keywords. Stay away from those channels. Stay away from that type of content and it mostly won't find you. Yes, the rabbit hole is slippery once you go down that patch, but it does not just recommend you an Alex Jones or Logan Paul video just because you watched the Beatles Rooftop concert. You have to either start with videos about politics, or videos from people who have posted videos of said politics, or people who have lots of commentators who post a lot of comments on alt-right videos or whatever. Again. I don't get recommended those types of videos because I don't watch that type of content.

My point is just that you don't get randomly recommended alt-right, or even "negative", videos. None of the links you posted argue otherwise. You are recommended videos based on the videos you watch. You don't get recommended Phish concerts all the time if you've never watched a Phish concert or song on Youtube.
The point is not that you are being forced to watch them, but that very quickly you are recommended them.

Watch a peppa pig video and get recommended child abuse channels. Watch a Battlefield video and get recommended TheQuartering. Watch literally anything and get huge red arrows pointing out how this actor totally lied about something.

And your last paragraph is straight up wrong. Again, I don't use a youtube account and have self destructing cookies and filters. If I open a random game video, sometimes I get recommended drama about musicians that split ways, sometimes I get recommendations about homecooking, sometimes ufology videos, sometimes religion conspiracy, sometimes pyramid schemes, sometimes extremist political discourse. Every time is a surprise.

This was in July, while I watched an EZA podcast:
unknown.png


A bunch of homecooking and MCU videos. Yeah, not toxic, but try and tell me that a videogame podcast talking about Fortnite and Joycon drift has to do with homecooking. Tell me how I "started somewhere" to get there.

From June 2018, I got hit with 70s music, pirated movies, a top 10 games and a doc on French history:
Capturar.JPG


I absolutely got hit with randomass fascist videos and "women are ruining our games" for no good reason multiple times before. I didn't click on them, so I didn't kept getting recommend until I closed my browser that day, but why the hell I got those recommendations one video in?
 

Dreamboum

Member
Oct 28, 2017
22,865
My account says different.

I have seriously never gotten ANY of these alt-right, bigoted, videos pushed to me. Again though, I watch lots of live music (so I get lots of live music recommendations), I watch lots of Giant Bomb and some Polygon videos, so I get those recommended, and I watch lots of cooking so I get lots of Bon Appetit and Munchies and stuff. That's literally 90% of my recommendations. I just find it hard to believe that i'm the only one that this algorithm doesn't apply to...or maybe it's that a lot of people watch a lot of toxic, negative youtube channels/people, who you don't really realize how they fit into that toxicity.
I would get flagged as a peterson lover who hates censorship of vagina bones in gaming for watching final fantasy songs. Come on, it's widespread and a common opinion for a lot of people. Unless you think all those folks are flaming gators, then the algorithm has some answers to give.
 

Boddy

User Requested Ban
Banned
Oct 25, 2017
2,160
Not sure what your point is then, you think he liked it more but pretended not to like it as much to get more views?

Because if he honestly thinks it's a 7/10 then that's not being negative on purpose to get more views, is it?

I mean, he's wrong, it's a 10/10 game but he's entitled to his opinion, but like I say, I don't get your point
"His opinion is wrong but he is entitled to his opinion."
 

oni-link

tag reference no one gets
Member
Oct 25, 2017
16,032
UK
"His opinion is wrong but he is entitled to his opinion."

I was being tongue in cheek, there is nothing wrong with giving a game whatever score you believe it should get

It's a 10/10 to me, but it doesn't bother me that Jim, or anyone else, thinks it's 7/10, or any score
 

EvilBoris

Prophet of Truth - HDTVtest
Verified
Oct 29, 2017
16,684
Do you think his Patreon support isn't tied in some way to the popularity of his videos?

he is specially saying it's YouTube's algorithm that's is to blame for why negative content is made , however he sits outside of that mechanism for delivery as he is producing content for his patreon people, not for youtube's algorithm.
I would understand the sentiment if it was "I live on ad revenue, so I need the clicks", but instead he opts for an ad free environment funded by patreon.

If the argument is that his Audience thrives on his toxic negativity, then isn't that almost even worse that he condones that by producing the content to satiate them rather than producing them purely to manipulate an algorithm?
 

Dymaxion

Member
Sep 19, 2018
1,138
I watched a lot of tv animation criticism videos in the past. Some of them were negative, many of them were trying to promote a show as good. But YouTube kept recommending me a video about why a show I like sucks.

I never clicked on it and got tired of watching cartoon and anime critics all the time. The recommendation went away, and now I get recommendations more in line with what I want to see. There's still plenty of gaming negativity suggested my way, but I've learned that much of that stuff is not worth making a fuss over.
 

Mercador

Member
Nov 18, 2017
2,840
Quebec City
This is insanely naive and ignorant of studies made in multiple countries on how YT's algorithms naturally gravitates towards racist, violent, extremist and fabricated controversy videos.
Strange enough, I don't get any alt-right videos as another member wrote earlier in the thread. Do you know what was Google bombing like 10 years ago? Thinking there's someone at Youtube that decide which is ok or not is naive from my point of view.

People act as if AI algorithm are not "biased". AI are not "better" or more objective than humans. My YouTube or Netflix recommendation are often completely wrong.

I don't say it's better but yes, I think it's more objective than an human with emotions. It takes raw data, make statistics and do math models. It doesn't say it's a conspiracy because it doesn't serve the wished narrative. Though, that's my point of view, as an human (as far as I know).
 

jett

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,659
Like five days ago, didn't he suggest that game developers were making file sizes big because of a conspiracy to keep you from buying other games by filling your harddrive and it took multiple developers, including Rami Ismail, making fun of this take before he went "Whoops! That might not be right then!"

Like, I don't know how much more cynical and for-profit negativity you can get than the take of "These games don't have to be that big, developers just hate you and are manipulating you with file sizes."
lol fucking hell
 

ArjanN

Member
Oct 25, 2017
10,114
I like how people think they're clever pointing out Jim's own negativity when he comments himself on that tweet in the OP. Just read the OP before making the same redundant joke post.

he is specially saying it's YouTube's algorithm that's is to blame for why negative content is made , however he sits outside of that mechanism for delivery as he is producing content for his patreon people, not for youtube's algorithm.
I would understand the sentiment if it was "I live on ad revenue, so I need the clicks", but instead he opts for an ad free environment funded by patreon.

If the argument is that his Audience thrives on his toxic negativity, then isn't that almost even worse that he condones that by producing the content to satiate them rather than producing them purely to manipulate an algorithm?

While he technically sits outsiude that mechanisim, without youtube views you're not going to get a sustainable number of Patreon backers most likely.

Strange enough, I don't get any alt-right videos as another member wrote earlier in the thread. Do you know what was Google bombing like 10 years ago? Thinking there's someone at Youtube that decide which is ok or not is naive from my point of view.

I don't say it's better but yes, I think it's more objective than an human with emotions. It takes raw data, make statistics and do math models. It doesn't say it's a conspiracy because it doesn't serve the wished narrative. Though, that's my point of view, as an human (as far as I know).

It's not really more objective, the model is just going off what people click on/watch the most, which is going to skew towards negative/reactionary shit. Youtube just built the system for maximum profitiability and in practice it turns out that drives negative content more than postive content.
 
Last edited:

jett

Community Resettler
Member
Oct 25, 2017
44,659
Hey you know what. Its a CEEEERAZY thing to say. But I am all for admitting mistakes. Still that is almost hilariously crazy.
It's not crazy.

It's idiotic.

So patently stupid I find it unbelievable that he said it for any other reason than to rile people with his usual schtick.
 

Professor Beef

Official ResetEra™ Chao Puncher
Member
Oct 25, 2017
22,501
The Digital World
Why does he need views? Isn't his income Patreon-based?
Only his Jimquisition videos on Mondays. Specifically:
What Does This Patreon Cover?

The Jimquisition Video Series

My weekly webseries, ad-free, hosted on my YouTube channel (JimSterling), every Monday. The Jimquisition is a topical show that discusses the game industry, particularly criticizing business practices and anti-consumer tactics among "AAA" publishers, as well as other interesting and often controversial developments involving games.

Aiming to "never miss a Monday," I'm proud to say I've managed to keep the show running through sickness, through conflicting commitments, even through a gall bladder surgery. Like a Stark in Winterfell, there must always be a Jimquisition on a Monday.

I mean... until the week I inevitably surrender... but I'll make up for it!

Podcasts
The Jimquisition Podcast channel (available wherever good podcasts can be obtained) contains hours upon hours of audio. Our flagship show, Podquisition, features Laura Kate Dale (Kotaku UK) and Gavin Dunne (Miracle of Sound) as co-hosts and discusses weekly news, releases, and weird garbage.

The Spin-off Doctors is co-hosted by Conrad Zimmerman and discusses movies based on games. Despite it being a great idea at the time, by the time we started doing movies like Pixels and Onechanbara, we realized we made a grave error. Listen to our pain!

As well as those two shows, the channel plays host to other occasional audio content, such Jim Won't Give Ian His VR, a series in which comedian Ian Boldsworth tries to bully me into giving him a VR headset.

Any Stupid Ad-Free Projects
The success of The Jimquisition's Patreon has allowed me to hire a full-time art director, Justin McDaniel, which has resulted in a better main product and all-new content. In addition to The Jimquisition, we'll be offering other ad-free shows under the Jimquisition "brand", so to speak.

Such shows include the popular Commentocracy, in which alter-ego Duke Amiel du H'ardcore reads out smug elitist comments from self-styled hardcore gamers.
 

Karak

Banned
Oct 27, 2017
2,088
It's not crazy.

It's idiotic.

So patently stupid I find it unbelievable that he said it for any other reason than to rile people with his usual schtick.
Could be. I don't have ESP to know exactly what he thinks and since I know crazier people in real life than ANYTHING even remotely that down to earth my baseline for crazy versus idiotic might be skewed. In fact I am SURE it is lol. But it was funny as hell to read
 

Renteka-Bond

Chicken Chaser
Member
Dec 28, 2017
4,273
Clearwater, Florida
So THAT'S why I kept getting recommended videos from some guy talking about how 'woke sjws' got owned because Atelier Ryza sold well, even after blocking the channel like 3 times.

Not surprising, there's a reason clickbait is so successful and even before algorithms, we were weened on AVGN and ChannelAwesome back in the day.
 

Mercador

Member
Nov 18, 2017
2,840
Quebec City
It's not really more objective, the model is just going off what people click on/watch the most, which is going to skew towards negative/reactionary shit. Youtube just built the system for maximum profitiability and in practice it turns out that drives negative content more than postive content.
From my point of view, the suggestion algorithm is more objective than a person. As for "why negativity sells", it's a philosophical debate and I don't master English enough to be able to explain what I think.

What are you saying? That automation makes better moral judgment?
No. Automation don't even know what is moral or judgment. It's just mathematics.
 
OP
OP
lowhighkang_LHK
Oct 25, 2017
5,885
Las Vegas
Noticed that before, I start watching pretty inoffensive videos on a subject and suddenly the "suggestions" on what to watch next are filled with drama channels on that topic. I never click over but it seems other people do so it's always the same cycle no matter the topic. My pet peeve is watching movie trailers and then they suggest those stupid reaction channels that just leech off the main content. Super annoying and I never click over.

Basically this. "Drama channels"