Watching Other People Play Video Games
The notion of live streaming or recording video game playthroughs is now a clearly established part of popular culture. It is something you can do while sitting on your sofa, watching TV in your lounge. A decade ago, people were far more sceptical about it and would scratch their head and ask “why would you want to watch someone else play a game”? Yet here we are in 2025 and 15% of YouTube content is about video games. Furthermore 20 out of the top 100 content creators are producing video game related material. As of last year, YouTube videos about games were generating 6 billion monthly views, on average. Where there are views, there’s advertising. Hence there’s the potential to make a lot of money, which only encourages further growth.
The notion of live streaming or recording video game playthroughs is now a clearly established part of popular culture. It is something you can do while sitting on your sofa, watching TV in your lounge. A decade ago, people were far more sceptical about it and would scratch their head and ask “why would you want to watch someone else play a game”? Yet here we are in 2025 and 15% of YouTube content is about video games. Furthermore 20 out of the top 100 content creators are producing video game related material. As of last year, YouTube videos about games were generating 6 billion monthly views, on average. Where there are views, there’s advertising. Hence there’s the potential to make a lot of money, which only encourages further growth.
I won’t waste too much time extolling the virtues of Twitch TV and YouTube from a gamers perspective. They provide free marketing and promotion of video games along with a wealth of useful tips and hints. In many ways, videos can be far better than in-game tutorials. Content creators can also create communities. If I am considering buying a new game, I will always go online to watch some gameplay footage prior to purchase, to see if the game suits my personal tastes. Hence, in principle all of these examples are useful things. The content creators do all the immediate work and provide a service that is easy to consume and essentially free. However, if you examine this “cottage industry” a little more closely, then you’ll find that there are plenty of potential flaws and pitfalls.
Dr Disrespect is a well known internet twat
Content creators are not held to any professional standards or subject to any code of ethics. Hence, things may not always be as they appear and expressed views may be driven by other agendas, rather than being purely personal opinion. Furthermore, the bar for uploading material to YouTube is pretty low. It is technically not that difficult to do and as a result the standard of content varies greatly. The ability to press record and talk is no guarantee of quality. I suppose the politest thing that can be said is that there is a lot of “white noise” out there. The democratisation of video production has many positive virtues. People can make niche market content and connect with others all over the world to build communities. However, there is virtually no quality control and the free market approach leads to a race to the bottom.
Like many other people, I have watched YouTube videos and thought to myself “well if they can do that, so can I”. Sometimes I think with a degree of hubris, that I could do better. So I have decided to carry out a few test recordings of video game footage and see if I can edit together some content suitable to upload to my abandoned YouTube channel. So I have purchased some video editing software and will spend the next few weeks seeing what I can come up with. I have no aspirations beyond this at present. I’m more interested in the process of making videos, rather than growing a YouTube channel. The latter seems like a lot of hard work as you try to identify a target audience and then produce regular content to appeal to that demographic. It is an already saturated market that is very competitive. Plus YouTube places a lot of restrictions upon content that seeks monetisation.
Gamergate: Ten years On
Usually 10 year anniversaries are pleasant things to celebrate. Sadly that is not the case with Gamergate, which took place a decade ago this month. For me, this curious and unpleasant debacle was something that happened online and it didn’t impact upon my life directly. I wasn't threatened in any way, I didn't receive a tide of abuse and I didn't have to quit social media or my job. However for some people, that is exactly what did happen. I, like many others, just stood on the margins as events unfolded and looked on, agog as this exquisite car crash of a “movement” that proceeded to shoot itself and the wider gaming community collectively through the foot. It is no coincidence that this happened as gaming was becoming a mainstream pastime and slowly shedding a lot of the negative connotations associated with it. Gamergate purposely arrested that process.
Usually 10 year anniversaries are pleasant things to celebrate. Sadly that is not the case with Gamergate, which took place a decade ago this month. For me, this curious and unpleasant debacle was something that happened online and it didn’t impact upon my life directly. I wasn't threatened in any way, I didn't receive a tide of abuse and I didn't have to quit social media or my job. However for some people, that is exactly what did happen. I, like many others, just stood on the margins as events unfolded and looked on, agog as this exquisite car crash of a “movement” that proceeded to shoot itself and the wider gaming community collectively through the foot. It is no coincidence that this happened as gaming was becoming a mainstream pastime and slowly shedding a lot of the negative connotations associated with it. Gamergate purposely arrested that process.
If you’re not au fait with Gamergate, Wikipedia has a substantive page about the affair that provides a comprehensive overview. To summarise, Gamergate originally claimed to be an informal online campaign that was lobbying for apolitical video games’ journalism. I don't dispute that there were some advocates who were focused on the failings of games journalism at the time but they were quickly drowned out by the bellicose rhetoric of others with a far less pleasant agenda. Gamergate quickly became a decentralised harassment campaign and a clear political backlash against feminism, diversity, representation and any form of progressivism in video game culture and communities. With hindsight and in light of the information that has subsequently come to light, Gamergate was part of the wider culture wars that have been stoked by right in the US for the last twenty years.
There were some positive aspects to Gamergate. Primarily that there was a market for diverse video games and game studios. Also that representation was not an impediment to sales. In fact by embracing such a philosophy you could potentially increase sales. It also proved that video games were not the exclusive prerogative of white males, although so much of the unpleasant pushback came from that group. Gamergate also shone a light upon the video games industry that proved it to be as problematic as any other leisure industry. The workplace was all too often toxic, prejudicial and exploitative. Misogyny was all too common. Gamergate was ultimately no different from comparable debacles that the music, film and TV industries have experienced over the years, highlighting identical problems. Gamergate also afforded many gamers an opportunity to see the entire industry for what it really is. IE Just as flawed as any other.
Ten years on has anything changed as a result of Gamergate? I’d argue no. Gamers are a broad group of people, from multiple socio-economic groups. Apart from the common theme of a shared pastime, it would be illogical to expect there to be a consensus on major political, social and cultural issues. Hence there are gamers that still advocate and enjoy the benefits of inclusive gaming as there are those opposed to such perceived liberalism. At the time, Gamergate was a rude awakening for many gamers who were shocked to find that numerous bloggers, YouTube personalities and internet friends, were not on “the same page” as they were. A decade later, it is not quite so surprising. Many influencers happily wear their hearts on their sleeve and I would argue that it’s a lot easier to identify who is who these days.
Upon reflection Gamergate was an inevitability. Too many gamers for too long erroneously thought that the gaming community was a unique flower. They failed to see that any activity will become a cultural battleground, once it becomes big enough. There appears to be a critical mass for any community and once exceeded, division and rancour always emerge. Perhaps it's just another integral aspect of the human condition. That's not to say that we should give up on pushing for change. The video games industry should be able to accommodate everyone’s needs. However, we need to recognise that big business is seldom a meritocracy. If left to its own devices it will seldom stray beyond the path of least resistance. As for the gamers in favour of Gamergate ten years ago, they’re still out there and their views haven’t changed. If anything they’re more confident and vocal. But that means there is less ambiguity nowadays. To see where someone stands, all one has to do is look.
Gamergate: Seven Years On
Not so long ago, Gamergate was referenced in a chat channel on one of the Discord servers that I frequent. Contrary to what I was expecting, this passing remark sparked very little response. Due to the age of some of the people present, they had to Google Gamergate to determine what it was all about. Those who were more au fait with the entire debacle broadly expressed the following sentiments. Firstly, was it seven years ago already? Secondly, in light of the ongoing Blizzard Entertainment controversy, it doesn’t seem that much has changed either within the gaming industry or the wider gaming community. The angry backlash against progressivism in video games now just seems to be focused elsewhere in society. Overall Gamergate was just one facet of the ongoing culture wars. At present that battle is being fought over some other issues and in a different field. But it’s still out there.
Not so long ago, Gamergate was referenced in a chat channel on one of the Discord servers that I frequent. Contrary to what I was expecting, this passing remark sparked very little response. Due to the age of some of the people present, they had to Google Gamergate to determine what it was all about. Those who were more au fait with the entire debacle broadly expressed the following sentiments. Firstly, was it seven years ago already? Secondly, in light of the ongoing Blizzard Entertainment controversy, it doesn’t seem that much has changed either within the gaming industry or the wider gaming community. The angry backlash against progressivism in video games now just seems to be focused elsewhere in society. Overall Gamergate was just one facet of the ongoing culture wars. At present that battle is being fought over some other issues and in a different field. But it’s still out there.
As someone who is interested in gaming as an artform as well as a leisure activity, I was fascinated but not surprised that video games became a focal point for such an angry controversy. Art is by its very nature political and many leisure activities have become more mainstream and accessible in recent years. Commercial success means change and inclusion. Such things are not universally well received. And five years hence exactly the same pushback exists. You’ll find it on subreddits and on twitter whenever some change is proposed to a game to make it accessible to a wider audience. People like to see themselves in the games they play. Sadly, some others don’t want to see them for “reasons”. Mercifully the angry mob is a bit light the Eye of Sauron. It attends to some places more than others, according to its need. At present there’s more traction to be had through anti-vax propaganda and fighting the oppression of COVD-19 and the pandemic.
The question that is most commonly raised in connection to Gamergate is whether it spoiled video games and the associated culture. I’d argue that the video games industry was spoiled a long time ago. The rot set in with changes to monetisation and the overall business model, which has fundamentally broken the way games are made. But Gamergate certainly had an impact on the wider gaming community. Specifically, I’ve seen a lot of good people withdraw from gaming culture because they don’t feel welcome and have been exhausted by the daily diet of bullshit and vitriol aimed at them or their communities. That grieves me because I see diversity as a great strength as well as a source of joy. Furthermore, I worry that Gamergate is akin to a dose of Malaria and at some point in the future it will return to trouble the community once again. It’s been seven years and counting.