TV Videogame shows: Have they always sucked ass?

Games World: 1993 - 1998

Another offspring of GamesMaster, this one, but more directly this time. It was actually made by the same production company responsible for GM, this time for broadcast on the Sky One satellite channel. Going out five days a week, the show filled two editions with competitive challenges, the winners of which went on to compete for prizes on Friday's show.

The remaining week's episodes were taken up by themed editions of the show, such The Peep Parlour, in which gamers would appeal to 'Madam Pixel' for tips and cheats, and "House Of Games", the previews and reviews round up. In later series, The Peep Parlour - now featuring the more teenage boy friendly Games Mistress - was incorporated into a new format, BTV. This show was a blend of features and sketch-based sitcom featuring Big Boy Barry, who had by that point become the most popular Videator. As repellant an idea as it sounds, BTV wasn't actually that bad at all, and was helped a great deal by having an early appearance of Little Britain's David Walliams in the regular cast.

On the whole, Games World was a nice companion piece to GamesMaster, whose content really benefitted from the extra broadcast time each week. It still had it's feet very much planted in kids' TV territory though, and by now gamers needed something more mature.

Long-time GR+ writer Dave has been gaming with immense dedication ever since he failed dismally at some '80s arcade racer on a childhood day at the seaside (due to being too small to reach the controls without help). These days he's an enigmatic blend of beard-stroking narrative discussion and hard-hitting Psycho Crushers.