Ive recently joined my uni's TV station and im sometime next week start production.  weve been given a 5 minute slot for the pilot but i ultimately want to be putting out a 20 minute show a week so it needs to be really good. i was wondering if you could give me ideas of what you would want to see in a video game show. here are a few idea me and the group have had.

 

reviews. self explanatory really, we will do them both with single reviewers and with groups

previews. talking about the latest news on upcoming games

Top 5 feature. brief list and explanation of our top 5 something or other

The Challenger. each week we invite someone in to take a shot at our resident Gaming Master, the Joystig

Question Time. viewers send in their questions each week. we pick the best one anbd nominate someone to answer it

 

any other ideas would be great guys :D especially some of you staff members

also do you guys know how we would go about getting passes for E3 or even if that is possible?

volunteer your services to ioi as a VGC booth babe and im sure he'll slip you a pass or two. thats my plan, anyway but remember, im first in line!

as for the show, first of all. thats cool :D and second.. your line-up seems pretty good, especially for the pilot.. remember its quality not quantity, but the list of stuff you have up there could easily fill 20 minutes.

Review old games that were either fun, or pioneers. Also, such games should hold peoples' attention.

@ ioi

could be interesting, how would that work exactly?

also weve decided that the pilot is gunna have a review of L4D2 and a look at our top 5 co-op games. which means I get to rant about my love for timesplitters 3!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

since it's your university tv(and that's uber cool BTW) maybe some gaming events?
instead of normal news maybe some funny/bizzare stuff not many people know,
some ridiculous contests,
you can use youtube videos from students for your show,
some kind of The Cribs videos showing gaming related places in your neighbourhood, students rooms etc.
instead of previews review some older/cheaper games that would fit(local multiplayer games etc.), some classic gems that nobody know or some completely ridiculous and bad game every show for fun,
i would suggest watching few noobtoob episodes - should help since those guys makes the best video podcast about games on the interwebz.

Use good lighting, make it seem proffessional. If you can't do that then make sure it has atmosphere.

Remember to mix up real footage with game footage.

Also have some random but awesome segment. That's good for grabbing peoples attention. Make sure it's related though.

If you can do 3d animation i'd throw some of that onto the video. In a none corny way. :p

 

Finally remember that pacing is vital... oh and dramatic music ! XD

Best advice to having a great video game show - keep pertinent, and relevant.

Cover games that just came out or are coming out within a week.

Cover news from the community, to give interesting stories people might not see on the "big" sites.

Giving some coverage to quality mods is also an underserved market, and may have a good audience at a university since most mods are free.

People who watch a gaming show are usually bored, those who watch a really small unknown production even moreso. So help them find something to do, or a story to follow that they can take part in immediatly or soon and you can probably grow a fanbase.

Cheers for the advice guys, i might print out this page of comments and take it to the next meeting

how about ideas for an opening? we were thinking of making 8 bit versions of the main presenters

Sounds awesome woopah!

I would try to get some surveys out, find out who your target audience is and what they like. This could help you figure out how much time to spend on retro vs. new games for example.

And as Xelloss said, cover the community. Follow what happens. If there are LAN events at the university, make an announcement for all the viewers.

As for the opening, I have no idea Though you should get yourself some catchy theme music.