New Type of Video!

Hey everyone!  Sorry I've been inactive lately.  Between injuries, a month long sickness and enjoying life, I haven't been on Youtube in a while (outside of the occasional livestream).  But while recording my newest walkthrough, Sonic the Hedgehog 2, a recent comment by a subscriber popped into my head.  He wondered why I didn't have commentary in my videos.  So an idea popped in my head and from now on, I'll be uploading my walkthroughs in two version: normal, non commentary versions, and versions with commentary!  I've already begun recording my commentary for Sonic 2 and I plan to go back to my older videos and record commentary for them (though some of the older ones are out of the question).

I hope you guys enjoy!  The commentary versions may take a while longer to get out simply because of all the commentary required to record, revise and overall make work but hopefully you will enjoy it enough to make the extra work worth it!

The boom of activity

You may have noticed my two channels have both been thriving as of late.  My main channel, Jerry Martin Gaming, has had no less than 17 new games covered in the last month with several more in the pipeline and my livestreaming channel has been thriving with at least one or two livestreams a week for the past month.  I really hope you guys are enjoying the new content I've been pushing out and I notice that a lot of new subs and comments have been making their way to the channel.  Trust me, I very much appreciate all your guys support and comments.  It makes it worthwhile.

The main reason for this push is twofold.  The first is the announcement of the SNES Classic Edition.  The system looks incredibly cool and there's a fantastic selection of games available on it when it comes out in September.  As such, I really would like to have all 21 games covered by launch.  That way, if you're lucky enough to have one, you can simply go to my channel and check out concise video walkthroughs for every one of the games on it.  As of right now, that's my main focus is to finish off the remaining titles on that list.  As of this writing, I've got 13 games left to cover, though I'm almost done recording for two more leaving it at 11.  While I'm certain I can get most games covered by then, the three remaining RPGs are what I'm most worried about.  So if I'm a little late getting those out, please forgive me.

The second is because I finally plunked down on an Elgato HD capture card, which works incredibly well and allows me to capture and livestream HD footage right from my TV and game consoles.  Because of this, I've been able to bring you more modern games like Mario Kart 8, Super Mario 3D World and Yoshi's Wooly World with a whole slew of more games in the pipeline.  While I do plan to record HD walkthroughs for these modern games (once I'm done with the SNES Classic walkthroughs), right now I've been playing through them live on my second channel, Jerry Martin Livestreams, with some hilarious results, such as a collaboration video with DoubleD and my wife.

Lastly on the update front, I finally joined Twitter.  I'm somewhat new at it but feel free to add me.  I have it linked to my Youtube so anytime there's a new video out, it will auto post and let you guys know so you can check it out.  I also hope to tweet progress about my walkthroughs or livestreams so check me out on Twitter @jerrymgaming for more info!

My next goal after everything is complete is to get a 3DS with a capture card so that I can create quality walkthroughs for any available game as well as livestream some as well.

Livestreaming: What's in Store

So with the opening of my livestreaming channel, I'm sure a lot of you are wondering just what's in store for the future.  Well, I'd like to give you a sneak peek at what I plan to livestream in the future.  Keep in mind that this isn't a definite thing, may not happen for a while and I may back out or change my mind on some of it but this is what I plan on streaming on the new channel at the moment.

• Diablo 3 (With my Fiancee)
• Elder Scrolls 3: Morrowind
• Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion
• Elder Scrolls 5: Skyrim
• Final Fantasy X
• Final Fantasy XI
• Final Fantasy XII: Zodiac Age
• Final Fantasy XIV
• Final Fantasy XV
• Hatsune Miku: Project Diva
• Hatsune Miku: Project Diva 2
• Hatsune Miku: Project Diva Extend
• Hyperdimension Neptunia Re:Birth 1
• Kingdom Hearts Dream Drop Distance HD
• Kingdom Hearts 1.5 + 2.5 Collection
• Jackbox Party Pack
• Jackbox Party Pack 2
• Jackbox Party Pack 3
• Lego Dimensions
• Lego Worlds
• Sword Coast Legends
• Tales of Zestiria
• Unreal Tournament
• World of Final Fantasy

New channel!

If you've been on my channel lately, you've probably noticed it's been pretty stagnant lately.  This is primarily due to having been addicted to my PS4 lately, playing some fun games like FFXV, Lego Dimensions, Jackbox Party Pack and Kingdom Hearts 2.8.  However, I assure you that content is being worked on in the background it's just moving along slower than usual (mainly because I'm focusing on RPG walkthroughs at the moment which definitely take more time than usual).  I assure you that my channel is nowhere near complete as I have tons of games lined up to make walkthroughs for and play.

Readers of this blog likely saw my previous post outlining my return to FFXI after 10 years and how much fun it was.  I also mentioned livestreaming it, which I did for several nights and have every moment of my character's existence recorded (thanks to my new hard drive).  But I mentioned wondering if I should even upload it to my Youtube.  And as I got to thinking, I began to realize that that sort of playthrough wouldn't quite work for my current Youtube channel.  Primarily because my Youtube channel focuses on walkthroughs that complete games 100% in a (hopefully) concise way.  Livestreamed footage doesn't quite work with that goal.  So keen observers might notice a new subchannel: Jerry Martin Livestreams!

My new channel, Jerry Martin Livestreams, hopes to offer quality livestreams and footage in a more relaxed setting.  On this new channel, I hope to livestream a slew of games that go outside the scope of my other channel such as MMOs, Elder Scrolls and a slew of games on current and retro consoles.  We had our inaugural stream the other day in which my sister, her mom and I all played Jackbox Party Pack 2, which if you're not familiar with it, allows not only us to play but people viewing the livestream as well by connecting to the room code with their phone/tablet/computer.  It was a blast, though I hoped someone would have joined us, and the footage is available to watch on the channel if you're interested (as well as a previous livestream I did with friends and youtube viewers).

As always, this new channel (as well as my main channel) will remain focused on the games themselves and not so much me.  As I am not the greatest commentator in the world, I tend to remain quiet most of the time and let the games speak for themselves.  I do hope you'll come check out the channel though and thanks to everyone who's supported my work, whether it be my two channels on Youtube, my stories, my GameFAQs reviews and walkthroughs or just this blog in general.  Thank you and I'll see you around.

Triumphant Return to Vana'Diel

For this post, I wanted to do something a little different and talk a little about myself.  Yes, I have been noticeably absent from Youtube and my other public ventures lately and this gives perfect opportunity to explain one of the reasons I don't wish to be paid for my work.  This is because I do Youtube, GameFAQs guides/reviews and stories for fun as a hobby and I want to be able to break away from it and do something else if I wish.  Lately, I've enjoyed playing through some games and hanging out with my fiancee and it's been a blast which hasn't left me with a huge amount of free time for the above things.  And truthfully, that's the reason for the gaps between uploads.  Yes, it was true that my computer crapped out for a couple years (til I got a new one) but if there are a few month gaps between uploads it's usually because I'm doing something else I enjoy (or working on a lengthy new upload behind the scenes).  And personally, that's the way I want to keep it, not as a slight towards any subscribers or people who enjoy my content and want more but because I want to reserve the option to take a break and enjoy life every so often.  I truly appreciate everyone who subscribes, leaves a comment/feedback or simply enjoys the content I've uploaded and I am extremely grateful to all of you.  But there will be gaps in my upload schedule due to real life as that is my main priority.

So lately I've been playing games like Final Fantasy XV and spending time with my fiancee.  And the other night, my fiancee and I took a trip back to 2002/2003 to play a few homemade games I cooked up back then in RPG Maker 2000.  It was a huge blast and a big nostalgia trip for me while giving my fiancee insight into my life back then.  We both enjoyed ourselves a lot.  But one of them stuck out to me and it was a fangame I made based on Final Fantasy XI, in which you could switch to any of FF's classes, explore Windurst, Bastok, Gustaberg, San D'Oria and Jeuno (though I was still working on adding other areas) and complete a brand new quest involving uniting the three kingdoms.  It made me incredibly nostalgic for FF11 which I had quit in 2007 or 2008 (I can't remember though I'm pretty sure it was in 2007) after having played it since Christmas of 2003.

Though I loved the game, the environments and back story, I wasn't a fan of the game's 6 person level system nor did I enjoy leveling down because I would die several times and half my gear wouldn't work anymore.  I also thought the crafting system was a bit too confusing for my liking.  But still, I enjoyed playing and getting to know the people who joined my guild.  I enjoyed exploring and listening to the music.  And though I played for 4/5 years, eventually I got into other games and MMOs and stopped playing.  But during the recent Steam sale, I saw FFXI's Ultimate edition on sale and I remembered my fond memories of the game.  I also read that the game system was incredibly different and no longer required any party members to grind to max.  So I bought it.

That's where you guys come in.  If any of you watched me on Twitch yesterday, you probably saw my broadcast entitled "Returning to Vana'Diel after 10 years".  I was eager to see what had changed and what remained the same and I wanted you guys to be there with me for the ride.  It was awesome reliving the game once again and seeing all the new additions, the treasure chests, the gained EXP bonuses and dying over and over again before I finally got the trust system quest.  I was able to get up to level 11, complete several missions and explore the area around Bastok, all the while providing boring commentary and noobish information.  But it was fun.  And I have well over 5 hours of footage saved that I can upload.

But at this point, I'm not entirely sure I want to upload it.  As is, I'm a terrible commentator.  And a lot of the footage is grinding and exploring.  As you know, I try to have a clear focus and precise walkthroughs on my channel and this video was anything but (more like a let's play).  Now, I'm debating on whether to upload the entire footage as a live stream archive, edit it into a LP style video series or simply leave it on the hard drive.  Sure, I'd love to cover the game as part of the FF series but I'm afraid it'll be more than 500 parts if I keep this up and most of them will be me running around punching Quadavs.  But lemme know if you guys enjoyed the stream yesterday and whether or not that footage is something you want to see.

Now I'm off to go stream/record more footage!  Hope to see you guys there!