Town Center - AoE Podcast with TheViper & Masmorra - Ep. 4 feat. Mr. Yo

[@gmat4380]

I think every episode of Town Center should have a new random picture of Daut for a few minutes 😂 Loved the episode, thank you!

[@GamerLegion]

Will think about it ;)

[@niki8280]

From around the 29th minute up til 44:14, the graphics got so much better and the person on screen got so much more handsome and sexier. Too bad we had to go back to watching two less amazing specimens afterwards.

[@GamerLegion]

He ist just beautiful isn't he

[@crillekrosss]

Wow this episode really had a bit of everything. Drama, controversy, comedy, seriousness, life tips, great interview etc. Really crushing it with this new show and Masmorra & Vipey compliment each other really good!

[@shoonseiki]

Mr. Yo is one of my favorites to listen to. Such a funny guy and he has a unique perspective on things.

[@zackc3767]

I was shocked to learn Yo holds down a full time IT job with Microsoft while streaming full time. Awesome.

[@marcuswall6613]

Nah, you misunderstood his meaning. He just falsely claim to be a IT man to make him better when he met his relatives.

[@zackc3767]

@@marcuswall6613 *woosh*

[@Patchnote2.0]

I always love to hear from Mr. Yo. I'm sad about how China seems the most isolated in the AoE community and that we don't get to hear more from the players themselves from our perspectives.

[@itellyouwhy6957]

The joys of living under a Communist dictatorship....

[@superstar5042]

It's not just china, it's whole Asia. And that's because of ping issue it's easier for them to play with themself instead of Europe or USA and because of language barrier

[@vongola8902]

I'm the Chinese guy that watching youtube AOE2 conttents mainly actually. But alway happy when Chinese players doing well especially Yo. Gret podcast from GL!

[@frankxu1365]

🤝

[@dracken_tv5510]

Thanks for bringing up the draft system from MoA. I have the same opinion as Viper, it works even better with mixed map tournaments and I hope we will see it in major S tier soon. It would be really refreshing and would open variety of playstyles and strategies compared to current meta vs meta.

[@KurtFan69]

love mr 7-0!! they didnt talk about it but i remember it well, it came from a showmatch back in 2020 where viper lost 7-0 to yo but actually then one who came up with the nickname was daniel 😂fun times great podcast, love the guests too

[@NachoAoE]

This is amazing content, thank you very much! Really entertaining :)

[@jmoralesv03]

Nice to see you here, Nacho 🎉🎉

[@sgs91232]

Falling in love with this game..with Yo, Viper, Hera❤

[@DukePegasus]

Really enjoying these, keep them going, great work. And always love to see Yo ofc.

[@TheKyinHI]

These two are fantastic as a podcast. Really enjoying this series. Thanks GL!

[@yuuya5985]

Mr.Yo❤

[@agnostik532]

this everyitme getting better thank you Gmaer legion and to amazing duo TheViper, Masmorra

[@Frozen_Sorrow]

Streaming is quite big and considered a real job in China, but it’s mostly advertising for products, clothing, fruits etc. As for people following the Viper, I’m not sure that as I haven’t lived in China since DE release, but many people do get VPN and can access Facebook and KZbin. The real barrier is the language. Most people are just not on the level of being conversation and able to understand daily speech, let alone gaming contents. PS: As a former literature and translation student who has learnt English since I was four, I am genuinely impressed by Yo’s level of fluency. I know I’m better but it comes from 21 years of practice and 3+ years in the UK. Great respect to Yo.❤

[@Frozen_Sorrow]

A bit about the Esports scene in China. League of Legends is huge and have a great followings among uni students, and not just the boys too. But I’m just not that into it. AOE is just too niche that unfortunately the esport scene can never be at the scale of some other games. Having said that I hope AOE IV can really help grow the scene, although I doubt my sh*t laptop can run it😅

[@Frozen_Sorrow]

I think the devs are doing well, too. When I first purchased DE in 2020 it was borderline unplayable on my PC, so I switched back to HD. Now I’m following more Viper contents and download DE again, same laptop, surprisingly smooth.

[@jmoralesv03]

There is a similar situation in Latin America related to English casters and games, because English is not taught very well in our countries, so people rely on Spanish content to know what is going in the English speaking world. We have NachoAoE and Mario Ovalle as casters who share and stream regularly in KZbin, besides others in Twitch such as pinch3terneira. Are there Chinese casters that also stream and share the AoE's English contents, tournaments and gameplays? I guess there are, but we know little about them.

[@MrSwordstroker]

Marsmorra is an epic interviewer and I hope the pods become a well deserved cornerstone of this community!!

[@riccardospadini5555]

Very enjoyable content, thank you so much! It's always a treat :)

[@connorwilliams3542]

Awesome interview, great topics, and you explored them quite well

[@wazzpqazzza]

I always admire how comfy and supportive and lighthearted the pro community is for this game. They are all rivals ans team mates at varying times, for year Viper and Yo were No. 1 and 2 and yet they chat like good friends, take stabs at one another and can laugh at themselves and each other. It's sho wholesome.

[@valinagabrielle]

Spicy and very interesting episode, loved to see Yo touch a little those technical aspects for us non-chinese people. TY

[@Aleblanco1987]

Such a legend Mr.Yo!

[@a.delafrancesca1459]

Great one! Can't wait for the next one :)

[@kavinarasu8197]

Was waiting for this for a while ❤

[@karnazacss]

Aoe2 needs this even if ot doesnt get the most views. Maybe promote it a little in stream, etc. Thanks for doing it!

[@phantom31999]

That teutons scenario is Barbarossa Brawl. I do wish we get more official scenarios like these.

[@MasmorraAoE]

Barbarossa Brawl!!! That's it, thank you!

[@phantom31999]

@@MasmorraAoE You're welcome! Great video as always. Keep up the great work!

[@hansoverhage]

Love the banter of these two! Great interview!

[@OytheGreat]

I'm always amazed at Viper's thoughtful intelligence when he's talking about something he feels strongly about. Whether it's AoE or the more real things like making a living, I love how he thinks about them thoroughly and can formulate his thoughts on them quite clearly too. He never gives the impression of any arrogance either, which must be super hard in his position as the absolute n°1 in the game we all love while also having contributed massively to the community. Once again a great episode, thanks GL and thanks Masmorra, TheViper & Yo!

[@andydonachie2642]

Viper talking about the ethical issues, I think I’ve fallen in love with him! Couldn’t be more right, it’s almost like he is super intelligent or something 😉

[@CptSquirrel]

Comparing first world gambling addiction, overdebt and suicide to third world sweatshop products, therefore its not right to attack industries that cause these selfdestructive behaviors, as right and wrong doesnt exist, clearly is a high IQ move.

[@philippeporto5893]

The Daur pick got me laughing so much. Thansk as usual, GL!

[@rogiersmits729]

Daut looks amazing as an early 1900's camera man

[@rafaelcordioli4115]

Great podcast. Keep it up

[@Dr_Bounty_guitar]

What a charming interview 👍

[@Cacun]

How is that this episode has so little likes! Come on guys drop a like! We all love this game! I absolutely like Alcatraz style scenarios, doge ball map etc! Watching and playing! Come on Microsoft make some official score board! 💪🏻💪🏻 Pd we need more elite players coaching pro players (say 2k1-2k3) and also 1k9 to 2k1 a little push to reach 2k3 Would be soooo amazing

[@squeakysnashlehash7993]

First! been waiting for the new episode. finally it's out!

[@donaldfarquar]

Great interview again.

[@MushmushCat]

can't wait to see episode 5

[@viniciusbonatto3943]

Great episode! Masmorra and Viper form a great team

[@AlexB-vt5xe]

Heya! Really interesting episode, loved picking Yo's brains. Did i tell you i'm planning on winning the lottery so bring on the skins :P Thanks a lot for another great episode

[@nathandodson3220]

There are nearly as many TC episodes as Viper has number of TCs at 25 mins in a standard arabia 1v1.

[@FloosWorld_AoE]

42:50 "This year we won't have a Red Bull" Is that speculation or confirmation? 🤔

[@yuuya5985]

28:58 this technical issue looks so unprofessional to me, but since the Lord is the camera man here, I won't complain 11

[@GamerLegion]

He just came in at some point and took over...

[@yuuya5985]

@@GamerLegion That's something I would call, supremacy.

[@reinaueda2369]

good episode

[@prueba9a956]

ngl Viper came with the best interview I've watched

[@Dirkulos]

Custom maps played a hugh role for Warcraft 3 and Dota for example

[@Nesque]

The biggest thing with twitch is that they've made the ads unskipable through various adblockers. So people who previously never had to watch an ad because of that is now bombarded with it. And because twitch is kind of... "Techy" I'm willing to bet a significant proportion of the viewers DO use adblock.

[@AlexB-vt5xe]

uhmm just few days ago Jordan announced he can no longer go fulltime streaming and will get a job as before and such. Is there any chance we could have an interview with him? I'm thinking it can't be too difficult since you're all in Germany. Maybe half interview and half a fun game or so. up to you guys :)

[@quasibrodo923]

100% agree on the skins. As long as the opponent doesn't have to look at the skin then I have no problem with it.

[@Xoraly]

Yo is cool

[@goenzz]

I find it hilarious how completely puzzled you two are on the whole admiration for certain skins because I'm pretty much the same age as you two and my view on the matter is EXACTLY the same. It MUST be an age thing :D

[@kusch_aoe3040]

Just doing my civic duty of commenting again after neglecting it for so long because I was too laz... busy. On a side note, on the first episode I "complaint" that Nelson and Organ Gun were a bit stiff, didn't have a good flow in the conversation... yeah, that has been gone since the second episode.

[@animes1988]

Old school photographer Daut ❤

[@jonskog7263]

A question for the pro players: What number of players is your favorite team game tournament? 2v2, 3v3 or 4v4?

[@Toralen]

Viper sussing out who Yo's training partners are 11

[@johnframboise]

I found Viper's answer regarding the ethical issues with Kick a bit weird. He gave a classic "whataboutism"-answer: What about Amazon being an ethically bad-ish company, what about your phone and so forth. I found this answer weird because you can always use the argument of pointing somewhere else... By saying so/using this argument, you avoid a fruitful discussion about the topic. I'm actually curious if Kick promots gambling and if so, is it done in a way that can get people addicted?

[@blakdfje]

Somehow if I watch Twitch on my TV I never get any adds, and I'm not subscribed to anyone.

[@MrEternalFool]

Depends on your country

[@sizzlinggw2]

I had the same on my nvidia shield for many months until it got an update. Then I was forced to get twitch turbo to get rid of them

[@huehuecoyotl22aoe29]

Skins: Heavily depends on the price and what it is. If it were some additional new, good-looking architecture sets, maybe. But everything else probably not for me.

[@VortexMotiveVision]

I want more wololo. More please!

[@hansoskar1911]

I spend some time thinking about this and I dont wanna be a killjoy but if you as an entertainer cant find 350 people to give money to you regularly you cant be in that business profesionally. Kick doesnt need to run a streaming site to make money, as the front of a online casino that makes absurd money. They dont need to run ads, the streamers beeing on kick are already the ad. The contracted casino streamers (who make the casino seem more appealing bc they get privileged odds) got kicked from twitch and so Kick made their own platform specifically for them. every other streamer there is just advertising. Just compare what Las Vegas does with gambling money just to attract people into the city and the online operationshave wayyyy more rake. On the scenario stuff: If there was an ingame icon displayed on the Townceter(kinda like AOE4 does it) of the current world record holder (and maybe top10 etc) I dont think some people would ever stop competing.

[@holyn8]

yoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo

[@lostgoat]

He hates Twitch yet just announced he is joining them

[@ageofwalls3736]

teutons in the middle map might be pto (protect the one). My lovely map..

[@ankit619]

The TV has like non-existent bezels

[@Puffin_AOE]

Please no skins in AOE2! I think you only are for skins because you don't understand the appeal of them (as you mention in the podcast). You had a good example in the podcast about the reaction of other players on the expensive skin in csgo. That is why skins sell, to show to other players, look i have this unique cool skin. That would require skins to be visible for the other players. If you can turn off skins that other players own, it would kill the incentive to buy them. Therefor i do not believe it will be an option to turn off skins your opponent or ally has. And you already seem to agree that it should be an option you are able to turn off. Because the game would become unplayable. Not knowing what unit is attacking you because it suddenly has another look. I love this game, and i fear the damage skins could do to it. Love the podcast btw :)

[@SD-ft5xj]

Oh no is viper going to kick after facebook 💀💀💀

[@S13Egg]

hmm so viper doesnt like csgo gambling but is fine with being on gambling funded stream

[@AndrewTheFrank]

I quit watching Twitch years ago and partly because of preroll adds. I use adblockers and often twitch would have an update, be buggy, play adds or simply not play at all for a time. I hate adds in general but if they have to be on a video or stream they should be placed where it makes sense for the content and flow of the show. When they are forced into my face, to make my viewing experience unpleasurable, I will go find other more enjoyable things to do with my time. This is exactly what I've done and why I watch many Twitch content creators on KZbin clips only.

[@franzjacke]

@MembTV would be great for production part when there would be Microsoft tournament

[@franzjacke]

For all the tournaments

[@joacocichello]

Viper I love you

[@GARCIAOFFICAL]

It's impressive how little Masmorra knows about twitch and its history with ads, it was never ever this bad.. Viper hit every nail correctly, the ads are killing that platform, I don't even bother with it anymore, I just watch content on youtube at this point.

[@amrosh791]

For real it’s horrible. I only watch viper and t90 due to ads

[@jandrenth570]

Hey love the content guys, f1re next??

[@tag180rotax]

Poor Somero exited to lobby so fast 11

[@RedBloodSandman999]

YO

[@jannik4211]

Will you come to iTunes as well?

[@GamerLegion]

Currently not planned. If we will upload on additional platforms in the future we will communicate it ofc :)

[@yagzozandibek5196]

​@@GamerLegion Pleeease do so. I'd like to listen to this from my podcast player where all my other podcasts are.

[@carlson8334]

"How can there be a FOMO on skins" Because they will be available for a limited time in a possible battle Pass. How can masmora say hes done his research but than not know this. Rather bad that part, but the rest of the whole interview is nice.

[@Shadow-melder]

Seconded. Companies exploit FOMO by making items only available for a limited time or quantity, urging you to either grind in-game to unlock or, more likely, fork out money so you won't miss out.

[@holyn8]

5:20 imagine not using adblockers

[@wazzpqazzza]

Daaaauuuuuttt why did you do this to us?

[@BramVanroy]

Ehhhh, not 100% behind TheViper and masmorra on his thoughts re: gambling and addiction. Everybody has to take responsibility for themselves, yes. But the point is that not everyone can. This is true for both minors (microtransactions) and 18+ (gambling). I know that this is hard to understand for people who do not have a predisposition for addiction in their brain, but it's not just "willpower"; it's a genetic thing (Google). So if you are not as easily addicted and you can just ignore ads for gambling, then that's great! But that isn't true for everyone. So as a streamer I do believe you have some responsibility in not showing critical attractions to your viewers, like ads related to gambling, alcohol, tabaco, which are notoriously addicting, bad for your health, social, or financial situation. TheViper is mostly open about how he does a lot for his own financial situation (mixer, Facebook, raid) and I appreciate his openness in that respect. But there are some lines to be drawn. It may mean he earns a bit less money but socially in terms of human wellbeing it results in a better outcome. (Much like how prohibiting tabaco ads has decreased sales and overall tabaco consumption.) I know that many people will disagree and will argue that it's "every man for himself" and that everyone should be able to make money how they want to regardless of the consequences for other people. You are entitled to that opinion. So let's already agree to disagree in advance.

[@TheViperAOE]

I would like to emphasize that I am personally against gambling and encourage everyone to stay away from gambling or any actions that could lead to a negative addiction, and I also agree that as a streamer one can actively steer away from exposing its audience to it, as you say, 100%. What I'm generally referring to is the example of someone going to Kick for example, and that was their only way of attempting to make a living from streaming, one shouldn't have to deal with a constant stream of judgement from the people taking the moral high ground because they're streaming on a platform that was funded by a guy that earned his money from a gambling site. I've seen so many negative comments about streamers going to kick or taking a RAID sponsorship, and so forth, where it's essentially their only way of sustaining their lifes. One should definitely hold a streamer responsible if they're advertising for gambling, tobacco, alcohol and so forth. But I also believe there is a line to be drawn where some advertisement such as a RAID sponsorship for example is fine, as long as you can warn against addiction, or a Poker sponsorship where you encourage to gamble responsibly. In the end it's likely going to be a case-by-base thing, but I don't think people should have to deal with harassment for making certain choices that often can be decisive for your livelihood, again, within reason. I do not believe everyone should make their money however they want regardless of the consequences for other people. Absolutely not.

[@BramVanroy]

@@TheViperAOE Thanks for expanding on this. I agree with you - and perhaps that "line to be drawn" is very grey. As you said it depends on specific cases, and on how the streamer handles the situation and introduces the product to their audience. I have no quarrel with Kick. RAID... well I'm not a fan. But if the streamer brings it into context and clearly states "this is a fun game, try it out, but be very aware about the addicting nature and the potential costs that come with it", then that is fine I think.

[@missinghiker2709]

Yo

[@zamasterx]

38:50 somos el mejor pais de chile

[@shulkerbgaming]

I will disagree with Nili. The worst thing to happen to the game was Microsoft cutting support for The Zone. Many people including myself thought the game was entirely dead at that point. Conversely I believe without Scripter and the UserPatch team we would not even have a playable game at all right now.

[@Stewart1499]

I want to be Yo so bad.

[@devonlovelock8228]

Regarding Facebook, some of us make moral and ethical decisions about what corporations and individuals we choose to do business with. And you can argue all day about the relative merits of these corporations (and individuals, and that includes Facebook vs. Twitch. But one thing is clear, for me. I will never do business with Facebook. I will not use it, or any of the company's products, nor will I ever watch content on their gaming platforms. No matter how much I enjoy T90 and Viper, and they do seem like good people, I won't watch them on Facebook. Ever.

[@DM-rc4yu]

ok

[@jindrichcink8378]

Fair enough

[@ks_movies]

any specific reason? Or just that facebook is evil?

[@zeruzio1345]

@@DM-rc4yu The only rational response to @devonlovelock8228's comment.

[@Herintruththelies]

Why have two random LEL scrubs on your podcast?

[@ddderri]

I must say I am extremely disapointed with both of your takes on gambling as an industry. It is of course ok for an individual to try to make the best for themselves on a streaming platform, but gambling as a product is not comparable to a phone, a car or an ipad. Thats pure fake 'whataboutism', and avoiding to really take a deep view about the issue. Gambling is a product entirely based on taking advantage of psychological biases of vulnerable people to extract money from those who have little, to a few owners who have a lot. It does not create any value, any use, any good for the people they are taking advantage of, or for society as a whole. It just acts like a bad drug with little to non benefit. Would you promote heroin online because in the end its about individual accountability, and 'what about alcoho'l whose use is also damaging and is perfectly legal? A moral high ground is a perfectly respectable position to take, if what the opposite side is promoting is literaly a useless form of extorting vulnerable people. Very surprised about your comments. Would love to see a follow up with more deep reflecion about the topic. 😔

[@endlessgalaxyz]

Why is there so much attention and podcasts etc for this game its like over 20 years old like lets move on lmao

[@GamerLegion]

No lmao

[@AndrewTheFrank]

Saying that "T90 and TheViper leaving Twitch has hurt the AoE2 viewership and community" sounds like a self own. Because if after enough time other people can't keep viewership around or increase it then it says that everyone else is simply not as good or entertaining. If one is entertaining, but maybe need more exposure or air space then the top guys leaving should in theory give you space to grow. However, if given that space, because you are now the top views in the category, but still can't pull in more growth this shows some lack in the channel. Stop blaming others leaving for better opportunity as to why you're not doing well and instead improve yourselves and your channels so as to pull in people like TheViper and T90 have. You have space to get better so get better, and i'm not talking about playing the game. Get better at interacting with people. The major selling point of a stream is interaction with fans. Learn how to do it. Learn stuff about communication and psychology to pick up things to help make the experience more appealing in the niche you want it. Viewership isn't down because 2 people left. Its because others haven't stepped up.

[@DM-rc4yu]

It's not that simple. Some channels did grow, like Dave's. But T90 and Viper are too big in this community for it to not have such a negative impact. Once people have a favorite streamer, it's very hard to switch to something else. I wouldn't watch Hera if he was the last aoe channel that stayed. It's just how it is.

[@AndrewTheFrank]

@@DM-rc4yu yes people have their favorite streamers but they are a favorite for a reason. They are found to be entertaining. The more people that come to this conclusion the more viewers the streamer has. A part of getting more viewers is to be more entertaining.

[@ks_movies]

Hm.. lemme put it like this.. Its not like a viewer only watches Viper, he would probably switch to other channel once he goes offline or he raids other channel. It also gives someone motivation to subscribe to turbo, which in turn gears them towards other channels. Again there is no disputing that T90 & Viper are the biggest AOE2 streamers and arguably the best 2 too, but a fragmented platform makes it too much of a hassle for a casual viewer to bother either signing up to fb to watch those two or tune into other channels which may not be their first choice. So, like Masmorra said, from a factual standpoint it did hurt the AoE2 viewership, but holding it against them makes absolutely no sense.

[@JakeDanczyk]

Who is self-owning? Nelson, the host? He has a full time job and a family, this a side gig he started doing a year or two ago. This isn't even his channel. And he's not "blaming" anyone, he's friends with both those guys and is simply stating facts. Also. T90 and Viper spent many years working on their skills (T90 more as a caster, Viper more as a player) to become as good as they are.

[@AndrewTheFrank]

@@JakeDanczyk I worded it as i meant it. Anybody who thinks that way. There is something they could have done better to help compete with those at the top or fill the void when the top spot is gone. It is all in the framing of the question. Instead of asking how things could be approached so as to improve viewership or making streaming more enjoyable for viewership or whatnot it is instead phrased that T90 and TheViper are responsible for viewer number sand without them they have hurt the community. It is an attitude of putting blame on others rather than asking what one's self could have done to take responsibility to take advantage of an opportunity.

[@nikolaygueorguiev2367]

Actually stopped watching after Viper's magnum opus of whataboutery regarding the ethics of Kick. Yes, because something I own might not be ethically produced, I cannot ever have a critical opinion on that, or anything else really. Disappointed.

[@_amblypigid7797]

Should have kept listening, he didn't say that - the point was that it doesn't make sense to expect everyone to agree with any critical opinion we have.

[@CptSquirrel]

​@@_amblypigid7797Meaning morals are subjective with no evil and good in the world therefore nothing matters. Everything is an "opinion' all "truths" are equal. Great one Amvlypigid, see nothing wrong with that.