One of my favorite works of his is the R-Type theme he did for the iOS release. Check it out if you haven't yet.
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DF Retro: Chris Huelsbeck interview (Turrican, Star Wars)
- Thread starter PC98_Audi
- Start date
With all due respect, people don't come to DF to hear your opinions or listen to you gush about old games for the sake of it, so if you want to find a broader audience for general retro gaming content you'll probably find more success on a completely separate channel, instead of trying to add a tenuous veneer of technical analysis to every topic in order to tie it back to DF.
...and it may still struggle to find a wide audience, for no other reason than Youtube's a cesspit nowadays.
With all due respect, you're an asshole.
DF Retro is part of Digital Foundry, and people absolutely come for John. WTF kind of post is this?
Can easily relate to that feeling. :-\
But you know what, video was lovely.
I'm a HUGE Chris Huelsbeck fan (I guess my nickname is a bit telling, lol), yet I still learned something new with your interview, so please keep doing this retro stuff. :-)
I'm not saying there's no audience for less analytical or more personality-driven content, I'm saying DF is a channel known and branded for a specific kind of output and the further the content strays from that narrow niche, the less appreciation it'll receive.
Just watched this great video. I kickstartered Chris' first Turrican album and still listen to it often today. That god damn Turrican 2 soundtrack is incredible. (As a quick aside, I still consider my 1CC completion of Turrican 2 as one of my greatest video game accomplishments)
Loved the revelation that Chris' first synth at Rainbow Arts was designed by the - let's face it - genius, who designed one of my favourite 'objects of power' the beautiful SID chip. Incredible to think of all those C64 games I bought just to hear those timeless tunes that the composers and programmers had created. Hearing the SID singing it's tiny silicon heart out brings tears to my eyes at times.
Like Chris' - I now carry a whole recording studio around with me on my laptop comment - SIDamp sits proudly on my phones first page and now I carry the HVSC collection with me everywhere. This would have blown 80's Corleth's tiny mind!
Can't wait for the new video next year, and belated thanks to John, Audi and Richard for the great panel at EGX.
Loved the revelation that Chris' first synth at Rainbow Arts was designed by the - let's face it - genius, who designed one of my favourite 'objects of power' the beautiful SID chip. Incredible to think of all those C64 games I bought just to hear those timeless tunes that the composers and programmers had created. Hearing the SID singing it's tiny silicon heart out brings tears to my eyes at times.
Like Chris' - I now carry a whole recording studio around with me on my laptop comment - SIDamp sits proudly on my phones first page and now I carry the HVSC collection with me everywhere. This would have blown 80's Corleth's tiny mind!
Can't wait for the new video next year, and belated thanks to John, Audi and Richard for the great panel at EGX.
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Thanks for a great video John! I really love Turrican II's soundtrack. Amiga has a bunch of good themes but not very many soundtracks that measure up to the SNES. It's frustrating when they never get mentioned alongside your Final Fantasies and Zeldas.
I met Chris once alongside Nobuo Uematsu for a game concert. Now that was a star studded evening!
I met Chris once alongside Nobuo Uematsu for a game concert. Now that was a star studded evening!
Well, 7 of the top 10 most successful videos on the channel are retro related.
Sounds like you're saying I should quit then if I can't change it? Gonna try to change it, though. DF is not the same as it was and I will move it forward somehow.
Console comparisons just aren't interesting today. They're all so damn similar.
Was a great watch! Immediately moved on to listen to some Giana Sisters and Turrican 2 OST. Especially the latter sounded awesome on my 5.1 system.
I think the trouble with the Chris Huelsbeck feature (which was such a great watch ) is his appeal and his main audience was really on the Amiga (Yes I know he worked on lots more systems too) How many people outside of Percy Pal land have even seen an Amiga, much less played one? That's going to limit a niche feature on Youtube I feel; It's kind of like how Yuzo Koshiro is always associated with the Mega Drive.
Like anything Niche keep working at it and hopefully it will grow to make it all worthwhile. I so miss Factor 5 too: they were like a Western version of Treasure and serious coders
Is this just a personal frustration in regards to not getting interest in this content or is there a real risk that it won't make financial sense for DF to make more of these types of video if they don't bring in enough cash?
I primarily watch DF for the retro content, I tend to skip the comparison videos unless it's a game I'm really interested in or I've heard about specific performance issues (I completely agree with you. Modern consoles are so similar, it's a pretty boring topic bar having a specific thing to focus on).
See, if that's the case for DF Retro then I'd say you're doing pretty darn well overall vs the performance related DF content...
Great video by John.
Also, I stopped by to remind everyone that the opening track on Super Turrican is probably the greatest opening track, ever.
Also, I stopped by to remind everyone that the opening track on Super Turrican is probably the greatest opening track, ever.
Not with that terrible muffled sound. I have such a strong dislike for the low low low bitrate of SFC music, ugh.
Turrican 2 will remain Chris's magnum opus.
You say that, but I'd argue that every single Switch comparison video is valid andvastly more important than near peers.
Also, I really enjoy the future hardware speculation when the whole team gets together.
Oh right, Switch is actually still interesting to me. I just think Xbox vs PS4 vs PC is useless and not interesting any longer. That's good for those playing the game but boring for me. The fun is gone from those comparisons.
Quit DF, specifically? If you want to spare yourself the anxiety of essentially competing with other videos on your own channel, or being anchored to topics or angles that don't interest you, then yeah, sure. If you get paid week in, week out and the views don't materially matter then fuck it, stay where you are, the views you're getting are far from terrible and they won't necessarily improve elsewhere.
I don't dislike your content at all or think you're wrong about the other stuff being boring, by the way, I just don't think you're ever going to be able to overcome that dissonance so long as you make these kinds of videos for DF.
As the one stuck making these videos, Xbox vs PS4 is boring to me. We need next-gen for it to liven up again....maybe.
In the meantime, I'm pushing retro hard. That's what I care about personally.
He just told you seven of the top 10 most viewed on DF are retro videos.
based genesis
The 16-bit console wars are still more interesting than any others. :P
Which is why you are awesome!
Retro is where it's at, classic gamer and proud of it!
They most certainly were.
So uninteresting now.
Is it true, though? Youtube > videos > sort by > most popular suggests otherwise.
Either way, I was talking about the dissonance he clearly feels when comparing those other videos to the ones he cares about. If you're sick of cooking big macs, don't work at McDs, this ain't rocket science.
I couldn't resist the other day and bought the orchestral versions of both Turrican soundtracks on iTunes
By the way mr Huelsbeck, please make it more affordable to buy your stuff on bootcamp than on iTunes, it's significantly cheaper there :(
I'm basing that on watch time and revenue. So yes, it's true.
Unlike McD, however, we can change things. I will change things or die trying. We already have. Look at the types of content we make now versus 3-5 years ago.
Your comments only encourage me to not do console wars style videos.
Thanks! Hopefully John and Rich will bring me back for more panels and videos, its the most fun i had in my career getting to team up with those guys.
Also if anything, John will be doing more retro in 2020, as i have a stack of Alfred Chicken games incubating and soon ready to hatch.
Alright, good to know.
Again, I hope you don't think I'm suggesting you continue making console wars videos, that you're wrong to be bored of them or that I have any interest in watching them because none of that is true, and if the behind-the-scenes stats show things are shifting then good for you.
I mean, he's no Follin :P but Huelsbeck is a legend too.
Hope we can see more legendary composers on DF Retro, keep it up John !
You have to give it time and content like this will reach its target audience.
I for one think the obsession with pixel counting and framerate analysis went way too far in the last few years and drew attention away from more important aspects so I'm all for dialing things back a few notches. Of course, revenue might not agree, though.
Oh, but indepth analysis and tech explanations I love.
Hope we can see more legendary composers on DF Retro, keep it up John !
You have to give it time and content like this will reach its target audience.
I for one think the obsession with pixel counting and framerate analysis went way too far in the last few years and drew attention away from more important aspects so I'm all for dialing things back a few notches. Of course, revenue might not agree, though.
Oh, but indepth analysis and tech explanations I love.
Speaking as someone who has spent an eternity in customer service, people tend to be insufferable dolts that can't see beyond their own noses.
This is very much possible. Which is why everyone interested in DF's work should support them on patreon.
I have an ominous feeling the PS5 and the next Xbox will be more similar to one another than the PS4 and Xbox One were. Like they'll have very nearly identical specs. No memory shenanigans this time to force one of them into a lower performance bracket.
Keep pushing DF Retro hard. It's my favourite content on the channel.
We're hoping to improve that side as well...hopefully! Stay tuned.
We'd all like to move away from rote comparisons, I think. It just isn't interesting most of the time.
It USED to be kind of interesting but these days? Not at all.
On that note, I think many people would also be interested in the CG technology used in movies and would like to know more about how these techniques are used, and how they evolved with time.
Yeah as an American who likes to talk about videogames it's pretty obvious that none of the old microcomputer greats really get the recognition they deserve. Glad to see a video like this -- though I should caveat I haven't watched it yet
You always should push hard where your passion is. I like retro computing a lot and I'm close to 20 years now using emulators to play "old" games and I think there is a whole universe to cover in that regard.
I know that you mentioned emulators already in some videos but I'd like to see even more focus on that. Mame alone could be worth several videos, for example. Just an idea, of course. Also retroarch implemented native crt support and that goes in line with the current trend at DF ;)
Also, broadening a channel's output is no bad thing. I love DF for both the tech side and the retro stuff. Both can exist very happily side by side in my opinion.
The spectrum was massive in the UK, far bigger than the BBC (which was only owned by posh kids). In many ways it was the PlayStation of its time.
Huh! My understanding was the BBC was a cheaper device mostly useful for "business" tasks like word processing and budgeting and the like rather than set for gaming, and had a utilitarian price point to match. But then I also don't have any experience with it.
How do those retro mini console videos perform for you guys? If they do well have you considered looking at the Mister? Maybe a simpler introduction video between whats officially offered vs the diy mister solution. if it does well and people want more you could go more in depth with future videos.
I'm surprised that never leaked. The game was apparently finished and ready to go. A switch port would be cool but im guessing disneys deal with EA is blocking anything from happening.
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The only time most people in the uk would see a BBC Micro was at school playing edutainment games like Granny's Garden, Dinosaur Discovery or moving a "turtle" via a simple programming language called logo.
IMO the C64 music is better although I can't tell how much nostalgia is blinding me here.
(sorry, can't find a pure OST video)
Hopefully everyone in this thread can share this video on their socials and such so we can get the numbers up a bit and get more interviews and game music related content. Hashtag that shit with #dfretro or something, lets make more stuff happen. Way too much good content to miss in here.
Don't get me wrong but this is more niche then a DF video on the latest game.
I see these more of a passion project which is amazing .
The video is great and Informative as always.
Have you considered leaving like a paypal link so we can send you some tips so to speak
I keep listening to the Apidya soundtrack.
There's also the BBC Micro's successor, the Archimedes. I might be the only person outside Europe to care enough about that system to make a thread on it. https://www.resetera.com/threads/acorn-archimedes-appreciation-thread.14280/
The Archimedes is a computer I'm dying to get my hands on but it's incredibly hard to find, even here in France
And the Archimedes is a very important computer since it gave birth to the ARM line of processors. I wish Commodore followed in their footsteps