EDINBURGH 2013 - BWW Reviews: MCNEIL AND PAMPHILON GO 8-BIT!, Pleasance Dome, August 10 2013

Comedy duo Steve McNeil and Sam Pamphilon have put together an eclectic video games themed show for a short run at this year's Fringe. Featuring a number of comedy guests, "McNeil and Pamphilon Go 8-Bit!" is a mixture of sketches based on games and spectator gaming, complete with painful forfeits for the losing players.

The show begins with the eponymous Sam and Steve warming the audience up and splitting the audience and guests into two opposing teams, ready for the various battles on classic video games, including Super Mario Kart and Street Fighter 2 and encouraging vocal competition. A lot of time is spent introducing a huge number of guest comedians, commentators, and helpers, whereas a tighter and pacier show might have resulted from simply having a smaller number of guests, rather than changing around for each section. As it was, few of the featured comedians lingered long enough to leave an impression, though Nish Kumar proved a particular highlight and Guy Kelly made a respectable effort to add some actual videogame content to the affair. Unfortunately, a lot of the other videogame-related humour revolved around tired old stereotypes of gamers as lonely male virgins.

Guests were invited to compete with each other through the medium of games, with their efforts projected on to a screen at the back of the stage to let the audience cheer on their champions. The leader of the losing team then had to undergo a punishment, which involved the likes of downing cheap vodka or jalapeno peppers. These sections were interspersed with themed sketches, both from Sam and Steve and from their guests. A sketch which tried to shoehorn in as many video game titles as possible in a series of ever more unlikely puns was enjoyable, but the other sketches were largely forgettable.

Overall, it felt very much like a lot of student parties I have been to, with Rock Band blaring and forfeits for the sake of it. To be fair to the performers, the audience responded raucously, cheering vocally in all of the right places, but, for me, it didn't seem to add anything more to the familiar experience of watching friends playing video games, getting drunk and being a bit silly.

McNeil and Pamphilon Go 8-Bit! is at the Pleasance Dome at 2300 on August 11th, 16th and 17th.

Get Broadway News on WhatsApp

Receive the latest updates, breaking news, and exclusive coverage from Broadway directly in WhatsApp.

2026 Theater Fans' Choice Awards - Live Stats

Best Featured Performer in a Musical - Top 3

1. Ali Louis Bourzgui - The Lost Boys, A New Musical

26% of votes

2. Ben Levi Ross - Ragtime

7.1% of votes

3. Shoshana Bean - The Lost Boys, A New Musical

5.8% of votes

Vote Now! View Live Stats