OK so my newest YouTube video essay Breath of the Wild and the Important of Open World Mechanics got 253 views and maybe that doesn’t sound like a lot. But, and just stay with me here, if you imagine all 253 of those people in a room… well, now that’s kind of a lot of people. That’s pretty damn cool.
Honestly, despite the video being, perhaps, “low performing” by YouTube’s standards, it’s surreal to imagine 253 people excitedly packed into a tight venue. The lights dim, but their eyes light up. Is it really happening? Yes, dear audience, it is. There’s an energy in the room as the screen pops up with an image from the beginning of the game The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
“Yo what’s up guys it’s VideoGameDude23 and I’m here with another video essay for my series The Download with VideoGameDude23.”
The crowd goes fucking wild. This is what they’re here for. This is why they’ve left the warmth and comfort of their homes on a rainy Tuesday night to crowd into a local theatre. To experience something. To experience each other. To experience themselves. This is art. This is them — and me — and every molecule of our bodies vibrating and melding into one in a beautiful display of what’s possible with art. This is us becoming a community.
So I dunno, man. 253 people saw the video. That’s pretty sick. And apparently 14% watched the whole thing.
Listen to the newest episode of our podcast, The Ace Watkins Presidential Hour: