When I first heard that Sci-Fi Channel was going to air a reality series revolving around professional gamers, I fought to keep my eyes from rolling to the back of my head. I had anticipated a complete disaster that would only work to reinforce gamer stereotypes. Now, after watching the first episode I can say with some confidence that it wasn’t actually all that bad.

If I were to describe WCG Ultimate Gamer in a single sentence, it would sound something akin to “Real World meets Hell’s Kitchen, but with Xbox 360”. What Sci-Fi Channel has done is taken twelve of the world’s elite gamers and threw them in one LA apartment that looks like it came straight out of an Ikea catalog.

Early on in the show the gamers are introduced to their challenge, each of which promises to be based on whatever game is the focus for that week’s episode. This week it was Rock Band . The twelve dudes and dolls were broken up into three teams of four and had to perform some song by The Donnas. I can’t remember the title, but don’t worry – it’s not important. The twist is that each of the three bands were to be judged by the members of the band itself. There was a moment of unintentional humor as you, the view, realized that not a single member of that band wanted to be there.

Probably because they were butchering one of their songs.

My big complaint about the challenge was that yes, while each band was technically playing instruments, they had a backup band behind them so you really couldn’t tell how bad (or good?) they were. It all felt very staged, which I guess shouldn’t surprise me. This is reality television, after all (irony +1). After all three bands performed, The Donnas picked both a winner and a loser, and each member of the losing team was automatically qualified for elimination at the end of the show.

After the competition, the twelve gamers are seen back at their apartment where we see the typical drama that is associated with just about every reality show like this. Following the commercial break, co-host Joel Gourdin (more on him later) walks into the apartment and proceeds to explain how the game portion of the competition will work.

That’s right — on a show called “WCG Ultimate Gamer”, video games didn’t become a factor until half an hour into the program.

Either way, the players were split into three teams (again) and were judged based on both their individual and group scores. The person who scored the lowest on the game (and was on the losing team in the competition) and a person who is hand-picked by the person who scored the highest in the game would then go on to compete, one-on-one, in “Samsung Stadium”.

“Samgsung Stadium”. This is just the most blatant example of it, but Samsung has their name splattered all over this show. They’re providing the grand prize gifts, their electronics are seen all over the place inside the LA pad, more than a few Samsung commercials aired during the hour-long block, and they have their own damn “stadium”. I don’t mind that Samsung sponsors the show, but they need to tone it down a little.

The cast is a decent collection of semi-famous regulars to the pro gaming circuit and new blood getting their first taste of national exposure. A few of them are somewhat memorable, such as Robert aka Prod1gy X aka “the guy with the Dune eyes“. You also have Ciji aka StarSlay3r, Amy aka Athena aka the sister of the woman sitting on Mike, and Kelly aka MrsViolence.

And then, there is Dante, or as I call him:

…it’s a Marvel Comics reference…

While the cast is alright, you can’t help but think “what if”. Many “stars” from Major League Gaming and the defunct Championship Gaming Series are nowhere to be found. This is surely because of the World Cyber Games being the chief sponsor of the show and, as you can imagine, the suits at MLG would absolutely shit bricks if someone like Tom “DrPepperSquare” Taylor were to be on a rival promotion. Also, where’s Johnathan Wendel? After all, every reality show needs a good villian, and who better to fill that role than the single most recognizable professional douchebag gamer douchebag on the pro gaming circuit.

Another minor complaint is that half of the twelve specialize in shooters. While this will surely make the Halo 3 episode kick ass, episodes that feature games like Rock Band 2 (i.e. tonight’s show) and NBA Live 09 will suffer.

And then, there are the hosts. Hannah Simone isn’t so bad, though she does have to end each show with “Game Over”, a tacky line that you could see rolling in from a thousand miles out. But, she’s hot so most of you guys out there won’t even realize she’s actually talking – and if you get offended by that statement, odds are I’m talking to you.

Joel Gourdin is a different matter. While only slightly less hot than Hannah Simone, he has her beat hands down on the sheer level of intensity in his eyes.

Whenever he’s on screen he has this look on his face, almost as though he’s trying to use his Jedi mind powers to say “You will have sex with me. And you will enjoy it.” Keanu face aside, though, he also has the misfortune of being the guy who gets to explain each game to the home audience. While this wouldn’t normally be a problem, in this case it comes off as a tad condescending. Not Gourdin’s fault, though. It’s just a side effect of aiming your show at the exact audience who would already be playing the games that he’s explaining how to play to us.

Now, I know that the show is going to have it’s haters no matter what. Those haters will probably be the same goobers who say that Halo 3 and Grand Theft Auto IV suck simply because that’s the cool thing to do. However, if you are of a cool head and an open mind, I would recommend giving the show a fair shake.

After all, there are a lot worse things you could spend that hour on.

WCG Ultimate Gamer airs on Sci-Fi Channel every Tuesday at 10pm. Give it a shot.

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