Start, the YouTube video games channel from IGN Entertainment and Shine Group, officially kicks off today.
According to IGN, a division of News Corp., Start is a mix of live and long-form programming that’s also a new avenue for advertisers seeking placement alongside professionally-produced video content.
Five programs are part of the launch, and shows confirmed for the future include live coverage from the IGN Pro League competitive gaming event and season 5 of HD Films’ 3D series The Jace Hall Show, along with additional content produced by Reveille.
The programs that form the initial lineup are: 
- The Next Game Boss, an unscripted weekly series challenges teams of promising developers to pit their game creation skills against each other to win a “life-changing” prize. As many game fans know, IGN trialled an early version of the show nearly a year ago.
- Up at Noon with Greg Miller, a pop culture show that looks at the world of games, comics, movies, TV and all things geek with sketches, regular correspondents and industry guests.
- Cheap, Crazy, Cool digs up and showcases gizmos, gadgets and gear from all over the world and in all price ranges.
- Mix’d Reviews aggregates game reviews from IGN’s staff and other games experts into one comprehensive package.
- Maternal Combat pairs top gamers with a relative who hasn’t played before and gives them a limited time for training before they battle against a similiarly mismatched duo of family members.
Bernard Ho, IGN Entertainment general manager/vice president of Video, said the YouTube channel will recognize the reality of gamer demographics by having shows that appeal to a broader base.
“The time is right to take game-related video programming beyond what’s ‘in the game’ and evangelize playing games as a mainstream activity,” Ho said. “Start combines the voice of IGN as its emcee with TV-quality content anchored in games. It’s a great vehicle to create premium content that’s accessible to all, while remaining true to our core audience of serious gamers.”
IGN reaches 57 million unique users worldwide through IGN.com, 1UP.com, GameSpy, AskMen.com, UGO.com and other properties.
Reveille is part of the Shine Group. Shine Group includes 27 production companies such as U.K.-based Dragonfly (which specializes in factual programs), Kudos (drama), and Princess Productions (entertainment) along with multi-genre producers Shine TV, independent U.S. producers Reveille, and Nordic production group Metronome Film & Television. Most recent additions are social gaming specialists Bossa Studios and online broadcaster and original content producers, ChannelFlip.
Related links:
Press release – http://tinyurl.com/6v4sf8g
