September 2021.
18+ months since the Covid-19 pandemic…
Ah, This Again
Because hosting in-person events right in the middle of a virus infested reality is how people clock their speedrun tickets to the afterlife, online events will have to do.
This is a recap of AniManGaki Online 2021.
…and AniManGaki Online 2020.
…
Yeah, these 2020 seasons aren’t helping anyone.
ON WITH THE RECAP.
Good Goods (Stuff the event did right)
Memory Is Eternal
“Eh-Ternal!” *Windy music plays*
Can we just praise the event for one second? For this 1 teeny tiny thing called……the post-event vods?
Events, online or offline, are defined by M&Ms, Moments and Memories.
One is the present thing happening right at the moment.
The other is what’s left in your head, after the moment has passed, called a memory.
The biggest improvement for AniManGaki Online 2021 is the simple fact that, you can watch the vods for the event even if you missed the stream.
This was not present for the 2020 show, since the archives were silenced about as fast as whistleblowers related to companies trying to force employees to the office.
The point is, having this option to watch for the first time or relive moments from the event is what makes this a big deal.
People naturally want to rewatch content, especially the good bits of a movie, sitcom or in this case, an event stream. Aka, a memory from before.
…I mean, who could ignore Miss Vampaia joining a certain Zombie’s harem by accident on stream? (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞
TL;DR
Vods are good. Go rewatch. (Check the links below the article for the playlist ;D)
“LIVE” Re-Action
“Oh god no…not this again! (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻”
Obvious overused unfunny joke aside.
This was a neat thing to watch unfold at the event, namely the performances scheduled for AniManGaki Online where most of them appear to be, I kid you not,
Pre-Recorded performances.
The perfect solution to the s*** show that is online lag when trying to perform on a LIVE-stream.
Thanks cabotage BS.
This is kind of a cool thing, even to us folks who usually don’t mind/care too much for performances, it is great to see something like this running uninterrupted.
Barring unavoidable on-stream lag, which thanks to that SEA network, it’s a guaranteed way of ensuring performances run smoothly without lag based garbage getting in the way.
There were a few exceptions that definitely appeared in live action, but it looked like things worked out well.
For the most part, it’d be great to see more of these.
The only suggestion to upgrade this sort of content is tp perhaps, have the performer/performers on after their Performances finishes? To sort of thank the audiences for watching the stream.
We’ll be real, despite having a mostly 1 to 2 digit number of viewers throughout the event, at least this gesture from the performer helps create a ‘as close to real-life’ event atmosphere as much as possible.
Otherwise you just have a glorified video watching session called a stream.
Just something to consider for the next one.
TL;DR
Pre-Recorded performances are still performances. Why else does YouTube Premier exist?
Manual Marketplace
“Ok, so the instructions here say…step 1, press any key. But which one says ‘any key’?”
One thing about AniManGaki Online you may have missed, like the snipers in your pub games do, is the usual marketplace area for arts and good stuff.
Which comes with an added bonus of AMG handling their orders/deliveries.
We don’t know how they’re handling the logistics of this operation here, that’s likely better than whatever shopping scam apps like Shopiss do, but there’s 2 take-aways here.
One, the active communication of progress on when items will be posted etc.
Two, the fact added bonuses that come with buying stuff from the event.
First point. We don’t care what kind of service/store you are, if you can’t inform your clients/customers about the progress of their packages, that’s garbage tier service. Which also raises concerns on whether or not the service is a scam, which in this case it’s clearly not.
Communicating with the customers about the progress of packages is essential and a good thing. This isn’t some CIA-level classified need to know basis garbage that lots of businesses think should be the case. No wonder these businesses deservedly died off.
But have enough money to pay for actors/athletes to advertise their platform of shop based piss.
2nd point. This is something that had always bugged us about events. Why pay for tickets for an event to spend money getting stuff from said booth in the event? Sounds pretty not worth it eh?
BUT. AniManGaki Online’s benefit of having some tiny goodies that aren’t a big deal, is the kind of good direction to take event exclusive goods. Like, give people a good reason to get something from your event at that time. Even if it’s coming out of the organizer’s pocket, at least you give a good incentive to pick up a purchase here and now.
We do hope this carries over into the real world event too by the way, that’d be a neat way to brush aside the issue of customers being indecisive, and causing avoidable traffic jams because running people over in a convention center isn’t happening. D;
…unless what, someone invents Grand Theft Convention or something?
TL;DR
Event marketplace tagalong ‘freebies’ good, plus communication/updates for packages. ;D
Bad Blehs (Stuff the event did left/badly D;)
Advertising Meth Meh
“How long has this ad been goin-…30 minutes?!”
Look AniManGaki, we get it.
If you guys wanted to host your own version of WOW Shop on stream, I rather have some casual Emcee/Host/Literally ANYONE talking about the art booth pieces yall are promoting over…well…
This 30-plus minute long montage of cheeky music playing over the art pieces being shown on screen. (That we’re not gonna show, because we have more respect for art folks trying to make some side funding rather than advertiser dipsticks, more on this shortly.)
As adorable and cute as some of them are, they just come across as the kind of skippable content for the viewer.
Say a viewer comes in at the time this ad stuff is airing, and they decide to ‘come back later’.
…usually that means never. D;
This applies to the crazy number of advertiser obligated ads that we’ve been dodging off YouTube for the last decade, which we get it, they paid money to fund the event, it makes sense to advertise their product.
One thing I would like to suggest, is perhaps you could look into getting folks to make custom skits to advertise for those companies/art booths instead?
The problem with traditional ads is that…you can clearly tell, they’re ads. That’s the kind of content that causes audiences to literally go ‘skip this ad break, we’ll be back later’, and essentially…never come back, as mentioned earlier.
Losing your audience is bad, so why not make ad content that’s actually well…not an ad? Or actually entertaining? And also part of the event?
We’ve all heard, seen and memed sheet like *RAID: SHADY LEGENDS* at least once in our lifetimes already, so why not have the option to do custom ads for the advertisers/art booth folks? Or get them involved in your production, if they got some ideas rolling.
The Art Booth folks especially, I’d trust a crazy dumb skit over some well formulated overpriced ad made by freeloading departments from various companies.
Traditional brands might be against this, since we’re not surprised if they operate by the old fart logic of “OH ONLY WE who work in the INDUSTRY know what we’re doing, so everyone else must suck our content,”.
But in the rare instance where they’re willing to give custom ads a shot for the show, why not take it? ;D
If subjecting audiences to boredom tier ads with whimsical music is supposed to be part of the stream, watching an actual river stream is probably more entertaining.
Or god forbid. Astro TVIQ. (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
TL;DR
If ads can be fun entertaining skits, please do that than some discount WOW Shop that’s somehow worse than the actual WOW Shop. F for NTV 7 btw.
Take A Trip Downtime
“Let’s see here…nope, nothing to see here.”
<Insert No pic Here>
That’s the joke.
Continuing off the last point a bit, one major weakness apart from the ad spam is the downtime in between content that’s a bit too…what’s the word?
Stiff.
Stiff as a wall.
The Intermission content not there, and as a stream you need to keep the audience active/alive/around before they go off and do something more productive.
Even though it’s an ‘event’, it gives off the vibes of being no better than some regular TV broadcast rather than a thing that feels like an Online event.
You know the one benefit online events have that make them neat? It’s interaction, like in actual real life events, albeit with a minor delay.
Basically, chat.
Don’t get me wrong, the event certainly had that, but is it an option to either have brief 15 minute intermissions where chat gets to interact with the hosts? Or just something to keep that energy from real life events going.
Yeah, even in real life events, the stage area isn’t always active with a performance anyways.
BUT, as an Online event, the stream IS the stage, which means it’s always active with no stop in sight, unless it gets technically difficult.
Essentially, filling the dead air becomes a crucial point to look into, because it’s usually during these intermissions that people drop watching the stream further because well…there’s no content.
And with the added likelihood of the host/emcees likely ignoring chat interactions, there’s even less reason to stick around.
A few suggestions to consider.
AniManGaki Online could either, take it a try with multiple Emcee folks in different parts/days of the stream (Either or works) with the option to interact with chat.
OBVIOUSLY, we’re not expecting the hosts to be streamer tier, that sheet ain’t what we’re trying to go for.
But we are asking for some level of interaction that keeps people around, like a short story recap of past physical AniManGaki events, stories told from the perspective of the host or something.
Like having a 15-minute intermission conversation with people without the pain inducing physical exhaustion of a real life event.
This is just one idea, obviously there’s lots of things you could talk about. Like the custom ads/skits for art booth merch things from earlier.
Otherwise like before, you essentially create an event where the only people viewing are folks who either have too much free time and/or are watching it out of courtesy.
Essentially, the worst thing you could ever hope for an online event. .-.
An audience there for courtesy rather than actual interest.
TL;DR
Intermission content, interact with chat, just make something.
New Event +? (Sequel or nah?)
In short.
AniManGaki Online is still AniManGaki.
With the add-on of being on a line, without crossing it.
As for a sequel, that depends on a lot of real world things that pretty much no one can realistically handle/tweak until the time comes.
Unless someone has GOD mode turned on to bugfix this pandemic out of here, there’s a good chance that a sequel will continue.
We just hope it could integrate with the physical event if that’s an option.
Like, imagine an in the field live stream of interviews, footage from stuff happening outside of the event, the stuff you don’t have to pay a ticket for. That sort of thing.
Like TV3 but BETTER. ;D
Until then.
End Transmission
Afterword
So.
AniManGaki Online was fun.
Go dig up their vods over at their official YouTube channel. ;D
…or this dumbass playlist assembled for your convenience.
In addition. We’re not an event review site.
We’re idiots. (☞ﾟヮﾟ)☞
Also. Check out the following for more stuff to read here.
And come disturb us over at the following,
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