Changes: Honest Game Trailers

Revision as of 22:22, 8 June 2019

Honest Game Trailers is a weekly comedy web series that humorously reviews games. It is a spinoff of the original Honest Trailers series. Like Honest Trailers, Honest Game Trailers is narrated by Jon Bailey. The first episode was Mario Kart, published on March 8, 2014. Since 2014, over 220 episodes of Honest Game Trailers have been produced (see list of Honest Game Trailers for further information).

Honest Game Trailers used to be published on the Smosh Games channel, but since June 2019 (starting with Anthem) is published on the Fandom Games channel.

Watch Honest Game Trailers playlist on YouTube

Format

Honest Game Trailers uses a similar format to the original series Honest Trailers. In their write-up on the Mario Kart video, Tubefilter noted that, "Honest Game Trailers uses the exact same formula as Screen Junkies’ smash hit. It features a deep-voiced narrator who purports to “sell” the games in question but only points out their flaws.... At first glance, Honest Game Trailers seems like a blatant rip-off of its filmic forbearer, but it is actually the latest partnership between united Defy Media brands. Screen Junkies is run by Break Media, while Smosh Games is part of the Alloy Digital network; those two companies merged last year. The decision to run Honest Game Trailers on Smosh Games is Defy’s latest attempt to take advantage of its properties’ related audiences."

Honest Game Trailers were a collaboration between Screen Junkies and Smosh. Some members of the Honest Trailers team are also involved in the production of Honest Game Trailers. For instance, head writer of Honest Trailers, Spencer Gilbert has been involved with Honest Game Trailers since its inception. Spencer is an avid gamer and is credited as a co-writer on all episodes of Honest Game Trailers. Likewise, voice artist Jon Bailey (aka Epic Voice Guy) does the narration both series. In addition, motion graphics artist Robert Holtby creates the honest titles for both.

Production

The first batch of Honest Game Trailers were actually created by members of the YouTube channel The Warp Zone including Michael Adams Davis, Michael Schroeder and Ryan Tellez, in collaboration with Screen Junkies writer Spencer Gilbert. At the time, The Warp Zone, Smosh Games and Screen Junkies were all part of the same parent company, Defy Media. Later episodes were written primarily by the Smosh Games team, including Max Song, Andrew Bird, Matt Raub, Spencer Gilbert and many other people.

When the series was revived in 2019, Fandom Games brought back three members of the old team to create new episodes: editor/writer Max Song, writer Andrew Bird, and writer Spencer Gilbert. FANDOM chose to use a rotating roster of voice artists, including original narrator Jon Bailey as well as new narrators such as Mark Peeples. FANDOM wrote that multiple narrators allowed them to capture the personality of a wider variety of games.

Publication

Smosh games honest game trailers — Newer *Honest Game Trailers* logo.

Honest Game Trailers was originally published by YouTube channel Smosh Games, which, at the time of the series' conception, was owned by the same parent company as Screen Junkies. The series was Smosh Games' highest-viewed series. Honest Game Trailers was originally released on Saturdays, but is currently released on Tuesdays at 10am PST.

Episodes of Honest Game Trailers released in 2014 have averaged over 5 million views each, but in 2019 many episodes achieved less than 1 million views. Like Honest Trailers, the decline in views is due with changes to the YouTube algorithm, increased competition in the digital space, and the fact that all the "big" games have already been done.

When Defy Media sold Screen Junkies in July 2018, the Honest Game Trailers series remained with Smosh Games. Jon Bailey continued to do the voiceover narration for both shows, even though they were being owned by separate companies.

In November 2018, when Defy Media shuttered abruptly, Honest Game Trailers went on hiatus for 6 months while Smosh secured a new owner. In February 2019, Smosh was purchased by Rhett & Link's Mythical Entertainment and almost all staff were re-employed. However, shortly after the acquisition, the entire Honest Game Trailers YouTube playlist on Smosh Games was set to private. In May 2019, it was revealed that FANDOM (the owners of Screen Junkies) had acquired the rights to Honest Game Trailers. The series returned on Tuesday June 4, 2019 on the Fandom Games channel (formerly Curse Entertainment) with the episode Anthem. Almost all episodes of the series with 4 remaining missing episodes (Friday the 13th (NES version), PlayStation VR, Payday 2, and Horizon Zero Dawn) were reuploaded.

Honest Game Trailers Commentaries

Many episodes of Honest Game Trailers received an Honest Game Trailers Commentary video, where the writers watched the trailer and discussed their thoughts on the game in more detail. Writers Matt Raub, Spencer Gilbert and others hosted the commentary videos. Honest Game Trailers Commentaries videos were available on the paid subscription service Screen Junkies Plus from 2015 - 2017.

Gamer Fights was a show produced by Screen Junkies in collaboration with Smosh

Screen Junkies Plus was also home to Gamer Fights, a weekly 60 minute debate show hosted by Matt Raub. Gamer Fights was a spinoff of Screen Junkies' Movie Fights, but with a focus on game-related topics. 22 episodes of Gamer Fights were produced as a collaboration between Screen Junkies and Smosh, all in 2016.

Screen Junkies Plus stopped producing new content in July 2017, and all content was removed in early 2018. The commentaries and Gamer Fights videos are no longer available on any channel or service, though they still exist and could be released at a later date. An example of the commentary format can be seen in this short Facebook video which is an excerpt from the full Mario Kart commentary. A couple of episodes of Gamer Fights were uploaded to the Smosh Games YouTube channel.

Reaction videos and fan fiction

POKEMON_RED_&_BLUE_-_HONEST_GAME_TRAILER_REACTION!!! — POKEMON RED & BLUE - HONEST GAME TRAILER REACTION!!!

An example of an *Honest Game Trailers* reaction video.

Like the original Honest Trailers series, Honest Game Trailers has been the subject of numerous reaction videos and fan-made copies. The reaction video channel The Reel Rejects has published several highly viewed reaction videos for both Honest Trailers and Honest Game Trailers. For example, The Reel Rejects' Honest Game Trailers - Pokemon Red & Blue reaction video has been viewed over 450k times.

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-{{Honest_Trailer_infobox|title1 = Honest Game Trailers|image1 = Honest_Game_Trailers_Anthem_Open_Invideo_0-4_screenshot.png|caption1 = Since 2014, more than 225 episodes of Honest Game Trailers have been produced.}}'''Honest Game Trailers''' is a weekly comedy web series that humorously reviews games. It is a '''[[Honest Trailers Spinoffs|spinoff]]''' of the original '''''[[Honest Trailer]]s''''' series. Like ''Honest Trailers,'' ''Honest Game Trailers'' is narrated by '''[[Jon Bailey]]'''. The first episode was''''' [[Honest Game Trailers - Mario Kart|Mario Kart]]''', ''published on March 8, 2014. Since 2014, [[List of Honest Game Trailers|over 220 episodes]] of ''Honest Game Trailers'' have been produced. ''Honest Game Trailers'' used to be published on the Smosh Games channel, but since June 2019 (starting with '''''[[Honest Game Trailers - Anthem|Anthem]]''''') is published on the '''[[Fandom Games]]''' channel.
+{{Honest_Trailer_infobox|title1 = Honest Game Trailers|image1 = Honest_Game_Trailers_Anthem_Open_Invideo_0-4_screenshot.png|caption1 = Since 2014, more than 225 episodes of Honest Game Trailers have been produced.}}'''Honest Game Trailers''' is a weekly comedy web series that humorously reviews games. It is a '''[[Honest Trailers Spinoffs|spinoff]]''' of the original '''''[[Honest Trailer]]s''''' series. Like ''Honest Trailers,'' ''Honest Game Trailers'' is narrated by '''[[Jon Bailey]]'''. The first episode was''''' [[Honest Game Trailers - Mario Kart|Mario Kart]]''', ''published on March 8, 2014. Since 2014, [[List of Honest Game Trailers|over 220 episodes]] of ''Honest Game Trailers'' have been produced (see '''[[list of Honest Game Trailers]]''' for further information).
+''Honest Game Trailers'' used to be published on the Smosh Games channel, but since June 2019 (starting with '''''[[Honest Game Trailers - Anthem|Anthem]]''''') is published on the '''[[Fandom Games]]''' channel.
 '''[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D2VUa-5utms&list=PLHkNwtRZFo2g74tWgElcOO2T3WWbN7Aga Watch Honest Game Trailers playlist on YouTube] '''
 == Format ==
-[[File:Game trailer.jpg|thumb|258x258px|The original ''Honest Game Trailers'' logo was designed to resemble a game rating.|link=https://honest-trailers.wikia.com/wiki/File:Game_trailer.jpg]]''Honest Game Trailers'' uses a similar format to the original series '''[[Honest Trailer]]s'''[[Honest Trailer|.]] In their write-up on the '''''Mario Kart''''' video, [https://www.tubefilter.com/2014/03/09/smosh-games-honest-game-trailers-16-bit-high-school/ Tubefilter noted] that, "''Honest Game Trailers'' uses the exact same formula as [[Screen Junkies|Screen Junkies’]] smash hit. It features a deep-voiced narrator who purports to “sell” the games in question but only points out their flaws.... At first glance, ''Honest Game Trailers'' seems like a blatant rip-off of its filmic forbearer, but it is actually the latest partnership between united <strong>[[Defy Media]]</strong> brands. Screen Junkies is run by '''Break Media,''' while Smosh Games is part of the <strong>Alloy Digital</strong> network; those two companies merged last year. The decision to run ''Honest Game Trailers'' on Smosh Games is '''[[Defy Media|Defy’s]]''' latest attempt to take advantage of its properties’ related audiences."
+[[File:Game trailer.jpg|thumb|258x258px|The original ''Honest Game Trailers'' logo was designed to resemble a game rating.|link=https://honest-trailers.wikia.com/wiki/File:Game_trailer.jpg]]''Honest Game Trailers'' uses a similar format to the original series '''[[Honest Trailer]]s'''[[Honest Trailer|.]] In their write-up on the '''''[[Honest Game Trailers - Mario Kart|Mario Kart]]''''' video, [https://www.tubefilter.com/2014/03/09/smosh-games-honest-game-trailers-16-bit-high-school/ Tubefilter noted] that, "''Honest Game Trailers'' uses the exact same formula as [[Screen Junkies|Screen Junkies’]] smash hit. It features a deep-voiced narrator who purports to “sell” the games in question but only points out their flaws.... At first glance, ''Honest Game Trailers'' seems like a blatant rip-off of its filmic forbearer, but it is actually the latest partnership between united <strong>[[Defy Media]]</strong> brands. Screen Junkies is run by '''Break Media,''' while Smosh Games is part of the <strong>Alloy Digital</strong> network; those two companies merged last year. The decision to run ''Honest Game Trailers'' on Smosh Games is '''[[Defy Media|Defy’s]]''' latest attempt to take advantage of its properties’ related audiences."
 ''Honest Game Trailers'' were a collaboration between '''[[Screen Junkies]]''' and Smosh. Some members of the ''Honest Trailers'' team are also involved in the production of ''Honest Game Trailers''. For instance, head writer of ''Honest Trailers'', '''[[Spencer Gilbert]]''' has been involved with ''Honest Game Trailers'' since its inception. Spencer is an avid gamer and is credited as a co-writer on all episodes of ''Honest Game Trailers''. Likewise, voice artist '''[[Jon Bailey]] '''(aka '''[[Epic Voice Guy]]''') does the narration both series. In addition, motion graphics artist '''[[Robert Holtby]]''' creates the '''[[Honest title|honest titles]]''' for both.
 == Production ==
-The first batch of ''Honest Game Trailers'' were actually created by members of the YouTube channel '''The Warp Zone''' including Michael Adams Davis, Michael Schroeder and Ryan Tellez, in collaboration with '''[[Screen Junkies]]''' writer '''[[Spencer Gilbert]]'''[[Spencer Gilbert|.]] At the time, The Warp Zone, Smosh Games and Screen Junkies were all part of the same parent company, '''[[Defy Media]]'''. Later episodes were written primarily by the Smosh Games team, including Max Song and Matt Raub.
+The first batch of ''Honest Game Trailers'' were actually created by members of the YouTube channel '''The Warp Zone''' including Michael Adams Davis, Michael Schroeder and Ryan Tellez, in collaboration with '''[[Screen Junkies]]''' writer '''[[Spencer Gilbert]]'''[[Spencer Gilbert|.]] At the time, The Warp Zone, Smosh Games and Screen Junkies were all part of the same parent company, '''[[Defy Media]]'''. Later episodes were written primarily by the Smosh Games team, including Max Song, Andrew Bird, Matt Raub, Spencer Gilbert and many other people.
+When the series was revived in 2019, '''[[Fandom Games]]''' brought back three members of the old team to create new episodes: editor/writer Max Song, writer Andrew Bird, and writer Spencer Gilbert. FANDOM chose to use a rotating roster of voice artists, including original narrator '''[[Jon Bailey]]''' as well as new narrators such as Mark Peeples. FANDOM wrote that multiple narrators allowed them to capture the personality of a wider variety of games.
 == Publication ==
 [[File:Smosh games honest game trailers.png|thumb|Newer ''Honest Game Trailers'' logo.]]
-''Honest Game Trailers'' was originally published by YouTube channel '''[https://smosh.fandom.com/wiki/Smosh_Games Smosh Games,] '''which, at the time of the series' conception, was owned by the same parent company as '''[[Screen Junkies]]'''. The series was Smosh Games' highest-viewed series. ''Honest Game Trailers'' was originally released on Saturdays, but is currently released on Tuesdays. Like '''[[Honest Trailer]]s''', views have declined somewhat with changes to the YouTube algorithm and increased competition in the digital space.
+''Honest Game Trailers'' was originally published by YouTube channel '''[https://smosh.fandom.com/wiki/Smosh_Games Smosh Games,] '''which, at the time of the series' conception, was owned by the same parent company as '''[[Screen Junkies]]'''. The series was Smosh Games' highest-viewed series. ''Honest Game Trailers'' was originally released on Saturdays, but is currently released on Tuesdays at 10am PST.
+Episodes of ''Honest Game Trailers'' released in 2014 have averaged over 5 million views each, but in 2019 many episodes achieved less than 1 million views. Like '''[[Honest Trailer]]s''', the decline in views is due with changes to the YouTube algorithm, increased competition in the digital space, and the fact that all the "big" games have already been done.
 When '''[[Defy Media]]''' sold '''[[Screen Junkies]]''' in July 2018, the ''Honest Game Trailers'' series remained with Smosh Games. '''[[Jon Bailey]]''' continued to do the voiceover narration for both shows, even though they were being owned by separate companies.