Was Classic Game Room the Best Retro Gaming Show? 

UPDATE. He brought the show back.

The beauty of CGR was its purity. Mark was casual, he just enjoyed playing games and talking about them. No goofy editing tricks or gimmicks, no score or tally system, just a dude who enjoys cool games. Shame that the RU-vid scene has changed so much (and the internet as a whole lets be honest) over the past 10-20 years.

Mark, who was arguably the first, showed how difficult it is to make a living at it doing what he did reviewing the obscure.

I wanted to believe him when he said he was on a quest to review EVERYTHING

i miss cgr i was so sad when he decided to stop doing video game reviews. Ive been on youtube since like 2010 and ive watched him pretty much ever since. it was a lot of great content and i learned a lot about retro gaming from him with me being only 24 now he had a lot to give here on youtube.

Mark's CGR is what got me into watching RU-vid. I for one would love to see him come back

I loved CGR Undertow. Derek's style of humor was right up my alley. That final video definitely made me tear up.

Hey CGR is back, baby

He is back now

His channel is what made RU-vid like "TV" for me, with a consistent upload schedule and format.

I remember Classic Game Room doing multiple walkthroughs helping out gamers. Honestly the nostalgia from hearing their intro with that squirrel

Nice to see CGR and Mark finally mentioned in a positive manner, with all the drama-obsessed nerds hating on Mark like he's a war criminal or something, we really needed this video. The controversy was addressed perfectly here, so thanks for this

I only discovered CGR a few months ago. Since then, I've watched practically every video. Yes, CGR is still viable

it was the ultimate retro gaming channel and I do miss it so

Just the other day Truxton was announced for the MegaDrive Mini 2, and my first thought was for Mark. CGR was by far the best in its day, and I still check out the old videos all the time.

Nothing lasts forever and nor should it, Classic game room had a very good run. If your not making a living from doing something then no matter how much you enjoy doing that said thing it does get hard to continue doing it as you need money to live. Also Mark can do whatever he wants on his channel as It's his channel. I wish Mark all the very best in whatever he is doing now.

I think CGR was really just dealing with a lot of problems most youtubers didn't have to deal with until years later and ended up also trying to find solutions much earlier than everyone else. As a result, people soured to monetization changes, because they weren't yet commonly used (and so weren't well understood). I'm sure the fact that he was running a small business, as opposed to most other channels that are run more as hobbies or as solo projects, meant there was much more financial stress on everything too. He was doing advertising in videos before most youtubers had sponsorships, he tried patreon exclusive content before most people were even using patreon, etc. It's a shame it worked out the way it did, but I definitely don't blame him at all. Very thankful for all the content he and his team did make over the years and hope Mark enjoys doing whatever he's doing now.

In 2012 I graduated high school with no major plans, unknowingly awaiting for the world to slap me in the face as adulthood slowly crept around the corner to find me. But in those sweet years of extended childhood, I dove into retro gaming. It started with Silent Hill 1 and took me to places like FF6&Symphony of the Night. While the rest of the world was waiting for games like GTA5 and AC:Blackflag I was contempt with playing Resident Evil 1-3psx on my PS3. I watched ALOT of Classic Game Room back then, for hours on my bed with my Nook tablet. CGR helped guide me through the awesome world of retro gaming. Any time I hear Truxton I'll think of Mark, and I can't think of their names but I did love the guy who loved Final Fantasy and JRPGS and the long haired guy with the high voice. Those memories will never go away! Awesome that you did a video on them man!

CGR was one of the first channels i ever tuned too back in 2007.

CGR is the reason I started watching RU-vid. I’ve been watching that channel since 2007 and every new video was like an event for me

Mark's resentment of RU-vid was his undoing and his alone. CGR can never come back as long as this resentment exists. What also has been revealed is his lack of interest in video games. Maybe he enjoyed it at one time, but somewhere along the way, the interest faded and so did CGR. It was a great channel. Had a good run.

Great video! I remember loading a playlist for any given console and letting it run while playing games or doing chores, etc. Your reasons for why the channel was great were spot on. He has that charismatic radio voice that's just really easy to listen to. I found his channel at a rough point in my life and the videos helped me escape from reality for a bit. Hopefully he'll come back someday, but if he doesn't I wouldn't be surprised since RU-vid did him dirty.

Mark's videos are the reason why I got into retrogames well him and Lukemorse1.

I'll always remember his review of Resistance Retribution for the PSP. Man he was right on with his praise of it, & I LOVE that game. It has a special place in my heart. I think I'll go watch that video again...

CGR failed because it got TOO BIG. What made old 1999 - 2000 CGR good was how small it was, which made it manageable. The duo of Mark and Dave having fun talking about a game with personalities rubbing off each other. I still have all of the old Classic Game Room episodes and revisit them to remind myself of the good old days

I have very good memories of clasic game room, it is a spectacular channel where very good reviews were posted, which covered many many jokes that were very good. I used to watch it when I was younger, before eating, I would come home from school and I loved to get on the computer and Watching classic game room was spectacular and his reviews were barbaric I always waited for him to see him I always expected him to upload videos He and his other channel were really spectacular and I would love for him to come back it would be spectacular or even a special or I think when GTA 6 comes out at some point I'm going to make a video, you have to do it, it's one of your favorite sagas and the whisper of GTA of all those you leave was the best, I hope you come back

Mark's two part review of Red Faction is absolutely legendary. It's a piece of internet history everybody should see. I'm going to go and watch it again now!

I truly miss Mark's reviews but rather than complaining about it on his channel, i've been going through his older videos. He made tons, and they hold so much value.

Ow I remember this channel.. did watch a lot of those old reviews. Was surprised to see he totally changed his channel incl. rebranding. Thanks for the video explaining what is going on. Edit - Should he come back ? - Yes because Retro Gaming is bigger then ever 👌👌

It was one of my favourite game channels ever and I still love watching his old gaming vids. A real personality in his own way and I miss him in my video-gaming viewing.

I like your attitude in this video: expressing your enthusiasm while acknowledging people's complaints. My random replies: * There are some unhealthily obsessive people who comment on any video Mark posts, attacking him for not doing the game reviews anymore and obsessed with ancient squabbles like some guy from the Middle East donating games to the channel that were later sold (people obsessed with this even though they aren't the guy from the Middle East, so they weren't affected in any way and, as you say, donating something to someone is not a contract requiring them to keep it in their house for the rest of their lives). This behavior borders on stalking. Just because they watched some guy's videos years ago does not make him their property to feel continual resentment over his not doing what they want him to do until he dies, following him around insulting him for years, commenting on everything he does. That's sad and sick. I can guarantee that one or more of them will eventually show up here and accuse me of being Mark posting under a pseudonym, because that's what they do to anyone who objects to their rude comments on his new videos. * I don't think Mark should crowdfund anything at this point. If he really wants to start doing the old channel again, I think he is going to have to do it himself without support for quite awhile until people will trust him again after so many stops and starts and abrupt changes of course. * I preferred CGR Undertow myself, as the videos were shorter and more focused. (I do see the appeal of the looser style of Mark's videos that some such as yourself enjoyed more.) I became a fan of Undertow years after it ended, because when I started really getting into collecting games for old systems, whenever I would search RU-vid for an old game, more often than not an Undertow video would pop up and help me figure out if I wanted to get it.

That squirrel is a classic. It brings some good 3DS/PSP memories back.

So funny to see this, I just recently saw he posted some random video and it made me very nostolgic, and i went back and watched a whole bunch of his videos. I truly miss those and the CGR Undertow were great as well. Sad that it's over but it's something i will always remember fondly.

CGR was always an important part of my day in college, and even later. He always had at least two videos a day, sometimes more, and he introduced me to some absolutely amazing games. It was a bit sad to see him go.

I used to watch a lot of his content when bad times of my life kicked hard and damn, this guy had the ability to make you feel happy just making some simple funny reviews. Now that things got better, before finding this video, I was reviewing some of his videos and I felt a great sense of nostalgia from seeing my "gaming buddy". Mark, If you're reading this, I thank you a lot for being an awesome gamer and for sharing your playful view of gold times of gaming with us.

I love CGR and i love Mark. His gags, his push for his merchandise, selling his collection. I miss him. Great video and great solid points. You earned a subscriber.

Before even seeing your video, I will agree that CGR is the best show about videogames ever. On point, journalistic, funny as hell and the cool thing is, when I myself stumble upon a game that I want to play, I just know that CGR has made a video about it. It seems that I agree with everything that Mark says about games, and general stuff that he says. One of my all time favorite reviews is the Playstation 2 game Black. Just pure review awesomeness.

CGR around 2010 was AMAZING. RU-vid wasn't cluttered with a billion "gaming" channels, and the Retro phase of gaming was in full swing with emulators and stuff. It was a glorious time to be young

I know I'm really late to this video but that's cuz I just found your channel less than a year ago. CGR & Undertow were amongst my first retro channels I've discovered, along with Cinemassacre, GameSack, Metal Jesus & Classic Gaming Quarterly. Honestly I really love your channel & I think you have a really unique voice & pace. I agree that CGR was amongst the best. The Undertow channel was particularly my favorite because the 7th gen (& 5th) is my favorite & they did so many games for that generation. There are so many retro channels but your channel totally hits all the right notes & I hope you keep on making these videos.

While CGR is gone I'm glad Mark is doing his podcast. There are few voices my age out there and it is nice listening to a fellow Gen Xer.

The cartridge in wrong system gag never gets old!

I used to love the banter between David and Mark back in the day. The Kazumi Ninja review and Seaman videos immediately come to mind

Derrick was the best. He could have been huge in the space if they pushed through the down times

I love CGR, his videos were entertaining and informative.

Great video! Really enjoying ur content. The loss of CGR and CGR Undetow was so sad. I still regularly go back and rewatch videos there. Just nice and fun. Great to hear it might be coming back. Would be awesome to also see Derek on YT again... you never know.

Loved it. Randomly met Mark at a Monroeville convention in 2016. I was walking by looking down at vendor tables and came across his table, noticed it was CGR stuff, looked up and was starstruck. Ha ha. Holy shit, it's the CGR guy, in real life! Loved that channel.

Some of the funniest reviews were the wacky reviews. Bags of chips, food. Which console had the heaviest power brick. Going off topic during a review was often hilarious. Putting the wrong game in the console gag, always cracked me up.

I only found their channels in the past year but I've loved watching their reviews. There is something magical about those earlier youtube video days that their videos always capture. I would absolutely patronize them if they came back with any kind of campaign.

Thank you for this video! Mark had a lot of influence on me during my transition from high school to college. He’s the reason why I got into shmups, pinball, and arcades games in general. At least we have the old videos still for now.

Great review. I agree with just about all your talking points. I had missed Mark and recently went to revisit some old videos and was happy to see he's back.

Awesome video! Just as many of the others here have mentioned, I also miss CGR and find myself watching the older video game reviews from time to time. If Mark were to come back that would be great for youtube and the retro gaming community, and for the nostalgic people.......like me.

This guy was the real OG gaming channel and he doesn't get the respect he deserves, I loved it and so glad he is coming back, WOOOOOOOO!!!

Classic Game Room was one of the first youtube channels I subscribed to, about 2013/2014 just when it was about to die. It sparked me to really got into the retro games with MAME, building a quality arcade control board, getting a couple "flashback" consoles, and some PC oldies on GOG. I was really confused when the game reviews stopped and the comic book and drawing stuff took over.

I discovered CGR too late - they had already come and gone, but it's hands down my favorite retro review show. Any time I want to take a look at a game in depth they're still the first channel I search.

i even was a Patreon back then.. i miss him so much. Let's watch some good old CGR, thank you.

This was really interesting. I discovered CGR at the tail end of its lifetime and suddenly had this insurmountable mountain of content to chew through, but I had none of this context. I actually didn't even realize it was effectively a dead channel until after I'd been candidly stumbling upon assorted niche video reviews from it for a few years and happened on The Last One Ever in my recommendeds (which was not new at the time I saw it). I was much more familiar with the Undertow channel and Derek, but Mark was always incredibly charismatic when I saw him, and as soon as you started describing his characteristics I knew exactly what you meant. Especially the bizarre way he could leap from the game to something unrelated. This is insanely specific, but I still remember his review of SMT Devil Survivor 2 being littered with random He-Man jokes, and really enjoying it for what an odd pairing it was. Overall, I do prefer more traditional analytical reviews, but there are already so many of those on RU-vid. I absolutely think there's a place for more unique channels like CGR. I'd love to see it return one day, but I'm also happy with the library of videos we have. It was an era for sure.

Im so glad he's back! I'd love for the two of you to do something together

I'm glad that he's returned to RU-vid! I remember binge watching CGR Undertow a lot as a kid.

Thanks for this! I am one of those who miss CGR, even today. Back in the day, I was also was of that entitled ilk that scoffed at payed content, or visiting another site - I just didn't understand how difficult it can be to have a living based on an algorithm. I will always remember one video Mark made before he left for good: He lamented the trends that the tech companies wanted ultrashort videos and how that was not suitable for game reviews. Sounded like science fiction to me at the time - but now "shorts" are everywhere. I hate them!

I'm only a year into nostalgia collecting, but can hear his intro playing in my mind hahah

I used to always eat lunch watching CGR, great times. loved every truxton or vectrex mention.

You said cosmic carnage and it just sent chills down my spine, I grew up watching the guy so I dont remember everything but holy nostalgia haha

That last one ever video came out like 6 months into me discovering CGR it was the first time I experienced a RU-vid channel getting cancelled by its show runners. I remember trying to keep up with Derrick but he just kinda disappeared from the internet after a few months. I've always felt it was a missed opportunity he never made his own game review channel.

CGR Reviews are timeless and i find them immensely useful as I build up my arcade. Agree its the best for sure. Salute.

Derek did an interview w select screen and he would love to do it again if the money was there and everything was in place. I think they lost their studio and its a different ball game as to how they made videos then and now. Main problem is Mark is stuck in his gloom of doom and wont wake up and use his truxton talent where it shined.

I used to watch him when I was like 7 been looking for his channel for a long time started to remember his channel a year or two ago

Thanks for reminding me of how great CGR was! Curse you for telling me about its end. I didn't know it ended, last thing I knew was it had definitely slowed down and most of the videos seemed to be coming from CGR Undertow. I'll have to see what videos I can still track down.

CGR was the first retro gaming show I ever watched, and it played a big part in getting me into retro games. Those videos are what led me to get the Timesplitters games, Bushido Blade, my Dreamcast and a ton of others. The Undertow videos got me into even more games like Bombastic. Hell, I remember when they got General Lotz to do a few reviews for Undertow, which was cool as hell! So, when I heard that Mark was stopping CGR AGAIN, it was definitely sad. And while I'd like to see him return to CGR at some point, I'd also understand if he was just done with game reviews entirely.

TRUXTON! Mark is the man! Miss that dude alot, when it comes to retro review

I REALLY miss Classic Game Room. Such an amazing channel! And YES! Marks voice was literally perfect! I hope he releases his videos on DVD

This is the first video I have watched by you. I just subscribed! I LOVED CGR and I think I probably watched every Arari review plus many more. I loved his review style. Like you said he didn't go into a lot of technical stuff but I don't feel that was needed for atari stuff

Interesting. Mark is near Pittsburgh, PA where I also live. I've met him a couple times and I've enjoyed his CGR shows and his live presentations at the Replay/FX show. His CGR stuff was very entertaining.

Seems like he's slowly bringing it back. There haven't been any videos longer than several minutes but frig I'll take it.

I’m not exactly in the prime demographic for retro games. But I grew up watching a lot of videos from CGR undertow and having a lot of fun seeing all these retro games.

I didn't know he stopped with reviews. When looking for reviews on PS3 games I'm interested in, his videos usually appear, and I really enjoy them. I also watched the other reviews for older, as well as newer games. Other than that, I don't know much about the channel. So this will be new info for me. I agree that his voice was amazing. The humour and rambling/comparisons were also good.

I miss CGR and CGR Undertow. I hope that Mark and Derek are doing well.

I totally forgot about his channel, I just suddenly had a flashback to it when I saw another channel with a very similar name, then I remembered that iconic intro disk scratch. Man I had no idea he stopped making game videos. I used to watch a lot of his stuff back in the day.

CGR has been uploading long compilations of older and newer reviews for every system. It's been awesome!

Truxton, and Cosmic Carnage I own because I was a super fan of his. Derek did great too man on the other channel. I guess you can never say never to a comeback tho. If he really knew how many people that really hold Mark as #1 I think he'd be in tears. But we must continue the mission to the never ending mission to "review everything"

Great Video, so very glad I found your channel!! Refreshing and informative in a highly entertaining way, kinda like Mark on CGR!! You Rock 🤘🏼🤘🏼and Long Live CGR wish he was still putting out RU-vid goodness

The Daily Motion move killed them. They should have stayed and fought RU-vid, as we would have had their backs. Wasn’t the same after that, and their enthusiasm was gone. I really liked Derek’s work for Undertow and am still sad that he walked away.

Mark and CGR are the reason im into the retro gaming now. started watch him back in 2010. btw those people who are complaining about pushing merch in the video, they must also hate watching Linus LTT. LOL then again, its a matter of taste.

CGR was one of go to reviewers. Love his content. He really did have his own unique and interesting review style that was entertaining. Thanks for the upload.

I remember when his comic videos did not do well for the channel and now he’s doing music too, which they sound ok, but CGR will continue to live on with rewatches

Never knew it stopped, I recognize the Hamster intro but I guess for me it is one of many video game channels I use for checking up games for certain consoles... Pat the nespunk is currently one of my favourites, since those guys post almost on a daily basis, they have relevant topics for the channel and an enough dose of humour... Darius Truxton was a funny trolling/ rant channel on specific game related youtubers, but that one got banned from youtube....

It was the fact that he just stopped doing videos about games with zero warning and abandoned all the original fans (including me) that pissed me off.

I loved CGR more than anything else when I was young, it was one of the first channels I watched on youtube, and I watched it religiously. I was really young for the demographic at the time, but it's given me some of the best insight into the world of retro games in the most approachable way I could think of. The show was just made by people who liked games, and it showed ❤

I absolutely love CGR and specially CGR Undertow. It somehow made life feel lighter for me in some key moments, and while I enjoy Mark's content a lot I absolutely love Derek's stuff. I agree with you in every point you made and I specially like how the reviews were almost a stream of consciouness and conversation with the audience, it felt like hanging out with your friends.

I super love watching CGR videos and I still do every now and then. Mark is such a laid back guy and I like his sense of humor! 🤣God knows, how many times I'd rewatched the review for the CD-i, 3DO and the R-Zone! 😂Glad some made a video about him and the channel!

Damn, I LOVED this channel. It reminds me of 2008-2009ish internet.

YO idk if this is the squirel channel if yes this channel waa back than my gaming channel like i love how they showed gameplay and everything

Mark's reviews were the best. I may just binge everything! Check back with me in the year 2085.

I loved CGR and Undertow. if it wasn't for Mark i probably wouldn't be making videos as my earliest content (now deleted) was inspired by him. Then add the more in depth commentary by the Undertow guys that arguably were proto YT essayists and you had a creative melting pot that died way too early. But im glad to see Mark has come back to YT for now. Its like bumping into an old friend you havent seen in years

I think CGR was easily my favorite Retro Gaming Channel. I see people in these comments saying he didn't give enough information about the games he played but I disagree. You can tell by Mark's enthusiasm, jokes, and demenor how he felt about a game even when he didn't directly tell you. You don't need 30 minute reviews, and tons of details to get an idea of what a game is like, how it plays, and what kind of content it has. I grew up on one to two paragraph reviews in magazines BTW. Anyway, I don't know if I'd be for Mark bringing back CGR if it's not what he wants to do. You can tell by his later reviews he was losing passion for reviewing games, which is understandable since he seemed to have been at war with RU-vid, and likely was stressing over keeping his employees employed, and keeping the project going. If Mark doesn't have the passion, and can't give us that same laid back, and fun style I don't want to watch new content from him. I think we should just appreciate what he did for us, and move on.

Mark was my favourite RU-vidr back then! Pretty sure, that CGR was one of the reasons, why i started my own channel. I miss him and his humor. Good times!

I was pretty much hooked on CGR back in the day. But so much appeared in that time frame I think I lost track when they moved service or something. He got me to buy a vectrex. :P

I didn’t realise CGR Undertow stopped in 2015! It definitely feels a lot more recent than 8 years ago. I feel old.

I didn't move to daily motion with him because I used a youtube app and didn't watch content on a p.c. As far as the "hustle" aspect, i.e. merchandising.... hey. Dude is a grown man trying to make a living. I always felt the critics of that were mainly young people that didn't understand life.

I love classic game room. I still watch it and the undertow one too. I watch many gaming RU-vid channels and i agree that those are some of the best. I'd love to see the channel come back but in my honest opinion game sack is the best. They don't always cover the games and content i like most but joe does such an amazing job with the quality of his videos and i can never look away from them even if about something i don't care about. Ty i watch your channel often hope to see more

This is one show I haven't heard in a while. I loved Mark's voice. It's really a perfect fit for production type. Not to mention any long time fans will know Muhammad, a Middle Eastern fan who'd always donate review materials to CGR.