4Player Podcast
Encyclopedia
4Player Podcast is a multiple award-winning weekly podcast
in addition to a daily live broadcast
and website
about video games; based out of Austin, Texas
. The four founding members of the podcast are Brad Simons, David Liao, Nick Henderson and formerly Travis Granger. Special guests and various friends of the players participate in the podcasts and broadcasts as well.
. Nick joined the podcast in April 2007. Following this, the first postings on the blog were recorded in June 2007. In Fall 2008, Travis joined the podcast as the fourth member. Shortly thereafter, the podcast changed its name from the East Vs West moniker to 4Player Podcast. Despite this, the East Vs West blog was still in use.
Beginning their shift into live gaming in February of 2008, 4Player Podcast broadcasted themselves playing video games on Justin TV. Success was found in these live broadcasts, and on April 2, 2008, 4Player Podcast replaced their old blog with a new one. On July 2, 2009, 4Player Podcast created a new website and forum. On December 12, 2009, 4Player Podcast won a Podcast Award after their nomination into the Gaming category. The following year, 4Player Podcast found success again by winning the 2010 Gaming Podcast Award.
Vying to continue their winning streak, 4Player Podcast recently found itself being nominated in two categories for the 2011 Podcast Awards. One nomination in the Gaming category and another in the People's Choice category. 4Player Podcast continued their winning streak by securing the Gaming category award for the third year in a row, as well as claiming their first People's Choice Award.
In October 2011, they participated in the Extra Life Charity event for Texas Children's Hospital, successfully gathering over $4,000 for the hospital.
Podcast
A podcast is a series of digital media files that are released episodically and often downloaded through web syndication...
in addition to a daily live broadcast
Webcast
A webcast is a media presentation distributed over the Internet using streaming media technology to distribute a single content source to many simultaneous listeners/viewers. A webcast may either be distributed live or on demand...
and website
Website
A website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...
about video games; based out of Austin, Texas
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
. The four founding members of the podcast are Brad Simons, David Liao, Nick Henderson and formerly Travis Granger. Special guests and various friends of the players participate in the podcasts and broadcasts as well.
History
4Player Podcast began as a podcast (and later, a blog) entitled East Vs West Working Title. The first podcast occurred on January 11, 2007, featuring Brad and David discussing the game Twilight PrincessThe Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess
is an action-adventure game developed by Nintendo Entertainment Analysis and Development, and published by Nintendo for the GameCube and Wii video game consoles. It is the thirteenth installment in The Legend of Zelda series...
. Nick joined the podcast in April 2007. Following this, the first postings on the blog were recorded in June 2007. In Fall 2008, Travis joined the podcast as the fourth member. Shortly thereafter, the podcast changed its name from the East Vs West moniker to 4Player Podcast. Despite this, the East Vs West blog was still in use.
Beginning their shift into live gaming in February of 2008, 4Player Podcast broadcasted themselves playing video games on Justin TV. Success was found in these live broadcasts, and on April 2, 2008, 4Player Podcast replaced their old blog with a new one. On July 2, 2009, 4Player Podcast created a new website and forum. On December 12, 2009, 4Player Podcast won a Podcast Award after their nomination into the Gaming category. The following year, 4Player Podcast found success again by winning the 2010 Gaming Podcast Award.
Vying to continue their winning streak, 4Player Podcast recently found itself being nominated in two categories for the 2011 Podcast Awards. One nomination in the Gaming category and another in the People's Choice category. 4Player Podcast continued their winning streak by securing the Gaming category award for the third year in a row, as well as claiming their first People's Choice Award.
In October 2011, they participated in the Extra Life Charity event for Texas Children's Hospital, successfully gathering over $4,000 for the hospital.
Overview
The 4Player Podcast report in three main types of media: A live broadcast, multiple podcasts, and website.Live Broadcast
The live broadcast is a streaming web feed and chat that features the members of 4PP and friends playing video games. There is a broadcast every day of the week; a day has not been missed in over three years.Podcast
There are currently five different types of podcasts produced: the 4Player Podcast, the 4Player Podcast Top Five Podcast, the Dinnertime Podcast, the Revival Podcast, and the Cocktail Time Podcast. These podcast can be subscribed to via RSS, iTunes, and the Zune Marketplace.4Player Podcast
The 4Player Podcast is the main podcast featuring the four players, and the occasional guests, discussing various topics related to video games. The podcast's hosting duties were shared among each member but as of show number 79 Nick is the official host. The players will first introduce themselves and then share their thoughts and impressions on what they have been playing the past week. The podcast then covers the news, typically compiled by the forum members, from the past week. Following the news, if applicable, is the Round Table Discussion, which is a segment where the players discuss their thoughts on a certain topic(This segment is no longer active). The topic can be selected by the players or by community via the mail bag or suggestion thread. Then the Community Segment covers what games will be on the live broadcast this week, answers viewer submitted questions and goes over any events in the community. On show number 93 a the Post of the Week segment was introduced, which highlights a post on the blog(This segment is no longer active). David hosts his own mini-segment, known as chatter of the week, where two chatters who contact him via e-mail are put up against each other, where the podcasters choose a winner based on the chatters top 5 games of all time, shameful secret and greatest gaming achievement. The podcast wraps up with the 4Player Minute. Although usually more than a minute long, each player states the following: a shameful secret (something they did recently that they are ashamed of), sweaty palms (something that they are worried about), hype (something that they are excited about), and "Fuck You Of the Week," where they choose one particular person, company, game, etc. which is worthy of a "Fuck You," for whatever the reason may be. The typical length of this podcast is around two hours long. It can be seen recorded live on the broadcast, typically on Tuesday evenings. An archive of the podcast is made available two to three days later.Top Five Podcast
In addition to the main podcast, there is the 4Player Podcast Top Five Podcast. During this podcast the players give their Top Five list for a certain topic. This topic may be chosen by the players or taken from a suggestion thread. The topics can be anything related to video games. At the start of the podcast the players will say honorable mentions, which are selections that fell short of being in the top five. Then each player will say their number five, working around the table, and then repeating this formula for the rest of the numbers. The typical length of this podcast is around thirty-five minutes long. It can be seen recorded live on the broadcast, typically taking place on the weekend. An archive of the podcast is made available two to three days later.Dinnertime Podcast
The Dinnertime Podcast is a podcast featuring the players eating out while discussing video games and various topics. It may also contain guests who are from the gaming industry or close friends. The release of this podcast is irregular.Revival Podcast
The Revival Podcast (formerly known as the Game Club Podcast and informally as "Sunset Heroes: The Order of the Phoenix Down") is a podcast that was planned to be introduced in January 2009 (but due to time constraints was recorded in February) that is centered around a chosen game and is reflected upon by all the players. The podcast will also contain viewers thoughts on the game selected by reading excerpts of emails sent to the host or via the corresponding forum thread. The first game selected for the Game Club podcast was Oddworld: Stranger's Wrath. The planned frequency of this podcast is monthly.Cocktail Time Podcast
The Cocktail Time Podcast is a side podcast created and hosted by Joseph Christ with regular guests Nolan Hedstrom, Nick Henderson, and Carlos Ottino. The podcast, as the name implies, has to do with the participants drinking alcoholic beverages during the recording. The scope of the topics discussed is wide, and less linear than the other podcasts but focuses on video games and the video game industry.The Website
The site contains daily posts pertaining to their thoughts or news on video games and status updates for the community. Weekly Themes began on the week of August 10, with "Time Week". The theme is posted at the start of the week, listing the theme and games to be played fitting to those themes. In addition to Time, other themes include Horror and RPGs. This feature was later discontinued, although recently there was a Pirate Week. The Laundry List is an infrequent posting of games that have not been completed. Each player complies a list of games they are currently trying to finish. This list includes the game title and a percentage of how much they have finished for each game. Often there will be opinion pieces written on various topics such as reviews and moral choice in gaming.New School Kaidan
Formerly known as "4Player Japancast", New School Kaidan (abbreviated NSK) is a sister channel, podcast and website to 4Player Podcast. It focuses on Japanese animation, film, television and music. The podcast is hosted by David Liao with Dae Lee and Aryton Travina.Staff
- Brad Simons - Broadcast Manager/Writer/Broadcaster
- David Liao - Project Manager/Writer/Broadcaster
- Nick Henderson - Podcast Editor & Host/Writer
- Travis Granger - Writer
- Joseph "Christ" Petrick - Reviews Editor/Blog Writer/Podcast Editor & Host
- Nolan Hedstrom - Blog Writer/Broadcaster
- Ben Alford - Writer/Moderator
- Carlos Ottino - Writer/Broadcaster
- Mike Hidalgo Pittman - Broadcaster/Lead Singer & Drummer for Corporate Elvis
- Elizabeth Grys - PR Representative/Moderator
- Tim Bacani - Writer/Moderator
- Jack Claxton - Broadcaster
- Ayrton Travina - New School Kaidan Writer & Broadcaster
- Dae Lee - New School Kaidan Writer
- Chris Davis - Writer
- Bob Webb - Writer
- Christina Lesher - Writer
- Patricia Santana - Writer & Photographer
- Matt Ortega - Webmaster
- Alan Hoskins - Webmaster