![Noah Caldwell-Gervais](/img/default-banner.jpg)
- 96
- 36 865 841
Noah Caldwell-Gervais
Registrace 11. 07. 2008
In-depth gaming reviews, mostly whole-franchise retrospectives or comparative reviews. My videos always have a table of contents in the video description for jumping from game to game rather than being broken into smaller videos. If you like these videos, please post them where others may find them!
Returning to Elden Ring for Shadow of the Erdtree
This full-spoiler video essay and critique of Elden Ring's Shadow of the Erdtree DLC delves deep into how the game makes a puzzle out of all its interactive elements. It covers lore, landscape, and many other points of interest across the Land of Shadow.
Audio editing by Nate Greene.
========================================
If you enjoyed this video and want to contribute to the production of others like it, please consider donating through the crowdfunding website Patreon: www.patreon.com/noahcaldwellgervais
Audio editing by Nate Greene.
========================================
If you enjoyed this video and want to contribute to the production of others like it, please consider donating through the crowdfunding website Patreon: www.patreon.com/noahcaldwellgervais
zhlédnutí: 169 830
Video
10th(ish) Anniversary Patron Q&A
zhlédnutí 95KPřed měsícem
To celebrate 10 years and over 100 videos, I answer 22 questions from Patrons who support the channel.
All the RAGE: A Franchise Retrospective
zhlédnutí 305KPřed měsícem
RAGE is one of the least discussed, least memorable big budget modern game franchises. How did that happen? Are the games really that bad? This video essay looks deeply at Rage 1 and Rage 2 along with heir DLC to dissect how bad games happen and what goes wrong to make them that way. I hope this retrospective critique saves someone the hours I put in. Audio editing by Nate Greene. TABLE OF CONT...
How Many Clicks Does It Take To Get to the Center of Diablo? [A Franchise Retrospective]
zhlédnutí 553KPřed 4 měsíci
This is a video retrospective and critique of the Diablo franchise, by Blizzard. It looks at how the games invented an entire genre of RPG, refined it, and then monetized the hell out of it. It reviews the games through the lenses of narrative, development, and psychology. Spoilers throughout. TABLE OF CONTENTS Intro 0:00:00 Diablo 1 0:00:25 Hellfire 0:30:24 Diablo 2 0:42:23 Lord of Destruction...
Playing Quake for the Story (A Franchise Retrospective)
zhlédnutí 485KPřed 8 měsíci
What is Quake, anyway? This video retrospective of the whole Quake franchise looks at each title and their expansions to see how the series evolved through time, if there is a story or not, and if any of it makes any sense in the end. The video considers the story of Quake from both a fiction and nonfiction perspective in its critique. It pays particular attention to the new MachineGames campai...
The Real Life Landscapes of Fallout 3, Fallout 4, and Fallout 76
zhlédnutí 286KPřed rokem
This is an experimental travel project where I tried to assess the similarities and differences between the Bethesda Fallouts and the places they're set. It covers Washington D.C. and the Capital Wasteland, Point Lookout in Maryland, Fallout 4's Commonwealth, Far Harbor in Maine, and the great state of West Virginia. It's not completely comprehensive and includes some best guesses and mistakes....
The Lincoln Highway: Across America on the First Transcontinental Motor Route
zhlédnutí 449KPřed rokem
This is a video travelogue about the first ever coast-to-coast highway in America: The Lincoln Highway. The video traces the history and the path of much of the original 1913 route across 14 states, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, by way of a road trip in a somewhat-restored 1978 Ford Thunderbird. Instead of a vlog or a documentary, it is written and produced as an old-school travelogue, whic...
Souls Inheritors: Bloodborne vs. Sekiro vs. Elden Ring [Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 1,2MPřed 2 lety
This is a comprehensive video retrospective and critique of the three follow-up games From Software did in the wake of their iconic Dark Souls trilogy Bloodborne, Sekiro, and Elden Ring. It looks at each game through the lens of both how they construct their unique artistic identities and how they all connect back through the legacy of their inherited systems. FULL SPOILERS FOR ALL GAMES. This ...
I Beat the Dark Souls Trilogy and All I Made Was This Lousy Video Essay
zhlédnutí 1,8MPřed 2 lety
This is a full spoilers critique and exploration of my quest to make it through all three of Dark Souls action role-playing games. The video focuses on how much more open, free, and fun these games are than I was led to believe based on everything I ever heard of 'Git Gud'. Over the course of five hours, the video tries to figure out how the games support or detract from one another, the ways t...
Gears Through the Years: A Gears of War Campaign Retrospective
zhlédnutí 1,7MPřed 2 lety
This is a video retrospective and critique of the Gears of War franchise, from its initial trilogy on the Xbox 360 to the latest DLC for Gears 5. The video tries to use a lot of fancy words to get to heart of why these straightforward and simple games are so creatively fascinating. Spoilers throughout. Table of Contents 00:00 Intro 00:14 Gears of War 1 (Ultimate Edition) 30:17 Gears of War 2 52...
Automotive Fantasyland: What Makes Forza Horizon 5 So Compelling?
zhlédnutí 192KPřed 2 lety
This is a video essay ruminating on why Forza Horizon 5 resonated with me so much, and speculates about how some of those things might have led to it being XBox Game Studio's biggest hit of 2021. This video made with production assistance from Nate Greene. If you enjoyed this video and want to contribute to the production of others like it, please consider donating through the crowdfunding webs...
A Thorough Look At Resident Evil
zhlédnutí 2,3MPřed 3 lety
This is a video retrospective and critique of 18 different Resident Evil games and their DLCs, covering a span of twenty five years of game development. It tries to track the peaks and valleys of their triumphs and disappointments, through mainline and spinoff titles both. Full spoilers throughout. TABLE OF CONTENTS Intro 00:00 Resident Evil 1 03:52 Resident Evil 2 21:57 Resident Evil 3: Nemesi...
Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 1 & 2 Vs. Joseph Campbell
zhlédnutí 498KPřed 3 lety
This is a focused retrospective and critique of both of the older Knights of the Old Republic CRPGs from Bioware and Obsidian. It looks to how they interface with the Monomyth template as originally laid down in 1949 by Joseph Campbell in The Hero With a Thousand Faces, one game conforming exactly to it and the next game violently rejecting the entire premise. It also discusses how Campbell's m...
A Thorough Look at Star Wars: Dark Forces / Jedi Knight
zhlédnutí 499KPřed 3 lety
This is a video retrospective and critique about the five games of the Dark Forces / Jedi Knight series, released from 1995-2003. It looks at them as part of the broader legacy of the now-defunct Legends timeline, trying to hold on to what's meaningful about them in a time when Star Wars is so much more polished than it used to be. Spoilers throughout. TABLE OF CONTENTS Intro 00:00 Star Wars: D...
2021 Patreon Update: Future Plans, Where Does the Money Go, An Enormous Bird
zhlédnutí 87KPřed 3 lety
2021 Patreon Update: Future Plans, Where Does the Money Go, An Enormous Bird
What Kind Of Game Did Cyberpunk 2077 Turn Out To Be, Anyway? [SPOILERS]
zhlédnutí 605KPřed 3 lety
What Kind Of Game Did Cyberpunk 2077 Turn Out To Be, Anyway? [SPOILERS]
A Thorough Look At Half-Life [Revised/Expanded/HD]
zhlédnutí 1MPřed 3 lety
A Thorough Look At Half-Life [Revised/Expanded/HD]
Judicial Opinions: What Makes Disco Elysium a Modern Classic? [Full Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 534KPřed 3 lety
Judicial Opinions: What Makes Disco Elysium a Modern Classic? [Full Spoilers]
Notes From Along Kentucky Route Zero [Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 170KPřed 3 lety
Notes From Along Kentucky Route Zero [Spoilers]
Revisiting Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Wildlands
zhlédnutí 265KPřed 4 lety
Revisiting Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon Wildlands
How Does The Last of Us Part 2 Compare to the Last of Us Remastered? [Total Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 552KPřed 4 lety
How Does The Last of Us Part 2 Compare to the Last of Us Remastered? [Total Spoilers]
How Does Doom: Eternal Compare to Previous Dooms? (Feat. Doom 64)
zhlédnutí 272KPřed 4 lety
How Does Doom: Eternal Compare to Previous Dooms? (Feat. Doom 64)
How Does Wolfenstein: Youngblood Compare to Previous Wolfensteins? [Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 131KPřed 4 lety
How Does Wolfenstein: Youngblood Compare to Previous Wolfensteins? [Spoilers]
The Outer Worlds in Close Critique [Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 281KPřed 4 lety
The Outer Worlds in Close Critique [Spoilers]
Trying to Untangle Death Stranding [Full Spoilers]
zhlédnutí 423KPřed 4 lety
Trying to Untangle Death Stranding [Full Spoilers]
How Does the Blair Witch Game Compare to the Movies? [SPOILERS]
zhlédnutí 124KPřed 4 lety
How Does the Blair Witch Game Compare to the Movies? [SPOILERS]
And subs?
I just had to drive from Yellowstone to eastern Minnesota. Listening to this video got me out of Montana and through the entirety of North Dakota. Thanks for making this. You made excellent points and maintained quality throughout the video despite the incredible length.
What a thorough and well put set of reviews. It's crazy to think that 9.5 hours of reviews can amount to "not a second wasted". Thank you for all the work you put into these and to whichever eldritch nightmare being running the recommendation algorithms.
I don't think you know what "git gud" means, and the excessive defending against your incorrect interpretation got pretty grating. But otherwise, this was a well written and interesting video.
The horrifying thing about Brotherhood of Steel is learning that isn't some stock 3D engine they were using. That was the Van Buren engine. Interplay's first real attempt at 3D and it was initially made for a proper Fallout game, one that would've used every trait of the series. Instead, it rots in this game. Horribly underused by the same people who cancelled the game it was made for. to clarify, idk if it would've actually worked out. maybe it was a bad choice either way.
Another banger, as expected.
Love your work so much. There is such a high quality of writing in your videos, i can feel the passion oozing out of every sentence. The voiceovers always listen more like poetry or an art piece than they do a video essay but yet they're always packed full of interesting information and opinions. It's a rare thing to find such high quality and such genuine, well, GENUINENESS on CZcams, especially in regards to games. Really glad to have found your channel, and i appreciate your uniqueness
9 1/4hrs is a truckers delight thanks!
One of the things I remember from the Black Ops 3 campaign was how a major plot thread in the early game is how weird it is that your squad mate is suddenly acting pointlessly unhinged. Except it's Call of Duty and acting pointlessly unhinged is the default state for, like, 60% of the main cast so I didn't think anything of it.
I'm always so disappointed when I hear the elitist discourse of the soulslike purists and how they make people feel bad for how they play and also scare away potential newcomers to the series. They've always completely missed the point of one of the souls' games' biggest strenghts: their vast toolset meant to accommodate players of ALL skill levels. Ask yourself, why should we be the only ones allowed to enjoy these beautifully crafted masterpieces of gaming when they are specifically designed to be enjoyed by anyone. Stop with the gatekeeping, please. It benefits no one.
I’ve had this video on my Watch Later playlist for over a year now, since I first discovered Noah’s videos. I’m so glad that I waited to finish playing KRZ to watch it, even when I thought I had given up on finishing it after accidentally clearing my save file and had to start all over again. I don’t have much time for video games these days, but I eventually picked it back up again and I’m so glad that I did because this game is amazing! And I’m excited to finally get to hear Noah’s thoughts about it
Just so you know, your videos about the souls series are among my favorite essays on youtube and your take on them is as amazing as different from my own. Or used to be, because you opened me to a different attitude to those games - and i love every fps of it.
Meek's Cutoff poster is goat
44:39
For WaW when I was younger I felt the power of the Russian campaign unlike other games where the Russians were in back. WaW was that game that showed what the Germans did to the Russians and now it’s the Russians turn for revenge. And YOU where the hand or the fist you could say that brings it. For the Americans it doesn’t do that. If no one told you Pearl Harbor or what they did to American prisoners. You wouldn’t feel that revenge or hate towards them. This game is about war, death, brutality, , hate and revenge and a truck load of power play. I consider it my favorite game.
For the rest of the games you can actually see where “money” was really part of the games Mw3 was all about the multiplayer and I feel after that game the rest follow suit
So that’s why I remember the name price from the first game
Hey man, I respect you even more for this! People play the games however they want and there is no right or wrong. Personally, I bounced off Elden Ring 4 or 5 times til I discovered Fightin’ Cowboys walkthrough. 120 hours later and I’ve finished the game and got the platinum! Am I wrong for using a walkthrough? Subjective. Did I have fun? Fucking right I did!! Please don’t let the loud minority put you off making long form vids, the rest of us appreciate you massively! 🫡
This game is a very underrated Gem and I hope there will be 2 or 3 sequels to come in the future! Preferably before I die :P
This video is a strong contender for 'best video on CZcams'. And that is definitely not the first time I've said that about a video by Noah. I do genuinely mean that, by the way, it's not hyperbole.
25:34 this reminds me how both Beserk and Neon Genisis Evengelion are inspired by DEVILMAN (a franchise that had minimal mainstream recognition until there was a high budget remake of the first series around 2016) one is a Iconic Dark Fantasy that has been infamously difficult to adapt into Animation, the other is a Iconic Mecha Anime series who's Manga Adaptation was relieved mix because it had to end early. 2 massive Titans inspired by the same story but differing wildly in genre and medium.
6:02:34
Just to be sure ... You discovered this game recently? I think you say so in the beginning of the video, right? It's so weird to hear you picking up on that game for an hour while when it released 14 years ago, it was a totally good and fine game
Truly the dark souls of dark souls videos
Realistically, Part 2 does many things right... but it does many wrong. The manipulation people were talking about with Abby is certain key moments. The zebra moment could've worked if it wasn't undercut with an abrupt cut to that flashback. You have too much on the mind already. It's not like the giraffe moment where it was already quiet for a good bit and then suddenly something else happens that isn't just zombies or bandits. Then the dog moment during the beginning at the WLF base. It's neat, but it feels very intentional what they are trying to push there. It just isn't subtle after the aquarium scene. I get the whole angle they went for the violence. Giving violence a meaning is good to have. It gives something important to have, but I feel like it's something that most people will never get and so it becomes one of the biggest negatives of it. You are meant to feel super bad for killing people, but they give you a lot of ways to make it fun. Sure, that was just a guy doing a patrol and every other grunt mourns his sudden death, but it was very fun to put a suppressor on and silently take him out. It is hard to have both sides. In the end, it really works better as something fun to play, rather than anything meaningful its trying to be. And like you mentioned, the whole epliogue... it has one or two moments that are well executed, but god damn is the whole thing just completely unnecessary at that point. It ends up fulfilling its own prophecy about how it smashes the message into your skull. I absolutely see the idea it was going for... but by the end of it, it never needed to exist. Same goes for the remaster. I love seeing the cut content but why the fuck is there a remaster for a game that hasn't even aged badly at all.
Fromsoft marks are insufferable
I wonder why you didn't give DS2 hexes a try when you like DS3 pyromancy so much
PLEASE DO BORDERLANDS NEXT.
Beautiful game aesthetically but the political stuff and phasmid midgame-end felt really forced that took away from the deep melancholy of the character that was setup nicely. .
Rage has always given me the vibe of a vault boy who became a vault hunter.
Your review is so basic it is laughable.
I'm glad you obliterate rage 2 😂 Fuck that game. It also has this bug on the final mission (very convenient) that softlocks you and there's no way to fix it other than go back to earlier saves oooor, ding ding ding, start from beginning! after you spent 30 hours wasting your time on it. Seriously, fuck rage 2.
I never watched this becouse I was sure its a guy clicking on D4 wallpaper until he zooms to the center. Wtf
Fuck the “git good” chuds, they need to touch grass. These videos have been great!
I got Quake right after it came out......I had no idea there was a story in the manual. I bought it because it was Id and they were rock stars. Everyone knew the story was irrelevant, John Carmack was very vocal that stories in games were irrelevant. I never actually finished the single player of Quake back in the day. I was all about the multiplayer. I also loved Quake 2 especially Rocket Arena 2......after this I was Quaked out. I got into Team Fortress Classic then Counter-Strike.
It's super interesting watching this after three years of updates and public opinion on the game taking an actual 180. A lot of the critisisms feel valid, but I would love a follow-up analysis of how additional content and patches diluted the problems of the base game, especially with Phantom Liberty, and how effective the strategy was to nudge the game into a more compact, dense product.
The Soulsboring Community sure is one of the cringiest out there
people hating your videos are crazy, i personally love all your fromsoftware and resident evil videos
"When it comes down to the wire, my urge to be polite is ever so slightly stronger than my will to live." Amazing.
Miller Maria Jones Barbara Johnson Shirley
Spokane mentioned lmao
Noah, for your own sake you need to learn to ignore the vocal minority of people who dislike your videos. The vast majority of people who watch your videos love them and appreciate you. The vast majority of comments on your videos are positive ones. Please listen to the majority. You are not inferior.
You're the final boss of CZcams video game essayists, and I mean this sincerely. Thank you.
So I always got kind of a Thomas Pynchon vibe from your video game reviews, not only because your narration voice resembles the audio book narrator on Against the Day, but also stylistically the way you weave imagery and observation, and this is only cemented after spending a glorious 7:20:00 or so on this historical journey. Thanks for that.
Noah, you’re the best! Just an absolute joy to hear your perspective and so incredibly funny, I play completely different to you, stubbornly fighting all the bosses solo, trying to use as little scadutree fragments but watching your videos on the Fromsoftware games has opened my eyes and made me more accepting of other people’s experiences with the game. Thanks, keep doing what you’re doing
Wow! How have I not seen this yet?! Weird! Better late than never.
My best guess with all the extra Smithing Stones and Glovewort pickups were to facilitate a bit of an easier grind upgrading any new weapons you find in the DLC. Considering the amount of runes required to get a weapon from 0 to +25, and that a freshly-picked up DLC weapon (or spirit ash) would be functionally useless Until you get it to that point, that would Kind Of make sense. Especially considering you tend to (from what I've noticed, at least) pick up more than one of the smithing stones at a time in a single drop. I'm not saying I think that's actually a good way to go about doing that, and I could very well be wrong, but that's the only potential reason that makes any sense to me.
Such a good video.
Kid with a monkey from Speed Racer!!! I feel like I'm in minority to know what you meant here xD
When someone tells you that you're doing something wrong while you're having fun, Usely that personne's a dumbass
i remeber seeing this game in HMV wen i was around let me see 11-12 years im guessing but i was young and wne i saw this on the computer jesus christ i said to myself "look how real it looks" and i never saw the game ever again. them days u had 1 console 1 game and tht was it till chrismas time or u friend had a set of game u could borrow. fast forward to 2024 jesus christ i cant beleive i thought this game looked life like. but bk then thts all we had and knew. not a fan of older grahpcis too much crap on screen et.. prefer the old retro xbox og ps1 days tht style. dont get me wrong it is wot it is and i play current games oto. but yh thts my story