The biggest takeaways from TheGrefg’s viewership record

published on ClutchPoints.com

https://clutchpoints.com/the-biggest-takeaways-from-thegrefgs-viewership-record/

When David “TheGrefg” Martinez shattered the Twitch records by reaching 2.4 million concurrent viewers, it paved the way for a lot of discussions about the future of Twitch. If before American streamers are the ones making a name in the platform, nowadays it seems that international Twitch streamers are making their mark.

StreamElements CEO Doron Nir perfectly nailed the significance of this achievement in his interview with IGN.

All of the major live streaming platforms have sizable international bases, but having a milestone like this set by a Spanish language streamer helps put a spotlight on the broad appeal of the industry.

In fact there are many other talking points that can be discussed and here are some of them.

TWITCH’S GLOBAL COMMUNITY HAS ARRIVED

Though there are international streamers who already ventured on Twitch, it took years for them to match up against their American counterparts. Indeed there were some recognizable figures however most of them are professional players. During the 2020 Esports Awards, it was revealed that international streamers like Ibai Llanos and Naman “Mortal” Sandeep Mathur were both nominated for the Esports Streamer of the Year Award. To everyone’s surprise, Llanos bagged the award while Mortal was the 1st Runner up.

Llanos’ victory opened the doors that foreign speaking streamers can garner the same respect and attention as their English speaking counterparts. Gone are the days when international professional players are the ones carrying the banners as Llanos has proved that entertainers and content creators can be of huge significance as well.

And this is later confirmed by TheGrefg’s latest accomplishment. Surpassing Tyler “Ninja” Blevins who was one of the biggest stars of Twitch is no laughing matter. Grefg didn’t just surpass Ninja by a small difference, it was lopsided. He even surpassed the 1.7 million concurrent Twitch viewership of Worlds 2019.

2 million viewers as compared to Ninja’s record at 635,000 viewers or League of Legends’ 1.7 million? I mean, how could you topple that? The 635,000 viewers of Ninja came from his collaboration with Canadian rapper Drake and Worlds is one of the biggest esports tournaments in the world. Grefg’s 2 million was just him revealing his Fortnite skin.

The pandemic may have contributed to Grefg’s accomplishment as viewers are now inclined to look for anything entertaining in this time of crisis. In fact, Twitch’s numbers skyrocketed courtesy of the crisis.

Regardless if his achievements was caused by the pandemic or not, he did the impossible.

And it wasn’t just Ibai or Grefg that made their mark as other non-English streamers like Gaules, auroplay, and Rubius, were among the top 10 in terms of Twitch viewership in 2020.

TWITCH IS STILL A DOMINANT STREAMING PLATFORM

When Dr. Disrespect was banned from Twitch, some were quick to note that this could signal the platform’s demise. Having one of the biggest names in the industry leave is something that could rock the ship.

Well there are other big names on Twitch like Shroud, Tyler1, Ninja, and Valkyrae so there’s no need for the platform to press the panic button. At one point, Shroud left the platform as Mixer wanted him to be their franchise player. But catastrophe happened where the site went dark, forcing Shroud to return to Twitch.

However the rise of the international community has allowed Twitch to maintain their status as the premier streaming destination. The popularity of Grefg and Ibai revealed that there is a strong international presence in the industry and this further supplemented by the efforts of other non-English streamers. Their community covers the international scene, which could explain the herculean increases in Twitch’s viewership numbers.

Both YouTube and Facebook are knocking on the doorstep but the their numbers aren’t significant enough to topple the dominance of Twitch. The rise of the international community on Twitch has stomped their progress.

FORTNITE IS STILL THE BIGGEST GAME ON TWITCH

Whether you like it or not, Fortnite is still the number one game on Twitch. You could argue all day that Fortnite is just relying on fan service with their decision to acquire the Walking Dead, Star Wars, Halo, and Marvel comics, but in the end the game is still relevant.

Oh and please don’t try to fool me by saying that Fortnite is a dying game because nothing new is happening. The fact that Grefg’s skin revelation reached 2 million viewers more than any esports event means that the game has more impact than what the rumors are saying.

From 64 million hours viewed in 2019 to 108 million hours in 2020, now that’s something that will leave you in awe to the point where you start dropping that delicious cold beer from your hands.

Other games tried their best to match their efforts but it still couldn’t topple the giant. Perhaps it could remain the same in the next few years. Will there be a potential industry shaper? Only time will tell? The same question likewise applies to Grefg if he could maintain his momentous achievement.