TonyP's Comments

Brandthony : 4 Reasons The SOPA Blackouts Are A Goddamn Joke

Thu, 19 Jan 2012 17:50:06 +0000

Nah man, they'd cause shit storms. People would go nuts without FB or Wiki....and the Internet would explode without YouTube. It's the lifeblood of most web interactions for most people.

Brandthony : 4 Reasons The SOPA Blackouts Are A Goddamn Joke

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:45:15 +0000

Agreed

Brandthony : 4 Reasons The SOPA Blackouts Are A Goddamn Joke

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:42:43 +0000

What better way to raise awareness than by making vital websites inaccessible? The problem with momentary protests with few consequences is that people get riled up but once the awareness subsides, they can slip the bill through some backdoor channel because they think it's already been defeated. Back in the day, people knew how to protest. Rosa Parks didn't sit on the bus for 30-minutes to screw with the driver and then leave. She sat there until they had to drag her out kicking and screaming.

Brandthony : 4 Reasons The SOPA Blackouts Are A Goddamn Joke

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 22:40:16 +0000

"The aim of this protest wasn't to shut down their sites or render them useless to their users. " What better way to raise awareness than by making vital websites inaccessible? The problem with momentary protests with few consequences is that people get riled up but once the awareness subsides, they can slip the bill through some backdoor channel because they think it's already been defeated. "Taking down their sites and putting them offline is counterproductive because that's what would happen if SOPA or PIPA were to pass." That's precisely the point. I thought the point was to get people to understand the severity of this issue?

Brandthony : 4 Reasons The SOPA Blackouts Are A Goddamn Joke

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 20:36:11 +0000

Well, I haven't seen a single one of those and I live in NYC. My point is that if this is such a big deal - and it is - then dammit, let's go balls out and put on a REAL digital demonstration. Shutting down a handful of sites, most of which not reaching the people we want to reach but only preaching to the choir, is not going to do it. In our complaints against SOPA we talk about the internet being the largest megaphone on the planet and how it impacts us everyday. Then let's make a real impact on people's experience with the internet.

Brandthony : 4 Reasons The SOPA Blackouts Are A Goddamn Joke

Wed, 18 Jan 2012 19:24:58 +0000

Not sure you got the point (if you bothered to read). I agree with the movement. But I don't think the execution is very powerful. Oh, and fantastic rebuttal by the way.

Brandthony : Why Axing Celeb Endorsements After Scandals Makes Little Sense

Wed, 2 Nov 2011 22:21:26 +0000

Thanks :) Going to start updating some more too. Stick around.

Brandthony : Best of Social Media #1: Viral Culture, Pizza Holdouts, & The Value of Social Currency

Wed, 2 Nov 2011 22:19:25 +0000

Thanks. Every post is an exercise in restraint. I can go on for days about things haha.

Brandthony : Best of Social Media #1: Viral Culture, Pizza Holdouts, & The Value of Social Currency

Wed, 2 Nov 2011 22:15:49 +0000

Thanks! Wow, I hadn't checked my blog in a while. A bit of a boost to keep it updated.

Brandthony : 3 Questions for Social Media Marketers

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:30:53 +0000

I think it's a matter of objective too and it'll have to evolve over time. As more and more brands hit the social media pavement trying to establish "relationships," I worry that consumers will feel those relationships are shallow because every brand will be trying to be their friend. Will they come off as sleazy salesmen after a while just trying to be buddies so they can get some money from you? I already see it on Twitter a lot with marketing people constantly pushing their wares and "expertise" in the hopes of freelance projects. Sometimes I'll try to strike up a conversation with them by replying to a tweet they send and never hear anything back, then receive a DM 3 days later about their social consulting services. *barf*

Brandthony : 3 Questions for Social Media Marketers

Mon, 30 Aug 2010 20:27:12 +0000

Good point. I wasn't aware of any of their efforts before that and had only seen Dell Outlet as a sales promotion account. I know they've expanded since and do a lot more these days though.

SmashPad : So, What Is the Future of Gaming Mags?

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:36:07 +0000

It does make learning about new games seem less magical when it isn't all in one place, a month full of information condensed and packaged for you.

SmashPad : E3 2010 Showfloor Preview: Deus Ex: Human Revolution

Thu, 17 Jun 2010 04:23:37 +0000

And why is that exactly?

Brandthony : Why Axing Celeb Endorsements After Scandals Makes Little Sense

Wed, 19 May 2010 16:47:40 +0000

Glad you like it. I've actually expanded those thought into a full post that you would love http://brandthony.com/2010/05/is-social-media-mar...

SmashPad : EA Rides Higher Quality Games To Higher Sales

Mon, 17 May 2010 16:12:57 +0000

I would say that it doesn't have a significant impact right now, and it may not even seem smart, but I think EA sees a shift in the industry. Activision is larger than EA right now. Activision is also involved in a lot of the same game genres. With more and more games becoming multi-platform and sales being nearly equal across all of them, EA may believe that if they can gain a reputation for making higher-quality games in the same genre as Activision, that more people will choose the EA product. So this seems like a more long-term brand building play. They could be right or they could be wrong.

Brandthony : 5 Reasons My Roommate Hates Twitter

Sat, 15 May 2010 17:36:45 +0000

Haha, nice points. My roommate never understood Twitter and this was just a rant he had while watching CNN and they were promoting it. He still hasn't gotten into it, but it's safe to say that I have (though it took me a while.) I don't think I'll ever get into Foursquare though. I just don't see the value proposition. I do see the value in getting deals from local restaurants as mentioned in Best of Social Media #1. But for me, what I would be most interested in checking into would be concerts or conventions. But honestly, I would only really check in once to those things and now pick up on the benefits of the game mechanisms. Even if I did though, badges and mayorships have never really done much to increase my interest in the services anyway.

SmashPad : EA Rides Higher Quality Games To Higher Sales

Wed, 12 May 2010 20:56:17 +0000

It still counts as for the Q4 2009 fiscal quarter ;-)

SmashPad : Community Call: How Long Should a Reviewer Play a Game?

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 18:44:30 +0000

There are certainly some games where playing for 6 hours is just unacceptable, such as an RPG. It would be nice if all games were like Grand Theft Auto and noted your completion percentage, as I think that's the correct gauge for grasping the quality of a game and can aid a reviewer. Ultimately I believe it's in the best interest of both the reviewer and the reader that a review play a substantial portion of the game. It ends up aiding the review. Let's say, for instance, a game starts slow but really picks up halfway in. That could not only boost the score appropriately, but be addressed in the review itself. "This is the tale of two games: the first is a 5-hour borefest replete with cliches and mediocrity, while the second is a 3-hour extravaganza with some of the best mission design we've seen in the genre." Our recent review of Heavy Rain is a great example. Chris notes that some people might find the introduction of the game boring, going through mundane tasks like watching your kid do homework. But if you continue on, you'll find an interesting and unique gaming experience. I'm not sure how long that sequence lasts, but what if it lasted a significant amount of time? Could we have had a Global Agenda moment?

SmashPad : I'm Back! Diary #1: Well, I Guess Not...

Tue, 23 Feb 2010 03:38:14 +0000

How did it simplify combat when compared to the original? I notice that I don't really need to level up individual weapon types, but couldn't they have kept that without clips? It's been a while since I touched the first game.

SmashPad : Review: Mass Effect 2 (Xbox 360, PC)

Wed, 3 Feb 2010 16:07:37 +0000

Flick, I couldn't agree more wholeheartedly. If you read my earlier post Diary of an Unemployed, Out-of-the-Loop Game Journalist then you know I've been away from the scene from some time. I was chatting with Amadeo Plaza, who was the co-founder of this site, and he was the one who told me about it. I was so enraged that I called him and started screaming. "What the hell is wrong with BioWare!? Are they retarded!" We agreed that they must have changed it because they felt the infinite ammo system was "too easy" in the first game, but there are two keys to it. One, it fit in perfectly with the universe they created in the first game and the explanation for it was logical. Second, the guns in the first game still overheated, which forced you to conserve your ammunition just as effectively as the clips without the added frustration of searching for more ammo. I haven't played the game extensively enough to comment on whether there is too much "clip hunting," but having to even think about potentially worrying about it takes you completely out of the universe BioWare created. In the first game, you were completely immersed in the experience. It was different. It was the future. It was unique. By throwing clips back into the mix, it makes Mass Effect 2 feel more "everyday." More standard. Hell, it makes it feel more like a videogame when the first game felt more like an out of body, Avatar-esque exploration of an unknown world.