Saturday, August 15, 2015

Honest Reviews > Ignorant Endorsements

So today I was watching some Nerf reviews and trying to get different perspectives on the latest round of products that were launched for the Summer of 2015.  For me, my regular watchlist currently consists of Coop772, Drac, and Bobololo.  We'll call them my "Big 3".  There are other great reviews out there, but I always find myself checking up on these three frequently because of their consistency, accuracy, ability to get new content out quickly, and (above all) their honesty.  But every time I watch a review on YouTube for a Nerf Review, there's "Nerf Boy Productions" that comes up.  And yes, I can hear your eyes rolling from here.

Awhile ago, when I got my FlipFury, I was a bit disappointed by the flip-barrel mechanism.  As such, I decided to forgo the ZombieStrike Doominator as I suspected this issue would only be worse with four barrels flipping instead of just two.  Still interested in if my worries were true, I checked up on my "Big 3" for their reviews on the Doominator.  At the top of the search list (as usual) was Nerf Boy Productions version of the Doominator Review.  Skipping this has become second nature, so I scrolled down to find my usual suspects.  However, I had to double take at the number of views listed.  This search was performed on August 14th of 2015.

For the Doominator Review, here's how the Big 3 stacked up for their video views (this is over a 2-week period).

5,320 Bobololo
96,872 Drac
104,859 Coop

And then there's this.

414,480 NBP

Even a math class dropout can combine all three of the reviews I actually watch and figure out that NBP has a considerably higher amount of views... than ALL 3 COMBINED.  I figured "oh what the heck... maybe it's worth a chuckle to watch and THAT's why there's so many views."  I proceeded to watch it.

As usual, the Nerf Boy himself proceeded with his sales pitch endorsement, performed a hilarious range test at his resort, and concluded that the blaster was totally awesome and recommended.  Nothing short of what I had expected.  12 minutes of my life wasted to watching him ignore the comfort issues with slam-firing, or the rotation issues right out of the box, or the loading issues, or the sub-par ranges.  Pretty much every issue that the honest reviews of Bobololo, Drac, and Coop touched on were completely unmentioned in his mindless dribble.

I'm sure there could be a political debate about how this is "mirroring society's ignorance to the facts" or what-have-you, but just in terms of Nerf... this is bad.  When a kid making awful reviews about products is getting more than DOUBLE the views of three proficient and knowledgeable reviewers, something is incredibly wrong.  I could add in other great reviewers sites to my list and STILL not come close to the kind of exposure that Nerf Boy Productions has managed to achieve.

Fight the power?  Post "u suck u stoopid" comments all over every video?  Write a letter to the editor?  Nope.  Not really anything I can do to stop it from happening.  However, I can at least attempt to reach people who are actually in-tune with the Nerf world and URGE you to support good channels and outlets.  Southern Brisbane Nerf Club, Bay Area Nerf, there's a ton!  Perhaps, in educating Nerf fans of good reviews, the NBP banter won't get quite as much exposure and we can actually help people make informed decisions. 

19 comments:

  1. I have seen a few videos from all the above including NBP.. the only thing I can figure is NBP has a kinda cute GF in his videos. His production quality is low and test are very limited. So GF or NERF is somehow spiking views

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    1. Nerfboy is alsome so shut up or fuck off

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    2. NBP is an advertisement for Hasbro on youtube that will never cease

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  2. Can't be more right about this. I rarely ever watch video reviews anyways and just go through trial and error myself but from the few things I've watched, I'd have to say NBP is pretty unreliable. I'm not exactly perfect either in my reviews either looking back, especially considering the fact that some of my personal bias creeps in every now and then due to fact I mostly war indoors and have to deal with significantly less range and wind issues, but range just isn't the bar none selling factor for any review, and the Doominator doesn't shoot anything spectacular anyways so I don't know what he's getting on about. If a gun shoots 100 flat out of the box but is rough operating and is uncomfortable as sin, I wouldn't use it, and that's not taking modabilty into account because sure, you could possibly fix every single issue with the gun, but this is the general public we're talking about, not everyone has that knowledge. You gotta at least try and show every aspect to the viewership that you can because everyone is different. Focusing on one aspect really just tells them nothing.

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  3. Wow makes me question the content of my channel! Lol But I try to speak to the occasional Nerf enthusiast who just wants to watch something fun and get a personal opinion not tempered by swag. Heavystarch100 PEACE

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  4. I think it's more about target audience. The big three focus on a more mature audience who understand the basics of a blaster and what minor flaw might deal a heavy blow in the long run.
    NBP on the other hand caters to that 11 year-old kid who saw the animated commercial on TV and now assured by NBP that the blaster is super awesome,goes out for an hour or so to bombard his neighborhood friends and get back before sunset.
    Simply put, the Big Three suffer because people still categorize NERF as a kid's hobby, and any notion that goes against that results in 'play airsoft, noob!'. People need to look at NERF as a fun pastime that can be enjoyed by anyone.

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    1. I feel like if the age of the audience is the issue, it shouldn't be. JangBricks is a very professional Lego review channel that does very well. I think maybe the difference between Lego and nerf is that parents will watch reviews for Lego sets to get for their kids but not for nerf.

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  5. Perhaps NBP is doing so well despite his lack of experience because he has a good voice, consistently posts, and doesn't rant. I appreciate good and honest reviews just as you do, but I also appreciate Adam's positivity. I certainly hope you've had the balls to contact him in private before publicly bashing him like this This type of post should only a last resort to get his attention if he's refused to talk to you and, even then, you're making yourself look bad, bro, despite having valid points. Mentor him, Mike. Don't hate.

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  6. I don't watch the guy, so I can't comment specifically... but in general, bloggers and video reviewers in reality no more than just some other person with an opinion. Some folks are going to give you good information or entertainment, some are clearly shills, some are in it just for the acclaim. Sadly, it's often not the "best" reviewers who are well patronized, but those with some schtick or who've managed to build a niche audience of loyal fans (deserved or not). Most of my favorite channels and reviewers (of all things) are people with not a lot of fame or popularity. In an age where anyone with a net connection can start up a site and claim to be an expert, separating the nonsense from the good stuff can be tough (for example, Tactical Tag is the only Nerf blog I follow! :) ). I tend more and more these days to equate "views" with social media "likes"; that is, totally meaningless. Then again, "popular" has never had to equal "good". :)

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  7. Hey Bazookafied I have to say that you are a totally stupid blogger the reason he gets more views, comments, and subs above all the competition is because he does it for the kids you your a grown man playing with NERF toys! My god so are all the other YouTubers that you "shouted out"! Plus NBP is a high school boy making millions every day!! So just stick to your channel cause your blog is going downhill buddy!

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    1. Love the response to that Mike. Take the high road.

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    2. Always nice when an anonymous person posts some very badly written, mis punctuated, poorly constructed and vitriolic rubbish.
      Go bazookafied!

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  9. Its no surprise that NBP, who sucks the corporate promo tit dry at every opportunity, will never have a balanced opinion. Anything I review I pay for, thats my line. If someone gives you something, you are already biased as you owe them. I am automatically suspicious of anyone who gets stuff off the PR company.
    NBP is a stunning example of "peer to peer" marketing and if you wanted to become a corporate whore with a ton of followers, he's the guy to imitate (and sooo many people do!)
    Personally I am really liking Bobo's latest review format, it has chromo data, some outdoor firing and a good bit of playing with the blaster and mechanism, in short everything you could want.

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  10. Well I actually really like NBP and think all the reviews are good. His nerd wars are ok but they are entertaining. I have nothing against other nerfers, I love drac and coop772. Oh and bazooka field, your a man playing with toys for children while he is a kid. SO STICK A WORM IN IT OLE MAN! ( oh and at least he has a GF)

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    1. You're right. Bazooka field doesn't have a girlfriend. He's married. Guess you missed that ;)

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  11. We need to round up a posse with hoppered Stage 4 Crossbows and unload glue-domes into NBP until he learns how to do a halfway decent review.

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  12. Well I actually enjoy Coop772, Drac, and Bobolobo's reviews. I prefer Coop because he points out the stuff that's important while NBP goes over everything and wastes time. I'm impressed by NBP's work because he's 16 and already getting more views than adult YouTubers. But his target audience is for kids mostly. And I will venture to say that more kids/adolescents play with Nerf blasters than adults. But Coop, Drac, and Bobolobo's are more mature so I can agree on that. I have looked at some of Nerf Boy's mods and they are very sloppy. Just look at his so-called "Canadian Trooper". It's just horrid. But the paint jobs of Coop's mods are very clean and precise. Also Coop does more mods than NBP so I'm into that. I like most of NBP's wars though. But most of them are very silly and goofy while the realistic wars of PDK Films are much better. But recently NBP has been getting better at reviews and mods. For instance he made the "Canadian Trooper 2.0" which was much better than the original one. My main Nerfer that I watch the most is Coop though. He is very reliable in his reviews and does GREAT integrations and mods. And to top that off he does funny tests and has a great and comical personality. He's very intelligent as well in his reviews. But I do think NBP is a good YouTuber as well. Just not as good as Coop. That's just my personal opinion of this situation. I know other people are more educated than me and have different opinions than me though.

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