Gaming
A variety of games comprise Twitch’s most popular streams, combining massive viewer numbers across a collection of games. Accounting for approximately 80% of all content on Twitch, gaming streams range from casual to competitive to esports, providing a home for any style of gamer. Whether you’re speedrunning classics, exploring new releases, or climbing the ranks in competitive play, Twitch welcomes players and viewers of any skill level.
Game Selection
When planning gaming content, it’s important to strike a balance. Consider matching games to your skill set, current gaming trends, popular titles, and your own interests. Building a community is a journey. Start with your passion and create consistent, engaging content that reflects your unique personality and perspective.
Balance personal enjoyment with viewer interests and let your authenticity show through. Track which games resonate with your community and utilize those categories to grow your audience. When testing new games out, maintain your core content and regular games to keep your existing community interested. Create content around games that enable you to share a journey viewers can buy into.
TWITCH TIP:
If you play a variety of games, set a schedule so viewers know what you’re playing on which day.”
CuriousJoi Says: “Never expect your community to run your stream for you… make sure that you interact with either what's in front of you or the chat.”
Game Genre & Types
The game genre you choose shapes your stream and will affect the pace and style. Align your streams with your overall goals, whether you’re playing fast-paced competitive games, relaxing farming titles or story-driven adventures. Viewers will watch your show for different reasons - maintaining your unique style across all content builds a consistent experience.
TWITCH TIP:
Create a plan for your show or a goal for the day. What can viewers look forward to you accomplishing during your show?
Game Pathways
There are three potential pathways a creator can choose when it comes to games. When choosing a pathway, consider long term plans and what your goal might be. Play what you enjoy and avoid forcing yourself to play a game that you may not enjoy solely because it’s trending.
Singular Game Creators build a focused experience around one game. This often results in faster growth and a more passionate audience with a common language. E.g. Creators who play GTA role playing. | Singular Genre Creators play one game type exclusively. This creates long term potential to become an expert in that genre and allows for flexibility within the games themselves. E.g. Creators who stick to FPS games. | Variety E.g. Creators who play a wide range of games. |
|---|
Interaction Inspiration
Your community wants to interact with you and your content. Consider new ways to involve your community to keep viewers interested and engaged throughout all parts of your stream. Twitch tools can help to set your live stream apart!
Community Days | Set a day where your community can join in on the fun. Invite them to join a game with you on stream, play online party games, or Twitch-integrated mini games. Involve viewers by backpacking them in dungeons, letting them join your lobby, or touring their in-game maps and worlds to bring the hype to stream. |
|---|---|
Create rewards that feel authentic to your stream and community to engage viewers. Consider custom rewards that can be seen on screen in real-time. Whether you’re giving your pet a treat, turning your controller upside down, or taking a stretch break, Channel Points can keep your audience interested. TWITCH TIP: | |
Posting a Poll is a great way to receive feedback from your viewers. The right Poll can help direct your content and align it with community interests. Voting on next stream’s game, what character to try next, or who to romance lets everyone in chat have a say in what’s happening. | |
Stream Together is a great way to collaborate! You can share who you’re streaming with and turn on Shared Chat for a unified viewing experience. From extracting treasure together to taking on zombies, Stream Together can ensure your community doesn’t miss a moment. | |
Help your community score some in-game loot! Viewers can unlock rewards by meeting watch time or subscription requirements. Drops can help attract new viewers and incentivize an existing audience which can boost growth. | |
Community members can transform into a character in a game, spawn a monster, or feed a virtual pet through Extensions! From tracking gaming statistics, attacking you with tomatoes, or putting a sticker on your stream Extensions can keep things exciting for everyone! |
