I don't think they should do it, as I find these videos irrelevant to the bottom line of these game companies, but I really wish people would stop with the "free advertising" stuff. The number of people who decide to buy a game because they saw a Let's Play about it is infinitesimally small. I'm not saying it doesn't happen of course, but it's a very small number.
When people watch these Youtube videos they're mostly watching for the personalities. And that's exactly why I don't watch them because there's apparently a Youtube rule that says you have to act like an annoying spazzy douche in your videos. My tastes aside, though, the subject of the video is irrelevant as you're there to watch how the personality reacts to the game. It's like MST3000, it doesn't matter what crappy movie they're watching, you're there to see them tear it down.
I strongly disagree with any game company taking this stance, though, because there's no negatives. There's only positives. The positives are very small, but they're positives nonetheless. The biggest positive is that you avoid negative PR. This won't affect Nintendo in any noticeable way, no one is going to boycott Nintendo because of this program, just as no one would rush out and buy Nintendo products just because they're featured in a LP. It's a waste of time and energy for Nintendo to do this.
When people watch these Youtube videos they're mostly watching for the personalities. And that's exactly why I don't watch them because there's apparently a Youtube rule that says you have to act like an annoying spazzy douche in your videos. My tastes aside, though, the subject of the video is irrelevant as you're there to watch how the personality reacts to the game. It's like MST3000, it doesn't matter what crappy movie they're watching, you're there to see them tear it down.
I strongly disagree with any game company taking this stance, though, because there's no negatives. There's only positives. The positives are very small, but they're positives nonetheless. The biggest positive is that you avoid negative PR. This won't affect Nintendo in any noticeable way, no one is going to boycott Nintendo because of this program, just as no one would rush out and buy Nintendo products just because they're featured in a LP. It's a waste of time and energy for Nintendo to do this.