Simon Lane and Lewis Brindley, the men behind YouTube sensation Yogscast, believe they deserve a share of the credit for the stunning success of sandbox smash Minecraft.
Mojang's virtual world is an unprecedented indie success story, selling over three million copies despite being still in beta and amassing such a sizeable and committed fanbase that the game's official release next month will be celebrated with a Las Vegas convention. In an interview, Lane and Brindley tell us they have played a part in the game's success thanks to the Minecraft Series on their YouTube channel, which receives some 80 million views every month.
"Typically the people who play games on YouTube do so because they're good at games and want to show off their skill or guide others to do better," Brindley tells us. "Minecraft is different to anything else out there, and it worked really well for us because it's a game that's evolving like nothing before. The entire game has had $0 spent on PR yet has sold 3.5 million copies - I think a large part of that is due to us."
Lane adds: "We are Minecraft's PR! I think we enjoy a symbiotic relationship with Mojang and have definitely contributed to each other's success. I'm very thankful we've done so well out of it."
It's a bold claim - and it should be stressed that they only feel entitled to some, not all, of the credit for the game's success - but the duo are correct that their Minecraft videos are markedly different to the high-level, "beast-mode" gameplay videos that comprise so much of YouTube's most popular videogame content. They and Mojang share a rapid rise to prominence from humble beginnings, and both have amassed passionate, loyal communities as a result.
Our full interview with Lane and Brindley - in which they discuss their rise to prominence, the appearance in their ranks of their own Yoko Ono and their hopes for a Yogscast movie - is in our new issue, E234, which should be with subscribers from today and will be with all good newsagents tomorrow.
Comments
15I myself they they do deserve a huge chunk of Minecrafts' success, I myself only play it because I saw them play it.
Second that.
I didn't really know what Minecraft was until I saw them playing, since then I started playing it myself.
Hmmm... well in that case they should also credit all the "behind the scenes" helpers who create their adventure worlds.
I think Simon & Lewis are being a *little* arrogant here - whilst Yogscast undoubtedly helped Minecraft's popularity, I don't believe they'd be anywhere near as popular without Mojang's brilliant game. It's a nice coming together of talent, but somewhat of a stretch to ask for credit.
Anyway, for me it was Coestar who brought me to Minecraft. Whilst I enjoy the Yogs, it's BdoubleO100 and Guude who now rule the comedy roost.
I think this is a little arrogant from Simon and Lewis (who I love!). To say that you are a "large part" of the success of Minecraft is a bit much... Especially when there are so many other Minecraft youtube personalities e.g. seananners (who initially sold me on the game) providing exposure for the game.
In the same sense I don't think Mojang are trying to say that the reason the Yogscast is so popular is because of Minecraft (which may have more truth to it considering SOI is by far their most popular show and its how I got into the yogscast, after I had bought the game).
I think the entire youtube community played a big role in promoting Minecraft, so for Simon and Lewis to take all that credit is a little arrogant in my opinion.
Agreed. I like their Minecraft stuff (when they do it these days) but it certainly wasn't what made me buy MC. It was what made my fiancée like it tho so I guess I owe them that
I have my doubts that this article is genuine. After enjoying the Yogscast and Yogpod for so long I can only assume that Simon and Lewis would say something like this sarcastically or as a joke. I may be wrong but hell I'm just a guy on the internet.
Yeah, stories like this will twist what they might have said to suit it better but either way it was Simon and Lewis that made me buy Minecraft, I then showed my brother, sister and her partner.
I don't really care anyway, they work hard on getting stuff out. People might call them sellouts but as long as they do videos I couldn't care less, we get these videos for free. We don't have to pay for them so who cares what they've done and what they haven't done.
IAMDAVE!YOGNAUGHT
I totally agree that this is probably something of a misinterpretation. I'm a long time fan of the Yogscast, since way before SOI, and although I don't know them personally obviously, I feel like the Simon and Lewis that we all know and love would never have said this in to such a degree and in total seriousness.
I find it much more likely that they were joking around a little or that their words have been in some way twisted or taken out of context to a degree. Possibly the "us" in lewis' quote might have referred to the community as a whole, for example.
And it's not unreasonable for them to claim some credit, they are after all hugely popular and have probably inspired countless others to play minecraft and make gaming videos.
I've watched their videos for over half a year now, and not once have I gotten the impression that these two are arrogant or selfish enough to believe that Mojang owes them anything, if that's what's being implied here.
They HAVE had a massive impact on the Minecraft fanbase, and most definitely the sales as well. It's an awesome game, don't get me wrong, but it's still buggy and can get old after a while, especially since it's still in its beta phase. The way these two, and their ENTIRE Yogscast team behind the scenes, bring it a whole new life, are a good part of the reason a lot of people have chosen to play the game. I'm not assuming, I'm fairly confident that it's true. I'm not saying that Mojang or Minecraft itself would have flopped without their help, but I am saying that it would undoubtedly NOT be as popular as it is without their epic "storyline" and all of the fan-made adventure map footage they've shared with all of us.
I presume that the two of them most probably said something along those lines in more of a passing, or half-sarcastic, but it rings true nonetheless. They brought together a massive community and a whole load of players that might otherwise never have even given Minecraft a try!
(This also isn't to say that the others on Youtube, such as Minecraft Mondays and whatnot, didn't contribute as well, but the Yogscast is probably the largest draw to Minecraft videos (and as such, free advertising) on Youtube by a long shot)
If that's truly what they said and not in jest, they're diggy digging a hole for themselves.
Never heard of them.
I credit the Edge Forum for Minecrafts success, because that's why I got it.
Heads up people, Hannah has since confirmed that the mentions of "us" and "we" refer to the Youtube community as a whole. Rings a lot truer in that context.
i personly think yogscast is too popular... this is the kinda stuff that happens when people get too popular.
side note: i also perfer minecraftexpedition over yogscast (find it less irratating, yes i alot of times find yogscast irratating)