There is an axiom for success on YouTube and every other platform on the internet: the subject of your content matters much less than the content itself.
What we mean by this is that you can make a successful channel based on anything no matter how niche or broad, and Core-A Gaming is a perfect example of that.
At its, well, core, Core-A Gaming is a channel about competitive fighting games and the community around it. If you have no interest in competitive fighters this should mean that this channel isn’t for you.
But that’s where Core-A Gaming proves you wrong, and why it’s such as fantastic channel. Through its videos it informs about topics like footsies, hurtboxes, frame data rollback netcode and more. These are topics which you never need to learn about unless you’re a competitive player, but these videos are so compelling that you care regardless.
Another fantastic facet of this channel is its brevity. Each video is a well made documentary that comes in at less than ten minutes. There’s actually a thriving culture of documentaries on YouTube which can create feature length endeavours (see Fredrik Knudsen’s Down the Rabbit Hole series), but it says a lot about efficiency and mastery to get almost all points across in a short window.
Let’s go over a few of our favourite videos from the channel but we highly recommend subscribing and watching all of its uploads in your own time.
This first video looks at controllers used for a tournament that happened years ago, at least on the surface. What this video also brings to the table is a history of arcades and fighting game cultures in hubs like the US, Japan and South Korea, and how these influenced the top level competitors in professional tournaments.
As outsiders to this it may seem like all competitive players stick to those expensive home arcade sticks, but this isn’t the case.
Another favourite of ours is the topic of drugs in competitive gaming.
Unlike physical sports where drugs have have a clear impact and are heavily monitored, what does this look like when discussing videogames?
While you are likely thinking of something in the realm of the controlled drug Ritalin to enhance concentration, where is the line drawn? Things like sugar and coffee are stimulants, so should (or can they) be controller in a competitive videogame setting?
Lastly let’s return to rollback netcode. Every few months this topic pops up in some controversial setting, but even after reading some news about it you may be left wondering what exactly it is and why people get so upset when it’s absent.
This video gives a nice analysis of the tech without driving you crazy with difficult to follow tech terms. It also helps that the explanation comes with animations and diagrams, something that is very helpful when talking about a complex topic like netcode.
Again the embeds above are just some of our favourites from Core-A Gaming so be sure to check out the rets of the channel.
You Should Be Watching is an occasional series of articles we do to highlight some of our favourite YouTube channels. See past articles here:
