I've noticed the rise of a new youtuber over the past year and a half, and with him a whole new style of timelapse. Dovska, for those of you who have not heard of him, makes (mainly) EU IV timelapses, but rather than just being a replay of the game session, he actually turns it into a narrative. I thought I would find at least one thread either about him or that mentioned him in more than just a passing manner, but was surprised when I didn't. So I've decided to make this thread, because since he started making his videos there has been an influx of youtubers creating content of similar style, and the main thread I hear from them is that his videos are what influenced theirs.
Let us start from the beginning.
In this video we can see that in terms of graphical format, so far it isn't really that much different from your standard timelapse. However, as the video plays he explains what is happening to his country. This is all a bare-bones version of his later work, sticking his toe in the waters to gauge the temperature. Many of the explanations are vague, sometimes the timing is a bit off, and there aren't any pauses to give the viewer time to take in what is happening or digest what explanations there are. But it lays the groundwork for what is to come...
Here, we see him start to add more to the format. There is a UI element in the top right that shows who his current ruler is and what their stats are at all times. In addition, whenever a major war happens, he stops the replay to provide a narrative background as to what happened. Continuing on...
Here we see Dovska begin to truly come into his own. The mod he is using allows him to keep track of all the major aspects of empire creation, from infrastructure to population, adding even more meat to the bones of his narrative. As we can see the customized UI has become an integral part of his videos. He provides Ruler info, Population size, Alliances, Subjects, and the current flag of his nation. When a major war happens, he stops the video and not only explains what is happening, but shows his plan of attack; the moves of his allies; and any counter-moves by his enemies. He provides a narrative of events that can't necessarily be seen by the viewer, such as a change in capital, but are essential for knowing how the story of the country progresses.
By this point his videos have stopped being a timelapse with more info on what happens, and turned into a complex retelling of the story of the country he plays as. It feels more like we are seeing history in motion than someone merely painting a map in a game the color of their nation.
This seems to have inspired several youtubers to follow a similar style for their videos, providing a narrative history for the rise of the nation they play as rather than a simple timelapse replay.
I would like to hear what others think of this.
Let us start from the beginning.
In this video we can see that in terms of graphical format, so far it isn't really that much different from your standard timelapse. However, as the video plays he explains what is happening to his country. This is all a bare-bones version of his later work, sticking his toe in the waters to gauge the temperature. Many of the explanations are vague, sometimes the timing is a bit off, and there aren't any pauses to give the viewer time to take in what is happening or digest what explanations there are. But it lays the groundwork for what is to come...
Here, we see him start to add more to the format. There is a UI element in the top right that shows who his current ruler is and what their stats are at all times. In addition, whenever a major war happens, he stops the replay to provide a narrative background as to what happened. Continuing on...
Here we see Dovska begin to truly come into his own. The mod he is using allows him to keep track of all the major aspects of empire creation, from infrastructure to population, adding even more meat to the bones of his narrative. As we can see the customized UI has become an integral part of his videos. He provides Ruler info, Population size, Alliances, Subjects, and the current flag of his nation. When a major war happens, he stops the video and not only explains what is happening, but shows his plan of attack; the moves of his allies; and any counter-moves by his enemies. He provides a narrative of events that can't necessarily be seen by the viewer, such as a change in capital, but are essential for knowing how the story of the country progresses.
By this point his videos have stopped being a timelapse with more info on what happens, and turned into a complex retelling of the story of the country he plays as. It feels more like we are seeing history in motion than someone merely painting a map in a game the color of their nation.
This seems to have inspired several youtubers to follow a similar style for their videos, providing a narrative history for the rise of the nation they play as rather than a simple timelapse replay.
I would like to hear what others think of this.
