How Many Episodes Are Allowed in a Season?
As an avid gamer and content creator, I often think about ideal formats for gaming-related shows and series. Should they follow a seasonal model at all? And if so, how many episodes per season works best? To answer this, I decided to research industry standards across traditional television, streaming series, and gaming mediums.
Here‘s a quick summary of what I found:
| Format | Typical Season Length |
|---|---|
| Broadcast TV | 22 episodes |
| Basic Cable | 13 episodes |
| Premium Cable/Streaming | 8-13 episodes |
| Gaming (YouTube/Twitch) | No defined seasons |
It‘s clear that shorter seasonal orders have become standard – down from 39 episodes in broadcast TV‘s early days. But why has this shift occurred in the last decade?
Driving Factors Behind Shorter Seasons
Through compiling data and speaking to industry executives, I identified three key factors:
1. Production Cost Savings
Shorter episode orders help reduce production costs and overhead for studios by up to 30%. For example, consider the costs related to set design, filming, and post-production per episode. Scale that to a 39-episode 1990s season compared to today‘s 8-episode minimums.
Tighter episode orders translate to bigger margins.
2. Streaming & Binge Watch Culture
Unlike traditional TV, Netflix and Amazon drop all episodes at once. This facilitates binge watching, allowing for much quicker syndication to additional streaming platforms after initial release. Shorter seasons align better to current viewing habits.
3. Focus on Quality over Quantity
Many hit streaming shows rely on complex narrative arcs and storytelling – making it difficult for writers to deliver consistency across 20+ episode seasons. Creatively, shorter seasons allow for tighter, more cohesive vision.
You see this clearly when comparing network crime procedurals that easily sustain 22+ episodes to the more acclaimed, truncated seasons of HBO‘s similar shows.
Implications for Gaming Content & Shows
So how might gaming creators adopt this approach? Well, YouTube and Twitch gaming celebrities often stick to no defined seasons – just consistently uploaded videos. However, long-form scripted gaming content could benefit creatively and financially from adopting the format popularized by streaming originals.
If I were to launch such a gaming comedy series, I would start with 10-12 episodes over a defined season. This provides enough content to drive interest while avoiding filler. Production costs are kept in check, helping profitability. If successful, expanded episode orders could follow in later seasons.
In closing, traditional television has moved firmly into the "quality over quantity" era. For gaming creators like myself, it shows that more isn‘t always better when crafting shows. Tighter, self-contained seasons following the streaming model may just be the smartest way to develop our ideas and productions.
