Gaming videos forum.

[Frag Maniac]

I've been chatting on several forums, many of which either have forums for posting gaming videos, or who's General Discussion forum's often have such things posted. The videos not only add an element of entertainment and stimulating conversation, they can be usefull as tutorials on gameplay or video capture and editing for some.

Hosting them is not a problem, I can give those whom need advice tips on where to host them for free, you only need upload them to their site and post the links. There are places to do this with both downloadable and streamable content, though the sites that stream limit file size considerably more.

Quite frankly I was surprised that a forum that specializes in widescreen gaming does not already have such content. I would like to formally suggest that we include, if not encourage such content, as it is becoming very popular, and is another way to enhance the video game experience.

If it gets popular enough, we could even have separate places for 4:3 and 16:9 videos, of which I have both. The games I've made videos of so far are Painkiller, Far Cry, and F.E.A.R.. I have about 3 dozen videos, but only 6 of them are widescreen, as I just recently started making them in 16:9.

[ctrlsteef]

Not a bad idea. :D
I was planning on making some Windows Vista movies (if possible).
Maybe i can plant that in such a section aswell.

[Shalashaska]

Not a bad idea. :D
I was planning on making some Windows Vista movies (if possible).
Maybe i can plant that in such a section aswell.

Ssssssst about Vista it's not legal you know, download :wink:

[BongoTrumman]

I think that a video section could be something nice and interesting. As you said hosting must take place elsewhere and that will hold many entusiasts back because finding a good host is not easy. You could go with the standard public hosts to host it. Another thing is I think there should be some tutorial or atleast tips how you make a movie from a game. Most people game all the time but have no idea how to make a movie out of if. Individual gaming tips for example how to record a demo of a game and turn it to bmp or whatever and then what codec to use. Or some external program that records it for you. A lot of people know this and will post demos but some guys will feel left out and really want to do that too. I dont want to see any look how good I am at cs or something like that, but I think that isnt a big risk as this is a mature community.

[Frag Maniac]

Well I've been a PC user for only 5 years or so, 4 of which I've been a gamer, and only 1 of which I've been making videos, yet I know enough about it to teach the basics. I think you're overcomplicating it, most people think it's much harder than it really is. It's very affordable and easy to learn, in fact you can actually do it without spending anything if you suffice with adding music to your videos instead of recording the game sound with the video.

Movie Maker 2 is free with XP SP2, and a very good editor. Game Cam's free demo will record video non stop, but not audio. Game Cam's "Lite" version is only $10, and will allow you to record in game sounds. Game Cam is looking to reinstate their widescreen capturing option (unstretched), after evaluating a minor bug in the latest build version.

Also, don't assume it takes a cheezy free webspace setup to host your videos, or that free hosting sites are too much trouble or lacking in features, that's not the case anymore. I have my own filepage on Filefront's free hosting service. They allow files of up to 1 gig in size, and as many as you want. They will never delete them based on views, there are no restrictions other than the normal laws. They even allow you a 750x85 pixel banner and the ability to arrange your files in directories and subdirectories.

Filefront is just one example though, there are a few others, one of which is Putfile, a site that streams video files of up to 25MB, and also allows an even more customizable personal filepage (I have one with them too). They do, however, delete files if they are not viewed for 6 months.

I can offer links to Movie Maker 2 and Game Cam tech forums, as well as essential information on how to make custom compression profiles (necessary for widescreen videos). If we get a sticky or thread started for videos and video making, I could also participate in that to help people with basic questions and answers.

Sorry that I have not checked in on this thread I started sooner, I've been up late the last week watching the Olympics. :wink:

(EDITED) OK, here's an example, my first widescreen video, done about 5 weeks ago, along with my filepage header:

(Realistic mode, 7:20, no scratch. Music is This Life & Think, by Drowning Pool.)



Asunder: Tunnels of Turmoil (Far Cry's Control level-104MB)
The search for Valerie begins!

[skipclarke]

I'm downloading the file now. The hosting may be free, but it's a pain. I had to jump through about four screens, and then the download has gone from 10 min @ 140kb/s to an hour plus @ 20kb/s.

I wouldn't mind hosting videos, but I would want a service that offered easier usage and faster downloads. I don't think a lot of people would use something this un-user friendly. I could host videos on my .mac account. I already pay for a basic subscription, and could upgrade it to 4GB of storage and 250GB/month of bandwidth for $100 a year.

That might not be a bad idea, if there is enough interest in making and watching videos. Maybe we'll add that to the Insider, become an Insider and the WSGF will host your videos.

[skipclarke]

All these additions can start to add up pretty quickly

An Insider (Level II / Platinum / EAX) Package

could include vid hosting & an album other goodies etc etc - at least with an eye to breaking even.

[skipclarke]

Update - after 15MB downloaded, and well over an hour, the DL rate hit 2.5kb/s and said it had 10 hours to go.

[Urban]

I can't even get it started after 5 mins of waiting so i've given up!

how about making the video into a torrent file and hosting the .torrent file instead?

[ctrlsteef]

Ssssssst about Vista it's not legal you know, download :wink:

Gheghe, not for me. I have a original copy through work :D

how about making the video into a torrent file and hosting the .torrent file instead?

That's a great idea. Especially when the forum gets bigger this can be an awesomeway to share files.

[Frag Maniac]

Sorry guys, I apologize on behalf of Filefront. They just did some major maintenance, that I thought was done, but perhaps not. Generally when I hear these kinds of complaints though, most of the time I try downloading myself and it works fine, averaging 100-160kbps.

A lot of it has to do with when and what server you try using. Sometimes you have to try 3 or 4 before you get one with acceptable speed.

[BongoTrumman]

Individual gaming tips for example how to record a demo of a game and turn it to bmp or whatever and then what codec to use. Or some external program that records it for you.

I did mention external programs. I wrote that just to give a heads up that there should be some tutorial how to make it wether it is in-game or external program. This is the suggestion area.

And for the Filefront there are a lot of different opinions wich some is good and wich some is not and I accept that. I can only speak from personal experience when it comes to filefront. Last 2 months I have downloaded a lot of game movies and trailers and I have had the same problem as Ibrin 8 times out of 10. I have tried different servers(from 1 to some above 20) but it is the same most of the time. It doesn´t matter if it is morning, afternoon, evening or night. Or it might just be that I live in Sweden but in my case I don´t count that as a good host. And those clicks you have to make like ibrin says. For me filefront is a working host. But I think that filefront is a good thing for those who can´t find a good host because of the things you said.

Sure torrent works but then I guess we have to put up a tracker and have atleast one host online all of the time. I don´t mind a tracker so don´t take me wrong. I just wanted to mention that it takes a little more work then putting a file on a server and just linking them as we do know. It is easy to create a torrent I know. If it gets big and a whole bunch wants to download something it is only a good thing in this case.

Frag Maniac, I feel that your read my post as something negative and stupid when I read your answer, because how you put it. Or maybe it is just me.

[Frag Maniac]

Frag Maniac, I feel that your read my post as something negative and stupid when I read your answer, because how you put it. Or maybe it is just me.

Hey, easy guy, I'm just trying to offer something here. I don't intend to imply any stupidity or ignorance in what I say. Your location is part of the problem, like you said. Many of those that live in Europe say this about Filefront.

Unfortunately I have invested too much time in building my Filefront filepage to change easily to something else. I will say this though, they used to be more consistently fast with their download speeds, both here and abroad. I just emailed them and told them of the many complaints I've beeen getting for the last month or two about download speeds. Even I have noticed a difference when I try to test the downloads, it used to be much better.

They just changed the layout and look of the file hosting service, maybe they are not done yet, I don't know. I'll have to wait and see what they say when they email me back. :wink:

(EDITED)I just tried the above link and managed to download the file in well under 10 minutes averaging over 165kbps. This was done about 11:30PM Pacific Time (west coast USA). I did, however skip through the first 6 servers before getting the 7th to display the "click here" prompt within about 10 seconds. If a server does not display the prompt within that time, I go to the next one.

I am not implying that it will work that well for anyone abroad, it seems Filefront only works at good speeds in North America. Hopefully we can find a more international friendly service, but free ones of that type generally do not exist from what I've seen.

[FrankB]

Sounds like a good idea, me and my clan (cs) have made our own fun movie.
A great place for tutorials about making movies is moviemakers, they've got tuts on how to record and even how to make a widescreen movie!

It's was a great help to us, so it's definetly worth taking a look at.

If you want to see our movie, check out our website: http://www.mufclan.be

As for filefront... I'm in queue -___-

edit: after 3 retry's it is finally downloading @ 70 kbs... sigh :(

[skipclarke]

Cam someone give me a movie (or give me permission to use your movie) to test the download speeds off of .mac?

[FrankB]

Cam someone give me a movie (or give me permission to use your movie) to test the download speeds off of .mac?

You can use our movie if you want... here's a link: http://frank.pim-p.nl/clan/[MuF]TheMovie_ReleaseVersion.wmv

[Frag Maniac]

Sounds like a good idea, me and my clan (cs) have made our own fun movie.
A great place for tutorials about making movies is moviemakers, they've got tuts on how to record and even how to make a widescreen movie!

It's was a great help to us, so it's definetly worth taking a look at.

If you want to see our movie, check out our website: http://www.mufclan.be

As for filefront... I'm in queue -___-

edit: after 3 retry's it is finally downloading @ 70 kbs... sigh :(

The movie I posted is widescreen, it's very easy to do really. Problem is though, most capture programs will not capture in widescreen, so it ends up getting converted (and stretched) in the compression process.

Game Cam had and is trying to reinstate their widescreen capture feature, which is currently not operable due to a bug in the latest build version.

It would appear most of you guys are not from North America, so I'm not surprised you are getting much worse download times than I am with Filefront. Sorry, but like I said I don't know of any hosting sites that are internationally equal in download speeds and free, and I can't afford a high bandwidth website like some video makers use. :(

[skipclarke]

It would appear most of you guys are not from North America, so I'm not surprised you are getting much worse download times than I am with Filefront. Sorry, but like I said I don't know of any hosting sites that are internationally equal in download speeds and free, and I can't afford a high bandwidth website like some video makers use. :(

I am in the US, but still had a bad time. We'll see how the hosting runs through Apple's servers...

[Frag Maniac]

I am in the US, but still had a bad time. We'll see how the hosting runs through Apple's servers...

Must be that you're using a Mac, the time of day you tried it, or that you didn't try enough servers. Like I said, I only wait 10 seconds then go on to the next one if I don't see the prompt. I also try another server if the download speed is below 100kbps, which is usually quick to determine, as the ones that slow are generally slow to start with. 70kbps is really not that bad at times like these though.

BTW, I just checked out dozens of hosting sevices, and they all have some sort of restrictions that are worse than what Filefront offers. Even Rapidshare which is highly prasied in Europe limits to 100MB files, and 30 days unviewed before deletion. There's also no guarantee it would work very well for those in the western hemisphere speedwise.

If I used Rapidshare, I'd have to view each of my videos at least once a month to make sure the links stay active. I'd also have to compromise the viewing size of many of my videos to accomodate the file size limit. I've seen many a broken link on forums from those that have used Rapidshare to host their videos, no doubt due to the 30 day deletion policy.

Filefront IS getting more popular despite their growing pains. It is my hope they will eventually add some European servers to better archive their database. This is something I've not asked them about, but plan to in my next email to them.

You have to realize though, there's not much incentive for them to do that when no one else is. It's an expense that can't really be justified in a market they already offer less restrictions in.

To tell you the truth though, I really don't know where their servers are located, they are based in Texas I believe.

I know a guy from the UK that I chat with on the DC Painkiller forum, whom took up video making after I coached him a bit. He also has and uses a Filefront file hosting account, so it can't be all that bad in some parts of Europe. Then again, I think much of it is the maintenance they've been doing lately. :wink:

[FrankB]

Filefront IS getting more popular despite their growing pains. It is my hope they will eventually add some European servers to better archive their database. This is something I've not asked them about, but plan to in my next email to them.

Filefront does have some european servers, I saw them once, but they never showed up again in that server list again...