Game Grumps

Game Grumps
Current title card as of 2018, featuring caricatures of hosts Avidan (left) and Hanson (right).
Genre
Created by
Presented by
Starring
Theme music composer
  • Arin Hanson
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of episodes 5,294
Production
Editor(s)
  • Jon Jafari
  • Barry Kramer
  • Kevin Abernathy
  • Ryan Magee
  • Matt Watson
Running time
  • 10–75 minutes
Release
Original release July 18, 2012 (2012-07-18) – present
Chronology
Related shows List of Game Grumps serials

Game Grumps is a Let's Play webseries hosted by Arin Hanson and Dan Avidan. Created in 2012 by co-hosts Hanson and Jon Jafari, the series centers around its hosts playing video games and comedically commentating on them. After Jafari left the show in 2013 to focus on his own YouTube webseries, JonTron, he was subsequently succeeded by Avidan, who continues to host the show alongside Hanson. The YouTube channel for Game Grumps was part of Polaris, a network owned by Maker Studios, from June 2013 to January 2016,[1] but now operates under JETPAK, a network created by Adam Montoya.[2]

The channel has expanded to include other hosts besides the main two as a part of spin-off shows since Jafari's departure, including Ross O'Donovan, Barry Kramer, Suzy Berhow, and Brian Wecht, as well as various guest hosts. As of September 2018, Game Grumps has over 4.5 million subscribers and over 4 billion total video views.[3]

Format

Episodes usually consists of two or more hosts playing a video game, featuring their commentary, experience with (and opinions of) the chosen game, as well as related and unrelated discussions, along with stories from their lives. Many of the games played on the show are sent in by fans, who mail games in to the Grumps’ PO box in Glendale, California.[4] The channel typically uploads two or three episodes each day. Lengthier games often result in ongoing series, which continue airing until completion. Occasionally, the hosts will participate in multiplayer games, as part of their Game Grumps VS series. Though the episodes usually consist of two or more people, there are some special episodes with Hanson or Avidan alone.

History

Game Grumps was created by Jafari and Hanson, and began with a video of the two playing Kirby Super Star uploaded on July 18, 2012 to video streaming site YouTube.[4] According to Jafari and Hanson, the idea for the show came about when the two were arguing over whether or not the character Wolf from the fighting game Super Smash Bros. Brawl was too similar to the character Fox in terms of their fighting styles. After animator Ross O’Donovan told the duo about their tendency to be “grumpy” with each other over video games, Hanson came up with the idea of a podcast revolving around this concept, though the show ultimately became a video series on YouTube rather than a podcast.[4] In September 2012, Barry Kramer was brought onto the show as an editor.[4] Hanson and Jafari worked on the show together until June 25, 2013, when Jafari announced he would be leaving the show due to desires to focus on his own show. Many fans were upset by Jafari's departure from Game Grumps, with many expressing disappointment in the decision's last-minute announcement, as well as the channel's decision to announce the beginning of Steam Train on the same day.[5] After Jafari's departure, Ninja Sex Party vocalist Dan Avidan succeeded him as co-host of the main show. Avidan also joined animator Ross O'Donovan as co-host of the show Steam Train, where both play PC games (the title references the retailer Steam). This expanded the channel's output to three videos a day: two standard Game Grumps episodes and a single Steam Train episode. Steam Train later expanded to include Hanson as a co-host at times, as well as featuring one of the group's editors, Barry Kramer, and Hanson's wife, Suzy Berhow. The expansion also introduced a new Steam Rolled series, where four-player games (not necessarily PC games) are played by the group.

In October 2013, the group began a gameplay series featuring Monster Hunter 3 Ultimate on the Polaris YouTube channel, titled Hunting Monsters. A second installment, featuring Monster Hunter 4 Ultimate, began in February 2015.

In December 2013, Kramer and Berhow began hosting Table Flip, where they dress in Victorian/19th century American period clothing[6] and play tabletop games, such as card games, board games, and tile-based games with other YouTube personalities. The series was professionally produced by Polaris, with seven cameras and extensive editing in post-production to fit the content to the show's 45 to 60 minute format on Polaris's website rather than the Game Grumps YouTube channel.[7] The final episode of Table Flip aired on October 14, 2016.[8]

In November 2014, Kevin Abernathy was hired to assist Kramer with video editing and production. Although Abernathy took on editing for most of the series, Kramer continued to edit Steam Train. Since Abernathy's departure from the show in mid-2016, Kramer, Ryan Magee, and Matt Watson have taken on editing duties.

In January 2015, to celebrate reaching two million subscribers, a new show called Grumpcade was launched, featuring any combination of co-hosts playing console games. The show also features guest YouTube personalities, including game critics ProJared, The Completionist and Markiplier. Shortly after, in February 2015, GrumpOut, a channel dedicated to recreational and live-action video projects, was created. In November 2015, Avidan's Ninja Sex Party bandmate Brian Wecht officially joined the team, leaving behind his career as a theoretical physicist.

The channel also airs special holiday-themed series, featuring holiday-themed games, including Jingle Grumps and Steam Sleigh for Christmas, Ghoul Grumps and Scream Train for Halloween, Date Grumps, Single Train and Love Train for Valentine's Day, and Stout Train for St. Patrick's Day.

In February 2016, it was announced that Avidan and Hanson would appear at Hollywood Improv for a special performance of Game Grumps Live on March 30[9] and 31.[10][11] Later, in April 2016, it was announced that Avidan and Hanson would appear at Levity Live in Nyack, New York for more performances of Game Grumps Live on April 29 and 30.[12][13] Game Grumps Live has since gone on to become a regularly-touring entity, performing across the United States and Canada in brief regional stints at a time.

On January 6, 2017, it was announced that the show's middle slot would no longer upload on a consistent schedule. While Steam Train and Grumpcade were not canceled, the format was changed so that they would be released only upon the creators' discretion on an occasional basis. A few substitute shows were created to fill the empty slot on certain days. These include Doodle Doods, an artistic show hosted by O'Donovan and Chris O'Neil, The G Club, a media-centric podcast show, and Dragons in Places, an audio-only podcast detailing a Dungeons & Dragons campaign.[14]

On June 13, 2017, Game Grumps announced on their official Twitter account that they were developing a video game of their own.[15][16] A teaser trailer for the game was released on June 18, 2017, titled Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator, to be released on July 13.[17] After some delays, Dream Daddy was released on Steam on July 20.[18] On the day of its release, Hanson stated that Game Grumps was now a video game development studio.[19]

In December 2017, Kramer announced that he would be departing from the show to focus on his own pursuits.[20]

Since 2015, Game Grumps has also been developing an animated series titled Gameoverse, created by O'Donovan.[21] By June 21, 2017, the development team had expanded to include writer Chad Quandt, concept artist Ashley Swaby, and story artist Krooked_Glasses.[22]

Charity

In late 2013, the Game Grumps had put various games, which they'd received multiple copies of, on eBay for auction, with all the proceeds going to the children's charity Child's Play.[23] After the auctions had ended, the total amount they had raised was over $7,000.[24]

In June 2015, a 5-episode miniseries was released called Guild Grumps. O'Donovan mentored Hanson, Avidan, Kramer and Berhow in a 5-day race to advance from Level 90 to Level 100 in World of Warcraft.[25] Each participant had $1,000 to donate to a charity of their choice, if they reached the goal. If they did not, their donation would be split between those who won. In the end, O'Donovan was the sole winner, and, combined with the participants' distributed funds, donated $5,000 to cancer research.[26]

As of 2015, Game Grumps has raised over $70,000 by hosting charity livestreams on Twitch.[27]

In 2016, Game Grumps raised approximately $155,000 by hosting another charity livestream on Twitch,[28] as well as redirecting all proceeds from an exclusive shirt to the cause. The livestream was for the Crisis Text Line; a free text service available for people experiencing moments of crisis.

On February 17th, 2018, Game Grumps held a 6-hour livestream on Twitch.tv in which they played several games, including Mad Max, Half-Life 2, Fallout, and Overwatch, in order to raise donation money to go to the Crisis Text Line.[29]

Promotions

In 2013, before Jafari's departure to work on his own JonTron series, Jafari and Hanson appeared in a promotional video for the Warner Bros. Pictures movie Pacific Rim produced by Polaris. The video also featured other internet personalities Jesse Cox, Brooke "Dodger" Lawson, Mike Lamond and John Bain.[30] In the video they played new recruits under training by "The Lieutenant Commander" played by Robert Kazinsky.

In 2015, the Game Grumps were featured in the official reveal trailer for the Shovel Knight Amiibo figure.[31]

Popularity and influence

The show and its hosts have since been referenced in a number of video games such as DLC Quest[32] and The Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures.[33]

In the third issue of the 2016 Doctor Who Ninth Doctor comic series, an alien girl is seen wearing a "Hey I'm Grump! I'm Not So Grump!" shirt.[34][35]

A specially modified version of the demo for The Stanley Parable was played on the channel's side show Steam Train which addressed the show's hosts, Dan Avidan and Ross O'Donovan.[36]

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Olympic swimmer Tom Shields said that Game Grumps was one of his favorite shows and that he watched it "almost daily." He mentioned that the show's hosts "helped [him] normalize a lot of things. It's kind of a new phenomenon in [his] life."[37] Actor Vitas Varnas has contributed games to the series as well as having included an Easter Egg in reference to the show in the game Thaumistry: In Charm’s Way.[38] Stranger Things child actor Finn Wolfhard, who appeared on an episode of Guest Grumps, cited Game Grumps as one of several "game play channels" that he frequently enjoys watching.[39]

Awards and nominations

Awards and nominations for Game Grumps
Year Award Show Category Result Ref
2013Shorty Awards#GamingNominated[40]
2016Shorty Awards#GamingNominated[41]

References

  1. ↑ Joy, Shaun (2016-01-13). "Polaris is Not So Grump: The Game Grumps Leave Polaris". TeachRaptor. Retrieved 2016-01-23.
  2. ↑ "INFLUENCERS – 3BLACKDOT". 3blackdot.com. Retrieved 2017-07-20.
  3. ↑ "GameGrumps". YouTube. Retrieved 2017-07-20.
  4. 1 2 3 4 Fennimore, Jack (August 30, 2017). "Game Grumps: Five Fast Facts You Need to Know". Heavy. Retrieved November 18, 2017.
  5. ↑ Amini, Tina (June 26, 2013). "Fans Are Upset Over YouTube Duo 'Game Grumps' Break-Up". Kotaku. Retrieved April 6, 2016.
  6. ↑ "18th Century-ish Table Flip Theme? – Suzy and Barry Game Grumps AMA". Polaris. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  7. ↑ "How is Table Flip filmed? – Suzy and Barry Game Grumps AMA". Polaris. Retrieved 28 February 2014.
  8. ↑ Grumps, Game. "The LAST EVER episode of Table Flip went up today!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tevW_zIySfQ …".
  9. ↑ "Game Grumps on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-02-27.
  10. ↑ "Game Grumps on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-02-27.
  11. ↑ "Game Grumps LIVE". hollywood.improv.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-01. Retrieved 2016-02-27.
  12. ↑ "Game Grumps on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  13. ↑ "Levity Live". Levity Live. Retrieved 2016-04-13.
  14. ↑ GameGrumps (6 January 2017). "What's The Deal With Middle Slot?! – Game Grumps Update" – via YouTube.
  15. ↑ Grumps, Game. "VIDEO GAME. We made a video game. But it's not what you think".
  16. ↑ Grumps, Game. "We'll be releasing a TEASER for it THIS SUNDAY, June 18!".
  17. ↑ GrumpOut (18 June 2017). "Dream Daddy – Teaser Trailer (A Game from Game Grumps!)" – via YouTube.
  18. ↑ Daddy, Dream (2017-07-20). "Dream Daddy: A Dad Dating Simulator is now available". @dreamdaddygame. Retrieved 2017-07-20.
  19. ↑ Hanson, Arin "Arin". "What a day. Thank you all so much for making Dream Daddy a success. I am beside myself... we are a game studio now".
  20. ↑ Fennimore, Jack (December 21, 2017). "Game Grumps Editor Turned Star Barry Is Leaving Channel". Heavy. Retrieved December 30, 2017.
  21. ↑ "GAMEOVERSE (@Gameoverse) – Twitter". twitter.com.
  22. ↑ GAMEOVERSE (2017-06-21). "Support the teams development of Gameoverse. Follow: @Krooked_Glasses @starexorcist @QuandtumTheory and @RubberNinja! They're working hard!!". @Gameoverse. Retrieved 2017-07-27.
  23. ↑ Aziz, Hamza (2013-08-21). "Game Grumps auctioning off games for Child's Play". Destructoid. Retrieved 2014-11-01.
  24. ↑ Conway, Ryan (2013-08-30). "Game Grumps eBay auctions raise $7K for Child's Play". ScrewAttack. Archived from the original on 2014-11-29. Retrieved 2014-11-01.
  25. ↑ "Guild Grumps Trailer". Retrieved 9 March 2016.
  26. ↑ GameGrumps (12 June 2015). "Guild Grumps EPISODE 5" – via YouTube.
  27. ↑ "Game Grumps". www.facebook.com.
  28. ↑ Daavpuke (March 7, 2016). "Top 10 Game Grumps Crisis Text Line Charity Moments". NoobFeed. Retrieved September 7, 2016.
  29. ↑ Sheehan, Gavin (February 17, 2018). "Help the Game Grumps with Their Crisis Text Line Charity Line Stream on Twitch". Bleeding Cool. Retrieved April 14, 2018.
  30. ↑ "Pacific Rim – Training Day with Jesse Cox, Dodger, Huskystarcraft, Totalbiscuit, and the GameGrumps". YouTube. 2013-07-12. Retrieved 2014-09-05.
  31. ↑ Parlock, Joe (2015-08-28). "Yacht Club and Nintendo confirm the Shovel Knight Amiibo". Destructoid. Retrieved 2017-07-31.
  32. ↑ "DLC Quest". VGFacts. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
  33. ↑ "Angry Video Game Nerd Adventures". VGFacts. Retrieved 2014-01-19.
  34. ↑ Cavan Scott (w), Richard Starkings and Jimmy Betancourt (p), Adriana Melo (i). "Doctormania Part 3" Doctor Who: The Ninth Doctor v2, 3 (June 2016), Titan Books
  35. ↑ Pavey, Vince (30 Jun 2016). "Vince Pavey on Twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 31 May 2017.
  36. ↑ Thew, Geoff (2014-02-14). "Vertical Slice Demos Provide a Clear-Cut Advantage". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved 2014-03-13.
  37. ↑ Lujan, Adam (2016-08-11). "Olympic swimmer Tom Shields' Must List: Scrubs, Sublime, and East of Eden". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2016-08-15.
  38. ↑ "Thaumistry: In Charm's Way". VGFacts. Retrieved 2017-10-20.
  39. ↑ Bazilian, Emma (October 30, 2017). "Q&A: The Stranger Things Kids on Their Social, Streaming and Gaming Obsessions". Adweek. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
  40. ↑ Ngak, Chenda (2013-09-04). "Shorty Awards 2013 honors Michelle Obama, Jimmy Kimmel". CBS News. Retrieved 2014-06-01.
  41. ↑ "Shorty Awards: The Complete Winners List". The Hollywood Reporter. 2016-11-04. Retrieved 2016-11-23.
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