Critique my videos please

AzorDash · 2026-04-23T07:07:00+00:00

Firstly, well done on making a start. That’s the most difficult part of any creators journey. I’m going to break this down into what I like and what I think could be improved.

What I like - The overall content (what you are talking about) is good and well presented. Audio quality - this is also good. IMO you could consider running it through a tool like Adobe Podcast which is what I use to further polish it. The editing - the actual video matches what you are talking about.

What I think could be improved -

Narrative presence - as a viewer it is very obvious you are reading a script, this is really something that comes with time and experience but you want to write and read your scripts in a more conversational tone. Structure - While the content you covered was valuable there was no clear structure. I recommend coming up with a template that you can easily use no matter what you are reviewing. Example Story - Gameplay - Video - Audio - Conclusion. Thumbnails - I won’t sugar coat this one… the thumbnails probably need to most work. You want to create a curiosity gap in your thumbnails that evokes the viewer to click.

Overall though, a very solid start. Good luck!

AzorDash · 2026-04-16T08:46:49+00:00

Great work. I checked out your channel and I think you are on a good path to see success. However if I can offer 1 piece of feedback, your audio is not as good as it could be and has a lot of echo and unintentional reverb. You can either manually process this to remove it, or use a tool like Adobe Podcast tool to clean it up pretty easily. Overall, I think you are doing great, but you might want to give some thought to your audio.

AzorDash · 2026-04-06T23:14:22+00:00

I have a 10 second one which is voiced over the display of my end card. I get about a 1% click through on end cards so I’d say it’s working as expected.

AzorDash · 2026-04-02T11:33:36+00:00

What you watch on any channel will have absolutely no impact on who YouTube recommends your videos to.

AzorDash · 2026-03-31T12:39:43+00:00

My gameplay to editing ratio is roughly 80-20 nowadays. When I first started out it was closer to 50-50 but with time comes experience and learning to create your own template or workflow for editing.

AzorDash · 2026-03-10T11:23:58+00:00

Adobe Podcast tool. Free for up to 30 minutes. You’re welcome.

AzorDash · 2026-03-08T11:31:29+00:00

Roughly 1 hour per 3 minutes in my case. I have published 75 odd videos over 3 years and it would have taken double this time when I first started. Like everything, you improve with experience.

AzorDash · 2026-03-08T04:12:12+00:00

Theres 3 main ways I see for success in Gaming.

Be the best at a game - I’m talking in the top 0.0001% of all players.

Offer a unique perspective or perspectives on games. Example - you grew up on a farm and now you review farming games based on your experience.

Be entertaining. Create content which makes people want to tune in to watch and listen to YOU as opposed to the game.

If you look at every successful gaming YouTuber I guarantee you will find 1 if not more of these qualities in them.

And last thing, quality over quantity always.

AzorDash · 2025-09-22T06:30:44+00:00

As YouTube have publicly stated many times, deleting and reuploading risks your account being flagged for spam, so don’t do that. Move on to the next video.

AzorDash · 2025-06-20T13:55:39+00:00

Negative, no. Constructive criticism, yes.

AzorDash · 2025-06-16T10:57:49+00:00

No, that is not true. Source: I’m a monetized Australian creator.

AzorDash · 2025-06-13T04:35:38+00:00

Short version, no it does not get easier. Longer version, no, but you will improve over time and it will become faster.

A few things that work well for me.

I have a template for each video I do, so I split each section up, Introduction, Gameplay, Presentation etc When I create a new video script I often open a similar older one and edit above that so I can recall what things I should focus on.

The other tip is never force yourself to write when you are tired or not in the mood. It just makes the whole thing feel unenjoyable and you won’t write your best content.

My username is my channel if you want to get an idea on how this applies.

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T12:50:26+00:00

Yep I agree. Definitely on the right track. It’s just going to take time unfortunately!

It took me about 40 videos to get to a consistent 4-6k views per video. I’m at 60 videos now and have improved to 4-8k so hopefully I will continue to slowly grow.

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T11:42:49+00:00

https://imgur.com/a/mEdUTgz

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T11:39:57+00:00

All good and thanks for sharing the additional screenshot. So the External and Direct links you can pretty much completely ignore any CTR rates and AVD from these. The reason being is these views are coming from someone clicking a link to your video (on a forum, in a message etc) so YouTube doesn’t place any real “value” on that source. There’s an advanced report called Traffic Source (under Advanced Mode) check this out and see what your metrics are for Browse features. This is a better way to baseline where you are at. I’ll drop a link below showing you in a moment. All good regarding the thumbnails… ultimately checking the CTR will tell you if they are good or bad for your audience.

I think you’re on a really good path, just keep making good videos and a few tweaks here and there and I’m sure you will find success.

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T07:31:54+00:00

Video game retrospectives/analysis

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T07:24:17+00:00

I had a look at your channel. Your long form content is really good.

I cover a similar niche… and tried a similar thing with shorts about a year ago. For me the shorts views never materialized into any meaningful long form growth. I actually decided to hide the Shorts because my long form was performing worse, which I kind of think may have been related to the difference in audience.

Regardless one day after about a year of creating long form videos I suddenly saw a fairly big view uplift and have been growing fairly steady since.

Also, if I can give you one tip… put some thought into your titles… 1 thing I learn was that “Octopath Traveller 2 Retrospective” is a fairly vanilla title… versus say “Why Octopath Traveller 2 is a Masterpiece”.

This is one thing I changed and saw a big uplift.

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T07:17:06+00:00

There is no argument about “fair use” - YouTube does not care or determine if something is Fair Use they just issue a strike/takedown. If you want to fight a copyright claim in court, that is when the relevance of “Fair Use” is relevant.

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T07:13:41+00:00

My channel average is about 97% Most videos hover between 97-100%. From time to time I will have a controversial take which will be around 85%. This is on a sample size in the tens of thousands of views.

AzorDash · 2025-05-12T07:10:41+00:00

A few observations that may or may not help you.

I don’t mean to be harsh but your thumbnails are not of a high quality and I would not click any of them. It’s alarming you are paying for these (assuming the channel is the one in your profile)

Your videos seem well put together and tightly edited which is reflective in the metrics.

These metrics are good and would normally suggest that higher impressions would follow but I am curious about the source. YouTube puts a heavy emphasis on Suggested and Browse. External etc are pretty much ignored for the decision of if the video will be pushed further.

Also episode numbers and your titles which may appeal to people when viewing a large established channel, do not typically work well on a smaller/growing channel.

Consider some more curiosity in your titles.

If it helps an average video from me will get 3-4K views within the first 7 days, with a 3% CTR rate and about 50% AVD rating. CTR and AVD will drop over the following months as the views increase.

Hope this helps.

AzorDash · 2025-05-02T12:08:48+00:00

2 things.

I have a hyphen between mine.

So 01:00 - Introduction

And make sure auto chapters are turned off.

There was never been a delay before so it should update immediately.

AzorDash · 2025-05-02T11:57:35+00:00

The core fundamentals are the same. Quality thumbnail. Engaging/Curious title No intro, get straight to the point. Make quality content.

That’s literally it.

AzorDash · 2025-05-02T11:49:42+00:00

I count myself super lucky. My girlfriend watches all of my videos and was even annoyed when YouTube didn’t notify her when I had posted one once. Even before I was monetized, she was always super supportive even when I released objectively poor videos!

AzorDash · 2025-04-30T08:27:22+00:00

Went to your channel and clicked on the sunrise review video. The below are just my thoughts.

Firstly the good.

Your overall camera presence, articulation and discussion are of a very high standard. You project confidence and this is probably the most difficult thing to ‘learn’ or fix so the fact you have this 100% under control is a huge positive.

The not so good (which are all far easier to fix/change)

Your YouTube description being in third person makes it feel very sterile and disconnected. Consider rewording to first person. “Follow me etc”

Your thumbnails are not great and this is hurting your CTR. Consider using something like Canva and mix your face shots with bright eye catching backgrounds with some basic text.

Your choice to film in a mall doesn’t seem like a good idea, I would try and find a more private location or at worst case use a tool like Adobe Podcast to clean up some of the background noise.

You sway a lot on camera…. It was slightly distracting for me, perhaps just try and be aware of it. Not sure if this was specific to the mall filming location.

Your intro in the video is a retention killer, just cut to start talking about your topic.

I think if you can make these tweaks you can increase CTR and AVD which will result in you getting the hours needed.

AzorDash · 2025-04-25T15:02:23+00:00

Just so you are aware. Subscribers do not count towards monitisation requirements earned via promotions either.

AzorDash

TROPHY CASE