wait... coop live sucks...

[darkclaw]

what the .. I HATE the new format of the show. I used to love coop, now I can't even watch a full show because of all the "interacting with the viewers" shit, not to mention it's .. boring. Seriously, who thought this was a good idea? I understand it costs less - but, seriously, are you seeing an increase in downloads/live viewers from this? Being from a country outside the US, as I'm sure most of the viewers are, I can't "participate" or give feedback, so all I'm left with is a rather dull show..
So seriously guys, man up and return to the old format, if you really think it's time consuming, ask revision 3 for more money, it's worth it.
wtf dudes.

[masterevilace]

Meh.. I have to agree... in a way...
The episodes seem to only really talk about one game for an extended portion of time. I end up skipping around when I watch it.. it's just too long with nothing to really keep pulling me in when I start to drift. The mass effect 2 one I thought was way too long. But that was probably also because I have no interest in the game whatsoever.

I mainly watch co-op because of the indie games that they talk about.. whether it's iphone or DS, or what not (even though I don't own any of those, I enjoy hearing about the game industry and innovations). 30 minutes is a good length of show. A lot of rev3 shows are way too short, and I find an hour way too long except for Diggnation which manages to keep me entertained. Co-op live seems to always be almost exactly an hour.. it just makes it much harder to find time to watch

[optimusgene]

I know this thread is called coop live sucks but I have to disagree. I do think the new format needs some work. The old shows were very fast paced while the new format lends itself to being more relaxed. I like the fact they spend so much time on a game simply because because so many other shows spend so little. TRS does a good job on their reviews but never go that in-depth; this new format allows them to really look under the hood of a game. Sure it kinda sucks if it is a game you are not interested in or for a system you don't have, but even then I find myself intrigued. I'm not going to pass judgment until they have a few more shows under their belt and some more time to refine their vision. The fact they are losing guys like flies is worrisome...

[hipnotiq]

i wouldn't say the new live stuff sucks, but i def preferred the old co-op. I really don't care for the twitter questions and that crap, just for nobodies to get shout outs by asking pointless questions

[karmapolitics]

The fundamental problem is that...no one really cares that much about the guys on the show. Not to be a jerk about it, but I'm more interested in seeing game footage than seeing a self-absorbed philosophical discussion where they're going to say the same shit about the "cliff of realism" and so on.

It's also way too long. One hour with four nerdy guys slouched in chairs? Make this fifteen minutes, cover three games at five minutes a piece, take out the slouched nerds, more high def game footage (really the best part about the show), and you have a winner.

I've been a fan since the 1up days, but I barely watched the last three episodes (still downloaded). I kept on fast-forwarding to the game footage parts, which were few and far between.

[masterevilace]

I don't know about the part about the cast... Certain people bring certain things to the table. Diggnation probably wouldn't be as entertaining without alex and kevin. And I really enjoyed jayfresh.

The main issue I have with this is an interesting one.. I just watched an episode of iFanboy (probably the second episode i've ever watched)... and I've come to the realization that Revision3 is headed towards a bad spot... A lot of their shows are couch shows.
iFanboy = 3 guys on a couch
Diggnation = 2 guys on a couch
DiggDialog = 2 people on 2 couches
LandlineTV = a few guys on a couch introducing segments
Coop Live = a few people on a couch
AnimeTV = lots of people on a couch
Totally Rad Show = 3 guys on stools

The old coop I would definitely not consider a couch show... the new coop live definitely lends itself to be a couch show

[maracle]

I actually like spending most of the episode on a featured game but i do agree that it being live is more of an annoyance rather than a plus. it only means i have to wait until the editor decides to but it on the feed after it aired which i guess is wed now.
also agree with you about this audience participation. not interested in the least

[kzap]

I have to agree, not to the extent that it sucks but being in the UK if I want to watch it live I have to be up rather late for a college night.
I do like the twitter questions though and the pre-recorded section in the Heavy Rain episode was good.
My personal suggestions for improvement

Add more pre-recorded segments
Talk for less time about each game OR edit the live episodes down for downloads (I'm guessing that's beside the point of doing them live though)
Don't make Co-op live a weekly thing, I wouldn't mind it so much if it was, live every other week and the old style the rest of the timeEither way it's a free show so I can't complain, recently I haven't had the time to watch every episode anyway (I download them if there is a specific game I want a review of) so it doesn't bother me that much, just some ideas.

[illu45]

I agree that the format could use some tweaking, but, as the hosts have admitted, this is a new thing for them, and I'm sure we'll see things change as they gain experience and try out new things to see what works and what doesn't. I think that we're already seeing less time being spent on each game (comparing the Heavy Rain segment to the one on Mass Effect 2), and a large amount of pre-prepared segments on different games. The live format is a challenging one, but I'm sure that the guys will be able to figure it out.

[mttskates]

I would have to say that I liked both formats equally. I liked the change in scenery and the fancy real-time screen splits and edits in the outdoor shots around SF, but it sparks the notion that gamers go outside to talk about games :)

[thepester]

Sadly, I have to agree that Co-Op is just not as good now. In fact, I?ve lost almost all interest for the show since the format change. And it really really bums me out, because before the show went live I couldn?t wait for the new episodes to come out.

I?ll disagree with the person who said that the hosts are boring, though. I?ve always loved them together. I think they have a great chemistry...When they package themselves properly. The problem with the live format is that it doesn?t at all play up to their strengths. I think they have a more quirky kind of humour. Hosting a live show requires bigger, more dynamic, ?look-at me!? personalities, and that?s just not what these guys are. (Think about why David Ellis sucked the life out of 1Up after Garnett left.) And unless you have that one personality to lead the way in a live show, and you don?t have a clever script to fall back on, your show is going to be boring, unfortunately. But they?re not boring. They?re just not doing what they do best: Writing and producing.

If they wanted audience involvement so badly, why not just have a quick taped letters segment at the end of their show? I care more about what the Co-Op guys have to say, not what some random audience member has a question about.

So guys,when you get your new show figured out, please please please go back to the way it was before. You had a golden little show going, something that was unique and stood out. Now you're doing, or ended the show, with what everybody else is, and didn't do it nearly as well.

[dizmog]

Exactly what Thepester said ^

[thepester]

^^ Not sure why all my quotations marks and apostrophies were replaced with question marks...Just a weird program quirk, I guess. Sorry about that.

[markhawk]

I'm going to miss this show. I only accepted the new format because it was better then no CO-OP. Now there really is no CO-OP.

Such a sad time in games journalism.

[bizarrodin]

I feel like the whole LIVE format was something that had potential and had it had time to evolve properly it would have ended up being a superior show BUT doesn't look like it's going to get that opportunity.

[Snowfox]

I too miss the old CO-OP show format. It was much more entertaining!

[vulgrin]

My 2 cents, now that I see that CO-OP is dead.

What I really liked about the old format WAS the editing. The editing for the segments was TOP NOTCH, what with all of the different camera angles and box views and such. It showed a real creativity, and like someone above pointed out, made it the OPPOSITE of a "couch show."

The other thing I really missed in the new format was the lack of other voices. I loved seeing other game reviewers, game designers, game writers doing the street or roof spots.

The skits were great too - I understand those are probably time consuming and really difficult to keep up, but they added a lot of entertainment value and soul to the show.

If skits were too costly, then a perfect CO-OP for me would have been 3 game reviews done on the balcony, or on the street, with a cast of guest reviewers, and kept at maybe 10-15 minutes per review TOPS. 1 Hour is really too long for these types of shows - which is really why I love Bytejacker - its nice, bite sized and fun.

I gotta say though: Rev3 really needs to learn when to hit the "undo" button. They have killed show after show when a format change doesn't work out. Someone makes a change, the show sucks and the viewers drop off, and Rev3 is right there with the cleaver. Sometimes, it better to go back to what people like - not try to reinvent everything or slash and burn it because you blew budget on set design and it didn't work immediately.

Anyway, best of luck to you guys in the future. I hope the show comes back in the old format.

[mharrison]

I don't know about the part about the cast... Certain people bring certain things to the table. Diggnation probably wouldn't be as entertaining without alex and kevin. And I really enjoyed jayfresh.

The main issue I have with this is an interesting one.. I just watched an episode of iFanboy (probably the second episode i've ever watched)... and I've come to the realization that Revision3 is headed towards a bad spot... A lot of their shows are couch shows.
iFanboy = 3 guys on a couch
Diggnation = 2 guys on a couch
DiggDialog = 2 people on 2 couches
LandlineTV = a few guys on a couch introducing segments
Coop Live = a few people on a couch
AnimeTV = lots of people on a couch
Totally Rad Show = 3 guys on stools

The old coop I would definitely not consider a couch show... the new coop live definitely lends itself to be a couch show

You forgot Tekzilla - 2 people behind a desk

[cooleo]

I hate the live format, it's great that it was canned.

[boldfire]

I hate the live format, it's great that it was canned.

Whilst I respect Area5's decision not to continue, you think it's great that a show many liked was canned and not being directly replaced (as CoOp was to CoOp Live) just because you hated the live format? Seems a little selfish.