B8factor and Gameg1rl Commentated Replays

Oh sjit that was truly a tiresome game. Mein got C<3L is a mean player. He just slowly kept picking you off into smaller and smaller piece. I really felt the pain watching this @b8factor. Your moment comes in to die in a glorious battle and here comes orange taking it away from you. So harsh and the suicide was honestly just a really sad ending. Understandable and sad. I would have quitted and cried for the night.


What do you think about the anchors btw? I noticed that you countered it pretty well with some bluehawks however I still think they're too good at the moment. You can't say lets take out the anchors with an army of avengers since its just too expensive too take out. I'd say that the only nice counter is an umbrella creep or bluehawks ( retaking gas giants is a pain in the *** when there are anchors). I'll just add @tvinita so that he can check the video and see the anchors in action. I love the buff on the holkins and pelter btw. They feel much better with the HP buff (still some targeting AI in the future would be nice since I saw white's holkins shooting at the base instead of an incoming army).

Also I don't think the nuke did a good job. Maybe it would have been better to scout his home base take out that with the nuke or even better build air dominance with that metal and screw up his metal. Thought you definately had a disadvantage.

I hope you got your payback for that cruelsome game. We'll find out I guess!

Gamegirl you should have done a holkinscreep! Get white out of his shell. Good game though.

Yes, having more intel on him would have been a good thing. That is one of the advantages of owning a lot of real-estate… it makes it difficult for your enemies to get a clear picture at what you are doing. Either they have too much ground to cover or you get plenty of advanced warning they are coming and can stop them from seeing your plans.

This game was frustrating, but X did a fantastic job! I enjoyed the see-saw attacks and trying to plan for them. This reminds me a little of the game with you when you did the same thing to me… near that exact same starting base! I made the same mistake there I did here. I think when faced with an enemy that has more you cannot simply try to go toe to toe with the expensive units. I think bunkering in on 2 bases and switching to a bit of turtle with defense and shellers and then converting the rest of your metal into some surprise attack is the way to go. Either mass hummingbirds with some bombers to hurt their econ.. some cheap dox and huminbirds to harass everywhere while you gather intel, or some snipe tactic to catch them off guard when they try to break your line. I should try to do something like this next time I am in a bind!

This map has been fun but it has become more and more clear the starting positions are not quite balanced. I wanted to tweak as I go but the system designer bug has stunted my development on this. I am glad to have a fix now, even if it is home grown.
I think rather than fix this map, since it has been played so much, I might just make another and I want to try a small moon again in addition to the 900 planet. I do like 1 large planet but I am wondering if a small moon with 5 mex on it might give a player stuck in a hard spot an opportunity to seek a second base on the moon as well as the ability to turn it into a super weapon! My fear is it creates a turtle situation that slows down game play. The same can be aid for adding too much water on my worlds. Every time I have too many lakes it turns into cracking the turtle base which is LONG.

We had a great game on the rematch, will be working to get it posted soon!

Just FYI, X<3L is also known as EXLOstejon.

He/she is probably the best macro player and most likely has the most playtime out of everyone, although i don't think they have a forum account or PA Stats page.

I was impressed. We re-matched on our very next game, fun stuff.... try to get it up soon. Kiwi, how you enjoying the new build?

PS Been studying your and Alpha's build trying to learn how to be more efficient early game. Both of you just have so much econ and so many units so fast, it is impressive.

Just FYI, X<3L is also known as EXLOstejon.

I'm liking the new build a lot but usually only have time to play 1 or 2 games.

Planetary Annihilation #21 "Revenge" Commentated Replay
We have a new MIC but have not perfected using it yet. This was a fun match with some NEW nemesis and old!


Commanders:
@b8factor
@gameg1rl
@pihyf
@bayronxassassin
@corgiarmy
@trialq
@X<2L
@startrek420

I really enjoyed this game. I wish X<2L or black would have survived just a little bit longer. My forces were extended too far. I thought I was in the lead eco wise and might be able to take out trailq before fighting B8. However, I couldn't protect my expansions from B8 and protect my main base (HQ) from two dangerous players Trialq and Gamergirl. Neither player caused too much damage to my HQ during your siege of my expansions (Trialq tried to snipe me), but I saw their army's size and knew I couldn't leave my HQ unguarded. After B8 took my expansions, my eco was abysmal, so it was just a matter of time until my HQ was destroyed (with help from Gamergirl's unit cannon). I was hoping B8's energy was low and I could get a quick boombot kill, but this plan was flawed bc I didn't have a clue where your HQ/comannder was located and B8 nuked most of the force I was going to use in my attack. In hindsight, I should have tried to ally with gamegirl or Trailq. Oh well, such is a FFA and their unpredictability makes them fun to play.

It was indeed fun. When I was watching the replay I had noticed a window just before I initially moved in to attack you and then retreated when I scouted the large amount of shellers that you had a MASSIVE amount of units when I was still generating an army due to losses incurred form my previous two campaigns! I would have been hard pressed to defend against that. But in a FFA protecting your base and acquiring new territory can be a balancing act!

I was fortunate enough to take out X<3L quickly. It looks like my time spent studying his build and weakness paid off! If off just a little bit I would have been facing a much larger army commanded by a far quicker macro player than myself and would have been at war for a long time!

It was also fortunate that StarTrek did not decide to move in on my while my initial army was away. If you had been in his location I would have been stuck between a rock and hard place! Such is the life if FFA games! They are so chaotic and so fun, IMO! Hehe

Win or lose that game was a heck of a lot of fun just due to all the large armies bashing heads on the battlefield! So much fun to play in game so much fun watching after on the replays. I had units moving in all directions on that one!

B8

Planetary Annihilation #22 "We're NOT in Kansas Anymore" Commentated Replay
Special Edition!
New System, very active game, lots of fun to play and watch! Feed back appreciated!



@b8factor
@gameg1rl
@corgiarmy
@fuckingponysman
@dahrage2132
@hbktrojan
@Alpha2546
@theiban

Another classic game. I like that Alpha and B8 are always fighting each other early in these games. Their battles always have a little extra intensity. I should have tried saving Alpha and attacked B8 instead of attacking thebian. The problem with these games is that there are too many good players. While I think there are favorites to win (B8, Gamegirl, and Alpha), any player in this game could have taken out another. This creates a very difficult situation. If I attack B8 instead of thebian, thebian probably gets pony's base and then attacks me. Oh well, this makes the games fun and challenging.

I wasted metal early by not building storage, but besides that I thought I played pretty good. I will admit, I lost to a better player with a better strategy. I will learn from this and try to improve my play (like I always try to do). Good game to all the players and I hope to play a couple more FFA this week. Hope to see some of the usual frienemies and maybe some new ones!

b8factor. i love your commentary, and i hate it at the
same time. its descriptive, it tells me things that make me say, "why dident i think of that?" it shows me strategy's ive thought inefeasible before in this game, but the main problem with your commentary in my opinion, is that its a little dry. i find myself bored at times, or cringing as you try to explain something in a voice you think is interesting. maybe check out Zaphodx's and marshals commentary, as its never dull. perhaps you could ask him about co-casting with him, as i feel that would be really fun to watch.

www.youtube.com/channel/UCY75Oc9isHEPZZHTwWvrKEw

Just watch a couple if you haven't already. you will see the difference.

Thanks Ace!

We are still trying to find our groove. We do not commentate to be professional commentators, as I already have a day job(43, Senior programmer). We do it because we enjoy sharing strategy and tactics and thought we would try it with this medium. We are experimenting with so many things at the same time: YouTube, Adobe Premier, Audacity, sharing our ideas publicly, and entertaining... just to name a few. All these things are NEW to us and we are learning them on the way.

I am super happy to have a wife who likes experimenting with the same hobbies I enjoy. There are two players commentating here. I have been playing RTS style games for over three decades, and know the patterns, strategies, and lingo. My wife has only been playing for a few months. We enjoy showing our different styles and levels of play.

I have watched, and subscribe, to all the commentators you mentioned as well as many more. Though I do not share your opinion that they are "never dull", I do very much enjoy their casts. I also have a personal preference for foreign accents, haha. I feel as though do not have a voice for public speaking, but I work with what I have.

Ace, (or anyone else reading), in an attempt to improve our content, we would appreciate feedback on the list below. This is our current recipe for a commentated replays. We would like to know what you enjoy and what you do not.

A few things we have been trying to include in our casts:
(Time we spend on producing this component; including research, post production, and setup)
1. A little consistency, naming the players and taking some time to show each player at some point (10 minutes)
2. Cover the strategy and tactics of my game play, from my perspective (40 minutes)
3. Cover the progression of my wife's story (40 minutes)
4. Trying to take a 40-70 minute FFA and wrap it up into under 40 minutes while showing the critical points that contributed to the win for one player (160 minutes)
5. Add some eye candy or entertainment using the current game's scenes from the replay (180 minutes)
6. Find a captivating screen shot within the replay to represent the game as a thumbnail (30 minutes)

-B8 and GG

PS @Bob620 @KillerKiwiJuice @Alpha2546 @corgiarmy @theiban to name a few who have posted replies before, we would especially love to hear from you!

well, for me, I believe the fact that there is very little interplay between you and your wife is the reason it can get a bit dull. I in fact will be getting into casting over the next few months on a channel called tangled wires. By the way, I think going into cinematic cam with ctrl+m would be much better for the large clashes.

I enjoy both my bouts with Alpha and you! I feel, at least in the games I have witnessed, that Alpha is more aggressive than you but you are both TOP NOTCH players!


I think it would have been fun if you had targeted me. I have always said that I enjoy the uphill battles far more than an easy annihilation. I think it shows in this video, you see how excited I am when stretched thin, confronted by something I was not expecting, or seeing how LARGE my wife’s army was! Haha


I am not sure I would call a lot of good players in a match a problem, in my eyes it amps up the adrenaline and game play. They are far more thrilling to play AND WATCH! IMO, that is GOOD!


I sometimes talk about what could have been done, but not as often as I talk about what I am doing. This is for a good reason, it is hard to predict the outcome of changing your choice… a ripple effect of what decision they would make different if you did X instead of Y. And so on and so on. I believe FFA are volatile, but the cream does rise to the surface, you will find that over time the same players will be in the 1, 2, and 3rd place position over and over.


“lost to a better player”, I do not think so. Now if we were comparing a Silver player to a Uber player than yes, “better player” is applicable. But in this situation, factoring in how often you and I trade wins/losses, I would say it was more accurate description as “better choices” than you in this particular game. Just like the game prior you made “better choices” than I and took me out.


One of the things I love about FFA games is how hard it is to balance all the intel coming in and decided who to attack. In a 1v1, that choice does not need to be made… you only have to worry about when. In the FFA both WHEN and WHO have to be thought about. I like to think of the WHO as the politics of the game. The WHEN and WHERE as the strategy of the game. And the HOW as the tactics of the game.

=B8

Thanks for the compliment. I try to attack the player, in my view, who is in the weakest position. My goal is to gain mex and not lose too many units. You and gamegirl are tough players to catch napping. I am not aggressive as I was with past builds. I think defenses are too strong at the moment. I avoid attacking early bc walls, turrets, and cannons just rip your T1 army apart. I think grenadiers should be the counter by extending their range and reducing their damage (IMO).

I was impressed with your dox/gille strategy. I think of dox as weak, but you managed to use it as the backbone of your army and defeat my T2 tanks. That strategy shouldn't work but you managed to do it.

As far as "how to improve the videos" question. It depends on your goals. If you are doing it for fun, your doing a great job now!

I don't have a problem with the sound and the setup. Yes, some things you do are cheesey, but its lighthearted and fun. You are different from all the other caster out there. You are more of the technical expert rather then color commentator. Yes, your voice can't compete with James Earl Jones, but it is clear and your points are concise. I would keep the videos under 40 mins, and uses the cinema view more.

Corgi

Planetary Annihilation #23 "The Siege" Commentated Replay

We were asked by @ace902902 to include more interplay between @gameg1rl and myself like we have done in past videos. Check out "The Siege" for non-stop action and wave after wave of attacks! Stike 5 and nobody's out!

Feedback IS appreciated!



Commanders:
@b8factor
@gameg1rl
@rg138
@seb82
@theiban
@optimusprime
@timo123lol
@Tapatun

Just wanted to say that this is a fantastic replay, and very good commentating. Keep up the videos!

Edit: What timezone are you in? I wouldn't mind playing against you two if it worked out some time!

Thanks!

We both have busy lives so we try to get 1-3 games week nights EST, and get plenty of games in on the weekends! Look for us, would love to have you in game!

wow, that was a big improvement!

Planetary Annihilation #24 "Slim Pickens" Commentated Replay
So we finally broke the seal on our After Effects, and yes we OVER DID IT!
If this short FFA doesn't make you LOL your money back!



Commanders:
@b8factor
@gameg1rl
@rg138
@posidian
@worldbemine
@Bob620
@ekulremlap