Why Are Gaming Streamers Going Back to Twitch?
There has been a trend of YouTube gaming streamers announcing a return to Twitch, the most recent being Timothy "TimTheTatman" Betar. This has fans wondering why streamers are all migrating back to the streaming platform.
Twitch has consistently been the dominant streaming platform for gamers over the past few years, but some streamers became skeptical when the regulations became stricter and the bans became more frequent. A lot of content creators moved to YouTube Gaming and Kick (and who can forget Tyler "Ninja" Blevins moving to Mixer?), usually due to more lucrative contracts or in hopes of having more freedom with content.
But it seems like a lot of streamers are coming back to Twitch now. Why is that?
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TimTheTatman Back on Twitch, Here's Why
It was reported earlier today that TimTheTatman is back to streaming on Twitch. Known for collaborating with other big name game streamers, fans found this pretty interesting and wondered what made him change over.
Timthetatman is officially back on Twitch, he is now also multi streaming pic.twitter.com/AWBFHRRSSE
— Jake Lucky (@JakeSucky) September 1, 2024
Fans wondered if TimTheTatman and other streamers were returning to Twitch due to some improvement with the streaming platform. Was the pay better now? Did the sub split change? Less regulations?
But the real reason was recently discussed by Call of Duty pro Kris "Swagg" Lamberson in a video called "Why I'm Leaving YouTube."
According to Swagg, his exclusive contract with YouTube Gaming has ended after two years. He explained that YouTube's content strategy has changed since he first joined. Over time, YouTube's focus moved away from supporting top streamers and went to short form content.
"YouTube Shorts are a massive thing," Swagg said, nothing that they would rather compete with TikTok rather than focus on streaming. "They did the absolute best they can, but their direction is now in short form content."
Swagg said that he sees YouTube possibly regretting this once new games keep coming out. He said that the new games coming out, like Black Ops 6, will bring hype to gaming and esports. Now, YouTube may miss out on this newfound hype and possible growth.
Some fans were a bit skeptical of Swagg's reasoning, however. Said one YouTube comment: "Bro could have just said 'money' and saved 10 minutes of everyone's life."
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Swagg said that it's "deeper" than just his contract ending. He said that everyone on FaZe Clan is on Twitch and it feels right to all be streaming on Twitch together and "all collaborate together" a bit easier.
Swagg will now be streaming daily on Twitch, as well as many other gaming streamers.
Olivia is a long-time esports journalist and editor who covers just about every game but has a deep love for the FGC. Her goal is to find community-driven stories that bring a new perspective to the esports scene. In the past, she has worked for Team Liquid, Rogue, Inven Global, Dot Esports, Upcomer, and more. Outside of esports, Olivia enjoys Kirby, Pokemon TCG, Fallout, and writing science fiction. She can be found trying out new foods, traveling, or hanging out with her two orange cats. Fun fact: Olivia can do some video game and cartoon impressions!