“If you are good at knowing if something is going to kill or not, that should be very valuable.” So what you’re saying is, we should all be trying a lot harder at Will it Kill :3
Other commentators: _(oh man I hope I don't do something embarrassing in front of Sajam!!)_ Sajam: _(they already fired me once, what are they gonna do?)_
Honestly, you’re the #1 voice in the FGC. Perfect blend of knowledge, hype, maturity, silliness, professionalism, and cadence. I had a moment when you were doing the live Will It Kill, where I thought “this kid has made it”. Maybe it’s cuz I’m an older dude, but you’re the perfect representation this community needs. Too silly, and we look like children. Too serious, we look like nerds lol. You hit all the right notes. At least for me, and my social circle. Thanks for all your hard work and dedication to the scene.
I like Yipes's "he's dead he's dead he's dead" because I think it's important to acknowledge how it's not just some guy winning, but the other guy losing too.
Really love the segment where Sajam talks about using "we" to signal to his co-commentator that they're in it together, and then using "you" to give his co-commentator credit. (13:40) I don't do commentary but I love to do this "technique" in any kind of public group event. I feel that it really lets people ease into their comfort vibes and let them feel more natural when working with you.
as a denizen of Arizona, I still recall that one event in Tucson where they snuck in fake ads for you to do the segues and reads for, that shit was pretty funny
On your point about ushering in the next generation of commentators, I absolutely love what some of the EU online qualifier events had going on where there was one well known commentator (Jammerz, Rynge, I think Logan did some too) alongside two or three newer commentators. The more experienced person takes the lead, they can call the breaks and whatever games are coming up, or fill in dead space, while the others get to build their confidence, try out new styles, bounce off each other and all the while getting immediate feedback from the way the leading commentator responds and directs them. Especially with regional weekly/monthly events its such a great way to build up the new blood without having viewers feel like they 'miss out' on their favourites during majors, and even during the online events there's one familiar voice at least to hook you
"I naturally have a nasally voice because my nose has been broken so many times" This is the most casually "i'm a gangsta" thing I've ever heard Sajam say even if I am pretty sure I know the actual reason (wrestling)
I “commentated” some people playing Multiversus at a party once and it made me want to get into fighting game commentary. Guiding the crowd along the ride, and narrating the match’s story just seems like a lot of fun
One time playing smash with friends, one of them asked if we could do joke commentary where he was incredibly biased against one player and I was trying really hard to be balanced. It's probably the most fun I've had playing ultimate in the past 3 years
Trying to be brief: We had a community of casters/producers/in-game camera operators in T2/3 Overwatch that did a lot of good work. Pooling talent can be super super useful for getting into commentary and building up some peers who you trust to give you good feedback post broadcast or on review can be so goddamn useful. That group of people endedup being more professional than a lot of larger paid gigs I've done in terms of run of show, feedback, and production value. Super useful. Sure you're competing for gigs, but you'd be amazed at how its often way more useful than it is a detriment. If I had to give one bit of advice after doing years of T2/3 OW casting a while back: Never feel bad asking for pay for a broadcast, even if its small. Nothing can devalue a scene of people working hard faster than someone doing hours of work for free just to get their voice on camera and it helps no-one long term. FGC is different, budgets are different, etc etc, but especially if its a larger organiser or regular tournament never be afraid to ask for something. T2 OW outside of the major Contenders regions dried up entirely because a few names would just do everything for free and it helped nobody in the end.
This topic is so interesting to me because Ive been playing fighting games for 30 years plus now Im 42! When I was in the Army, My brother and I would do fighting game events on the base and even while deployed in Iraq during downtime! Im more of a jokey/hype guy while as my brother has deep knowledge of the games he loves! Watching some of you guys commentary got us through some crazy times and I just want to say Thank You 😊!
Honestly we really are blessed that we have someone as thoughtful and well-spoken as Sajam to talk about fighting games to us, even when (or perhaps especially when) he goes deep on something not even directly related to playing the game. Thanks, Mr. Jam.
Very respectable how honest Sajam is about this, while also protecting the other commentators. As someone who skipped the vast majority of SF5, coming in and listening to sf6 commentary feels so bland almost across the board. I think a big knock against it, is there doesn't feels like there are many actual "duos" anymore. Sf4 had ultrachen, tastyjam, James+seth, Zhi+Cameraman, or F-word+logan. Hell depending on the event you'd sometimes get mike ross and combofiend/gootecks, or other people who just naturally had a lot of chemistry. It also doesn't help there there seems to be a good bit of overlap with styles, which maybe makes me dislike certain ones than I otherwise might give a pass. I've mentioned in a previous video I actually liked Marine commentating with sajam during the qualifiers they covered, but at capcup is pretty bad day 1, then she was just uber nervous day2. I appreciate her off the wall stuff, but if she had a more consistent partner that flowed with her I think she'd be top tier. Saint cola says a lot without really saying anything at all. Very weird rhythm to me, and it feels like no matter the match, he is just trying to put himself over. My other maybe controversial take is that Vicious is just kind of average at best. He speaks the obvious a lot of the time without much meat, and pads sentences out with move names. I also don't like his shrill "hype" voice, but that is more of a personal taste thing. To add some positives, I think Jammerz is quite good, he just needs a good hype man to cover his chill demeanor. Seems like a very knowledgeable dude, and had good insight in the matches I saw with him on commentary. If they unironically muted the game sound at capcup and had yipes doing the move sounds (like he did with sajam at evo, and other times before), I feel I would've gotten more out of commentary than maybe 80% of what there was/is.
Yeah, Sajam and Marine is a good duo. I feel like she needs someone chill to reign her in a bit. Pairing her with Saint Cola just kinda elevates each others' bad habits as commentators, lol.
Feel this 100%. Watched the same happen back then with Starcraft II, Dota II, LoL. Any time a game becomes "esports", they hire a swath of politically correct middle of the road "professional" commentators who have barely any idea about the game, always have that fake hype voice on, and talk at 200 mph, just announcing stuff that happen on the screen, during the most unimportant pools game between RazorfiendXX2 and Comboblaster3000 nobody cares about. Saint Cola is maybe the most obvious example in current SF6, purely because the shows up everywhere. There are surely much worse than him, but there you can chalk it up to inexperience at least. This makes these Tier 1 esports event unwatchable for me, I always have to put on some dude's watch party restream. I prefer some guy with a shitty microphone slurping ramen to your commentary, Capcom! What I miss most from the offline days of SF4 and Marvel, is that feeling of actually being at a community event, even though I'm on the other side of the globe. During pools, random people would come on to commentate, just talking about their day, what they've been up to, about some money match that went down the night before etc. Someone like Floe or Justin would randomly interrupt them, hold up a sign, steal their hat, stay for a match, and then move on to play their own matches. The best commentators we have today are just dudes that got asked to commentate, and people liked enough to demand them in chat every week.
@@MaGariShun Even if I think it was later into the game's lifespan, you reminded me of the Yipes nerfgun arc. Like where he shot fchamp and chris g? Then later Fchamp sat next to Neo while playing with the nerfgun, to which yipes catches them and he takes off lol. Even stuff like spooby trolling the commentators. To give a little credit to some of the sf6 folk they had/have been around for a bit. I was even shocked to learn Marine was pretty alright in sfv as a player. Rynge used to commentate marvel and I think GG? Viscious would be at misc. tournies. I don't actually know where cola came from, but yeah that dude is literally everywhere, and the rhyming never gets any better. I swear he commentates like half of the online tournies. He commentated for the SFL EN re-stream, and he's at like every offline event too. It is impossible to get away from him lol. While semi-unrelated, I always thought synderen/sunsfan commentary was perfect. Didn't matter if they were in group stage, or grand finals, you were always going to get jokes, banters and quality commentary while playing into their mistakes.
I think it's really healthy to listen to commentary from other e sports and sports in general to help improve. I spent a lot of time listening to boxing commentary to try and view things from another angle. I really appreciate it when you put out videos like this. It's important to remind ourselves where we need to improve.
Hearing this was what I needed. I'm a small streamer and content creator. The catch is the last year I had a traumatic brain injury, and now it makes vocal entertainment harder for me. That used to not be a thing for me, as I was one of the top commentators in the state for the game I play. But I just needed to hear how to take criticism as a route to improve, even though a big bit of improvement will come through recovery. There's not reason for me to be discouraged by it.
I still remember the first time I saw Sajam and I only knew him as the guy who wouldn't stop dropping combos in the Killer Instinct Season 2 showcase. From TastyJam to today, It has been really cool to see your commentary grow to the point of being one of the staples in anylist-type commentary
Amazing video. Hopped into commentary/hosting for locals a few years back (right around when i started streaming also) and it's been one of my favorite experiences every time. Went from Smash to now Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8. Watching Sajam, BrianF, and old EVOs, Old WWF promos and matches helped a ton on what to focus on and what's important to translate during a set.
Love and appreciate these commentary insights a lot! Also this worked as a reminder how Sajam did the segways in subs too, I had almost forgot "Yeah I'm very thankful, just as I'm thankful for BrianBalls65 for dropping the sub!"
love the way you showed how you and Yipes leave space for each other but are also fully capable of continuing if the other person doesn't feel the need to add anything sometimes less is more and as you acknowledged, that isn't always easy to learn or do
Thank you for posting this. I appreciate the perspectives you ended up sharing. I particularly like highlighting the use of uncertainty as a positive tool instead of a weakness when you know something will kill. I've let this detract from how I previously spoke but it's an actionable item to get better. Thank you Sajam.
This video got me interested in trying out fighting game commentary, I earlier today did my first ever commentary block as the first half of a ggst beginner tournament, it was a very fun experience and immediately has me reflecting on what I said and did and how eager I am to try again. While obviously the context of an online beginner tournament is generally gonna be more chill, with hype moments coming in much less predictable points as often those are when the beginner player does something surprising, a risky play that you'd never think of works out, or in the messier gameplay some niche/bad move finds a purpose or the player just really loves pressing charged dust, it requires knowing how to react to that and transition to showing how this is exciting without it being mean spirited and "Look how stupid that move is why did it work". There's also the fact most of the likely audience is either much mroe experienced players curious about the new blood, or other beginners, and especially likely, the players watching the vod back to see what the commentators mentioned of their set. (Maybe that's just something I did but I have that idea in my head so I want my commentary for beginners to be more constructive, maybe sometimes stopping to point out an important knowledge check.) EDIT: Forgot to add this at the end but to anyone intersted in comentary, look into if your favourite game has beginner tournaments, odds are the TOs like to use that as a way to let beginner commentators cut their teeth and try to learn the ropes, if you haven't seen beginners in a while maybe watch a couple brackets beforehand so you know what to expect, in the right mindset to be constructive and be good at swallowing any immediate reactions of "Oh no"
TY so much for doing guides on commentary. Finding this stuff is so hard, especially in a presentable way. Thanks to you, I've been able to start a yt channel and incorporate your teachings into my MTG commentary. Big thanks Sajam!
Love seeing your insights on commentary. I would hop on the mic and do some amateur commentating over Smash 4 games at my local scene years ago and it was always my favorite part of being in the community. Please do more videos like this!
STEVE is like the best. he know ton about all 3 big games (MK, SF, TEKKEN) and he get you hyped even if you don't understand what meaty is x') then there is Mr Aquaman MK specialist
Throwing in my vote for more commentary videos! I'm not pursuing it as a profession, but our locals are busy and we often have a need for people to step in and commentate for the stream. Commentating is a cool way to sharpen your analysis skills on-the-fly, and to help your locals be more awesome. Plus it's fun... and it can make going 0-2 or 1-2 a little less painful. Now you got time to chill and commentate!
I thought at 4:20 maybe it was Jammerz he's talking about. He's a great commentator and very knowledgeable to the point where he just knows already whether a combo will kill or not like 99% of the time. Id love to hear Sajammerz commentary duo someday
I absolutely love jammerz, prob my fav commentator actually, though that’s what I thought too lol. he has clearly so much knowledge of the game and loves to flex it lol
He has improved a lot over the years and I hope he overcomes that as well. He used to be guilty of the dreaded "I would have done X", specially when he was still pretty active as a player, but he no longer does that and his analysis is good and on point. His duo with Rynge was probably my favorite pair in the whole CC, they had really good synergy, and they both have plenty of room to grow.
I have always tried commentary like a sports play by play where I speak as if the character is doing things and not the player. I reference the player as a pilot but I'll talk about King, for example, being a student of the game with the Shining Wizard being originated from the Great Muda. It's a very pro wrestling way of doing commentary and obviously it has not had any success. It probably could have been good eventually except I stopped having free time to practice.
Man it's crazy to hear all the intricacies of something I've never given a single thought to as I watched countless hours of fighting games with commentary
Sajam, you and so many others do a commendable job with commentary! I think that FGC commentary at large can benefit from a play by play and color analyst, where someone can detail the ins and outs and someone else can deliver the hype moments, or at least trade off. Can't agree more, FCG Commentary is definitely dependent on preferences and what an individual brings to the table
I naturally gravitate towards more analytical commentary. My perfect match would be the analytical commentator taking lead eith the hype guy jumping in when something big happens. I think Melee commentary when done well really nails this
It’s validating to hear you talk about certain considerations when commentating that match with things I would think about during local events; I cam get a lot better but I’m happy to know I’m trying yo be considerate of the right things
this video is "old" at this point in the algorithm, so you probably won't see this, but I really just wanted to say that your approach to commentary is reflective of a person who is actually just not shitty. just from how you approach your work, I can tell that you really value people and that's not something I can say about many folks these days. what esp stood out to me was how you like to take the time to acknowledge players who may not have a moment on a podium to just be seen and respected for what are oftentimes brutal runs through gauntlets of other amazing players. playing fgs competitively, at a high level, is hard af, and I'd feel like shit to make it all the way out of pools, somehow make it to like top 16 or beyond, after having fought 100s of opponents, have a really good ass set and still lose despite my best efforts, and then never have anyone acknowledge that. that'd be like the difference b/t you questioning why bother, vs feeling rough b/c you lost, but encouraged to try and do better. esp when you consider that... let's just say ppl really play fgs for the love and not the money, lol. I fw you before, but after hearing this I really fw you now. I hope more ppl actually listen to the things you're saying and apply them not only to being a good commentator, not only to not being a shitty person in the fgc, but just not being a shitty person in general. thank you for taking the time to share all of this~
the problem with getting good at fighting game commentary is I get the sense a lot of people who get MAJOR FGC commentary gigs are not trying to get good and never have been. it's disappointing Capcom doesn't think its important to have anybody knowledgeable adding to the experience for their flagship event
On the other hand, I miss the days of Spooky and Yipes just shooting the shit about New York local stuff, basically doing a podcast while some matches play.
Compared to other esports, fighting game commentary seems so much more difficult because the matches move so fast. In other games there's sooooo much downtime to analyze and talk about what's happened, adaptations teams have made, and what each team needs to happen going forward. In the FGC, there is some downtime is between games or matches, but most of your analysis has to be super condensed like you talked about. It's so hard to be consise, analytical, and easy to understand for both veterans of the game and newcomers.
Something that bothered me more than it should is during Capcom Cup one of the commentators kept using the word "I". "As I said time and time again...", "again I'm gonna reveal how old I am". It's a very small detail and I love how this particular commentator gets excited and emotional through out his career, but sometimes the commentary leans a little too much about himself rather than the game
Sadly, that happens with him more and more often as the years pass. As much as he is an integral and loved part of the FGC, his commentary has been on a big decline and the ramblings and anecdotes that pretty much overshadow entire rounds are getting out of control. I got actually a it sad when I realized.
IT'S GONNA CHIP, WITH THE GRIP, FLIP A DIP, IN THE WHIP, MEMPHIS! Started muting the stream when Cola came on. It's fun every now and then but when all you do is bad poetry and try to say the big word your co-caster is saying at the same time as them, it gets old quick.
Honestly I thought the hate for Marine was just a tad overblown at first. Then she just started singing and making random noises mid match and that's when I had to turn it off. It's just not professional.
@@DandyAnnieTime 🤣😅Why I read it in his voice. That messed up man, you ain't have to make me laugh this hard. I feel you though, he's aiight every so often..
There is only one sf6 commentator I don't much care for. Won't say who. But it's mostly because of how different they are depending on the event and who they are with. It's like sometimes they are fine - even great and then other times it's like the brought their C game. I've sat and tried to do commentary of matches in the privacy of my own home and I suck. I couldn't imagine in front of a camera.
'What roll did you wanna play Sajam?' Sajam: 'Whatever sounds good to you man, i'll fill' Lol fun way to play roll based games too, honestly makes you better at the game or in this context, the craft.
I found this video really insightful. It's cool to hear about the different aspects you consider even though I've normally never thought about them. Have you ever thought about doing a commentary analysis of your own or another person's commentary?
"If I had more time, I would write a shorter letter." This can be applied to every facet of commentary. knowing too much means you might speak too much, but not having enough time to speak it, or doing so unnecessarily. Knowing too little means you cant write the letter, or cant articulate why the letter cant be written. knowing when to be able to write the shorter letter and when to analyse why writing the shorter letter doesnt work is the difference between a professional and an amateur.
I kinda wish there was a side thing at the big events where random people could try and co-commentate pre recorded clips with the industry’s best commentators just to see what would happen
Sajam, you should push some of these experienced commentators to work with more people. We've tried to get them out here, fly em out, pay em, but we cannot get them out unless it's a big major. We'd love more experienced guys willing to come out, help train the up-and-coming in more local scenes if they were open to it! We have a few out here in NC that would love the opportunity to work with guys like you.
15:30 I think this is the most important thing. Commentators bringing personal stuff on the stage. Whether it's about his co-caster or he thinks he is better than the players. Most main commentators are good, but from time to time I will see these unknown casters or ex-pro, they will do zero hype and talk about how much they close the round better.
The only commentator I've listened to (I've been watching fighting game tournaments for more than a decade) who rivals or maybe surpasses Sajam in terms of insightful analysis is Justin Wong, which says quite a lot.
This bears a lot of similarity to game development. Players are REALLY GOOD at telling you that your game sucks. They are REALLY BAD at telling you why, and it's your job to decipher their complaint and then make a judgement on whether it actually matters (or if it matters in the way they think it does).
I think I know who Sajam alludes to when he's talking about a commentator just saying it'll kill. I think he's the same guy who likes to predict what happens next on matches.
Fighting game commentators are actually really good compared to other sports or e sports imo. I was super impressed at the commentators doing sf6 Capcom cup. Everyone knew what they were talking about. They mixed in jokes and it all worked. They were great at creating hype. I'm sure there's a lot of small subtle things where they are making mistakes. But overall still much better than other e sports scenes I follow. Also. Commentary is super hard to do. Respect to anyone doing it. I tried it once and looked like a complete fool LOL
Sajam’s literally playing footsies on commentary 😂
“If you are good at knowing if something is going to kill or not, that should be very valuable.” So what you’re saying is, we should all be trying a lot harder at Will it Kill :3
While watching the video I started reading the comments. Somehow I came to this one AT THE SAME TIME Sajam was saying this. Dayum...
:3
Other commentators: _(oh man I hope I don't do something embarrassing in front of Sajam!!)_
Sajam: _(they already fired me once, what are they gonna do?)_
I love it when Steve goes "blah blah, blah-blah!" 🔥
Honestly, you’re the #1 voice in the FGC. Perfect blend of knowledge, hype, maturity, silliness, professionalism, and cadence. I had a moment when you were doing the live Will It Kill, where I thought “this kid has made it”. Maybe it’s cuz I’m an older dude, but you’re the perfect representation this community needs. Too silly, and we look like children. Too serious, we look like nerds lol. You hit all the right notes. At least for me, and my social circle. Thanks for all your hard work and dedication to the scene.
"I don't have a lot of bad matchups" Sajam S tier???
S+ possibly
S++
Sajam is the first S+A+JAM tier character
“I have no enemies”
yipes steve and sajam are the MSS of commentary
"You did a pretty good job ... but maybe next Capcom Cup, try not to wail like a banshee"
Fucking lawl XD
Thanks for the advice I’ll try my best
They need to keep a Vaudeville Hook on set for emergencies like that next time.
I like Yipes's "he's dead he's dead he's dead" because I think it's important to acknowledge how it's not just some guy winning, but the other guy losing too.
They're not Sajam haters, they're Majas fans.
¿Ahora eres fanático de Majas?
"There's no guidebook"
Than what am I watching?
A guidevideo
You don't watch books, dummy
a guidevideo, if you will
God I look forward to the 2029 Combo Breaker Evo Grand Finals of Guilty Gear x Tekken.
I love that between all the pictures of characters thinking, there's just the levitating pizza meme guy
I thought it was Majin Obama 🫠
the one thinking the hardest
Really love the segment where Sajam talks about using "we" to signal to his co-commentator that they're in it together, and then using "you" to give his co-commentator credit. (13:40) I don't do commentary but I love to do this "technique" in any kind of public group event. I feel that it really lets people ease into their comfort vibes and let them feel more natural when working with you.
OHH Shit My Laura Comic Cover is on the Shelve!! 💕
Random reiq comment
as a denizen of Arizona, I still recall that one event in Tucson where they snuck in fake ads for you to do the segues and reads for, that shit was pretty funny
Do you remember what event that was? I recently moved to Tucson and wanted to know.
@KelpoOrganic it was called ReWired
It was back in 2013 or 2015, so you're shit outta luck lmao
@@notsoy All good. Wasn't interested in going to the tournament, just wanted to know what event it was.
In short: the hardest part of talking is to know when not to
I remember this dude talking about how Travis Willingham was so great in Critical Role because he knew when to shut up
On your point about ushering in the next generation of commentators, I absolutely love what some of the EU online qualifier events had going on where there was one well known commentator (Jammerz, Rynge, I think Logan did some too) alongside two or three newer commentators. The more experienced person takes the lead, they can call the breaks and whatever games are coming up, or fill in dead space, while the others get to build their confidence, try out new styles, bounce off each other and all the while getting immediate feedback from the way the leading commentator responds and directs them.
Especially with regional weekly/monthly events its such a great way to build up the new blood without having viewers feel like they 'miss out' on their favourites during majors, and even during the online events there's one familiar voice at least to hook you
"I naturally have a nasally voice because my nose has been broken so many times"
This is the most casually "i'm a gangsta" thing I've ever heard Sajam say even if I am pretty sure I know the actual reason (wrestling)
wrestling?
wrestling! @@Xer_Alix
@@Xer_Alix yeah, sajam did wrestling when he was younger
Noses can get broken in wrestling, and it's still "gangsta."
Sajam is the most "gangsta" guy I know to be honest
I thought Professor X in the thumbnail was Vicious LMAO
my guy that is captain pickard
That is vile
Jean-Luc Picard can’t keep getting away with this
Sir Vicious
SHAME THIS MAN
Regular Sajam sounds as different from big moment Sajam as it does from "STEVE MY ARM" Sajam
I “commentated” some people playing Multiversus at a party once and it made me want to get into fighting game commentary. Guiding the crowd along the ride, and narrating the match’s story just seems like a lot of fun
Do it. You don't have to be signed onto a major FGC event to make an impact and, more importantly, enjoy yourself.
One time playing smash with friends, one of them asked if we could do joke commentary where he was incredibly biased against one player and I was trying really hard to be balanced. It's probably the most fun I've had playing ultimate in the past 3 years
Trying to be brief: We had a community of casters/producers/in-game camera operators in T2/3 Overwatch that did a lot of good work. Pooling talent can be super super useful for getting into commentary and building up some peers who you trust to give you good feedback post broadcast or on review can be so goddamn useful. That group of people endedup being more professional than a lot of larger paid gigs I've done in terms of run of show, feedback, and production value. Super useful. Sure you're competing for gigs, but you'd be amazed at how its often way more useful than it is a detriment.
If I had to give one bit of advice after doing years of T2/3 OW casting a while back:
Never feel bad asking for pay for a broadcast, even if its small. Nothing can devalue a scene of people working hard faster than someone doing hours of work for free just to get their voice on camera and it helps no-one long term. FGC is different, budgets are different, etc etc, but especially if its a larger organiser or regular tournament never be afraid to ask for something. T2 OW outside of the major Contenders regions dried up entirely because a few names would just do everything for free and it helped nobody in the end.
Sajam causually dropping the meta analysis on commentary is invaluable. Take notes future legends!
This topic is so interesting to me because Ive been playing fighting games for 30 years plus now Im 42! When I was in the Army, My brother and I would do fighting game events on the base and even while deployed in Iraq during downtime! Im more of a jokey/hype guy while as my brother has deep knowledge of the games he loves! Watching some of you guys commentary got us through some crazy times and I just want to say Thank You 😊!
Honestly we really are blessed that we have someone as thoughtful and well-spoken as Sajam to talk about fighting games to us, even when (or perhaps especially when) he goes deep on something not even directly related to playing the game. Thanks, Mr. Jam.
beautiful seeing Yipes photo there with a title like that, legendary commentator.
Very respectable how honest Sajam is about this, while also protecting the other commentators.
As someone who skipped the vast majority of SF5, coming in and listening to sf6 commentary feels so bland almost across the board. I think a big knock against it, is there doesn't feels like there are many actual "duos" anymore. Sf4 had ultrachen, tastyjam, James+seth, Zhi+Cameraman, or F-word+logan. Hell depending on the event you'd sometimes get mike ross and combofiend/gootecks, or other people who just naturally had a lot of chemistry. It also doesn't help there there seems to be a good bit of overlap with styles, which maybe makes me dislike certain ones than I otherwise might give a pass.
I've mentioned in a previous video I actually liked Marine commentating with sajam during the qualifiers they covered, but at capcup is pretty bad day 1, then she was just uber nervous day2. I appreciate her off the wall stuff, but if she had a more consistent partner that flowed with her I think she'd be top tier.
Saint cola says a lot without really saying anything at all. Very weird rhythm to me, and it feels like no matter the match, he is just trying to put himself over.
My other maybe controversial take is that Vicious is just kind of average at best. He speaks the obvious a lot of the time without much meat, and pads sentences out with move names. I also don't like his shrill "hype" voice, but that is more of a personal taste thing.
To add some positives, I think Jammerz is quite good, he just needs a good hype man to cover his chill demeanor. Seems like a very knowledgeable dude, and had good insight in the matches I saw with him on commentary.
If they unironically muted the game sound at capcup and had yipes doing the move sounds (like he did with sajam at evo, and other times before), I feel I would've gotten more out of commentary than maybe 80% of what there was/is.
Yeah, Sajam and Marine is a good duo. I feel like she needs someone chill to reign her in a bit. Pairing her with Saint Cola just kinda elevates each others' bad habits as commentators, lol.
@@runbaaL337 Pretty good point there actually hah.
Feel this 100%. Watched the same happen back then with Starcraft II, Dota II, LoL. Any time a game becomes "esports", they hire a swath of politically correct middle of the road "professional" commentators who have barely any idea about the game, always have that fake hype voice on, and talk at 200 mph, just announcing stuff that happen on the screen, during the most unimportant pools game between RazorfiendXX2 and Comboblaster3000 nobody cares about. Saint Cola is maybe the most obvious example in current SF6, purely because the shows up everywhere. There are surely much worse than him, but there you can chalk it up to inexperience at least.
This makes these Tier 1 esports event unwatchable for me, I always have to put on some dude's watch party restream. I prefer some guy with a shitty microphone slurping ramen to your commentary, Capcom!
What I miss most from the offline days of SF4 and Marvel, is that feeling of actually being at a community event, even though I'm on the other side of the globe. During pools, random people would come on to commentate, just talking about their day, what they've been up to, about some money match that went down the night before etc. Someone like Floe or Justin would randomly interrupt them, hold up a sign, steal their hat, stay for a match, and then move on to play their own matches. The best commentators we have today are just dudes that got asked to commentate, and people liked enough to demand them in chat every week.
@@MaGariShun Even if I think it was later into the game's lifespan, you reminded me of the Yipes nerfgun arc. Like where he shot fchamp and chris g? Then later Fchamp sat next to Neo while playing with the nerfgun, to which yipes catches them and he takes off lol. Even stuff like spooby trolling the commentators.
To give a little credit to some of the sf6 folk they had/have been around for a bit. I was even shocked to learn Marine was pretty alright in sfv as a player. Rynge used to commentate marvel and I think GG? Viscious would be at misc. tournies.
I don't actually know where cola came from, but yeah that dude is literally everywhere, and the rhyming never gets any better. I swear he commentates like half of the online tournies. He commentated for the SFL EN re-stream, and he's at like every offline event too. It is impossible to get away from him lol.
While semi-unrelated, I always thought synderen/sunsfan commentary was perfect. Didn't matter if they were in group stage, or grand finals, you were always going to get jokes, banters and quality commentary while playing into their mistakes.
I think it's really healthy to listen to commentary from other e sports and sports in general to help improve. I spent a lot of time listening to boxing commentary to try and view things from another angle. I really appreciate it when you put out videos like this. It's important to remind ourselves where we need to improve.
Hearing this was what I needed. I'm a small streamer and content creator. The catch is the last year I had a traumatic brain injury, and now it makes vocal entertainment harder for me. That used to not be a thing for me, as I was one of the top commentators in the state for the game I play. But I just needed to hear how to take criticism as a route to improve, even though a big bit of improvement will come through recovery. There's not reason for me to be discouraged by it.
I still remember the first time I saw Sajam and I only knew him as the guy who wouldn't stop dropping combos in the Killer Instinct Season 2 showcase. From TastyJam to today, It has been really cool to see your commentary grow to the point of being one of the staples in anylist-type commentary
Amazing video.
Hopped into commentary/hosting for locals a few years back (right around when i started streaming also) and it's been one of my favorite experiences every time. Went from Smash to now Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8.
Watching Sajam, BrianF, and old EVOs, Old WWF promos and matches helped a ton on what to focus on and what's important to translate during a set.
Love and appreciate these commentary insights a lot!
Also this worked as a reminder how Sajam did the segways in subs too, I had almost forgot
"Yeah I'm very thankful, just as I'm thankful for BrianBalls65 for dropping the sub!"
love the way you showed how you and Yipes leave space for each other but are also fully capable of continuing if the other person doesn't feel the need to add anything
sometimes less is more and as you acknowledged, that isn't always easy to learn or do
Thank you for posting this. I appreciate the perspectives you ended up sharing. I particularly like highlighting the use of uncertainty as a positive tool instead of a weakness when you know something will kill. I've let this detract from how I previously spoke but it's an actionable item to get better. Thank you Sajam.
It's funny how everyone does the "Make Some Noise" thing, like specifically those words
I wonder what was the effect of Content Era FGC on commentary
The term comes from the sports world. It’s been put up on the big screen to get fans to get loud for decades
Thank you for this video. I do commentary for the FGC here in The Bahamas. I'm always looking to improve, and this helps A LOT!!
You are a gift sajam
This video got me interested in trying out fighting game commentary, I earlier today did my first ever commentary block as the first half of a ggst beginner tournament, it was a very fun experience and immediately has me reflecting on what I said and did and how eager I am to try again. While obviously the context of an online beginner tournament is generally gonna be more chill, with hype moments coming in much less predictable points as often those are when the beginner player does something surprising, a risky play that you'd never think of works out, or in the messier gameplay some niche/bad move finds a purpose or the player just really loves pressing charged dust, it requires knowing how to react to that and transition to showing how this is exciting without it being mean spirited and "Look how stupid that move is why did it work". There's also the fact most of the likely audience is either much mroe experienced players curious about the new blood, or other beginners, and especially likely, the players watching the vod back to see what the commentators mentioned of their set. (Maybe that's just something I did but I have that idea in my head so I want my commentary for beginners to be more constructive, maybe sometimes stopping to point out an important knowledge check.)
EDIT: Forgot to add this at the end but to anyone intersted in comentary, look into if your favourite game has beginner tournaments, odds are the TOs like to use that as a way to let beginner commentators cut their teeth and try to learn the ropes, if you haven't seen beginners in a while maybe watch a couple brackets beforehand so you know what to expect, in the right mindset to be constructive and be good at swallowing any immediate reactions of "Oh no"
Big moment: "Steve my arm!"
TY so much for doing guides on commentary. Finding this stuff is so hard, especially in a presentable way. Thanks to you, I've been able to start a yt channel and incorporate your teachings into my MTG commentary. Big thanks Sajam!
Love seeing your insights on commentary. I would hop on the mic and do some amateur commentating over Smash 4 games at my local scene years ago and it was always my favorite part of being in the community. Please do more videos like this!
STEVE is like the best. he know ton about all 3 big games (MK, SF, TEKKEN) and he get you hyped even if you don't understand what meaty is x') then there is Mr Aquaman MK specialist
So what I’m getting is that will it kill is actually educational
It's secretly a contest to determine who will inherit Sajam's powers when he retires
Throwing in my vote for more commentary videos! I'm not pursuing it as a profession, but our locals are busy and we often have a need for people to step in and commentate for the stream. Commentating is a cool way to sharpen your analysis skills on-the-fly, and to help your locals be more awesome. Plus it's fun... and it can make going 0-2 or 1-2 a little less painful. Now you got time to chill and commentate!
FGC commentating seems difficult, yet the commentators are more knowledgable and engaging than other games and sports. I guess that's passion.
This is a really great video. It should be saved as archived knowledge in the community
This is one of your best videos
I thought at 4:20 maybe it was Jammerz he's talking about. He's a great commentator and very knowledgeable to the point where he just knows already whether a combo will kill or not like 99% of the time. Id love to hear Sajammerz commentary duo someday
I absolutely love jammerz, prob my fav commentator actually, though that’s what I thought too lol. he has clearly so much knowledge of the game and loves to flex it lol
Jammerz is the first person who came to mind when he said this as well. Pretty darn sure that's who he's talking about.
He has improved a lot over the years and I hope he overcomes that as well. He used to be guilty of the dreaded "I would have done X", specially when he was still pretty active as a player, but he no longer does that and his analysis is good and on point. His duo with Rynge was probably my favorite pair in the whole CC, they had really good synergy, and they both have plenty of room to grow.
I have always tried commentary like a sports play by play where I speak as if the character is doing things and not the player. I reference the player as a pilot but I'll talk about King, for example, being a student of the game with the Shining Wizard being originated from the Great Muda. It's a very pro wrestling way of doing commentary and obviously it has not had any success.
It probably could have been good eventually except I stopped having free time to practice.
Man it's crazy to hear all the intricacies of something I've never given a single thought to as I watched countless hours of fighting games with commentary
Sajam, you and so many others do a commendable job with commentary! I think that FGC commentary at large can benefit from a play by play and color analyst, where someone can detail the ins and outs and someone else can deliver the hype moments, or at least trade off. Can't agree more, FCG Commentary is definitely dependent on preferences and what an individual brings to the table
I naturally gravitate towards more analytical commentary. My perfect match would be the analytical commentator taking lead eith the hype guy jumping in when something big happens.
I think Melee commentary when done well really nails this
It’s validating to hear you talk about certain considerations when commentating that match with things I would think about during local events; I cam get a lot better but I’m happy to know I’m trying yo be considerate of the right things
the Yipes x Sajam SF6 evo pools SFX commentary of 2023 lives rent free
get our boy dotodoya into commentating
Holy hell dude that would be sick.
I could see it honestly
This video is very helpful as someone whos working on commentary for my own locals
i love videos like this, Sajam. wish i could catch the stream more often. also the end of the video with the sf6 sounds was dope
Justin Wong is that guy on commentary who just says "he's dead" and kills the hype, lol.
This is a very good video. Future commentators take note, please.
I already liked sajam, now me like sajam more
wonderful conversation about an important part of the fgc. ty
this video is "old" at this point in the algorithm, so you probably won't see this, but I really just wanted to say that your approach to commentary is reflective of a person who is actually just not shitty. just from how you approach your work, I can tell that you really value people and that's not something I can say about many folks these days.
what esp stood out to me was how you like to take the time to acknowledge players who may not have a moment on a podium to just be seen and respected for what are oftentimes brutal runs through gauntlets of other amazing players. playing fgs competitively, at a high level, is hard af, and I'd feel like shit to make it all the way out of pools, somehow make it to like top 16 or beyond, after having fought 100s of opponents, have a really good ass set and still lose despite my best efforts, and then never have anyone acknowledge that. that'd be like the difference b/t you questioning why bother, vs feeling rough b/c you lost, but encouraged to try and do better. esp when you consider that... let's just say ppl really play fgs for the love and not the money, lol.
I fw you before, but after hearing this I really fw you now. I hope more ppl actually listen to the things you're saying and apply them not only to being a good commentator, not only to not being a shitty person in the fgc, but just not being a shitty person in general.
thank you for taking the time to share all of this~
the problem with getting good at fighting game commentary is I get the sense a lot of people who get MAJOR FGC commentary gigs are not trying to get good and never have been. it's disappointing Capcom doesn't think its important to have anybody knowledgeable adding to the experience for their flagship event
Listened to the whole thing. Great advise!
Great video thank you for breaking down commentary. Love more content like this.
On the other hand, I miss the days of Spooky and Yipes just shooting the shit about New York local stuff, basically doing a podcast while some matches play.
It simultaneously makes a lot of sense, but is also massively surprising about the whole "Sajam’s biggest problem is being *the* Sajam"
Compared to other esports, fighting game commentary seems so much more difficult because the matches move so fast. In other games there's sooooo much downtime to analyze and talk about what's happened, adaptations teams have made, and what each team needs to happen going forward. In the FGC, there is some downtime is between games or matches, but most of your analysis has to be super condensed like you talked about. It's so hard to be consise, analytical, and easy to understand for both veterans of the game and newcomers.
Something that bothered me more than it should is during Capcom Cup one of the commentators kept using the word "I". "As I said time and time again...", "again I'm gonna reveal how old I am". It's a very small detail and I love how this particular commentator gets excited and emotional through out his career, but sometimes the commentary leans a little too much about himself rather than the game
Sadly, that happens with him more and more often as the years pass. As much as he is an integral and loved part of the FGC, his commentary has been on a big decline and the ramblings and anecdotes that pretty much overshadow entire rounds are getting out of control. I got actually a it sad when I realized.
This video is so detailed & encompassing.
i say this purely as critical commentary and not a personal attack at all: Saint Cola and Marine were genuinely terrible during Capcom Cup finals
IT'S GONNA CHIP, WITH THE GRIP, FLIP A DIP, IN THE WHIP, MEMPHIS!
Started muting the stream when Cola came on. It's fun every now and then but when all you do is bad poetry and try to say the big word your co-caster is saying at the same time as them, it gets old quick.
Honestly I thought the hate for Marine was just a tad overblown at first. Then she just started singing and making random noises mid match and that's when I had to turn it off. It's just not professional.
@@DandyAnnieTime 🤣😅Why I read it in his voice. That messed up man, you ain't have to make me laugh this hard. I feel you though, he's aiight every so often..
There is only one sf6 commentator I don't much care for. Won't say who. But it's mostly because of how different they are depending on the event and who they are with. It's like sometimes they are fine - even great and then other times it's like the brought their C game.
I've sat and tried to do commentary of matches in the privacy of my own home and I suck. I couldn't imagine in front of a camera.
I still imagine if a Tekken commentator can said most of the moves name instead of the inputs, they are goated
'What roll did you wanna play Sajam?'
Sajam: 'Whatever sounds good to you man, i'll fill'
Lol fun way to play roll based games too, honestly makes you better at the game or in this context, the craft.
I found this video really insightful. It's cool to hear about the different aspects you consider even though I've normally never thought about them. Have you ever thought about doing a commentary analysis of your own or another person's commentary?
"If I had more time, I would write a shorter letter."
This can be applied to every facet of commentary. knowing too much means you might speak too much, but not having enough time to speak it, or doing so unnecessarily.
Knowing too little means you cant write the letter, or cant articulate why the letter cant be written.
knowing when to be able to write the shorter letter and when to analyse why writing the shorter letter doesnt work is the difference between a professional and an amateur.
love this video, lots of good info here for anyone trying to be a commentator, oh no made up joe shmoe vs Johnny donuts match of the year
I kinda wish there was a side thing at the big events where random people could try and co-commentate pre recorded clips with the industry’s best commentators just to see what would happen
I love these insights into commentary!
Sajam, you should push some of these experienced commentators to work with more people. We've tried to get them out here, fly em out, pay em, but we cannot get them out unless it's a big major. We'd love more experienced guys willing to come out, help train the up-and-coming in more local scenes if they were open to it! We have a few out here in NC that would love the opportunity to work with guys like you.
My friends always say I have good commentary when we hang out and play games but I’m not sure how to get a foot in the door at events!”
this was very insightful
15:30 I think this is the most important thing. Commentators bringing personal stuff on the stage. Whether it's about his co-caster or he thinks he is better than the players. Most main commentators are good, but from time to time I will see these unknown casters or ex-pro, they will do zero hype and talk about how much they close the round better.
The only commentator I've listened to (I've been watching fighting game tournaments for more than a decade) who rivals or maybe surpasses Sajam in terms of insightful analysis is Justin Wong, which says quite a lot.
Great vid. Many of these lessons can be applied to every day life and philosophies. Keep it up king yayaya🎉
Is there any tips for starting as a commentator? Like is finding small online ones a good idea then seeing what happens?
This bears a lot of similarity to game development. Players are REALLY GOOD at telling you that your game sucks. They are REALLY BAD at telling you why, and it's your job to decipher their complaint and then make a judgement on whether it actually matters (or if it matters in the way they think it does).
I simply cannot believe that there is a human who does not enjoy Yipes on commentary
"Who are the new Tekken commentators?" Justaspirit, Foxof, and Iambic. Trust.
shoutouts to johnnydonuts i love that guy
F&%k'em both F Sajam had me dtying!!! 😂😂😂
I think I know who Sajam alludes to when he's talking about a commentator just saying it'll kill. I think he's the same guy who likes to predict what happens next on matches.
Nobody beats tastosis
10:08 I remember the first time I started watching Sajam stuff I was like "damn this dude is good at segwaying(ex.segway into thanking subs)"😂
i love this sajam guy
Fighting game commentators are actually really good compared to other sports or e sports imo.
I was super impressed at the commentators doing sf6 Capcom cup. Everyone knew what they were talking about. They mixed in jokes and it all worked. They were great at creating hype.
I'm sure there's a lot of small subtle things where they are making mistakes. But overall still much better than other e sports scenes I follow.
Also. Commentary is super hard to do. Respect to anyone doing it. I tried it once and looked like a complete fool LOL
When are you going to be an option in SF6's in-game casters?
6:03 D: Capcom commentators getting killed sounds like a huge issue! I don't know why I don't hear about that more often
Sometimes i'll watch a stream and commentate to myself just for fun 😂
This is actually so insightful and such an interesting peek behind the curtain. How does he do it?