In a world where often those who talk about video games do it in loneliness in front of the camera, the PlayerInside have chosen to do it together. A decision that, as we will see, has undoubtedly paid off. Behind this name there are Gianluca Raiden Worse e Maria Elisa Neither Calvagna, in their thirties who, like many others, have decided to talk about video games on YouTube and Twitch, a road that has led them from Catania to the pages of Mickey Mouse.
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Both have a professional background in the sector, so much so that their history is exemplary to explain the way in which videogame journalism has changed: “For years we have written in specialized magazines, ma you can’t always choose what to treat, moreover to make ends meet you had to write a lot and in several magazines “, Verri explained to us.” So in 2007 we decided to create our own space (PlayerInside, ed), which the following year landed on YouTube. The initial response wasn’t particularly important, but that all changed when we started putting our face on it in 2011. It was not a calculated and planned success, but born from the desire to share content and do it in an unconventional way, mixing fun and information. We would be liars to say that we didn’t think we could turn it into something serious and structured ”.
Today PlayerInside counts about 600 thousand subscribers on YouTube and it is a voice that companies in the sector take into consideration exactly like a specialized newspaper, complete with press tours, invitations to events, interviews and so on. A success, but also a responsibility, given that the audience is made up not only of players who grew up with Raiden and Midna, but also very young players who often see creators as models to follow: “We have always been of the opinion that YouTube, as well as Twitch, they are really for everyone – they told us – There is content for all tastes and for all targets. You can try, in some way, to capture more target audiences, but without forcing things too much, otherwise it would be unnatural “.
Again: “In function of this consideration, and pur knowing that they have a varied audience with a good presence of very young people, we don’t feel too much responsibility. First of all because our contents are usable by everyone, then because we have always been of the opinion that the creator should not be a full-fledged educator: it would even be presumptuous on our part. The content is what we like, according to our modus operandi and with the utmost professionalism possible, without forgetting that necessary and vital dose for us of entertainment and lightness that characterize our productions “.
Another interesting aspect is that, if it is true that YouTube has been a platform on which we talk about video games for years now, and it has also revolutionized the way to do it, video games have changed a lot in recent years and the way in which they are used has also changed. which is talked about: “The industry is increasingly based on marketing and the subtle art of persuasion through which, for many products, priority is given to everything that should be understood as a side dish and not to the product itself, a culture of continuous hype that inevitably has to be reckoned with – this is the reflection of Midna and Raiden – A malpractice that has its roots already a few years ago, but which has now reached exasperation, since it happens more and more frequently and ends up causing distrust in consumers, who inevitably stop the role of those who buy tirelessly and wear those of the critic ” . Which, however, “ends up criticizing everything, even genuine products. In short, the one we are going through, from the point of view of who makes information and disclosure, is perhaps the most difficult and difficult phase. We must try to convey enthusiasm for our favorite medium despite the thousand controversies that have recently haunted it. Hoping for better times “.
Working with social networks
How you live and how much you earn in the Stardust House, the school of influencers on the outskirts of Milan
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As often happens, col success there is also the possibility of going beyond one’s own borders. And in Italy there are two signs that you have really been successful: your photo on the cover of the Puzzle Week and a parody about baby mouse. Precisely this second thing is what happened to Playerinsides last May: “Claudio Sciarrone, historical signature of Disney comics in Italy, contacted us, writing to us on Instagram that he wanted to create a story including the two of us in version paperizzata. These are incredible achievements, and to achieve them we didn’t have to do anything, except our daily work and it was undoubtedly a huge recognition. Moreover, in the issue of Mickey Mouse in which we appeared, an interview with us was also published on several pages. Obviously he gave us immense pleasure and made us feel flattered, almost courted. And it’s a really good feeling, also good for the creator sector, which is often fraught with prejudice ”.
And Raiden and Midna are undoubtedly a couple who try to fight them, prejudices, proposing something different in the panorama of those who talk about video games, a choice that doesn’t always pay off, but sometimes it can turn out to be a winner, especially in a changing landscape: “We would like to be able to say that being a couple on YouTube, in the gaming sector, has been an advantage. However, this is not the case. At the beginning there was indeed a relative enthusiasm for a couple who deal with video games, especially with a woman who was not simply intended as a nice presence, but also a competent and passionate person ”. However, “we have always noticed that to a couple of men or to a channel with only one male figure, mistakes were more easily forgiven and there was a tendency to exalt even mediocre contents even more, as long as they were conveyed by one or two men, without a female presence “.
In short: “From this point of view we were precursors. We think the benefits, in our case, have been more related to investors and sponsors. Maybe it was easier to be chosen to promote a certain product because this or that agency wanted have two testimonials, a man and a woman, and with us he had both. For the rest, however, it has always been more uphill, although one might think the opposite. But in any case we have never liked easy things ”.
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