Introduction

Three previously recorded Twitch streams were selected to examine how streamers approach the “work of play” (Taylor, 2018), as well as how community and social interaction contribute to media enjoyment, as described by Wulf et al. (2020). Streams were selected based on their distinctiveness in style, popularity, and games played. The first stream was by female streamer Snowmixy playing World of Warcraft (WoW). The second stream was by young British streamer tommyinnit’s gameplay of Among Us, an online social deduction game. The final stream was by Ninja playing Valorant, a team-based first-person shooter.

The Work of Play

Many of the observations made by Taylor (2018) regarding the professional and performative nature of streaming on Twitch were evident in each of the viewed streams to varying degrees. The level of professionalism of each streamer differed slightly and correlated with the size of their following and target audience. Snowmixy is the smallest channel with 158K followers. Tommyinnit is the next largest channel with 3.8M followers and can be considered a “variety broadcaster.” Ninja is perhaps the most popular e-sports player in the world and is by far the largest channel with 16.7M followers.

Production

Each of the three streamers operate out of a home studio. Snowmixy and tommyinnit appear to stream from home offices or bedrooms and use a microphone and headset, respectively. Ninja similarly does not utilize a greenscreen, but his home studio has a distinct futuristic ambience with the use of blue light and equipment in the background. All three streamers utilize social media platforms, such as Twitter, to announce when they are about to begin streaming; however, only tommyinnit and Ninja utilized a countdown clock on their stream, with Ninja’s showing noticeably higher production value. Snowmixy’s approach was to begin streaming and wait for viewers to join before beginning play.

Krihzak Gaming (2018, Dec 21). Ninja’s new Stream Starting Intro! [Video]. YouTube.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RP1esMtYZOI

Set Design

“Complex sets” of additional multimedia were also evident in each stream, serving to build and maintain viewership by creating a brand (Taylor, 2018). Examples of this included customized donation and subscriber icons, pop-up ads, chat bots, and merchandise stores.

Performance

Taylor notes, “Accomplished broadcasters make compelling performances and productions” that have developed into full-fledged shows (p. 68). Snowmixy could be described as a “broadcast of play,” as she was more casual in her approach, eating at times throughout her eleven-hour stream, and had minimal use of the “think-aloud method” while playing alone. Once a friend joined to play cooperatively, they were much more vocal as they coordinated to be successful in the game. Taylor argues that streamers are often “capable of respecting copyright’s legitimate scope while preserving space for transformation,” so it was interesting to note that much of Snowmixy’s stream was muted due to copyright claims of music played in the background (p.79).

Tommyinnit and Ninja were much more performance based, although with different approaches. From the start of his stream, it was clear that tommyinnit was striving to put on a performance by utilizing his charisma and humour. The first twenty minutes of his broadcast feature no gameplay. Instead, tommyinnit updated his viewers and made jokes akin to a Tonight Show monologue. Gameplay seemed to be secondary to the performance nature of his stream.

Tommyinnit’s Introduction

Ninja aligned with Taylor’s observation concerning e-sports players that the “very act of showing virtuoso play is itself a performance” (p. 70). As one of the most popular e-sports competitors in the world, Ninja did not utilize theatrics in his performance. Instead, his gameplay was focused and intense, only communicating with his online team members to coordinate play, and he became visibly and verbally upset when unsuccessful. The stress of being a professional e-sports player may have contributed to his irritability, at one point criticizing an article about him that was posted in the chat.

Critique and Evaluation

World of Warcraft released in 2004 and still has a relatively large player base. As such, there is a large amount of expertise within the community. Although Snowmixy included some critical commentary surrounding strategy and customization, recommendations and debate were common in the chat, making the stream a much more egalitarian experience.

Tommyinnit made no attempt at critical commentary. Much of the humour and audience engagement was derived from his incompetence in the game.

Ninja’s game analysis was evident not through direct commentary but through his interaction with his teammates as he gave strategic orders and pointed out mistakes. When a viewer criticized his play and attempted to make a suggestion, they were quickly shut down by other viewers and moderators.

Sociality and Community Engagement

All three streamers engaged in community engagement to some degree, such as welcoming viewers, constantly checking and responding to the chat, and using moderators in the larger streams.  A sense of community was evident as many commenters were recurring viewers. In Snowmixy’s stream, viewers often asked for music recommendations and updates in her personal life which she happily provided. Unfortunately, it only took several minutes for Snowmixy to receive sexist comments; however, when it happened again later other commenters were quick to call out the inappropriate behaviour.

Tommyinnit’s chat was the most chaotic, reflecting his streaming style, and often teased him for his lack of skill.

Ninja only engaged with the community in between games, largely to thank them for donations or subscriptions. He was also the only streamer to post a set of community guidelines.

All streamers promoted various social media accounts.

Commercial Frameworks

Tommyinnit displayed the least amount of commercialization during his broadcast, surprising considering his large following. Snowmixy utilized bots and graphical overlays to promote sponsorships and donation requests. Ninja utilized similar resources with a higher degree of professionalism, with personalized logos and a branded merchandise shop. All three streams developed a sense of community to further build their brand.

Conclusion

Wulf et al. (2020) argue that viewers may not experience enjoyment because of the streamer’s competence, but rather from the “sympathy and relationship to the streaming persona as well as the social dynamics within the channel’s community” (p.338). The authors acknowledge, however, that this may differ depending on context. This was evident in the differences between the streams of tommyinnit, which focused on comedic performance, and Ninja, which focused on expert gameplay and analysis. Regardless of approach, each stream demonstrated Twitch’s unique capabilities as a social medium to feature expertise and performance, as well as a participatory community, enabling “the possibility to engage in unique relationships regarding both sympathy and profession” (p.339).

References

Ninja. (2021, Feb 12). Valorant ranked grind [Video]. Twitch. https://www.twitch.tv/videos/911198082.

Snowmixy. (2021, Feb 16). 3k cr hpala – R1 HPALA 3289 XP !nordvpn !paxful !discord [Video]. Twitch. https://www.twitch.tv/videos/916308285.

Taylor, T. L. (2018). Twitch and the work of play. American Journal of Play, 11(1), 65-84.

tommyinnit. (2021, Feb 10). Very special stream with KSI & Wilbur [Video]. Twitch. https://www.twitch.tv/videos/908873056.

Wulf, T., Schneider, F. M., & Beckert, S. (2020). Watching players: An exploration of media enjoyment on twitch. Games and Culture, 15(3), 155541201878816-346. doi:10.1177/1555412018788161