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Showing posts with the label twitch streaming

The Future of Videogames: What will it look like?

 What Will the Future of Videogames Look Like? This isn't a new question by any stretch. I'm reminded jokingly of the Playstation 9 commercial which was a very tongue-in-cheek commercial for the PS2. Admittedly, we're somewhat close to extreme immersion video games with VR arenas popping up all over the world, but something "Matrix" style won't be around for at least 50 years. We've just begun to see the emergence of twitch streaming where people literally make money playing video games , so streaming has a long way to go first before we can see something close to full immersion. But for now, I think we can fill in some of the gaps to see where the future of gaming might head. The Future is Definitely About Diversity I think it took the 2010s for people to recognize that gaming wasn't just about white guys doing their thing. With the rise of social media, people became a little bit more "internet aware." I think that was the biggest "fas

Alien Isolation: Jumpscares and I Don't Mix

Alien Isolation Jumpscares Yep, that's the alien. If you know me well, you know that I am an incredibly jumpy person. Even a host on my Twitch channel often makes me jump and rear my arm back in defense against...a sound. But that unfortunate disposition hasn't been abundantly public until I played Alien Isolation. JFC, I nearly punched my equipment several times avoiding the alien in that game. As much as the game makes me jump like a 5-year old, I enjoy every minute of it and regret that I hadn't purchased it sooner. I actually downloaded it from the Xbox Game Pass. I think it's a fantastic deal for 15 dollars a month since a lot of titles are swapped in and out. Regardless, my absolute horrid sensitivity to in-game sounds (even non-jumpscare moments make me jump) often serves as a point of entertainment for people on the Twitch channel. In the very beginning moments of AI, I rarely could relax. Puckered butthole? Indeed. Streaming Alien Isolation has been a

Project Tempo: Amazon's Answer to a Cloud Gaming Service

Amazon's Answer to Stadia: Project Tempo, Their Cloud Gaming Service It wasn't even a week ago that I thought about how Amazon might respond to Google's foray into gaming. The videogame livestreaming giant doesn't really hold a candle to the likes of Microsoft, Sony, Nintendo, or (now) Google when it comes to video games. There was Breakaway, a project that was abandoned , and on the horizon, there's New World and Crucible. If that's the launch lineup for Amazon in the coming years, it pales in comparison to Google's cloud gaming service and the current library it has to offer. But recently, Amazon announced its Project Tempo , a gaming service that seeks to rival against Google Stadia. In the age where dopamine and serotonin are linked to instant gratification, this is a welcome announcement from Amazon, a company that has dominated livestreaming since its acquisition of Twitch TV in August of 2014. And it's pretty obvious why Amazon could easi

Doom Eternal: This Ish is Fun

Livestreaming Doom Eternal: This is Some Fun Shit I haven't had this much fun with a videogame in a long time .  Doom Eternal works a little differently than what you'd expect from a standard first-person shooter--which is what makes it incredibly difficult to livestream it.  It's a bit more like a resource management game, where you're constantly using either health, armor, or ammunition. I'm sure there are other resources because I've barely tapped into the game, but with initial looks, this frag-fest is unbelievably fun—and badass. But Doom Eternal takes this constant resource management and wraps it into an absolute gorefest. I honestly regret at this point not picking up Doom 2016 simply because this title likely speaks volumes about how the previous game was. And I'm sure with Doom Eternal's popularity right now, this is a sign that the latest release is definitely better. Even watching a twitch livestream of the game is

How to Tell if Someone is Viewbotting (and other malicious things)

There's an aspect of livestreaming video games that gets under my skin a bit. Viewbotting. A lot of streamers have done it in the past. In fact, I once caught someone viewbotting and looked at who the bots were "following." A laundry list of very familiar names showed up, many partnered accounts on Twitch with millions of followers. Well-known streamers making a living. It's definitely abused a lot on streaming platforms, sort of the "black hat" method of livestreaming. Thankfully, nobody I saw listed from those bot accounts was any streamer that I was supporting. I don't bother supporting anyone trying to find "get partnership quick" methods. If you want to build a business out of streaming video games , then please don't bother viewbotting. You'll eventually find you wasted your money and your community will likely abandon you. However, if you feel that someone is viewbotting, here's a few ways you can tell someone is

Is Streaming Worth it for the Money? (And Other Questions Answered)

An In-Depth Look into ROI on Videogame Streaming I'm certain a lot of people ask this question. S treaming video games is a weird thing--suddenly anyone can see you on camera, into your living room, while you're playing a video game. It's always important to figure out why you do what you do. If you're streaming for a business , best of luck to you. But there's a lot you need to consider if you're considering streaming for the money, because at this point in time it's become a heavily-saturated market--not just Twitch alone. In short, is streaming worth the money? No . The longer answer is a little more complicated, so if you'd like to learn some details, stick around. I'll preface this: this is not meant to discourage anyone from developing their business. Instead, this reveals the necessary work, efforts, and sacrifices you need to make.  Streaming for the Money Let me preface this: I will never stop streaming. The thought has cros

TwitchCon 2019: A Look at the Rebranded Livestreaming Service and Some Advice on Conventions

The Livestreaming Service Keeps Itself at #1 Twitch has demonstrated again that they're the king of livestreaming video games. In the wake of a lot of negativity surrounding the platform, especially when it comes to upholding their Terms of Service, Amazon has the capability of pulling their platform out of infamy to revival. TwitchCon 2019 was the best convention yet, even better than the first time the livestreaming service was in San Diego. And what's better is they're returning to San Diego again, likely to step their game up. Here are some highlights that happened to me and others. I had the extremely lucky chance to meet Pokimane , a hugely popular streamer (and unbelievably gorgeous woman) that gave an entire crowd of people pizza and some select few (including myself) her own branded jackets. That was probably one of the greatest moments of TwitchCon yet, although I felt a little bad because a lot of people wanted to get pictures with her and she didn'

Streaming Video Games for 6 Years: A Look Back

I really didn't know what I was getting into in 2013. I wanted to practice some video editing skills and see what I was capable of, but building a video editing machine turned out to be one of the most positive mistakes I've made in a long time. My very first stream was of Heavy Rain, and I remember messaging a friend at work to check my stream page. Sure enough, Heavy Rain was on his phone at the time. I nearly dropped the phone because I was so happy with the result. Over the course of the next few days, I cobbled together my stream setup with all my resources. I remember getting Final Fantasy XIV (an early copy under NDA) and started streaming it...I even tagged SqaureSoft in my "going live" tweet. It turns out the game was still under NDA at the time, and I received messages on twitter from other streamers to turn off my stream. Not that many people saw it to begin with, but it was a fantastic learning lesson--read and understand NDAs. All of them. Nearly 6

E3 2019: Quite Possibly My Favorite E3 of All

Phil Spencer recently admitted that the E3 show for 2019 was weaker specifically because Activision and Sony weren't at the con. I couldn't disagree more with his opinion, as I thought this latest con was probably the best--at least for me. And I'll tell you why. Why E3 2019 Was Impressive For Me So, my first foray into E3 was through AOL. I had a very strong misconception that I would be trying the latest games, meeting awesome folks, and partying a ton. The latter part was somewhat true as I got some pretty decent party invites, but the former aspects weren't. Attending E3 under media, especially controlled  media, is a lot more work than you might think. It's quite literally going to an interview, record interview, sit down, write the interview, and go to the next interview. That's about it. You're there to work, and that's what they make you do. Or, of course, you lose your job, and while I can think of many jobs I wouldn't want over

Using Restreamio and Expanding Your Video Game Streaming Audience

It's been a minute, that's for damn sure. I tried re-signing up for the Twitch affiliate status only to realize it wasn't the path I wanted. Restricting oneself to one avenue of video game streaming really isn't the best method of learning the entire market, so I decided to focus my efforts with something that I knew about in the past: Restreamio! Using Restreamio for Video Game Streaming Content Restreamio acts as a streaming hub for several different platforms. You stream to it, and it rebroadcasts to all of your channels. It's convenient and can potentially expand your audience much wider; the only problem, I think, is the matter of hosting. If you're streaming on Twitch, Mixer, YouTube, and Facebook, then it's a matter of hosting who you want to on each individual platform. That's not a very easy task, unfortunately. But if you're looking to get into video game streaming and you don't want to limit yourself to one platform, I think

Sekiro Video Game Content and the Time My Underwear Got Ripped at a Bar

I was probably mid-20s going "back "home as they say when some friends and I casually met up at a local watering hole. We ran into a few old classmates and shared some stories, talked about life, wives, kids, lack thereof, and had some good times. I think at some point I had a Red Bull and vodka because I'm secretly a woman and can't handle liquor unless it's diluted at some point. Sekiro Video Game Content Impressions I've honestly never played a Dark Souls  game, so I was certain I'd be in for a treat with Sekiro.  The only problem is that treat was a chocolate-covered turd. Oh dear lord I must have fought one single boss early on in the game like 20 times before I finally had my one moment of zen in the sun after defeating him. And then, there's this moment: When a large black cock assaults you and knocks half of your health away, you know you're in for a very interesting time. Aside from video game content , I visited the bathroom

Re-signing up for the Twitch Affiliate Program and Twitch Schedule Changes

For the past two and a half years, employment has been an unsteady situation for me. I was scared at times because I wasn't sure if I could actually make a living. Being torn between finding a career that fits your interests and settling in something that makes you a living isn't an easy position. I've faced it multiple times and have even changed interests over time. Originally, I was set on motion picture. Then I was set on a career in gaming. And now, I find myself making a living doing marketing--not dealing with subject matter I care about, but I enjoy the work and I get to come home to do what I want. It's a scary thing to realize that you don't have enough money to make rent and so you have to swallow your pride and do what you must in order to pull yourself out of the darkness. It's not fun. I used to go out almost nightly, hit bar after bar after bar until finally, I realized that way of living wasn't sustainable anymore. I had to scale back and re

2018 in Review: A Reflection on Twitch Streaming and the Videogame Industry

I'm not going to lie to you. This year has been probably the worst year for me in terms of gaming. We've seen a lot of industry shifts happen that are pointing towards a constant reminder: video game companies are corporations. They produce product that people will buy, and if that doesn't happen the company dies. Often times, products aren't what the players want, or perhaps the product isn't a very strong one. Regardless, we must remember that there isn't a thing called a "good" corporation. They just exist for money, and it's a harsh thought as our generation, the people that grew up with these game companies, starts to see our favorite pastime turn into product. As we move into 2019, I'm reflecting on a lot in this post—why I haven't streamed on Twitch or Mixer lately, what I'm dealing with personally, where games might be going in the future and some terrible incidents that have definitely marred gaming. Let me be clear that I