Why You Should Cancel Your Pledge

The way I see patreon: it is not the same as a pay check on job, it is way more personal. The point is not to pay for the content the creator creates, but to show your love for them and their content. It is a world of a difference. Of course that's just me... and it's also true that this is the first time I ever did patreon, but regardless this is always how I felt about it. Even if you won't make a video for another year or even longer, you'll still be awesome and I'll still love you and your content. Especially now, knowing how hard you work behind the scenes. It's like a cherry on top. ......I am regretful I didn't patreon sooner though. Wish you health.

Im pledging a dollar a month. That is worth it for me to just serve as a reminder that you still have fans out there that don't care if you take YEARS to post new content. I'm not cancelling shit, even if I go 5 years without a single new video from you, Im only out $60 and that is more than worth it for all the extremely high quality content you have posted and all the hours of enjoyment I have gotten out of watching all your videos multiple times

I really hope you come back and read some of these comments from time to time. About once a month I come check on your page to see if I missed anything, and I'm always happy to see new comments on this post. You have helped many people think more deeply about games, and people are appreciative. Take your time, I'm sure we will all mob the next videos whenever they come out and each watch them a dozen times.

Lance Parrish

You are, without question, the most skilled critic that this medium has to offer. You have inspired me to become a more critical, inquisitive, and analytical person. I am currently in college studying writing, and when people aske me who my biggest influences are, I always point to cormac mccarthy, larry david, and you. All for different reasons and different kinds of writing, of course, but in my eyes, you are shoulder to shoulder with the greats. You are not my favorite youtuber (the smug Texan owl still has my heart), but I have rewatched your videos more than anyone else, and they give me pleasure each time. You also exposed me to Hollow Knight. I actually followed your spoiler warning and played it for myself before watching your video, and it has been my favorite game ever since. I avoid forming parasocial relationships, but after following your content for so long, I have a general sense of your personality. You read to me as a man of strong character, of unwavering commitment. Like an oak tree, or something sappy (hehe) like that. I have a feeling that, if the people you love were in dire financial straits, you would be transparent about it, and wouldn’t make this request. That is why I do not feel bad for cancelling my pledge, though I still do so with a heavy heart. If it soothes whatever neuroses that currently haunt you, it’ll be my pleasure. The irony is that I literally re-pledged five minutes ago after a year long break. I’ll be sure to do the same when the next video gets released, and maybe I’ll tune in to a stream or two in the meantime. I’ll see you on the other side.

Hey Joe, Loved your videos for awhile now and when I hadn't seen a new one in a long time I assumed you had just moved on from the channel. Now that I've read through this post I'm convinced you are extremely committed to the channel and I was blown away how serious you were still taking things. I've watched countless hours of your content both on your main channel and even some of the second channel. I have watched most of your videos at least 3 times. Knowing now that you're still working on the channel I'm ecstatic to pledge to your patreon and you've more than deserved some of my money by now anyways. Don't let stress and pressure drive your work, just do your best and keep your work life balance intact. I'll be looking into your books soon too. Cheers buddy, thanks for everything.

Hunter Lanier

If you ever make an Outer Wilds video I'll pledge $100

insert Giga-Chad meme here

No, I don't think I will cancel my pledge.

lmao joe I just pledged because you said cancel. come on dude, you know we love you. take your time.

I pledged just to say I wont be un-pledging, I love your videos and watching them has helped me quite a lot with my studies, so I will pledge whatever money I chose to pledge, because the content is worth it, you're worth it and fuck you for thinking we should stop pledging money to you, a lovely man with a family to support who makes very in depth video game critiques just because you've got an imperfect work/life balance, I'm not expecting much from pledging, the only thing I'm expecting is that this money goes to supporting my favourite creator

Well... No. I am not gonna cancel. I create content too and I know how hard it is, and I don't have four (!!!!) children. So, yeah, I will support your work and wait for "The Witcher 3" video. As long as it takes.

Yeah not canceling, Also I'm not seeing where you are going to make up the money you lose from the pledges lost. This reads more like a 2 in the morning "I feel bad about myself." I Pledged almost the moment you created a patreon way back when you started. I knew you would have a slow release, I knew I would have to wait a long time. But I also know that each time I waited it was worth it. Witcher 2 video was 5 hours long dude it was exactly what I wanted and payed for. Keep creating what you want to create whether it's review or twitch, I'm not pulling my pledge.

Musica

Your content is amazing and I don't mind paying for it and waiting for it. I can't express in words how much enjoyment and energy I get from your content. It really is amazing. I hope you can find some balance and rest in your life. Kind regards from Belgium

Dude your content is fucking awesome and I don't mind paying and waiting for it.

We're still cool, so I'm still here. <3

A couple of thoughts: First, you shouldn't feel guilty for prioritizing your family. That is exactly what you should be doing. Second, I fall in to that third bucket. Even if I didn't, I wouldn't be cancelling my patreon for you. I don't really give all that much, and if you calculate the hours of enjoyment I have gotten out of your content, I'm still way in the positive.

it's all good man, take your time

Harrison Halverson

I support you a small amount because I really like the videos you produce, and I hope you don't work yourself to death producing them. Looking forward to the Witcher 3 and 2077 videos, and everything else you do.

Anthony Mills

Hey Joe, personally, I don't watch the streams and have pledged just for the videos. I don't intend to cancel my pledge, because I really think that you make excellent contant and that your videos are unique and magnificent. Sure, I would like to get them at a faster pace, but it is good that you maintain work-life ballance, and I think that your videos are so good that even a few of them are worth my pledge. Wish you the best.

"Please cancel your pledge." No Sir, I am a responsible adult and I WILL continue to give you money.

Hey Joe I rewrote this post a couple times trying to figure out how to say thank you for what you do. I understand if you need time, but never feel guilty about taking longer to finish what I believe to be masterpieces. I started watching a very login time ago and every single video made me feel extremely appreciative and thankful that someone out there would put in so much effort and love into something I cared deeply about. No one else right now produces the quality of what you do, or does it in a way that is so easy to connect with. I just want you to know that I pledged because your videos have made me so happy when I was sad, and that is worth every penny my man. I'll wait forever man, appreciate you. Hope you find your balance my man. Blessings and love to the family.

I've fallen asleep every night for months to the Witcher videos. And i'll keep doing that, they're so exhaustive it feels fresh re-listening to another random hour. You have something special, but you also have 0 obligation to put yourself through hell for us. Bless ya mate x.

Andrew McMenemy

I still rewatch you videos regularly, they have become a guilty pleasure of mine, seen many of them sooo many times. This post made my pledge for the first time. You've more than made for it several times over. GL :)

All good, homie. I rewatch your old videos so much that keeping the pledge still seems fair. Your back catalog is my go to when I don’t know what else to watch. And if I fall asleep on the couch, I usually wake up to your God of War video (seems to be where YouTubes algorithm always ends up)

I made a pledge just to spite you for this post, enjoy my $12 a year Joe and good luck with that Cyberpunk video. I'll have to make sure to go back to it and finish it before you drop it in a year!

JT

I'm tripling my membership, suck it weeb

I have been a patron on and off and have also been subbed on twitch even though you have been absent while working on the new video. Consider another reason why people contribute even when content has slowed, even though nothing new has come out I still enjoy the content you have made in the past and continue to enjoy it. Whether that's catching up on a steam series, re-watching a main video that I hadn't in a while, or even using one to occasionally help me fall asleep when I have trouble. I completely understand the guilt you may be feeling as you are sucked into another working black hole, but remember people who support creators on patreon are doing so of their own volition. An obvious statement, but a lot of people, myself included, who get so much out of existing content feel a real want to contribute on Patreon or streams or in any small way we can. For example, even though I haven't watch something like Easy Allies in a bit due to a busy time in my life, I still like being a Patron because I appreciate the value they bring and want to continue having those videos being created. Same applies here. Or why I have YT Premium so I can still support those on YT without feeling guilty for wanting to use Adblockers. TLDR; People like giving you money, read the other comments here, if people are upset they have already stopped supporting and will likely support you again when they want to. I hope this can be somewhat encouraging. Keep it up, proud of you.

Hey, Joe. Just popping up to tell you I read and understood everything and am consciously deciding to ignore everything you said and continue to support you and your family. You've given me the best content I've ever consumed in my entire life, and whether it's tomorrow or a year from now, I don't mind the wait for what I know will be another masterpiece of a video. If I can help you feel better about this, or yourself, or anything, then that's all the better.

Decided to become a patron over this post. I feel like we should cover the therapy cost given the amount of pressure you are getting from the audience :D Also, damn, four kids. That's a lot of kids. Good luck :3

I didn't understand any of all that. But your existing collection of videos is already well worth my coins tossed, so I'm gonna keep them coming. (shame on stupid me, or whatevs I'm meant to feel here) My two cents: Perhaps just stick to the YT videos. Social media has a tendency to swallow people whole, and I'm sure most people stay around for the awesome - and scripted - videos, and not for all the time-consuming meta-fluff. Just guessing, of course. Personal preference and all. Thanks.

Hey Joe, don't sweat it. Take all the time you need to focus on yourself and your family. It's just pocket change for us, and anyone who has a problem with your upload schedule will just unsub anyway. You don't need to give permission. ;) I hope you're doing better and I look forward to future videos, whenever you get around to them!

Hey JA! I became a patron because of this post. I've watched your content in the past a lot, and I've disagreed with so much of your conclusions. And yet, I've never felt watching your content that it was anything other than a sincere, well-held, and convincing perspective based on nothing but your own experience. And I guess that's why this message hit home to me. I too have an addictive personality to work that is somewhat unhealthy, but good for me. That personality has many more ills that aren't important or applicable here. But when you said that, it really hit home to me. I understand the "neurotic" nature you refer to that worries over people contributing to a channel or project that hasn't updated recently. I have a similar nature with my own job. I just wanted to say you make incredibly high quality content, are a quality voice on YouTube, and I am happy to support your content even despite the fact I will pretty much ALWAYS disagree with the conclusions of it! Because I always learn so much more about myself and the media I'm involved with because of you.

I think personally I'm totally fine with my monthly pledge. $5 is no skin off my back and the videos and streams have gotten me through some very rough times. I think I would only cancel the pledge if you stopped creating videos altogether and only became a streamer, mostly because I can't catch them due to time zone differences Otherwise, keep doing you man. Take care of yourself. Take a long, well deserved vacation somewhere far away for some time

Take your time dude. I think we all appreciate you letting us know what's going on in your life, but it seems to me like many of us are supporting you here because we enjoy your work, regardless of the timeline. Family is far more important than internet strangers. You've got your priorities right. Make content when you're ready to, and most importantly enjoy what you're doing. You don't owe us anything. Thanks for all that you do.

I seriously love everything you have made. I am currently rewatching your Fallout 4 videos after having rewatched the Uncharted ones. I will support you as long as I have the money. There little sparks of inspiration I get from watching your videos to try and make my own essays. But I simply never put the time into it, maybe you can give me some of that spark you have when you make your videos. Anyway take as much time as you need. Anyone who is still here will patiently wait for your next project. Thank you for your incredible words. I hope my kids end up watching one of your kids Video Essays on You2ube in 2050.

Joe, I have incredibly deep respect for how passionate of a person you are, in both your analysis projects and your family. You’ve given me dozens of hours of really great essay content over the years and have helped open my eyes to games as art. Take all the years you need with your family. Some people will cancel over time but you can rev this community back up very quickly with your quality of content. Whatever you do, thanks and keep up the good work.

WatersEdge

I genuinely really appreciate your content, be it videos or streams. I'm really glad that I can help support you even if its in a small way through Patreon. I think I've watched nearly all your videos three or more times, and I figure that's worth at least 5 dollars a month. I appreciate this kind of honesty so much, but I don't think I want to cancel - I want to support you, not just your work. I wish nothing but the best for you.

Joe you’ve provided so much great content and insight and hilarity over the years i think it’s an honor just to help support your way of life. Take whatever time you need and know most of us will still be here for you brother. Again, can’t put into words how much you’ve done for me in my life and the hours upon hours of enjoyment you’ve provided. I’ll be sticking around. All love man 💜

Sage Beatty

I will not be cancelling your pledge. I regularly watch your videos over and over - they're my background noise, my comfort viewing. My logic is that you have about 56~ hours worth of video on your channel - I have watched your entire channel (conservatively) at least 3 times over. If I were being paid my hourly to watch your videos, I would have been paid almost $6000 so far. So I'm definitely not done paying you back for that, yet.

Liam Harrison

Crunching is inherently unsustainable, unhealthy and unproductive. The best work is done by people with a high quality of life, and that means not spending the majority of your time on that work. So thank you kindly for this notice, but if you ever go back to working every waking hour like before please make another notice so that I can cancel my pledge.

I have given it a lot of thought, and I think I fall into the last group. I regularly binge your content and rewatch my favorites (of which there are many). I appreciate your honesty, especially in how hectic your life will be with four children, but I will keep supporting you.

RebeccaC

When I support creators, I do it so that they may live a better life— not try and live up to my contribution like some servant. To be honest, if I'd paid more attention to the fact that you were neglecting your own life for the sake of what you thought you owed people, I would have already deleted my pledge because it almost disgusts me to imagine it. Like, I don't even ask the people I support to keep on creating. I can't even remember some of them. I just do it so that their lives may be a little easier. So, please: try to spend at least the majority of every single day doing "nothing." LIVE better and be a good father that your kids can grow up with. Damn it man, that's the entire reason why I supported you in the first place.

Joe, I can see you put a lot of thought into this. I'm sure it wasn't easy to write, and I really appreciate you being so careful with how you engage with us, what's fair, and giving us insight into your own life and work habits. I've been a longtime 'lurker.' I've never 'interacted' through comments here, on YT or Twitch, but have watched all of your videos, rewatch them often, as well as some Twitch recordings. Video games are a young medium and we need people like you to push the medium forward, to give us language to understand and critique it. While there are many creators on YT, none do it in the way you do, and this is why I've confidently supported you on Patreon for so long. I don't need you to continue doing YT or Twitch; I just want to support YOU. Whatever you choose, keep it up and take care of yourself and your family.

You're the best Joe. Thanks for this, but I'm not going anywhere.

Oh, and Joe, did you think about some merch? Cause I for one would love to have some hoodie with a dragon on it!

Vsevolod Frost

Nope, not good enough. I'm still here. but keep trying , who knows. For crying out loud Mr. Anderson, I am backing Youtubers who were inspired by you in their work. Once I decide that I paid you what I believe your products worth I promise to stop.

Dan GIlboa

No. No I don't think I will.

If you feel so bad, why don't you just stop billing until you feel you've earned the pledges back?

Victor Villasante

The money I will give you until the day I do decide to stop will not even come close to remunerate you for the entertainment quality you have *already* provided me and a whole host of friends with whom I've shared your content. It's a drop in the bucket, really, compared to the enormous quality you've delivered. So with all due respect, take care of your family on my dime. You've earned it.

Also, No.

Dear Joe, Im afraid I will not cancel my pledge. These 5 bucks I'm giving you every month isnt because I expect anything in return, Ive been watching you since 5 years now. While I dont really watch the streams that often, I am more than happy to show my support by giving you at least minor fraction of my monthly income. Please don't consider it as payment for your videos but as more of a gift; I've spent countless hours enjoying your content for free and I want to give back. You make content that is qualitatively some of the best on youtube and watching back the stream VODs is very much enjoyable as well. I know that this might be hard to do, based on what you've said in your post, but please do not overwork yourself. I'll still enjoy your content, even If I have to wait a year or two for a video, I'm okay with that. The content you produce is art, Joe. Do not beat yourself up over not being able to work as much as you would like to. You have a family and we understand that it takes a lot of time away from your day. Please, feel free to just work on your projects whenever you feel like it, do not pressure yourself. With love, MIke

To chime in with lots of others, for me this Patreon thing is not about getting X for Y, but about mutual gifting. People's worth should not be measured by money or how much they "produce". Thanks for your transparency and your videos but don't beat yourself up, please!

Martin Tepper

An update to your community was long overdue. Thanks for writing this. I think it's important to be transparent about these things. I'll for sure be keeping my pledge. I can only guess the ridiculous amount of hours the creation of such detailed content requires, and I'm very happy to support the making of what is basically a PhD thesis level analysis on each of the Witcher games (and other games you choose to focus on). Even if you need another year before the next video comes out. Thank you for your awesome work!

Valentyn

Hey Joe, I'm proud of you for making this post. I know it felt like ripping a piece of your soul out to write it but I also know you'll be better off in the end for having done so. For what it's worth, I'll continue supporting you through this. You've dedicated thousands of hours to your craft and it's the least I can do to give something back to recognize your talent for what you do, both in your long-form critiques and your streaming. Please take your time and please try to focus on your own health over the projects. I went through something similar recently and I worry that a lot of folks are going through this.. I experienced awful dissonance between loving what I do while also realizing that continuing to do it was killing me. Ultimately it ruined my mental health and set me back years of therapy. So please let us know if there is anything we can do to help you avoid that same fate. Insofar as random people on the internet can really connect emotionally with one another, we love you and we love what you do. In the end we really just want you to do what's best for you. Don't sweat it my dude. We're here for you.

Squeek

My pledges on any patreon is never for specific schedules, it's because I enjoy the content and/or want to see the content creator succeed because they've proven themselves (whateverhow). Take care of yourself and yours first, I'll just be chillin fam

Ben Masters

I'm not leaving, especially considering how much I rewatch your videos. That said, I've taken this excuse to downgrade to 1$, which I am comfortable giving just because I think you're a swell guy and will allow me to give a bit to other people instead who I've not been supporting yet. I hope that alleviates your anxieties a little and it will allow me to spread the love around a bit more without additional financial stress. We good?

don't sweat it joe!! hang in there mr. dragon dad

Cinebeast

you’re incredibly sweet joseph and i absolutely understand why you wrote this! however i’ve always been squarely in the third catagory of ‘i just want to throw a few bucks at a favorite creator’ and will continue to do so as long as i can! Your videos are constant background noise when i’m doing my own creative work, new or old. I think myself and many others aren’t in a rush because we understand the quality of work you put in as well as you deserve to be able to live a life outside of it all also <3

I love your content. Just to kinda put it short, I'm only giving $1 a month and I'll keep doing that till delete this Patreon. Your shit is great and I'll sit here patiently for that 10 hour Witcher 3 video even if it's 10 years from now lol.

AllegoricSiren

No.

Spey

*insert Fry meme* Shut up and take my money!

GiantPurplePen15

I don't think I'll ever cancel my pledge until you decide to give up creating in general. Your creativity and style of video-making and streaming have been and always will be some of my favorite content, period. I supported you bc I wanted to support the creativity you had, in whatever form it takes. Thank you for all you've done, I hope your family is well, and I look forward to seeing not only your Witcher and Cyberpunk video, but what you have in store for the future.

Hey Broseph, I genuinely feel like you deserve my support for the work you've already put in into your channel and streams, not the work you'll do in the future. So hopefully the fact that myself and many others are doing it without expecting much in return could bring you some peace of mind. Best of luck with the family stuff, it's cool if the uploads and streams are rarer than before, your kids need you.

(っ▀¯▀)つ

Johannes Backady

the only reason I would drop my pledge would be if I thought it contributed more to you anxiety than to your (financial) security

I'm still watching/rewatching old videos and stream vods and I know you are still doing work so I have no reason to drop the pledge. I just hope you give yourself more reasonable work hours after you dig yourself out of the Witcher hole, I wouldn't feel comfortable supporting you continuing to destroy yourself. I'm not sure what your stance on your videos are but maybe you could read the scripts of videos that aren't going to be done on a stream or something? An easier alternative of getting content out that can fill in the gaps between main videos without diluting the channel could be beneficial.

Hey joe, Thanks for the update. Just a quick write before this gets lost in my many rant docs; I love your video's and am really looking forward to both the Witcher 3 and Cyberpunk video's, and everything that comes after. I prefer patreon because I don't like Twitch's sub and bits system. while I do prefer the video's by a mile, I do miss the streams a bit. They were a great way to hear random oppinions of yours and just general shinanigans and some content while the video's were made. Shame both youtube and Twitch have been screwing you over, I hope patreon won't do that. I hope for creators in general that it's fixed in a to you benifitial way. I'd still be hilarious to see you upload something to something to pornhub. Though you'd get little refeneu out of that. I find it odd that you need to point out to people that if they don't like the content they shouldn't be subscribing to you. For me Patreon has always been a recurring donation system and not some sort of way to pay upfront for commisions. That you don't owe us anything. You're not a slave for the community to just pump out stuff that they agree with. Though I do admit that my subscription is to help you have the space you need to do your thing, you're at your best when you talk about things you want to talk about. I've always been in love with your video's because of the indepth debating of it. Something that inspired my to improve on that front myself. Great editing making use of the visual medium rather than putting random content on the screen. And in general a more nuanced take on a lot of topics and explain a lot about how and why you come to a take. Even if I disagree heavily with you on certain topics and can at least go "I see where you're coming from" and try to counter-argument them. Instead of the all to frequent "thing is bad" or "thing is good" and moving on. Take care and the best of luck to you and the Anderson family. o/

Seseel

I love watching your videos. I put them on when I'm bored and they help me get to sleep some nights. I have 2 kids and I'm in rough shape. 4 is mind boggling to me and even if you don't put out Witcher 3 for another year I still have the old vids. Keep working at whatever pace works for you and your family. I'm along for the ride for a while. I joined up on the Patreon to make sure things were well and you didn't have a breakdown trying to make a 7 hour long video. Plus I owe you for the hours with nothing expected in return. Be well, dude.

I’m not pledges to you because I feel that I owe you in any way. I’m pledged to you because you deserve it for what you’ve gifted me: countless hours of entertainment, and the ability to see video games in a more critical light than I used to.

There are services out there that would literally be charging hundreds of dollars to buy Documentary length videos of an equal length and quality to the stuff you put out for free, and I am happy to continue contributing my small part towards your production: the money you get from me is money I pay because I genuinely believe you deserve it. If I had more to give, I would, release schedule be damned.

Scarlette

Sorry you feel down about it. We're all adults here though, we can figure out when to stop giving you small amounts of money! Be well.

Sean McCarthy

I know it's really hard to tell from the inside, but Joe, you're THAT good that people want to give you money and expect literally nothing back. Yeah. That's the level we talking about here. I'll not be upping my pledge as that money can be used on other content creators that are a bit more constrainted in budget, but I hope you can get the peace of mind that you deserve in your line of work. If we're still here, we know the drill.

Your videos recently have been as long as a mini series on HBO or Netflix and very high quality too. Those take a long time to come out and I think your audience understands that as well. I truly am sorry if this weighs on you but I like to keep my (quite small) pledge to know that I'm supporting a creator that I find to be a cut above the rest regardless of consistency in uploads. Also I would've liked to think my pledge may take away a bit of stress about finances (and scary youtube copyright bots) but now I see it may have ended up causing more. Just know that I, and probably most of your patrons, understand your situation and know that you aren't scamming us or anything like that. Cheers!

I use your Witcher 1 and 2 videos to fall asleep every night, and it's worked better than any sleep meds I've tried. Consistent and good sleep is worth a lot more than what I'm giving you right now, so I'm upping my pledge.

I'm super happy keeping my pledge under the assumption that you're not going to quit making YouTube videos, even at the pace you're going at lately. I just enjoy your content over 90% of the other creators I watch that much. I would only consider cancelling the pledge if you were going to streaming exclusively.

I haven't given you enough money for what your work is worth. So i won't cancel.

here for the anti-pledge ratio

Happy to continue supporting you as long as you continue to work on your videos. My only suggestion would be a post every now and then to let us know your still alive as I don't follow your socials. Also have you looked at nebula as a platform? I don't know the particulars of the financials but a lot of good creators use the service.

Tom Jefferson

I BECAME a patron just cause of this message. You do excellent work man. Work life balance is hard to achieve with any job and I imagine a job where you don't have set hours is even more difficult. Buy that's no reason to beat yourself up over it either. Everyone here is here for the long haul so take it easy even if that's easier said than done

ilikemyanon

Nice try, but you won't get rid of me that easily :P (and Patreon eases MY guilt as an AdBlock user anyway ^^'' )

Calirohé

Honestly, anyone who has stuck for this long didn't need to be adressed by that message. It propably has the opposite effect. But we're cool with that, i guess.

NutzerHans

Joe, I use Patreon to support artist and creators whose content I would like to see more of. I neither expect nor want any of them to adhere to an inhumane schedule in order to deliver a product or service; if I did, I wouldn't use Patreon. I would like to see more of your content no matter how long it takes to make, and to me, that means my pledge is staying firmly where it is.

Bluesparks

Quit crying and fix your shit. If we didn't want to give you money, we would have stopped already. Give me one youtube essay per year and we're square.

Rob Womble

Just upped my pledge. Just looking at some of the comments, I don't think any of your patreons are holding you to some deadline or expectation. I just want to support a guy that has made a TON of content that I've watched on repeat for the past 2 years. As long as your family and mental health comes before whatever you think you owe us, I'm staying on board.

Absolutely not. I have a single expectation from my pledge -- that it will help you produce videos. As long as you're still planning to release another video within the next decade, I'm good to go.

Make another post like this I'm going to increase my pledge out of spite. I don't have any social media I don't want to put money in my twitch account. You say you are half assing both streaming and yt. But you are my favourite streamer and youtuber. Stop being so hard on yourself.

Don't pause the Patreon. If we want to pay, let us.

That sucked to read because you've brought much joy to my life and you don't seem to understand the support the community provides is because of that. I don't feel owed anything. If less content means a happier you, or a happier family, I'm cool. > You should only be pledging for the work I do which results in content Nah bud, I pledge to support you :)

More updates would be nice! Just some info at least.

Vsevolod Frost

I know why I'm a patron. I want to support some creators in their work. I think that I and the rest of the world will benefit if you continue your work. I want to take small part in funding that.

Vsevolod Frost

Yea I fall into the last reason perfectly, we still cool. Gl with the kids!

Not gonna lie...I want to pledge more edit: and just upped my pledge :)

Eny Santana

I'm staying pledged. Don't tell me what to do. For real though, I feel like most people who are pledged fit within that fourth, "we're still cool, I guess" category. If you are so set to support a content creator that you navigate to an external, third party website and give them money directly, then you likely know what you're getting into. People pledged for you, warts and all. Would I like a more consistent schedule? Sure. Did I expect one when I pledged? Absolutely not. As long as you keep being Joe, we'll be here.

I ain't reading all that. I'm happy for u tho. Or sorry that happened. Basically what everyone else here is saying. I think I donate the highest I can per month. I don't donate to anyone else and I'm not in dire financial straits. We support you because we want to. If we can provide any help in you looking after 4 kids, then we will. I myself have so little time to play games anymore, so I can't imagine having to play and then doing so much extra work on top. You seem like a great guy and I've loved your content for years. The most important job you have is caring for your family. You've worked so hard for so long, you should try to enjoy the fruits of your labour. Best of luck to you in all of your endeavours, and wishing good health for you and all of your family. Sincerely, Someone who will keep donating regardless of return :)

I'm sorry if my tone is a bit harsh but I feel like I need to speak harshly. I did pledge for results and content, but your mental health is part of that. I do not want my support to justify you working way more than is healthy or feeling miserable for not doing that. I mean, Jesus, even in here you lament that you're only working more than normal full time. I want to say "you don't owe me anything, I'm pledging because I want to" but I'm almost positive you won't accept it. So instead I'll say this, I'm pledging for content, but more than anything else I'm pledging for ethical content. That means I do not want it to come at the cost of your physical or mental well being.

tldr , glad you have time for your family, i think most people would be happy to spare you a little more money. take care 👑

Quill

I think we're cool too, Joe. I will keep my pledge because I want to and you are worth it. This whole community appreciates you!

I'll keep my small pledge for quite some time - your existing videos are fantastic and well worth it. I don't care if you never release another video. We know what we're signing up for - try not to be so hard on yourself and enjoy your life!

Joe, one of the main reasons I and likely many others have pledged to your Patreon is because we wanted you to have some income while you worked on your content. The whole point is to allow you to work without having to rely on YouTube as much. I knew what I was getting into. Your type of video takes a long time to make, and I wanted to support you through that process. Take your time! I've watched your back catalog countless times over, and now I know about your Twitch! New subscriber here (or however twitch works). I will NOT cancel my pledge, even if it takes another year and a half for a video to release. That's the whole point of the pledge! You can handle this, and don't forget to enjoy some well needed rest with your children.

Well said! You expressed exactly what I wanted to but with actual writing skills. :D

Johannes Backady

Just to dispel any illusions about my intent here: "10 years" is not a deadline. Fuck deadlines. It's just a random amount I used to calculate how much I'm paying vs how much I'm getting based on time to receipt.

You’re doing great, happy to keep the pledge going. More regular updates (every month or so) would be helpful but we can all appreciate that the Witcher is your magnum opus and you’ve put so many thousands of hours into it that doesn’t make sense to release an unfinished product. It might ease things up for you if you were to break it into sections, and release them one at a time. Quality control and final polish will be a lot easier if you’re not trying to do it for 6-12 hour behemoth. This would also mitigate risk of getting demonetized for the whole upload

David Hamner

Sounds a little too complicated for me, so I'll just give you some free advice: don't take advice from strangers. Goodnight

Go I want to hug you and smack you on the head for being so gosh darn hard on yourself. We understand. we appreciate, and I kinda love you. For youtube, and your fabulous books. We love you. Dont stress out.

I like math. It helps me understand the world better. So let's do some math, yeah? Assumptions: * You're going to release the Witcher/Cyberpunk videos eventually, even if YouTube has died. * It will take you less than 10 years to release said videos. * The combined length of those videos will equal or exceed the combined runtime of your current 2 Witcher videos (about 9 hours). * The quality of those videos will be roughly on-par with what has been released so far. (audience-perceived quality, not artist-perceived quality) I'm currently giving 5$/mo. Even if you take the assumed 10 years to complete those videos, that means a total cost to me of about 600$. That's a decent amount of money, but I've spent more on a graphics card before. But let's compare apples to apples. You produce video content entertainment of a semi-educational variety (namely, critiques). Leaving aside the educational benefits, they're worth watching for the entertainment value, so we'll compare them to similar entertainment I view occasionally: Hollywood movies. At the assumed content length of your videos of about 9 hours, that comes to about 5 movies (ignoring ads, credits, and obligatory awkward romance/sex scenes). Hollywood movies currently cost about 15$ per ticket in theaters (depending on location). I can usually watch your videos about 3 times each and get something new out of them each time. So 5*15*3=225. So that's roughly the cost to me if I substituted *really good* Hollywood movies for your videos. However, I usually (willingly) pay double for indie stuff, so bring that up to 450. In other words, I'm paying roughly 33% more for your eventual videos than I would for equivalent entertainment. And that's with the assumption that you'll take as long as twice your channel's age to complete them. So I consider this to be a worthwhile investment. Take your time. Be there for your kids as they grow up. Live your life. My 5$/mo will still be there every month, because your work is worth it, regardless of how long it takes.

Nah. It's not about the pace for me. It's about the quality of the work. Even if you have to cut your current hours in half, I'm still going to be here with support. Don't apologize for having a family and a life outside work. It's all good, man.

packy17

Went ahead and upgraded my pledge to the next level. I re-watch your videos on a regular basis, and always enjoy them. Focus on yourself and release content when you can.

I pledge because I want to help, regardless of schedule, or platform. I can’t tell you how thrilled I was to finally watch the Witcher 1 vid. Later, in the Middle of goddarn quarantine, Cagemas also got brought me to real laughing tears. Do your best Joe!

Dude I love your vids, and if you living a happy life means I get 1-2 vids a year I am more that happy to continue my support. Don’t break yourself over this we, are patient and we understand. If I get my 10+ hour Witcher 3 video in 2023 it will be worth it =P Keep a healthy work/life balance and we are all good. Edit: I gonna increase my contribution just to spite you 💗🤣

Joe, I’m gonna give you a TL;DR essay on this, so hoping you don’t hear me rambling or get easily distracted. You’re your own person that has to look out for your family and that’s what matters… But as you may already know and it certainly goes without saying: both of these platforms, (YouTube and Twitch… duh) as many YouTube creators and Twitch streamers have dealt with outdated copyright laws, or new updated but ass-backwards laws, that cannot reinstated or take back their illegal strikes that is clearly FAIR USE! And it’s the CONTENT CREATORS, who make the ad sense, promoting the platform websites to be more popular and seem like a dream job to have, NOT the corporate companies’s appeasement to advertisers to milk it and make the content creators burnout and have to scrap by during hard and rough times and not having to back up when you have to make a leap-of-faith Twitter post hoping that someone will listen. Anyways anyone, including you and maybe me, someday, have the right to use clips (clips, pictures, and music), give constructive criticize and/or use it to promote that type of media, whether it’s great or bad, for anyone who’s curious to check it out. But for someone who’s incompetent like a CEO, moderator, or a thing like a algorithmic bot that cannot tell the difference that it’s a pirated movie or someone giving their 2 cents and criticizing and then “Copyright claimed” or if it’s someone who greedily takes the ad revenue away by giving it a “False Claim” which it’s illegal to do, and a lot of boring and time consuming efforts to fight against it, which should be done as a simple task. Like this: someone illegally copyright claimed it but it turns out it’s a troll that wants to make a lousy buck, fight back with a YouTube support team to figure out the original creator making a YouTube video criticizing it actually has to right to keep his/her video and it’s fair use, kick back that troll back from where it came and leave it alone but put stricter guidelines to prevent it from happening with competent humans back it up not automatons-like bots that can’t compute with complicated human beings like us. But the reality is that you have a family and their welfare being is more important than your interest. And where I stand is that… I’m still subscribed to you and your long noble essay has not convinced me to cancel my humble pledge and will support the like of you when you’re good and ready to upload and produce video essays when you feel like it… Joesph “JoJoMamaStar” Anderson take good care of yourself and your family.

I pledge because I like to see my name in the credits and recreate the DiCaprio meme.

Absolutely not. I've just doubled my pledge. You do exceptional work and you deserve every penny. Good luck with the family, and I sincerely look forward to any and all content you produce. Peace and good vibes man, stay safe.

I enjoyed your videos when I was poor and gave you nothing. Now I have money. I have at least 5 years of freeloading I need to make up for before I can even think of not supporting. Like, I am paying for the content you already made and anything you make now is a bonus. Maybe use my pledge to pay for some stress management stuff though. My goal as a contributor is to make your life less stressful (not worry about $$) not more stressful (adding worry about my expectations). The loudest 10% of people are the ones who will complain and the quieter 90% of us are happy. Don't worry about 10%. Worry about being able to be an awesome dad and writing cool shit.

Pixie Plays

Here's my answer: absolutely not. You are Joseph Anderson, the man who showed us that it *is* possible to meld succinct, analytical thought and lighthearted, whimsical humor, all the while maintaining a voice that even stuffy pseudo-intellectuals were forced to respect. Joseph Anderson, the wordsmith who bluntly bashed Super Mario Odyssey despite the hordes of fans who immediately trashed the video's like-to-dislike ratio and comment section. Joseph Anderson, the King of Video Essays who crafted a masterpiece analysis series of not only Witcher 1 but Witcher 2, as well. I know that you feel like you can't do it, that you've stopped believing in yourself for a litany of reasons. But, Mr. Anderson--as unbelievably cheesy as this is for me to say--I *still* believe in you. I don't have the answers to your problems, and I know that it'll be a while before you find a way to circumvent these issues, but I know in my heart of hearts that you *will* eventually overcome these hurdles. I'm not pledging "for [your] work...[and resulting] content." I'm pledging because your previous work assures me that you're the man to make the Witcher 3 video. I'm pledging because you're the man who inspires me to push myself further than what I previously believed my limits to be. I'm pledging because you're Joseph Anderson.

Hey Joe, I think I made 1 comment overall under all of your videos (Witcher 1, actually) and besides that never commented anything, neither here on Patreon nor on Youtube. Even though I discovered you when you uploaded your The Witness critique 5 years ago and am pledged to you for almost 2 years. So as a silent lurker and enjoyer of your content, let me just say the following: There is absolutely no pressure behind this. I must have watched your critiques like half a dozen times each by now, and loved it every time. I waited like 4 years for your Witcher 1 video and I will wait 8 years for Witcher 3, if I must. A few dollars a month is nothing for basically anyone that's willing to pledge in the first place, but I appreciate your honesty. Tend to your family, give us the Witcher 3 video in the next 10 years, and I am happy :))

Johannes Backady

Classic Joe hehe

You're probably my favorite content creator on the platform, but I have to cancel because I can't afford to support you and I was really hoping faster content uploads. But I understand why you're in the pickle you're in and so no hard feelings.

You are probably the best video game analysis on youtube as long that you produce video I will pledge.

ConstraintAutomaton

you whiny bitch, take it ;D you are the voice cradeling me to sleep every night, so my pledge stays

Bear

You're one of my favourite content creators and I regularly rewatch your videos. I appreciate the work you put in and wish to support your future endeavors in this space. I consider whatever I put in as support towards future projects, as well as appreciation for existing content. For as long as you're comfortable continuing to exist on Patreon, I will continue to support within my capacity, for those reasons. I'm not concerned or impatient regarding the pace of videos. You do you, and I'll be here for it, Joe.

AsterBTT

I'm a newer fan I've been in for a little over a year, and I have already watched all your videos multiple times and read some of your books! I even watched some streams/vods (which is unusual for me)!!! I'm here to support your content, whenever and however it comes out

This post can’t stop me because I can’t read.

Likewise!

You "trashed" Breath of the wild in such a complete and through way I'll probably continue to pay you just for that one video. It's one of the only opinions on that game I agree with. You then "smashed" Mario Odyssey. I don't feel like I'm paying you enough. Thanks for saying this and if you make another video I appreciate it, if not, I'll be extremely sad but I see no reason to change my contribution at this time, you have earned it for your past work. PS: "Hey everyone, I'll try to keep this brief." lol. I expected no less than this length when I started, and was quite pleased.

Kinglink Reviews

Nah I'm good. I just like you Joe. If I can contribute to you doing things you want to do, I'll do it. It'll take more than that to get rid of me.

Although I do like your videos, I mostly pledge here because of Twitch. Not because I don't like its bit system, but because I don't want to sign up for another service. I like to keep my online footprint reasonably small, and I already had a patreon account. Plus, I've gotten hundreds of hours of enjoyment out of your Twitch streams, which help pass the time when I go for a jog or (pre-Covid) on my daily commute. What's $12 a year in the face of that?

wearMoniker

Your videos have helped me too much both now and in the past for me to want to stop my Patreon pledge. Much love from your fans <3

YOU CAN'T MAKE ME

I hope you're doing well today

I hope you don't take this the wrong way. You should totally see a professional about this, you don't have to feel this way :)

Oliver Marshall

Nah man, I pledged because I love your content, and I did so fully cognizant of your schedule and how sometimes your content is a long wait. It's always worth the wait though. You ain't getting rid of me that easy!

I am a supporter, but also a YouTube premium user. I don't care how long it takes you to make something, because I understand how daunting and tough that task can be. I'm sure many people have offered help in the past, but I can help with any project or editing you may need. Steams or documentaries. I think most of us are here because we appreciate what you do, and how to do it.

Dane York (OneSipReview)

Bitch, don't tell me what to do.

Take care of yourself, Joe, a lot of us are here for the long haul! Might have to up my pledge <3

Please do not feel obliged to work beyond normal working hours. Actually, I'd feel pretty awful to be part of what drives you to feel guilty and overwork. Please stay healthy, take good care of your family and only if that is in order, think about producing some great vids. Love your stuff, it goes without saying that I'm keeping my pledge.

The amount of times I've watched your videos justify any amount of money I can give you. For a while they were the only way I could fall asleep, and brought me comfort during hard times in my life. It was so nice to slip into a world where someone knew and could explain to you problems and how to fix them. Nice try.

Money I have paid: 16 dollars. Hours of quality content you have produced ~16. Doesn't seem like a bad ratio tbh. There's not a lot of competition in the field of actually good video game analysis. Also if you really feel guilty then just pause the patreon.

Keep my dollar, Joe, and post whatever you like at whatever pace you need. We good, no worries!

Andrea Lake

I've given you about 12 to 24 canadian pesos for a few years now. You are worth 5 overpriced coffee at the very least for the hours of youtube content I've enjoyed over the years. As a fellow creator I can only imagine how bad impostor syndrome might get if I had to live from a creative jobs. I'm happy with giving you some cash, and that's that!

I understand where you're coming from, but since the beginning I've decided to support you here and on Twitch because I adore your content and I admire you. You truly inspire me and I don't think you'll ever understand how much you do. I'm happy to stick to my pledge and will continue to do so. No matter how long projects take, I know I'm helping and you're always preparing something interesting that I'll enjoy watching. And when the day comes and you release a game, rest assured that you have my preorder. You're great, Joe.

Jesus, dude, I'd never ask anyone for more than 40hr/week unless they were being directly compensated for it. Especially not with 4 kids. You gotta make a living in this hellscape we all live in, but you gotta take care of you and yours too. Even on my sub list full of long form video content, your still stands out as being exceptionally in depth and thoughtful. I'm sticking around.

McBeard

Nice try weeb man, I decide whose anime addictions I want to sponsor myself. My money is well spent where it is now ❤️

I pledged to support you as a creator who produces truly valuable and interesting content, irrespective of pace or upload frequency. I'm very happy to stay pledged. Take care of yourself.

I originally pledged because I enjoyed how thoughtful and well-spoken you were on your content. This changes nothing. Keep up with the great work Joe, we support you either way.

Appreciate you pouring your heart out, and that you may feel guilty about people paying you patreon when you're so busy with everything and haven't been able to upload or stream any content for a while. But nah man, we're cool. The pledge stays :) whatever content you release at whatever pace is fine, plus I re-watch your vids every so often as they are fantastic. Keep heart and wishing for the best for you and your family. Cheers from Spain!

I enjoy your work whenever it gets here, and I'm just happy to hear that you're continuing work and making the adjustments that you need. My pledge is on

Noah Wilson

There is simply no Chanel like yours – not that I know of –, Joseph. Yours is extraordinary. The lack of constance in your publications is not an issue, for the videos are worth waiting. This post reminded me I didn't supported it yet – a mistake promptly corrected. Keep up the good work at a healthy pace and may God bless you and your family.

Like many others I rewatch the videos you make often enough that even if a new behemoth video comes out once a year it would be more than enough to justify a pledge. I often go back and forth with different pledges, but I feel you have more than earned mine for the time being. I may switch to someone else at some point, but it is just as likely that I will come back!

Ironically I will be upping my pledge, thank you so much for the transparency and great content over the years. I work in a very similar way, and I understand some of the guilt you are feeling. I think you are doing great, and finding a balance that makes you happy is a journey all its own. Best of luck and thank you for all the joy your content has already brought to me!

First off Joe, I believe I am speaking for a lot of the individuals here when we say that we’re here with you for the long haul. I also want to make sure you know that pacing and timelines shouldn’t apply to art. Your work is special and should be treated as such; I’m sure you’re very familiar with CDPR’s infamous saying “it’ll release when it’s ready”. I personally have watched through your Witcher 1 video 3 times, the Witcher 2 video 4 times and the Fallout 4 videos 3 times each (not to mention the rest of your library of content). You are a downright inspiration and if anything I’m upset at you for not putting a higher patreon tier (twitch sub + patreon support is how I make that difference up). Don’t sell yourself or your art short, we’re here for you Joe.

Dude if I was upset about being a patron, I'd stop. No need to take responsibility of my decision. It's all good man, good luck with the family.

Stephen Slas

I watch, rewatch, and rewatch your videos so often because of how much value I get out of your videos. It’s honestly like when you consume content multiple times but get something new out of it each time. I pledge because I support what you are doing and you bring me so much entertainment it’s like stealing from you when it’s just free. I have no obligation to you, but I have so much thanks I want to give you, and $5 a month is nothing considering how much I respect you. Thank you for everything. I wish the best for you and your family, and I look forward to anything you plan on doing and I will be cheering you on the whole way.

Thank you for writing this. I’ve been wondering about your schedule, and your explanation makes perfect sense — if anything, I’m shocked you managed to keep going for so long. Concerns about youtube are completely understandable -- that's one of the main things driving my pledges. I enjoy your work, and I hope you'll find a way to balance it with more important things in your life. I'm not cancelling anything. (It would be nice to have a more permanent library of your streams tho -- they're a lot of fun, but watching live is tricky. I'm sure you thought about this too.)

Max Barnash

Nice try Joe. Supporting cause I want to. Not because you release content often, but because when you do it is quality.

Piet Olsen

I need like half a year to just find the time to watch your latest video in full length every time. So eh... take your time. I've spent money way worse.

Sorry to hear you're dealing with all these issues, but you deserve my pledge. Wishing you and your family all the best <3

Honestly, I'm not trying to be contrarian... But there's no reason for me to cancel. I agree with your points in the videos, which means that your criticism/journalism/whatever is valuable to me, and the amount I'm pledging doesn't hurt me at all. I see it as a subscription to a service, like Netflix or Hulu, but I paid for those services for years and got less entertainment than I do on your channel. Plus I have the added bonus of supporting a family? Sign me up.

Eri

Please try not to worry, Joe!

a warm, awful feeling

Nah. You can keep my money. But I do appreciate the sentiment, and the fact that this is something you worry about shows you have integrity. That said, stop worrying, you are a gem.

Don't feel bad. You can go at whatever pace works for you.

*sees suggestion that I should cancel my pledge because videos aren't coming out fast enough* *straight up ignores that because you produce fantastic content and I'm so excited for the Witcher 3 video and I'd appreciate you not starving in the meantime.* Edit: Upped my pledge due to unfettered honesty and also because I've honestly not paid enough for all the content you've already given us. GET REKT!

Jaron Mortimer

I stick to my pledge, Joe.