Yesterday evening I felt like a twelve-year-old again, and I owe it to Mr. Biffo.
I was one of the backers to Biffo’s crowdfunded YouTube series Digitiser the Show, and having seen the first episode, I’d say I got my money’s worth. It took me back to my childhood days watching GamesMaster and Bad Influence, only without any of the trying-to-be-cool malarkey that tended to come with shows of that ilk. Instead, I was treated to the sight of a bunch of grown adults unapologetically immersing themselves in the very best playground japery, all in the name of gaming nostalgia.
For those unaware, Digitiser started out as Mr. Biffo’s Teletext gig in the 1990s, and the YouTube version captures the schoolkids-on-sherbet ethos of its source. The “press reveal” feature has been reinvented as odd things popping out of panels, while Mr. T and his bins are present and correct (not the real Mr. T, of course – it would seem that the Snickers spokesman considers such material beneath him. More foo him.)
For me, the clear highlight was the “Video Game Pioneer or Murderer” photo quiz, which confirms that it is, in fact, impossible to distinguish between an influential game developer and a perpetrator of homicide.
The first episode has a framerate problem that makes it look a bit like Max Headroom, but apparently later instalments will clear this up. Beyond this, it’s a successful debut all round. If you want to recreate that golden youth you spent arguing about the relative merits of the Sonic the Hedgehog and Pilotwings while building golems out of Quavers, give Digi a look.
Doris V. Sutherland 