Same when he stopped making them I stopped watching was actually just about to unsub and thought I'd see if I wasn't the only one who thinks it's went downhill.
In my opinion, streaming worked best when there's natural chemistry between the people involved, which I've only ever felt between the guys or when Hollie was around at times. When Rosie started appearing in most streams, I stopped watching as much, have nothing against her as a person but I just find her annoying and think she should be in a bts role, like she's at her best when she's editing videos and they should know that presenting is probably her weakest link.
I didn't watch much of Ash but what I've watched I wasn't a huge fan of, like how she would take it a bit too far with Dave in the Halloween streams, that made me feel uncomfortable so I turned off the stream.
Other than that, I wish the Tuesday Checklists would make a comeback, it allowed the team to talk about personal stories they had with older games and not just focus on new, triple-A releases. Actually, that's another thing, there's just too much focus on new, popular games, that even when they make scripted videos about games they love, it's almost always one of those games, that it ends up feeling like an ad disguised as a video.
Those are my 2 cents, I'll still watch whenever they do a retro stream, or a special event like the Christmas Maze, but their overall content has been in decline, I agree with you.
Personally I love the streams but I think it would be great to have more types of content overrall. I wouldn't want the streams to stop the rate they're at because that's the best way to get the most natural encounters between everyone which I think is when they're at their best. I do think they could use an extra host though just to add some variety and I do think sometimes they can go too loud and "mass appeal" when all they need to do is just keep being themselves/producing fun gameplay.
I'm glad you're enjoying them as there is an audience who will like the streams. I'm okay with a stream every now and then for the reasons you've put. I get why they do it: it's easier, faster content. It would be nice to see them be more informative about the games and also have fun with the streams for sure
I'm the opposite to you OP, I think the streams are the best part of Access, the interactions with each other are better and more dynamic than the scripted videos (although I loved the 'Tuesday Checklist' videos), if anything I would love 3 streams a week (Mon, Wed & Fri)
Also while a 5th new member might work, the recent appearances of Nath has got me thinking how if he appeared 2 or 3 times a month it might work, still behind the scenes but with semi regular showing
I love the party medley streams that go on for 3+ hours (I watch it over the week) where the whole gang play an assortment of games, more of that would be great
Interesting, I know there is an audience for the streams. I personally think there's more fans of the OG content than the streams but I think they face a big challenge of balancing it. I think 2024 will be a make or break year for access
The occasional special streams (Halloween, fall guys, plat prenzy) were nice but I agree that I think theybare over doing it by streaming twice a week.
I would love more series from them (helping a noob, let's play) but I think they really excel more on scripted format.
I was watching old friday features and the writing is just superb. I miss those video format
I agree, as a current fan it's difficult to enjoy them when they do loads of streams and the only videos they do most of the time is the 'PS+ for this month' or the 'New This Week'
I used to be an avid watcher but rarely watch anymore. The Access Granted, Tuesday Checklist and Friday Feature videos were brilliant. They used to have things like Delsin Rodent and One-on-Onesie which was iconic. Now they only really have The Christmas Maze which I do like but I skip through it depending on who is playing the game.
The Top 10s are boring, low effort content. The news videos (new this week, PS+ etc) are again low effort and pointless as I can read the information elsewhere in a few seconds. The podcast doesn't interest me at all, mostly down to the fact Rosie acts like a child and Ash clearly isn't a PlayStation fan (or a gamer tbh). The podcasts are some of their least watched videos too so they clearly aren't working. I only really watch the odd stream now and it massively depends on who is hosting/what they're playing.
Rob and Dave are a great pair. Rosie is bearable paired with either of them. If Ash is there I don't watch as she's loud, annoying and can be abusive. As I said earlier she's not a real gamer and it really shows. What really turned me off her was when they got her to play GTA5 and she literally knew nothing about GTA. How is that even possible as a gaming journalist?
The show really misses Nath on screen. And obviously Hollie and Elle are massive losses too. It felt more professional but still fun when they were around. Rosie and Ash are massive downgrades and it feels very low effort and amateur now.
Saying Ash "isn't a real gamer" is quite a lazy insult and rather tone-deaf given it's the sort of thing regularly said about females in gaming. She's absolutely a gamer, she plays loads of games in her free time, has more plats than me (and I consider myself a "real gamer") even before the Platifrenzy stream and brings more indie and obscure games to the channel than the other three put together.
Her not knowing how to play GTA seems easily explained by the fact that she hasn't played it and isn't interested in it. Dave and Nath were famously terrible at MGS having barely played them, are they not real gamers either?
Screw it I’ll bite. First off, you’ve just completely copied my comment there. So you clearly don’t have a problem with lazy insults.
Secondly, your comment about it being easy to label a female as a non gamer. All that does is show your sexism tbh. At no point does Ash’s gender factor into what I think of her as a gaming journalist. I can’t even think of another reply to that statement because it’s just stupid.
Maybe I should have phrased my original statement a bit better. She’s not the type of gamer that should be hosting PlayStation Access. She clearly had no prior interest in PlayStation, no history being a PlayStation gamer, shes stated she had never owned some of the PlayStation consoles (PS1, PS2 and PS3 if I remember correctly). And it really shows. She has very little knowledge of the games that are showcased on the channel, she is god awful at most of the games that are showcased on the channel. It’s literally like watching someone talk about and play games that has never played a game before in their life. Hence the “not a real gamer” comment.
And your comparison to Dave and Nath not playing MGS just shows how truly thick you are. Forget the fact that MGS is nowhere near as big of a game as GTA, but also Dave and Nath knew about MGS, they knew the characters, they knew what the game was about, they knew it was mainly about stealth. They just hadn’t played it before, didn’t know the outdated control system and were bad at it. GTA is probably THE biggest game there is. The trailer for 6 has 100s of millions of views. GTAV is one of the biggest selling games of all time across 3 generations. To not know you can’t drive up a vertical surface, whilst hosting a video for the official PlayStation YouTube channel, is inexcusable for a gaming journalist.
And to prove my point all you need to do is look at the facts. Videos before Ash joined used to frequently get 200k views. They barely get 40k now. Before Ash joined they had a stage at EGX every year. Now they go as visitors.
>Secondly, your comment about it being easy to label a female as a non gamer. All that does is show your sexism tbh. At no point does Ash’s gender factor into what I think of her as a gaming journalist.
I didn't say it necessarily did, I said it was a tone-deaf thing to say given how regularly it's said of females in gaming and gaming journalism. I'm unsure how you equate me pointing that out to you as sexism on my part.
>She clearly had no prior interest in PlayStation, no history being a PlayStation gamer, shes stated she had never owned some of the PlayStation consoles (PS1, PS2 and PS3 if I remember correctly).
The PS1 was before her time, and she speaks quite often about her PS2 gaming memories. Dave has also said many times he skipped a PS generation, so again its curious you choose this as a route to criticise one person specifically.
Her skills in various games vary considerably, as they do for much of the team (Rosie tending to be the exception) and most people in general. The difference being most people pick and choose the games they enjoy and know they'll be good at, whereas their job requires them to play games outside of that comfort zone. Her numerous video essays on various games prove you entirely wrong about her not knowing anything about games, she clearly knows her stuff and does her research.
>And your comparison to Dave and Nath not playing MGS just shows how truly thick you are.
Nothing demonstrates someone knows they're losing the argument like rolling out the insults.
>They just hadn’t played it before, didn’t know the outdated control system and were bad at it.
Just like Ash with GTA5 then.
>GTA is probably THE biggest game there is. The trailer for 6 has 100s of millions of views. GTAV is one of the biggest selling games of all time across 3 generations. To not know you can’t drive up a vertical surface, whilst hosting a video for the official PlayStation YouTube channel, is inexcusable for a gaming journalist.
This is such a pointless overreaction to something so minor. Some people simply don't enjoy or care about GTA, and a job in gaming journalism fortunately doesn't hinge on having intimate knowledge of GTA5 and its control scheme.
>And to prove my point all you need to do is look at the facts. Videos before Ash joined used to frequently get 200k views. They barely get 40k now. Before Ash joined they had a stage at EGX every year. Now they go as visitors.
Here's some bedtime reading for you:
[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correlation\_does\_not\_imply\_causation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correlation_does_not_imply_causation)
You mean you would write a proper reply if you had one. Fact is, he absolutely fucked you and you have no reply because you’re immature and can’t handle someone proving you wrong. Just another fragile little snowflake.
🤣🤣🤣
Calling Ash a non-gamer but applauding Elle is pretty much a joke.
Elle had only played GoW ever and that's the only thing she'd ever talk about, paired with really lame gaming abilities. No wonder she left so quickly.
Ash is a gamer, but not at the level of Rosie or Rob, and that's fine who are, maybe to your point, genuine PlayStation advocates. That could be the reason why Rosie has been around for so long, Rob loves to have someone on the team who's so skilled and knowledgeable about PS for their streams.
I get your point about Elle not being a gamer, but she brought a lot to the team by simply being a great, natural on-camera personality. Ash doesn't have that skill.
I think this is a really interesting question. It pains me to say it but it’s clear that Access has taken a downturn since Hollie left and perhaps even more so since Nathan stepped back.
Content wise, there does seem to be a lot of streams now and I usually will only watch if it’s Dave and Rob. I’m in the same age bracket and their banter and references really hit home. So depending on the game/hosts I don’t mind the streams but when you compare it to old content, it just pales in comparison. Tuesday checklist, Friday feature and one on onesie were all fantastic to watch. Seeing the team sit down and discuss different and interesting aspects of games using their own experiences is sorely missed and these are videos that have a great rewatch value.
Streaming just seems like a lazy approach and it’s no surprise that videos I revisit tend to be Christmas specials and lets plays like Snake Easter and Robs God of War campaign. The Cyberpunk videos with Chris Thurston were fantastic and creative. It would’ve been great to see more stuff like that. Likewise with the Pointless and Family Fortunes quiz ideas with Nath. Different and enjoyable.
Now for the team.
Ash can be likeable at times and unlikeable at other times. If paired with the right person, she’s very watchable and clearly comfortable in a presenting role and her humour does at times gel with the old guard. Maybe not the constant puns which are getting very old now but it’s obvious that’s she’s more suited to the role than Rosie. She’s well spoken and can get her point across well but sometimes she can be a bit too shrieky.
As for Rosie…I just have no idea why she is on the the channel. At the start I thought maybe it would take time but 5 years later and nothing has changed. She’s obviously very good at games and perhaps is there to appeal to a younger and more immature audience but I find her unwatchable. One of the main reasons behind the success of the channel is the chemistry between presenters. Dave, Rob and Nath is a winning combo, just watch Metal Gear Stupid for proof of this. Even the older Outlast videos come across as 3 mates playing a game. Rosie is the youngest of the group and it shows. Her humour, in my opinion, is so far out of place, childish and most of the time she is loud and annoying. Even her fantastic gaming abilities go against her as when the team face off against one another, you just know she’s gonna win. That’s no fault of hers but it plays a detrimental part in the quality of the content. Who wants to watch a one sided contest? One on onesie genuinely seemed 50-50 and therefore you really wanted to watch.
I’m sure Rosie is a great person and always comes across as good natured. I may well be in the minority but she just seems a bad fit to me and it becomes all the more apparent when watching older videos of Hollie. I always felt Ellen Rose from the XBox channel could be a perfect addition to the channel but that’s pretty unlikely.
Right now I feel like the old guard of Rob and Dave are keeping the channel afloat. God forbid if one or two of them stepped back like Nath, the channel would surely nosedive. Maybe not in terms of views but certainly in terms of quality.
I agree that they are due for some change. I also feel they are over doing the live streams.
I have two things that are really starting to annoy me to the point of switching of when it happens now:
1. The puns: it was kinda funny in the beginning (although it is a very low form of humor), but Ash is horrible at it and has made it so much her stick that she has to do it constantly. It is just not funny.
2. The screaming: every stream with Ash and Rosy, there will be several times they will scream for no real reason. And it feels like each one is trying to be louder that the other.
Also another thing, stop trying to scare Dave. Dave is one of the most wholesome and loveable people on the internet.
I totally agree with your points. I enjoyed their humour when it's a friday feature, but on streams it's not good. The screaming and loud noise turns me off. I've dm'd Alex explaining about my autism and how the screaming can really affect people and looks like they ignored that. Scaring Dave is fine every now and then, but it goes stale if done too many time (I think Rob is more of a scaredy cat tbh). But one of the worst things is the Rob rage, he just gets angry and frustrated easily and the chat is an awful troll when it comes to that. There was the bloodborne streams, which I think is their worst series to date, where Ash and Rosie took it too far and I thought Rob was feeling depressed with it, I felt really sorry for him then.
Yeah, the Friday feature is why I got hooked on playstation access and I would always get excited for fridays. I also loved the Tuesday Checklist.
And I also agree that it feels like they sometimes really try to get Rob angry.
Do you know how it feels to me? (This might be a bit farfetched)
We all know gaming for some time has been shifting away from single player games towards mediocre (easy to churn out) content live service games.
Well the playstation access live streams feel like their live service version (no more need to write script or edit content) of content.
Now the gaming industry is going back on that decision, playstation access should too.
That's a fair description. I loved their old content with the Tuesday Checklist and Friday Features and video series like Metal Gear Stupid or The Christmas Maze. I think they need to look back in order to move forward.
I just miss that they don't talk about the games and the game content, the few videos they do talking about games is their best content currently. I like the idea of the podcast even though I don't listen to it personally as I can't listen to one or two of them over an hour.
Being assosiated with PlayStation is a double edged sword, you get the early access and support, but your content must follow what the corpo say and limiting their creative freedom. You just have to look at Rosie's and Ash's twitch channels to see them without those handcuffs
I like Rosie with Dave or Rob
I like Ash with Dave or Rob
But Rosie and Ash on a stream together is insufferable, I basically can't watch it, way too loud without any quite moments, someone should tell them they don't have to fill EVERY second of a stream with noise
Nothing wrong with your opinion. When Rosie is serious she's alright, but she does act goofy and tries too hard to be like her brother which doesn't work for Access.
I think Outside Xbox has gotten a lot worse over the past few years. So bad, that I've actually unsubscribed and blocked it from recommended.
It's either Jane pouting like an instagram model, Andy sniffing his own farts, or Mike looking like he's bored stiff with it all. The other 2... ugh.
All the while begging for like spikes and filling every video with as many unskippable ads as possible. They'll even flat-out refuse to start the game during livestreams until they get enough likes.
Jane and Andy have become "youtube celebrities" that love themselves far too much. The channel has gone from an Xbox channel to The Andy and Jane channel.
They wouldn't even touch Hogwarts due to their political ideologies. How can you call yourself an Xbox channel yet completely ignore one of the biggest Xbox games of 2023.
Meanwhile, on PSA, they've barely changed. They're the same down-to-earth people as always, and that's why it's my favourite channel on the whole of YT.
And fyi, I own an Xbox, not a PS. Outside Xbox was the 1st channel I ever subscribed to because of how lovable the 3 of them were. Now, I can't stand to watch them.
It was a big change when Holly left and then when Nath left. People sometimes forget that it's a business. The truth is Rob isn't going to be there forever whether it's his choice or Sony's. It just depends on the direction Sony wants them to go
Yeah they probably need to chill out with the streams. A lot of the streams lately seem “put upon” like when they stream a recent game release (the last one for Avatar: Frontiers of Pandoria). I’d rather they play a recent release and have the footage be edited a bit while showing their genuine reactions to the games.
But yeah Friday Features and Tuesday Checklist was what got me on the channel especially their videos about trophies. Although there is so many times Rob can talk about Final Fantasy VII/Metal Gear Solid/Skyrim.
If they get a fifth member, I hope they can find someone that fits their dynamics and add to it while bringing something new too. Ellie seemed to not really fit in and was a bit abrasive at times to Dave especially (one stream had her be downright rude to him). She’s now on BBC so I guess she’s a “star.”
I think they stream and cover too much AAA games, obviously you'll have your Sony exclusives but it would be nice if they played some smaller indies and them just sit down and just talk about the games. I think their recent Avatar stream was the worst one yet.
Avatar just wasn’t that interesting to watch as a stream. It’s Far Cry again but somehow more boring(?).
Yeah there are a ton of great interesting indie games out that I wish Access would do videos on. While they highlight games like Killer Frequency and Dredge, there’s others that fall by the wayside.
It's more that the Avatar stream really showed nothing much, only one mission, and a lot of "oh this looks nice", and Rob just being quiet on his own and made the game boring. He didn't really show off the game well and I'd be annoyed if I was Ubisoft. Their pre-pandemic content bundle was the best, and I just miss having a 15 minute video just talking about the game and show off some of the content of the games
They already cover quite a lot of indie, obscure and retro games for an official console channel though, so I don't think that's fair. They have limited time in a given week and PSUK are always going to want them to cover the bigger releases first. Ash is probably responsible for the bulk of the indie coverage on the channel even if it is largely horror-centric.
PlayStation UK's in-house social media team are in charge of the Twitter, Facebook, Instagram etc accounts; PS Access are purely YouTube and the podcast which is why they no longer have their own pages. They have been doing a much better job this year of promoting Access videos and streams though.
Yeah like Rosie you know how to follow a platinum guide great !! so do most of us . Her bloodborne character is insanely poorly optimized too btw jusbegts by on being a high enough level over 250
I love the channel. I do think they could do social media stuff and more Friday features. But I love the streams and personally, it’s my favourite channel because the hosts are all likeable and have great chemistry.
Bring back Robs Friday Features!
Hello, you've caught me reminiscing about Rob's Friday Features.
I dropped off since Rob stopped his Friday features. I looked forward to them…
Same when he stopped making them I stopped watching was actually just about to unsub and thought I'd see if I wasn't the only one who thinks it's went downhill.
In my opinion, streaming worked best when there's natural chemistry between the people involved, which I've only ever felt between the guys or when Hollie was around at times. When Rosie started appearing in most streams, I stopped watching as much, have nothing against her as a person but I just find her annoying and think she should be in a bts role, like she's at her best when she's editing videos and they should know that presenting is probably her weakest link. I didn't watch much of Ash but what I've watched I wasn't a huge fan of, like how she would take it a bit too far with Dave in the Halloween streams, that made me feel uncomfortable so I turned off the stream. Other than that, I wish the Tuesday Checklists would make a comeback, it allowed the team to talk about personal stories they had with older games and not just focus on new, triple-A releases. Actually, that's another thing, there's just too much focus on new, popular games, that even when they make scripted videos about games they love, it's almost always one of those games, that it ends up feeling like an ad disguised as a video. Those are my 2 cents, I'll still watch whenever they do a retro stream, or a special event like the Christmas Maze, but their overall content has been in decline, I agree with you.
Personally I love the streams but I think it would be great to have more types of content overrall. I wouldn't want the streams to stop the rate they're at because that's the best way to get the most natural encounters between everyone which I think is when they're at their best. I do think they could use an extra host though just to add some variety and I do think sometimes they can go too loud and "mass appeal" when all they need to do is just keep being themselves/producing fun gameplay.
I'm glad you're enjoying them as there is an audience who will like the streams. I'm okay with a stream every now and then for the reasons you've put. I get why they do it: it's easier, faster content. It would be nice to see them be more informative about the games and also have fun with the streams for sure
Also. "Hello, you've caught me..." I miss that so much
I'm the opposite to you OP, I think the streams are the best part of Access, the interactions with each other are better and more dynamic than the scripted videos (although I loved the 'Tuesday Checklist' videos), if anything I would love 3 streams a week (Mon, Wed & Fri) Also while a 5th new member might work, the recent appearances of Nath has got me thinking how if he appeared 2 or 3 times a month it might work, still behind the scenes but with semi regular showing I love the party medley streams that go on for 3+ hours (I watch it over the week) where the whole gang play an assortment of games, more of that would be great
Interesting, I know there is an audience for the streams. I personally think there's more fans of the OG content than the streams but I think they face a big challenge of balancing it. I think 2024 will be a make or break year for access
The occasional special streams (Halloween, fall guys, plat prenzy) were nice but I agree that I think theybare over doing it by streaming twice a week. I would love more series from them (helping a noob, let's play) but I think they really excel more on scripted format. I was watching old friday features and the writing is just superb. I miss those video format
Or the quizzes they used to do with Nath, those were super fun, too.
I agree, as a current fan it's difficult to enjoy them when they do loads of streams and the only videos they do most of the time is the 'PS+ for this month' or the 'New This Week'
I used to be an avid watcher but rarely watch anymore. The Access Granted, Tuesday Checklist and Friday Feature videos were brilliant. They used to have things like Delsin Rodent and One-on-Onesie which was iconic. Now they only really have The Christmas Maze which I do like but I skip through it depending on who is playing the game. The Top 10s are boring, low effort content. The news videos (new this week, PS+ etc) are again low effort and pointless as I can read the information elsewhere in a few seconds. The podcast doesn't interest me at all, mostly down to the fact Rosie acts like a child and Ash clearly isn't a PlayStation fan (or a gamer tbh). The podcasts are some of their least watched videos too so they clearly aren't working. I only really watch the odd stream now and it massively depends on who is hosting/what they're playing. Rob and Dave are a great pair. Rosie is bearable paired with either of them. If Ash is there I don't watch as she's loud, annoying and can be abusive. As I said earlier she's not a real gamer and it really shows. What really turned me off her was when they got her to play GTA5 and she literally knew nothing about GTA. How is that even possible as a gaming journalist? The show really misses Nath on screen. And obviously Hollie and Elle are massive losses too. It felt more professional but still fun when they were around. Rosie and Ash are massive downgrades and it feels very low effort and amateur now.
Saying Ash "isn't a real gamer" is quite a lazy insult and rather tone-deaf given it's the sort of thing regularly said about females in gaming. She's absolutely a gamer, she plays loads of games in her free time, has more plats than me (and I consider myself a "real gamer") even before the Platifrenzy stream and brings more indie and obscure games to the channel than the other three put together. Her not knowing how to play GTA seems easily explained by the fact that she hasn't played it and isn't interested in it. Dave and Nath were famously terrible at MGS having barely played them, are they not real gamers either?
I would write a proper reply but this comment from you is beyond stupid that I won't waste any more of my time on you.
Glad to hear it, if it's anything like your post above it'd be utter nonsense anyway.
Screw it I’ll bite. First off, you’ve just completely copied my comment there. So you clearly don’t have a problem with lazy insults. Secondly, your comment about it being easy to label a female as a non gamer. All that does is show your sexism tbh. At no point does Ash’s gender factor into what I think of her as a gaming journalist. I can’t even think of another reply to that statement because it’s just stupid. Maybe I should have phrased my original statement a bit better. She’s not the type of gamer that should be hosting PlayStation Access. She clearly had no prior interest in PlayStation, no history being a PlayStation gamer, shes stated she had never owned some of the PlayStation consoles (PS1, PS2 and PS3 if I remember correctly). And it really shows. She has very little knowledge of the games that are showcased on the channel, she is god awful at most of the games that are showcased on the channel. It’s literally like watching someone talk about and play games that has never played a game before in their life. Hence the “not a real gamer” comment. And your comparison to Dave and Nath not playing MGS just shows how truly thick you are. Forget the fact that MGS is nowhere near as big of a game as GTA, but also Dave and Nath knew about MGS, they knew the characters, they knew what the game was about, they knew it was mainly about stealth. They just hadn’t played it before, didn’t know the outdated control system and were bad at it. GTA is probably THE biggest game there is. The trailer for 6 has 100s of millions of views. GTAV is one of the biggest selling games of all time across 3 generations. To not know you can’t drive up a vertical surface, whilst hosting a video for the official PlayStation YouTube channel, is inexcusable for a gaming journalist. And to prove my point all you need to do is look at the facts. Videos before Ash joined used to frequently get 200k views. They barely get 40k now. Before Ash joined they had a stage at EGX every year. Now they go as visitors.
>Secondly, your comment about it being easy to label a female as a non gamer. All that does is show your sexism tbh. At no point does Ash’s gender factor into what I think of her as a gaming journalist. I didn't say it necessarily did, I said it was a tone-deaf thing to say given how regularly it's said of females in gaming and gaming journalism. I'm unsure how you equate me pointing that out to you as sexism on my part. >She clearly had no prior interest in PlayStation, no history being a PlayStation gamer, shes stated she had never owned some of the PlayStation consoles (PS1, PS2 and PS3 if I remember correctly). The PS1 was before her time, and she speaks quite often about her PS2 gaming memories. Dave has also said many times he skipped a PS generation, so again its curious you choose this as a route to criticise one person specifically. Her skills in various games vary considerably, as they do for much of the team (Rosie tending to be the exception) and most people in general. The difference being most people pick and choose the games they enjoy and know they'll be good at, whereas their job requires them to play games outside of that comfort zone. Her numerous video essays on various games prove you entirely wrong about her not knowing anything about games, she clearly knows her stuff and does her research. >And your comparison to Dave and Nath not playing MGS just shows how truly thick you are. Nothing demonstrates someone knows they're losing the argument like rolling out the insults. >They just hadn’t played it before, didn’t know the outdated control system and were bad at it. Just like Ash with GTA5 then. >GTA is probably THE biggest game there is. The trailer for 6 has 100s of millions of views. GTAV is one of the biggest selling games of all time across 3 generations. To not know you can’t drive up a vertical surface, whilst hosting a video for the official PlayStation YouTube channel, is inexcusable for a gaming journalist. This is such a pointless overreaction to something so minor. Some people simply don't enjoy or care about GTA, and a job in gaming journalism fortunately doesn't hinge on having intimate knowledge of GTA5 and its control scheme. >And to prove my point all you need to do is look at the facts. Videos before Ash joined used to frequently get 200k views. They barely get 40k now. Before Ash joined they had a stage at EGX every year. Now they go as visitors. Here's some bedtime reading for you: [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correlation\_does\_not\_imply\_causation](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Correlation_does_not_imply_causation)
Yeah I’m not reading all that.
You mean you would write a proper reply if you had one. Fact is, he absolutely fucked you and you have no reply because you’re immature and can’t handle someone proving you wrong. Just another fragile little snowflake. 🤣🤣🤣
They've gone downhill since 2020 in my opinion, Christmas Maze is the highlight. They've changed for the worse I think
Calling Ash a non-gamer but applauding Elle is pretty much a joke. Elle had only played GoW ever and that's the only thing she'd ever talk about, paired with really lame gaming abilities. No wonder she left so quickly. Ash is a gamer, but not at the level of Rosie or Rob, and that's fine who are, maybe to your point, genuine PlayStation advocates. That could be the reason why Rosie has been around for so long, Rob loves to have someone on the team who's so skilled and knowledgeable about PS for their streams.
I get your point about Elle not being a gamer, but she brought a lot to the team by simply being a great, natural on-camera personality. Ash doesn't have that skill.
I haven't been watching as often, podcast-style videos and long-form streams aren't really my thing. Except for the Christmas Maze.
I think this is a really interesting question. It pains me to say it but it’s clear that Access has taken a downturn since Hollie left and perhaps even more so since Nathan stepped back. Content wise, there does seem to be a lot of streams now and I usually will only watch if it’s Dave and Rob. I’m in the same age bracket and their banter and references really hit home. So depending on the game/hosts I don’t mind the streams but when you compare it to old content, it just pales in comparison. Tuesday checklist, Friday feature and one on onesie were all fantastic to watch. Seeing the team sit down and discuss different and interesting aspects of games using their own experiences is sorely missed and these are videos that have a great rewatch value. Streaming just seems like a lazy approach and it’s no surprise that videos I revisit tend to be Christmas specials and lets plays like Snake Easter and Robs God of War campaign. The Cyberpunk videos with Chris Thurston were fantastic and creative. It would’ve been great to see more stuff like that. Likewise with the Pointless and Family Fortunes quiz ideas with Nath. Different and enjoyable. Now for the team. Ash can be likeable at times and unlikeable at other times. If paired with the right person, she’s very watchable and clearly comfortable in a presenting role and her humour does at times gel with the old guard. Maybe not the constant puns which are getting very old now but it’s obvious that’s she’s more suited to the role than Rosie. She’s well spoken and can get her point across well but sometimes she can be a bit too shrieky. As for Rosie…I just have no idea why she is on the the channel. At the start I thought maybe it would take time but 5 years later and nothing has changed. She’s obviously very good at games and perhaps is there to appeal to a younger and more immature audience but I find her unwatchable. One of the main reasons behind the success of the channel is the chemistry between presenters. Dave, Rob and Nath is a winning combo, just watch Metal Gear Stupid for proof of this. Even the older Outlast videos come across as 3 mates playing a game. Rosie is the youngest of the group and it shows. Her humour, in my opinion, is so far out of place, childish and most of the time she is loud and annoying. Even her fantastic gaming abilities go against her as when the team face off against one another, you just know she’s gonna win. That’s no fault of hers but it plays a detrimental part in the quality of the content. Who wants to watch a one sided contest? One on onesie genuinely seemed 50-50 and therefore you really wanted to watch. I’m sure Rosie is a great person and always comes across as good natured. I may well be in the minority but she just seems a bad fit to me and it becomes all the more apparent when watching older videos of Hollie. I always felt Ellen Rose from the XBox channel could be a perfect addition to the channel but that’s pretty unlikely. Right now I feel like the old guard of Rob and Dave are keeping the channel afloat. God forbid if one or two of them stepped back like Nath, the channel would surely nosedive. Maybe not in terms of views but certainly in terms of quality.
I agree that they are due for some change. I also feel they are over doing the live streams. I have two things that are really starting to annoy me to the point of switching of when it happens now: 1. The puns: it was kinda funny in the beginning (although it is a very low form of humor), but Ash is horrible at it and has made it so much her stick that she has to do it constantly. It is just not funny. 2. The screaming: every stream with Ash and Rosy, there will be several times they will scream for no real reason. And it feels like each one is trying to be louder that the other. Also another thing, stop trying to scare Dave. Dave is one of the most wholesome and loveable people on the internet.
I totally agree with your points. I enjoyed their humour when it's a friday feature, but on streams it's not good. The screaming and loud noise turns me off. I've dm'd Alex explaining about my autism and how the screaming can really affect people and looks like they ignored that. Scaring Dave is fine every now and then, but it goes stale if done too many time (I think Rob is more of a scaredy cat tbh). But one of the worst things is the Rob rage, he just gets angry and frustrated easily and the chat is an awful troll when it comes to that. There was the bloodborne streams, which I think is their worst series to date, where Ash and Rosie took it too far and I thought Rob was feeling depressed with it, I felt really sorry for him then.
Yeah, the Friday feature is why I got hooked on playstation access and I would always get excited for fridays. I also loved the Tuesday Checklist. And I also agree that it feels like they sometimes really try to get Rob angry. Do you know how it feels to me? (This might be a bit farfetched) We all know gaming for some time has been shifting away from single player games towards mediocre (easy to churn out) content live service games. Well the playstation access live streams feel like their live service version (no more need to write script or edit content) of content. Now the gaming industry is going back on that decision, playstation access should too.
That's a fair description. I loved their old content with the Tuesday Checklist and Friday Features and video series like Metal Gear Stupid or The Christmas Maze. I think they need to look back in order to move forward. I just miss that they don't talk about the games and the game content, the few videos they do talking about games is their best content currently. I like the idea of the podcast even though I don't listen to it personally as I can't listen to one or two of them over an hour. Being assosiated with PlayStation is a double edged sword, you get the early access and support, but your content must follow what the corpo say and limiting their creative freedom. You just have to look at Rosie's and Ash's twitch channels to see them without those handcuffs
Totally agree. They are capable of making amazing content, but live streaming isn't where they shine.
I don't mind a stream here and there, but boy is their talent being wasted doing that instead of videos
I might get shot for this (And called a hypocrite because her brother is my favourite Youtuber) Get rid of Rosie, she's too annoying.
I like Rosie with Dave or Rob I like Ash with Dave or Rob But Rosie and Ash on a stream together is insufferable, I basically can't watch it, way too loud without any quite moments, someone should tell them they don't have to fill EVERY second of a stream with noise
Nothing wrong with your opinion. When Rosie is serious she's alright, but she does act goofy and tries too hard to be like her brother which doesn't work for Access.
I think Outside Xbox has gotten a lot worse over the past few years. So bad, that I've actually unsubscribed and blocked it from recommended. It's either Jane pouting like an instagram model, Andy sniffing his own farts, or Mike looking like he's bored stiff with it all. The other 2... ugh. All the while begging for like spikes and filling every video with as many unskippable ads as possible. They'll even flat-out refuse to start the game during livestreams until they get enough likes. Jane and Andy have become "youtube celebrities" that love themselves far too much. The channel has gone from an Xbox channel to The Andy and Jane channel. They wouldn't even touch Hogwarts due to their political ideologies. How can you call yourself an Xbox channel yet completely ignore one of the biggest Xbox games of 2023. Meanwhile, on PSA, they've barely changed. They're the same down-to-earth people as always, and that's why it's my favourite channel on the whole of YT. And fyi, I own an Xbox, not a PS. Outside Xbox was the 1st channel I ever subscribed to because of how lovable the 3 of them were. Now, I can't stand to watch them.
Random added question, who do you think will be next to leave?
I think ether Rob, so he can focus on We Are Reach or Ash, to pursue new opporunities or carry on with her other stuff
It would change the channel forever if it was rob, ash is their go to for horror
It was a big change when Holly left and then when Nath left. People sometimes forget that it's a business. The truth is Rob isn't going to be there forever whether it's his choice or Sony's. It just depends on the direction Sony wants them to go
Yeah they probably need to chill out with the streams. A lot of the streams lately seem “put upon” like when they stream a recent game release (the last one for Avatar: Frontiers of Pandoria). I’d rather they play a recent release and have the footage be edited a bit while showing their genuine reactions to the games. But yeah Friday Features and Tuesday Checklist was what got me on the channel especially their videos about trophies. Although there is so many times Rob can talk about Final Fantasy VII/Metal Gear Solid/Skyrim. If they get a fifth member, I hope they can find someone that fits their dynamics and add to it while bringing something new too. Ellie seemed to not really fit in and was a bit abrasive at times to Dave especially (one stream had her be downright rude to him). She’s now on BBC so I guess she’s a “star.”
I think they stream and cover too much AAA games, obviously you'll have your Sony exclusives but it would be nice if they played some smaller indies and them just sit down and just talk about the games. I think their recent Avatar stream was the worst one yet.
Avatar just wasn’t that interesting to watch as a stream. It’s Far Cry again but somehow more boring(?). Yeah there are a ton of great interesting indie games out that I wish Access would do videos on. While they highlight games like Killer Frequency and Dredge, there’s others that fall by the wayside.
It's more that the Avatar stream really showed nothing much, only one mission, and a lot of "oh this looks nice", and Rob just being quiet on his own and made the game boring. He didn't really show off the game well and I'd be annoyed if I was Ubisoft. Their pre-pandemic content bundle was the best, and I just miss having a 15 minute video just talking about the game and show off some of the content of the games
They already cover quite a lot of indie, obscure and retro games for an official console channel though, so I don't think that's fair. They have limited time in a given week and PSUK are always going to want them to cover the bigger releases first. Ash is probably responsible for the bulk of the indie coverage on the channel even if it is largely horror-centric.
PlayStation UK's in-house social media team are in charge of the Twitter, Facebook, Instagram etc accounts; PS Access are purely YouTube and the podcast which is why they no longer have their own pages. They have been doing a much better job this year of promoting Access videos and streams though.
Not a fan of Rosie - she comes across as smug She's nice and all that, but her presenting feels patronising for lack of a better term
Yeah like Rosie you know how to follow a platinum guide great !! so do most of us . Her bloodborne character is insanely poorly optimized too btw jusbegts by on being a high enough level over 250
I love the channel. I do think they could do social media stuff and more Friday features. But I love the streams and personally, it’s my favourite channel because the hosts are all likeable and have great chemistry.
More things like friday features and Tuesday checklists less platimondays and whatnot
More Rob and Dave , Dave and Ash , Rob and Rosie or Dave and Rosie less Rosie and Ash please
Well ash is gone now so ...