Improving THE FINALS Esports Viewing Experience (a caster's perspective)

[@Appoh]

good video, I hope soon we get major improvements for the games spectating experience because viewing it is a nightmare even as a seasoned veteran of the game

[@RGisOnline]

I have to give props to Thiixy for the amazing casting, its insane how well he can cast with the amount of chaos happening on stream, even I, a player who knows this game inside out cannot tell what the hell is happening and its a great choice that Embark Studios decided to collab with him

[@user-ne9sd4ow1o]

His energy is top notch too! 😂 I saw Oscar looking at him like "how is he doing this". Powered by Ospuze for sure 🤘

[@unidentified4122]

I think static team colors like in overwatch, xray like in csgo, and a general god mode perspective is needed. The destruction is what makes the game hilariously fun but a spectating expirence needs 2~4 camera men with the above tools (if not more) and a director to decide between all the shots This game can be insanely cinematic with the right choices and it already seems like some of those are coming in season 6

[@Styrophone1]

Interesting to hear a casters view! Never thought about it like that. I hope this game goes on for years to come as it is probably my favorite multiplayer game of all time. I also come from r6 and played it from season 1 until 2022 ish

[@GerryCasts]

@@Styrophone1 the OG r6 to The Finals progression route is real

[@XueYlva]

R6 since 2016, 1200 hours (quit a few years ago) and I'm now at 340 hours in The Finals since week 3 of Season 1.

[@Barkz]

I think a big aspect of quality viewership is overlays. I think a big thing in The Finals right now is the broadcasts aren’t given enough information technically to allow for easy information. Would love to see Embark create a tool or at least an API for others to make tools to get live data on each aspect of the game. Player KDA is an obvious, but cooldowns on abilities, cashout timers, vault timers, etc. This would allow casters to maybe get a dashboard of whats happening so they can see the bigger picture, while not overwhelming the viewer with every bit of information.

[@GerryCasts]

An API would be incredible, I had meant to mention it! Giving overlay options to very talented broadcasters with some creative thinking can only be a good thing

[@zapmando]

Before a round starts we need a flyby of the map. The casters can show points of interest on the map variant. Would be a good opportunity to point out strategic differences in maps and variants.

[@napalmsavage7717]

I think a lot like the Siege esports scene, a professional level camera spectator is going to be required to properly jump between fly cams and pov cams. Especially when teams converge on a single cashout and its explosions and particles and coins flying everywhere.

[@АндрейТерлецкий-н6г]

I'd really love the feature to have a spectator mod for tournaments in game, so to be able to watch them right there, or maybe some high ranked games, would really feel like The Gameshow!

[@MiyamotoDGuts]

23:23 that's a really really interesting idea

[@Evoluti0N11]

Honestly, such a great video; you pointed out most of the stuff that even I thought about. About the gamemode, I'm 100% on the same idea as you: to watch and, a lot of times, to play Cashout is just more "TheFinals" and funny to watch. And I agree spectator with HUD should improve, but if we start having multiple spectator slots like in CS with tournaments with bigger budgets and with more viewers, it could improve the situation a lot already. I like that in Season 5, in-game, there are big screens showing events on the map that gave me many ideas during a match to show, like a secondary camera after a fight, etc. Hope Embark receives this video because what you say is basically the same stuff I think, ahah. Keep it up; good work!

[@GerryCasts]

Thank you! Multiple spectator slots exist (though only 2 at a time I think?) And yes, following multiple centres of action is doable, it just requires a bigger observer + production team than a typical FPS, with some smart direction. Missing some stuff is inevvitable. But that also opens up the avenue for cool replay packages!

[@Waltztacular]

Fantastic video, you put so eloquently all the points I would make myself. It's so important that Embark don't try to force a competitive scene but instead provide the tools needed for the community to do so,, and then support them from there. Excited to see what happens next, and hope to hear you casting again soon!

[@GerryCasts]

Glad you enjoyed it! Thanks

[@MezzoLaurango-n2r]

I love how we are already seeing this with the maps getting super saturated with bold, non-complicated colors here's my suggestion - Spectator Tools Map Overlay / togglable minimap Dynamic / contextual markers Cool Down Peekers For UI knobslobbers - Think "How would this look on a big screen at Bdubs"

[@Defecthead]

Love this! Really important discussion to get this game to its full potential!

[@VShadowGaming]

I felt the sameway regarding the viewer experience and understanding whats happening on the screen. While most of us who play the game would be able to understand what was going on to some extent, I noticed how "hard" it was to even tell what team we was watching at the time unless we heard the caster say what team it was. Even in the chat, some was confused what team was which, and everything really. Your casting was the first I got to hear from you during the tourney, and I really vibed with how ya went about it. Like you mentioned here, regarding "casting the drama" I felt this probably would have helped a number of newer players at least somewhat follow along with what was going on outside of just the immediate fighting. KILL FEEDS would be insane to have, at least for spectator view. I have full faith Embark will at perfect the viewer experience ^0^ ONWARD TO MORE GROOVINESS TO COME

[@Drothyr]

I would love to see the finals in esports

[@FatManJackTV]

Tried to get my dad to watch me play Breakout. He was so lost and confused by the colors switching and the POVs in game

[@EliQ3]

I like playing the Finals, that's why I clicked, but more than anything I found this informative about how commentating works

[@brooilygaming]

As someone with casting experience I would love a fixed eagle eyes view with players names.

[@asdyull-dk4nt]

Something I heard sometime ago about the success of an esport: massive playerbase or simplicity to know, show and explain what is happening...

[@wannalockin]

totally agree with your perspective very well made video

[@ReaperTheRager]

What they really need are animated replays. Thinking in terms of traditional sports, when an intense moment happens the casters will take a moment to show the previous play (usually in slow motion) and highlight a specific aspect of it. For Esports in the Finals this would look like Dota 2 when they animate pivotal moments from The International to act sort of like promotional material. It gives a narrative element to an otherwise chaotic mess of clicking during a teamfight. Hold tournament, pick a few key moments, animate them and splice those scenes inbetween spectator footage from that match. Also, as was mentioned by another viewer, we need cameramen. There should be two casters so they can play off each other and on the side you have at least one guy flicking through fixed cameras around the map looking for what's happening outside the main spectator POV at that moment. Maybe the camera guy teams up with a graphics guy to draw on the screen as a visual aid that can then be shown by the casters during downtime.

[@neckbread1829]

I really hope Embark watches this and are taking notes. Its very important we get a good viewer experince before the Major, otherwise they are wasting a massive potential we might never get again.

[@brooilygaming]

I really don’t see an issue with a final round of 3v3 . Maybe shortest respawn or shorter distances to travel

[@zZMichael300Zz]

Players head counter at the top would help us players too, (should be visible at all times), also it should show math results before cashout ends instead of making us do the calculations. another problem is having 2 different cashouts locations happening at the same time is problematic because you can't show 2 places at the same time for the audience. One more sugestion would be to let players ping location for teammates when we die instead of having to callout enemy position. In addition to this a 3rd person camera or even body cam for teammates would be cool and could be implemented, and maybe experiment with arena Jumbotrons which are those large-screen video displays that are used to show live events, highlights, and close-ups to the audience and us players during the game or even at intermission while we are waiting for the next round! Maybe even have a arena stanting or seating view.

[@damiens1998]

wonderful vid. camera work def needs work in this game. personally i think we really need keybinds for individual players(csgo has 1234567890 for each of the ten players. finals cameramen need to be able to get to any player immediately. we need quick transitions between the micro and macro views, first person, third person, and freecam. also good point about the killcam. i think we need something other than the scoreboard to keep track of every living player at once on screen at all times! hopefully someone from embark reads this!!!! i saw other comments mentioning two cameramen, and a director in vc with casters to control the vision. def more of an org level improvement but giving the spectator mode extra tools always good! also FUCK we need demos

[@GerryCasts]

I may just end up making a wishlist video that is more concise and specific. Most of these are things I had in a very old script... maybe i should dig that out

[@Marshall...-_-1101]

i never knew this was a thing till now.

[@zapmando]

If you could plug in an actual dollar amount for the eintire tourney, and the game distributed that money to each vault and the money we saw in game was actual cash. could be interesting if the team was getting real money with every kill, plug and cashout.

[@kunai3174]

This game genuinely doesn't need an esport to survive. The playerbase is dedicated unlike and not dead like XDeadfiant 💀

[@GerryCasts]

I agree the game doesnt need an esport to survive, the causal community is strong! XDefiant was a surprise in some senses, their playerbase wasn't that bad, but there was perhaps a greater weight of expectation with that game

[@shallot4991]

Ok so what if participants could join virtual public lounge lobbies and or spectator stands with a broadcast of the tournament all over the place, maybe even some interactables, how cool and or difficult would that be

[@Bradyh]

I’m at work, haven’t watched the full video. I feel like esports tie in events in the game with items etc would help bring attention to the esports scene and drive interest. Idk tho

[@Bradyh]

I guess this is also coming from someone who plays the game a decent amount and hasn’t been aware of the esports scene, tournaments, etc.

[@cikp]

W GERRY

[@user-ne9sd4ow1o]

Anyone else struggle to see dead player icons while playing? Sometimes i see theyre dead and look around but dont see the icon 🤔

[@MichaelBohemian]

What ever happened to dedicated spectator modes with flying cameras.

[@MiyamotoDGuts]

The question is, will the commentators be Scotty and June?

[@GerryCasts]

I sure hope not or I'm out of a job

[@d.a.studiosgaming7783]

How do Fortnite and Apex casters do it? If Casters treat this almost like a battle royal in the way they convey information, that might help. I'm mainly thinking about fights and multiteam fights with this, but im also not a caster, so this might be a terrible idea.

[@GerryCasts]

I'm not as familiar with Fortnite, but from what little Apex comp iI've watched, the HUD is far clearer and provides a lot more info than the current observer HUD in The Finals. At times this game definitely feels like a battle royale

[@thecoderman7347]

nice!

[@MacGuffin1]

Love the video but: "the Finals could get rug-pulled' no, unlike the others, it's the best video game to date... never going to happen lol... the small player count is an advantage rn, the game speaks for itself.. it's not going anywhere , in fact it will be bigger than Apex and all the other trash 3rd world coin-farmer spreadsheet games from 20 yrs ago that make their bank on young noobs who's parents wont buy them a legit gfx card..... yeahnah... strap yourself in , get the tattoo.... Introduce ppl you like and HYPE. As for casting: I agree it is hard to watch(also it needs a control room guy and two casters IMO), most other similar Esports around atm are a masterclass in 'what not to do' IMO. The community needs to put LAN regional Comps together, or it will end up like COD where you just have a bunch of try-hard-wannabe loosers who DMA their way to the finals and then make the game/esports aspect look trash overall when everyone sees how bad they are without cheats. EDIT: Lastly comps have to be WT format or dont bother... 3v3 'final round' at the exclusion of everything else is not a good representation of the game/actual skill / plus not as fun to watch in isolation from a full WT. This season: Emerald 1 shud unlock a live casting function, organised heats should be scheduled and played in public lobbies (those that cant be put onto LAN) if it's 3v3 they shud search the same time in their 3 stacks.... missmatch not counted. Embark shud take more responsibility for tracking rank(s) better than they have done thus far. Last season I sweatted my arse off to get Em3 and because I played on several different patforms and servers I was de-ranked by an entire division???!?! Go figure... EDIT: please stop talking about QC and 3v3, QC is for new people to learn the mechanics.... World Tournament is the True finals XP, if you dont know that by now... then I envy you as a wonderful world awaits

[@someone_tc5267]

Ngl that kill feed is complete unnecessary, cool concept but would clutter too much of the screen you can use the kill feed in game now, the spectator mode should just see a kill feed with all the teams in it instead of how the teams have it where it’s only their team. as long as you know the team colors you can see who’s fighting who, the team colors are shown off in the beginning

[@GerryCasts]

Screen clutter is definitely the biggest obstacle to this style of feed working. I personally don't mind a large clear feed and other HUD elements, as long as it stays out of the centre third of the screen.

[@mr.nihilistic]

dedicated servers and a true skill ranking system is needed

[@GerryCasts]

I'm never against improvements to the main game! But this video is focused mainly on esports and those things dont tend to affect it. Besides unavoidable ping issues between EU and NA teams. So I decided the video was too long to also mention those, as well as any meta balancing issues.

[@Rosa_Neco]

the fact that its Console tournament makes it so painful for any pc player to watch at all.