Live game streaming platforms are currently very popular with new stars in the entertainment and technology sector. This trend arose around the fact that millions of gaming fans love to watch the best gamers in the world, or even those who know how to be entertained, while they are gaming.
Millions of fans join in every day to watch their heroes, especially when this is done via live stream. This phenomenon can be compared with the consumption of live sports. Everything is played – from racing games to shooters and online casino games.
Live game streaming takes place on its own platforms, which sometimes differ from those used for watching videos alone. In this article, we introduce you to the hottest game streaming platforms in 2021.
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The Rise of the Video Game Streamers
The following games currently dominate the viewership on Twitch and YouTube:
- Fortnite;
- Minecraft;
- Valorant;
- League of Legends;
- Apex Legends;
- COD: Warzone;
- Hearthstone;
- World of Warcraft;
- Dota 2;
- CS: GO.
As well as being incredibly popular, these games are incredibly competitive – in fact, it can take years to get good at them. As a result, many pro gamers such as Ninja, Shroud, and Myth use Twitch to stream how they play, providing viewers with great commentary as well as lots of useful information about all of the games.
Broadcasting gameplay footage to the world is nothing new, especially since video game walkthroughs and how-to content have been used by the media for years.
In fact, many streaming stars first gained huge popularity through gameplay walkthroughs and Let’s Play videos. One of the earliest users was Felix Chelberg, known as PewDiePie.
Fortnite’s video streamer known as Ninja is another bright example. According to conservative estimates, Blevins earns up to one million US dollars per month with gaming. This computer game transports the player into an apocalyptic world in which humanity is threatened by zombies. He then has the task, for example, of building a fortified fort in order to survive the night.
Ninja is considered to be one of the best Fortnite players in the world. He contributed to the popularity of this game, which has had over 250 million users worldwide since its launch in July 2017.
The game has become a gold mine not only for Ninja but also for Epic Games. The US company, which Fortnite launched together with the Polish development team from People can Fly, achieved sales of three billion US dollars in 2018, the majority of which came from revenue for the digital currency “V-Bucks” the player can buy additional digital equipment for their Fortnite adventures.
Blevin’s business model is different: He makes money playing Fortnite and having his fan base look over his shoulder while doing so. Ninja sits at the computer for at least twelve hours a day, fighting against zombies, solving tasks, and revealing how to get around this and that cliff.
He streams all of this live up to 80 hours a week in his channel on the streaming platform. It was on Twitch until the end of July and has been on Mixer since the beginning of August. He had previously set a Twitch record with rapper Drake.
When the two played Fortnite together, 635,000 people worldwide watched at the same time. Twitch made ninja rich.
In a “Forbes” interview, he put his income for 2018 at around ten million US dollars. Blevins receives a share of the advertising revenue, which is shown during the live streams, and he also received Twitch revenue sharing for around 40,000 subscribers who pay between five and 25 US dollars a month to have preferential access to their star and his content.
Ninja is more than a gamer now, he’s a brand. His sponsors include names like Red Bull and Uber Eats.
Game Streaming Platforms That Stand Out
Twitch
Twitch has been celebrating the success of the platform and the individual streamers since 2015 with its own conference, especially for streamers and fans. Since 2019 there have been two dates a year for this: a three-day TwitchCon takes place in the USA in autumn and a two-day TwitchCon takes place in Europe in spring.
The American TwitchCons have always been in California in different cities. The first European TwitchCon took place in 2019 in the CityCube in Berlin. In 2020 the second event was held in Amsterdam.
Twitch offers a varied program at these events: For streamers, it offers the opportunity to exchange ideas about technologies and developments. For fans, there is the chance to get to know their favorite streamers personally and to get autographs. In addition, new games can be tried out and the online community can also get to know each other offline.
YouTube Gaming
YouTube, the world’s largest video platform owned by the Alphabet Group, is also active in the area of live stream gaming. The huge fan base and the number of users, which are unmatched worldwide in terms of video consumption, make YouTube a player that should not be underestimated in the live game streaming market.
Hundreds of thousands of gamers stream their video games live on YouTube. And this will probably continue in the future. The advantage of YouTube, if you want to become a live gaming streamer yourself, is its huge reach and the possibly already existing subscriber community, which you can easily reach there.
Hitbox
Another player on the market is Hitbox. Live video game streaming on Hitbox is really fun. Here, too, there are subscriber features, as well as a chat to be able to communicate directly with the streams.
The channels can be streamed publicly, given an age limit, or simply set to private so that only subscribers can consume the content. Especially when it comes to categorization, Hitbox offers the streamer a lot. The interface is unique and particularly appealing for gamers.
Stream
The strategy of this platform is primarily based on providing users with a comprehensive bouquet of content that could be relevant to their gaming interests.
For example, users are made aware of talk shows on the topic or can find private live streams. Overall, streaming services are not only used for game streams. Numerous companies are also used to set up business streams and inform interested parties about the latest developments. This includes big names like Facebook, but also NASA and Salesforce.
Azubu
Azubu has also been able to inspire many users recently. The increasingly popular category of e-sports is particularly popular on Azubu. Organized high-quality content that knows how to inspire viewers can be found here in tons.
And the gaming fans are among themselves here. Because on Azubu there are only video gaming streams and nothing else to be found.
How to Become a Gaming Streamer
If the unsociable hours of work and long streaming hours aren’t to put you off, here are a few tips that can be invaluable in building your own live streaming career:
- Learn to stream. This sounds like a sure-fire success. But you need to be very familiar with the streaming software you choose before you publish any content. After all, nobody wants to watch how you struggle with sound level and picture quality.
- Invest in good streaming equipment – There’s no point trying to build an audience if you don’t have the equipment to stream. After all, your tools are just as important as your content.
- Be persistent. This point is very important for any video game live streamer, especially anyone new to it, as you should stream daily to get more viewers.
- Interact with your viewers. As you are starting to have an audience, speaking to them is important, so check out the chat every now and then.
Top streamers can make money through sponsorships, viewer subscriptions, and donations. Of course, not all live game streamers are so lucky, and most of them have to spend many hours to attract viewers. Money is there and if you have the skills and charisma to captivate a live audience, you could be well on your way to becoming a streaming star.
Summary
As you can see there is a lot going on in the live game streaming sector. In 2020, this form of entertainment has grown dramatically in popularity. This is not solely due to the lockdown caused by the coronavirus.
Twitch and other platforms such as Azubu, Hitbox, or InstagibTV have steadily increased in popularity, and this has mainly to do with the fact that more and more gamers are either streaming themselves or are enthusiastically watching the streaming of gaming professionals.
It can be assumed that the trend of steadily increasing streams per day and hour will not only continue to grow on Twitch. The alternative platforms are also booming in terms of user numbers. On average, Twitch has between 1 and 2 million streams per day per hour. An impressive number that can be expected to continue to grow in the years to come.
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