Curmudgeon's Corner: So, what's the deal with Critical Role?

[Salthorae]

Critical Role playing Vampire: the Masquerade helped me understand that game for the first time in my life. Their playing Call of Cthulu seems to have had a material effect on the popularity of that game.

Actual play can be a huge, huge boon to entering these games.

I had no idea they'd live streamed those games. I'm going to have to check out those streams to see their take on those games!!

 

[Parmandur]

I had no idea they'd live streamed those games. I'm going to have to check out those streams to see their take on those games!!

They are doing a Deadlands game right now, too.

 

[Charlaquin]

They may want to play everyday but their group only meets once a week.

One time when I was in college there was a major blizzard that took out power to most of the town. Classes were cancelled for two weeks, and several of my friends who lived in town had to bunk down with us in the on-campus apartments, which had their own generator. We literally played D&D every day for two weeks straight as we waited out the storm. That was a good two weeks.

 

[Morrus]

Hell, some people even watch The Great British Bakeoff! Now that I can't quite understand.

 

[Parmandur]

Hell, some people even watch The Great British Bakeoff! Now that I can't quite understand.

Talented people working at their art? The drama of competition and the thrill of accomplishment balanced by the chance of failure? Cake porn?

 

[Morrus]

Talented people working at their art? The drama of competition and the thrill of accomplishment balanced by the chance of failure? Cake porn?

Hey, that's Critical Role! Well, except for the cake part.

 

[Parmandur]

Hey, that's Critical Role! Well, except for the cake part.

I'm sure somewhere in the bazillion hours of footage there has to be cake somewhere. I know there is pizza and fried chicken.

 

[Fanaelialae]

Personally, I find that I can't watch gaming streams if that's all I'm doing. However, I really enjoy listening to them while I'm working or driving. Putting a game stream on is kind of like sitting my "left brain" in front of the TV, freeing up my "right brain" to be focused and productive.

 

[Gradine]

Personally what I like about the GBBO is that it's the opposite of every American reality competition show ever. "I didn't come here to make friends" is the constant cliche of US reality TV; GBBO is explicitly about how everybody is friends and lovely and wonderful except for Paul Hollywood who we all enjoy hating together, as a community.

 

[Umbran]

Hell, some people even watch The Great British Bakeoff! Now that I can't quite understand.

We bakers do not need you to understand. Merely accept.

I can give you some reasons why The Great British Baking Show is appealing:
1) The show exposes us to new techniques, new recipes, new ideas and variations.
2) It allows some folks (like my wife) who might honestly be competitive in such a show, to think about "what if I were in that situation?"
3) Absolutely most importantly - the show is, overall, relentlessly positive in tone. In these days of grimdark TV, and grimdark real-world socio-political situations - a show that depicts people in competition being supportive of each other, and happy for each other's success, helping each other instead of acting to undermine each other... is super-duper with a cherry on top attractive.