Current Events > How angry does the career game streamer way of life make you?

(+) Yeah! (+)

do they really need to play games for 80 hours a week?

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I have no problem with it at all, but it doesn't seem like something that's as fun as people might think it is
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Balrog0 posted...

do they really need to play games for 80 hours a week?

Im assuming the famous millionaire sponsored ones have to play a shit ton of 70 hour + weeks and then do everything else that goes with that

It doesnt seem very flattering. Id do it for a year, make my money and never do it again.

i could play 80 hours a week easily if i didnt have a job. like it would just happen without me having to try
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Not really.

One, only like a few out of the thousands upon thousands of streamers actually make enough to live on, so it's not just like any loser could do it. Like any entertainer, they have to actually be entertaining and they work hard to be entertaining so good on them.

Two, I'm just not interested in the games that actually make money. I don't like MOBA, RTS, FPS, or battle royale games. I like long single player RPG and really story based games, so nothing I play would ever make me money to begin with.
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TC seems more infuriated them the rest of us are. I really don't care what they do.

As much as I love games, streaming isn't for me. I want to play games that I want to play, not what others want me to play. Plus I'm not very social.
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Blame the morons who like to sit around and watch someone else play a video game. I have no problem with people capitalizing on the demand.
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Balrog0 posted...

do they really need to play games for 80 hours a week?

A lot of the most popular streamers (Ninja, famously) adhere to some pretty ridiculous schedules
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EndOfDiscOne posted...

Blame the morons who like to sit around and watch someone else play a video game. I have no problem with people capitalizing on the demand.

Watching and donating. Im more upset that people actually throw money at these streamers

Drpooplol posted...

pogo_rabid posted...

as an example, a streamer I follow was a biology major, but while streaming and putting up youtube videos, he went back to school and now is a qualified programmer. Because he's smart and knows the gaming train isn't gonna last forever.

@pogo_rabid you talking about northernlion?

@Drpooplol
ya boi NL
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Being a successful game streamer actually isn't that easy. You need to be very good at entertaining and outreach. You also need a team to help you deal with video editing, content, and many many things. You may get away with a bare basic set up just starting out, but you need to know when to expand or you will miss out your chance and fade into nothing.

Entertainment business ain't easy. Internet streaming entertainment even more so because the entry barrier is lower.

not at all.
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_Matchabuu_ posted...

It doesnt bother me what other peeps do to make money. If I thought I could hack it, Id give it a shot too.

Same. I personally don't think I have the personality for it but if I did I would for sure give it a shot.

I don't really care but hey if you think you're good you can try to 1 v 1 Shroud and see if you're even half as good as him.
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Not at all. I have more problems with toxic online communities than entertainers.

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I like video games but not to the point of playing that much to make it a career.
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Meh.

It's neat that they can make a shitton of money doing that, but it's going to be schadenfreude as hell when the gravy train ends.

Guide posted...

Why would this be upsetting?

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The only thing that really irks is the people who can't afford it but keep throwing donations at streamers. I know several people who always complain about how they're short on cash but subscribe and donate to a bunch of streamers. The streamers themselves are just taking advantage of people, I have no issue with that.
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I never understood why people got so flustered over youtubers or streamers

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DifferentialEquation posted...

The streamers themselves are just taking advantage of people, I have no issue with that.

No surprises here
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i don't really envy it, aside from maybe dudes like maximilian. he seems to have legit fun, can play whatever he wants and maintain his numbers, and people shower him with donations.

i wouldn't want to be one of those guys that has to play nothing but fortnite.
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No, you have to work a ton of hours and if you take a day off you lose subscribers.

Plus it would ruin something I like to do
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It's a job like any other. Starting out, it's probably a dream job, but then things will pile on and on. Burnout from playing a certain game, but hesitation on switching to something unfamiliar and losing the set fanbase. Video editing if they run a side channel. Having to always remain positive and engaged no matter how you're feeling. Constantly being in some kind of public eye, needing to engage on the stream, social media, etc to remain relevant. Dealing with monetization, remaining good in the eyes of advertisers, dealing with sponsors, etc.

eston posted...

DifferentialEquation posted...

The streamers themselves are just taking advantage of people, I have no issue with that.

No surprises here

If someone gives their money to a streamer because they'll get a shutout, their name on a donations leaderboard, thinks the streamer is actually their friend or might date them, etc. then that's their own problem.
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Good on anyone that is able to find a way to make good money doing something they enjoy. Why on earth would I resent that?

eston posted...

DifferentialEquation posted...

The streamers themselves are just taking advantage of people, I have no issue with that.

No surprises here

but to be fair, i don't think people are getting taken advantage of at a level they they can't handle. all the money is volunteered, and it's not like they must fork over money to watch.
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Too much pressure. Sounds awful to have millions of people scrutinizing and criticizing your gameplay everyday. I play games just to have fun.
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I think it's great that people can make a living streaming games.

Wouldn't call it a carreer though.
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Why would you watch someone play a game when you can pick it up and play yourself?

Because not everyone wants to, or is capable of it? I mean, why do people watch sports on TV instead of playing it themselves?

Philip027 posted...

Why would you watch someone play a game when you can pick it up and play yourself?

Because not everyone wants to, or is capable of it? I mean, why do people watch sports on TV instead of playing it themselves?

There's more than a few games where watching a let's play is pretty much the same as pushing buttons on a controller.

It confuses me. With sports and such, I recognize physical limitations and it's fun in groups, but watching a game where the price of admission is between free and 60usd and then you can do whatever, then paying the person, just seems stupid to be.

Can't say I begrudge them, I run a small stream myself and use it on the rate occasion I make money off it to pay for more games. Still doesn't make sense to me though.

Remember they work their asses of for hitting record and clicking upload.
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No

Im not a hater
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Sitting on my ass for most of the day is hard to do on my own time. If I'm not playing with a friend I'm taking a break every now and then. I certainly don't envy them.

The people who give them money choose to because they love to watch them. They have to do commentary, have an entertaining personality on top of it, some may be limited on the games they can play because of their audience. In the case of some, have consistently great gameplay. You'd have to have a lot of endurance, patience, and love for games to be a streamer. It only looks easy on the surface.

It's nowhere near the hardest job but my passion for it would run dry quick if I did it so regularly.
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Doom_Art posted...

No

I used to think "man I wish I could have a job that easy"

But then I realized sitting around playing video games and having to "perform"/be watched by strangers several hours a day every day sounds like my version of hell.

This.

I abandoned my crappy YouTube channel.

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It sounds rough cuz you ALWAYS have to play games, even if it's something you're sick of. For hours at a time. Plus are these guys going to be streaming when they're 40? 50? 60? It doesn't seem like it has long term appeal since most of the audience is kids. Are kids really going to watch an amateur 50-60yo?
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As long as I don't hear jackspecticguy in my house I am fine with streaming gamers.

But I also haven't banned him or anything. My kids just don't watch him anymore, thank god.

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You need a certain personality type and have to build up and maintain a certain an audience to make it work. It's not exactly free money. Most of them put in as much effort as people who work full time jobs..

They're entertainers. It's barely different than playing, say, live music in front of an audience. Or making a podcast. Most twitch streamers are basically just live podcast/radio shows with video games as the premise for discussion. The point of them isn't the game, it's the (perceived) creation of social interaction.

And that's just the streamers who actually play games, let's not forget there are plenty who don't even do that.

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I'm not jealous at all. I prefer going to work and learning new skills for the long run. Not sitting down all day talking to a webcam being forced to play video games. Maybe if I was 15 but as a 32 year old, it's not appealing anymore.

Bloodychess posted...

I never understood why people got so flustered over youtubers or streamers

It's strange, I'm really not sure what the psychology is behind it. I wonder if its some bizarre gatekeeping thing where they have a mentality that "ordinary" people aren't entitled to just become famous and successful off of their own back. I dunno, it just seems a very negative way of living to get yourself all angry/bitter are other people living their lives!

DSP does it right, hes killing it

Just declare an losing my house emergency every couple months and you rake in the cash

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Shotgunnova posted...

On a scale of 1 to 10, it's a 0.

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Can't blame anyone for doing it. More power to them.

Contrary to what a lot of people in this post believe, I can clearly understand what makes it fun to watch someone play a game. It's simple, the vast majority of the viewers have played or are playing the respective game themselves. I personally don't follow any of the game streamers, but I can see the pleasure in seeing someone overcome things that you might have overcome and see how they cope with certain in-game situations. So yeah, I personally imagine it could be pretty entertaining.

Guide posted...

Why would this be upsetting?

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I think its one of those things everyone initially thinks they wish they had come up with that as a way to make a living but then once it becomes serious, its like any other job. To me a streamer is just another form of entertainer and theres both a level of commitment and preparation required, and inherent risks in whether that income stream will continue either due to themselves or the platform changing the rules. Good on them for making a living out of it.

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No, I see it as a good thing, no longer do they have to push carts for a living. Ive streamed before and it got mentally exhausting sometimes

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