Video Game Broadcasting, Part 1: Why We Watch
This article is part 1 in a series on web broadcasting and game streaming. I’ll talk about what those are, why gaming streams are so much fun, and how you can start a stream of your own.
What Is It?
A Let’s Play (or LP) is a recording of a playthrough of a video game. The phrase “Let’s Play” was popularized on the Something Awful forums, first applied to “recordings” of only text and pictures. Beyond that, the definition is pretty loose. Let’s Players are really just fans sharing things on the Internet!
A stream is any data you consume while downloading. For example, Netflix, Hulu, and YouTube allow you to watch the beginning of a video while the rest is still downloading. In gaming, streaming refers to “live streams”, meaning feeds you can watch as a players broadcast them.
Why Watch Someone Else Play Video Games?
It’s fun! Shows like Best Friends Play express personality. I watched their series on Parasite Eve, because I’d never played it through to the end. Pat and Woolie’s jovial chatter made it a breeze to watch a long game. I even enjoyed working while just listening to their alternative perspectives on the game.
Live eSports tournaments — like those at Blizzcon and the Capcom Pro Tour — present the excitement of high-stakes competition and demonstrate how far players can push games at high skill levels. These polished productions focus on the game itself more than individual personalities, and the detailed commentary keeps viewers engaged in their game communities.
Crosscounter.tv balances personality and love of the game. There are no better hype men in the fighting game community than Gootecks and Mike Ross. Yes, this will provoke a fight in the comments.
Why Create Your Own Broadcasts?
Your broadcasting contributes to a larger conversation. Journalist Patrick Klepek exhorts readers to start their own podcasts, because “If you’ve ever wanted to have a discussion about a topic but haven’t had a decent reason to bring it up among friends or colleagues, podcasts are the perfect venue.”
LPs similarly contribute to a community conversation; user-driven websites like YouTube democratize content creation. When you share your creations online, they are just as accessible as professional videos. If no one is saying what you think, make your own show and say it for yourself!
At extreme popularity, some people even make careers of streaming. Ad revenue doesn’t amount to much without gigantic audiences, so most people do it for the fun of engaging the community. For example, check out our own Fierce Punch Studios channel, or see our friends at Bro-Ops prepare for the upcoming Injustice 2.
How Does Watching Streams and Let’s Plays Work?
Simply search “Let’s Play” and names of games on user-driven sites like Twitch or YouTube. Dedicated sites like Giant Bomb host on their own sites as well as mirroring content on YouTube. The GB crew does a casual kind of journalism, like that time they tried all the VR games available at the Oculus Rift launch:
How Can I Create A Let’s Play Of My Own?
For our next article, we’ll get into the details of how to actually start your own stream. See you then!
