Why, that'ssss a nicccce everything you have there.

February 18, 2011 11:04 PM

Yogscast is already well known for their gaming related podcasts and video blogging, but have really come into their own with their Minecraft story-telling saga of THE SHADOW OF ISRAPHEL...

Ok, so, it's really less about the storyline and more about a lot of screwing around and witty banter and porkchops. And the occasional bucket of milk. They do create an interesting world, there is actually a storyline and they use Minecraft to great effect as a rather believable - if boxy - world, but it's less about what they're doing and more about what they're not doing. If that makes any sense. Which I doubt that it does. But this is Minecraft we're talking about.

Crack open a freshly cooked porkchop and start with the prequel to THE SHADOW OF ISRAPHEL - Part 11 of Survival Island where Old_Peculiar and Skylord_Lysander make their timely debut by rescuing the Yogscast heroes Xephos (the Spaceman!) and Honeydew (the Dwarf!) from Survival Island with the help of a mysterious airship.

This plot line is continued from the start of Season 3 and currently runs for 11 episodes. I recommend watching them in order, but by all means feel free to skip around as they're just as enjoyable (and confusing!) in any order.

The rest of the Yogscast Minecraft videos are pretty great, too. If you still have no idea what Minecraft is or what it's about, start at the beginning - Part 1: How to Survive the First Night.

posted by loquacious (22 comments total)

is the first link supposed to go to this thread?
posted by slater at 2:01 AM on February 19, 2011

is the first link supposed to go to this thread?

Yep. The main links are the first two in the (more inside). MeFi won't let you only put your links on the more inside part without any links above the fold, so I decided to be clever and make my required link open the thread because I'm sometimes smarter than a ColdFusion script.

The links need a bit of an introduction, really, because it's not the same sort of short attention spam theater that easily explains itself, and I didn't want to crowd the front page with several paragraphs of Minecraft nonsense.

I really like the Yogscast bloke's take on Minecraft because they're just noobs like the rest of us, really, but they're having an awful lot of fun at it and it comes through in the videos. I especially like the bits when they capture the sheer terror of being deep in the heart of a mine and suddenly a creeper starts chasing you around in the dark. They capture the inexplicable terror of Minecraft quite well, as well as the random beauty and fun and aesthetics.
posted by loquacious at 2:17 AM on February 19, 2011

MetaFilter: short attention spam.

Or my kingdom for an comment editing window.
posted by loquacious at 2:19 AM on February 19, 2011 [1 favorite]

I've been watching this for the past couple of weeks. The early episodes are more entertaining as the lack of narrative (it's basically two guys getting harassed by a malevolent spirit) is more enjoyable.
posted by PenDevil at 2:51 AM on February 19, 2011 [1 favorite]

I liked their lengthy 15 part negative review of FFXIV.
posted by ServSci at 4:09 AM on February 19, 2011

I've been watching these for a couple of weeks now and am really enjoying them - for reasons that I do not care to analyse too closely. I love how they maintain a healthy balance between being engaged in the world and just being a couple of dicks with headsets.

The whole Granny Bacon 'arc' was fantastic, btw.
posted by Jofus at 7:30 AM on February 19, 2011

Oh, and i meant to ask: Who are these people who give them these quests? Presumably the hosts have to walk a fine line between appearing to be surprised and actually being surprised.
posted by Jofus at 7:33 AM on February 19, 2011

Metafilter: sometimes smarter than a ColdFusion script
posted by Bonzai at 7:53 AM on February 19, 2011

Listen, what is this, why do I care, where do I click? The first link leads me to a 20 minute video about two tossers screwing around in Minecraft and I am reticent to investigate much of something with eleven parts.
posted by pmv at 9:02 AM on February 19, 2011 [1 favorite]

I love the Yogscast! Their bumbling around in Minecraft makes for one of the funniest "Let's Play"-style series around. Their Fallout 3 videos are great, too.

They're also doing a multipart playthrough of Magicka with Totalbiscuit. If you know anything about how Co-op magicka tends to get, well... explodey, you might take a guess at how this playthrough is going to go.
posted by Grimp0teuthis at 9:29 AM on February 19, 2011

Just finished watching/listening to all the episodes after you linked them in a comment on yesterday's MC post, loq. And thanks for recommending them, I love how they get along and the ingenious use of the game engine.

I tried watching the Magicka playthrough with Totalbiscuit but.. I can hardly stand his voice after a while. It's like he can't exit "radio mode"
posted by pyrex at 10:37 AM on February 19, 2011

The first link leads me to a 20 minute video about two tossers screwing around in Minecraft and I am reticent to investigate much of something with eleven parts.

It's two tossers screwing around in Minecraft. For hours on end. So it's probably not for you.
posted by loquacious at 11:49 AM on February 19, 2011 [3 favorites]

If the one guy would for the love of god stop singing his precious heavenly choir note EVERY TIME HE FINDS SOMETHING I might be convinced to start watching again.
posted by Aquaman at 3:00 PM on February 19, 2011

These guys are so great. I don't know why or how. But their kindness to each other and wonder at the world is really inspiring somehow.
posted by DU at 6:15 PM on February 19, 2011 [4 favorites]

I love it, but I wish they'd gone a while longer just screwing around and building and exploring before going to the staged narrative stuff. It just felt cut off too soon.
posted by tonyx3 at 8:43 AM on February 20, 2011

If the one guy would for the love of god stop singing his precious heavenly choir note EVERY TIME HE FINDS SOMETHING I might be convinced to start watching again.

That's one of the things I look forward to, along with the "whoooouhhhh!" sound he makes every time he's on a precarious ledge or enters a pitch-black mine. Cracks me up every time.

The Granny Bacon arc is pretty awesome, too, yes. What happens with her around episode 10 or 11 is giggle-worthy and sort of awful, at the same time.
posted by wells at 10:46 AM on February 21, 2011

Also --- the line readings for Father Braeburn are just fantastic.
posted by wells at 10:51 AM on February 21, 2011

I must admit, they seem to be having far more fun than I did my first time in Minecraft, which could be summed up succinctly as:


"Oh! Dirt. (dig dig dig jump)

Oh! A tree. (thwack thwack thwack).

Oh! Something actually interesting! (exit exit exit)"
posted by Samizdata at 11:27 AM on February 21, 2011

I have watched wwwaaaayyy too much of this this weekend with a sick baby on my lap.

I admit consternation when I see that they don't lay out their tools in their quick menu the same way I do. NO TORCHES ARE IN NUMBER 4 SLOT
posted by robocop is bleeding at 1:45 PM on February 21, 2011 [1 favorite]

robocop - confirm something for me: The correct Order Of Things should be:
1) Pick axe
2) Shovel
3) Sword
4) Torches
5) Bow
6 - 9) Usually food
posted by Jofus at 5:55 AM on February 23, 2011

Jofus, you number among the Righteous. 6-9 can vary between users (I usually keep my watch in 9, food in 8), but the order of the first 5 should be sacrosanct.
posted by robocop is bleeding at 6:56 AM on February 23, 2011

Naan. Torches are number 2 slot. Bucket of water is number 9. Everything else is situation/mission based.
posted by Severian at 9:13 PM on February 24, 2011