The Tester, Season 2, Eps 1 & 2
The common quip concerning Sony's The Tester is that it's a silly show for a rather unimpressive job. However, having had my fair share of horrible jobs, and realizing many exist, I don't particularly see it as a waste of anyone's time, particularly as what we see is largely for entertainment purposes. The caveat I am presenting first is that I haven't really watched television in the last eight years, so my knowledge of tropes found within the reality TV subsection is relatively low, and that will be the perspective you'll be reading. In case you are unfamiliar with its concept, you could hop over and read Wootini's review of the first season. There will be spoilers below the cut I will place further in this entry.
First, since the cast has been announced, I've been fairly impressed by the amount of diversity presented in not just the little categories in which we place ourselves, but in the personalities present. When I wrote about Gaymer, I anticipated that he would face a lot of hate in various channels that would be directed toward his sexuality, though at the same time, he is providing some manner of (as yet relatively muted) visibility. The mere fact of his sexuality seems to bother some people in internet lands here and there. Boring trolls are boring and predictable.
The show itself has been rather curiously edited so far, with only the largest personalities being given a chance to present outside of the contests. The contests themselves are presented in a rather rushed fashion that doesn't really tell me much but the most basic information, and leaves me wanting more that is not being given. Whatever time and monetary constraints Sony has put on itself seems to be presenting a mere glimpse of everything that is happening. Then again, this is a free product and relatively short.
What of the specifics of the first two episodes? Peek under the cut for more.
So far, from both following Gaymer on Facebook and then watching the show, it seems he is one of those who has suffered the snipping of an editor, as not much of his personality has been shown, though he has mentioned things he recalls recording. I quietly nodded when he talked about how Max1m was an overblown stereotype, but otherwise he's been relatively quiet or supporting his team, as has been shown. However, he has neither been in the spotlight for being in danger of being cut or winning a competition, so perhaps as the season cuts more players we'll see more.
Otherwise, the standouts left have been Tripplethreat, Big Fazeek, and War Princess. The last has been close to being cut twice, which has allowed us to hear her opinions much more directly and more often. Big Fazeek seems to have a chip on his shoulder about how young everyone is and how they have not reached gamer Nirvana as he has, which has led to some confrontation between he and Tripplethreat. So far she seems among the more competent of the bunch (though this is likely added to by her rather loud personality, which I personally am enjoying).
Samurai's being cut was preceded by a noble gesture, which I thought might save him, as making games is not a solo effort most of the time, but was ultimately not a surprise. The cuts so far have largely been tied to what the players themselves say beyond just their performances. Boo's was largely a case of nerves that led her to speaking more generally than she probably would have liked. Nervous jitters leading to not fully grasping how the words she was speaking would be perceived.
Otherwise, it has been amusing to see peoples' reaction to both at-large judges, who have been Stig Asmussen of God of War fame and Ted Prince from Irrational Games.
The challenges have been curious, and the second being one whose application I could see, though I'm not sure it was the best of choices. The first was a trivia game that presented images of Sony exclusives and hardware that were slowly filled in and people had to name the image or pass. Simple enough, but probably nerve-wracking when it occurred. It was here that War Princess revealed her lack of a PS3, though this does not seem wholly relevant to her position as a tester, more with brand recognition.
The second was a simple military drill. Having participated in JROTC in high school, it amused me to see people attempting this. Yet, having participated in these drills, I'm not sure for such a short time period it was an indicator of precision--it's unfamiliarity and circumstances not necessarily being conducive to an actual test.
So far it's been an amusing enough ride, though I hope that with less contestants they will focus on the gamers more specifically in the future.
VorpalBunny
Posted to Television, Video Games on 10 November 2010
· Comments (2)
Other stuff like this: matthew brown, ps3, psn, reality tv, season two, sony, the tester
Great piece!
I'm really hoping for the same thing you are. However, it should be noted that relationships were just forming in the first two days. So to be fair to the editors, I was rather reserved at this time. I was also on edge about being portrayed as a stereotype and wanted to avoid that (though if any of you have seen the Home Theatre 6 outtakes from episode 1...*FACEPALM*). So the only thing I really miss is the compliments I get in Episode 2 about being the only contestant who clearly respected the military and who stood showing that. The judges also recognized my good decisions and teamwork and suggested I take a stab at leadership.
I'm predicting a stronger presence in episode 3 ;-)
Thanks for any and all support!
Best,
Matt (GAYMER)
facebook.com/mmbrown7L
twitter.com/officialgaymer
Watching Now ;)