YouGame Issue 1
April 2016
The magazine for the YouTube gamer
Inside I57
Battle of the streams
Which gamer got a Diamond Play Button?
GAMERS NEVER SLEEP insomnia noun habitual sleeplessness; inability to sleep. Or the UK’s biggest gaming festival. Founded in 1999, Insomnia Gaming Festival has been a big hit for over 14 years, attracting gaming fans from all over the UK, and further. At each event, attendees can bring their own consoles to compete against each other, check out new and upcoming games, and watch live shows, both by promoters and YouTube stars. Special guests were the main attraction, and it wasn’t hard to tell. The crowds were a sea of black with golden lions on their t-shirts, the logo of Tom Cassell (TheSyndicateProject). With over 9 million subscribers on one channel alone, Syndicate is considered YouTube royalty. When he stepped out on stage during the Opening Ceremony, he almost seemed baffled by the sheer volume of the crowd,
all cheering for him. Sponsored by Razer, a company who produces technology for gaming computers, the booths were packed full of adoring fans, all hoping for a glimpse of the YouTube sensation. But Syndicate wasn’t the only one who fans would queue hours for. The Yogscast, made up of a network of YouTube gamers, also attended. Yogscast founder Lewis Brinley was there, as well as members Sjin, Hannah, Kim, Duncan and Hatfilms. All with separate channels, they form a network called the Yogscast family. They had their own booth, split into two sides in order to reduce the amount of queuing time. They also had a number of live shows, including ones where they played games such as Gang Beasts and Hearthstone, and their own special out of hours show, The Battle of the Yogscast
All-stars. This followed the format of a team game show, where they split into two teams and competed in a series of rounds. Some included guessing acapella game theme tunes, naming things in certain categories, and doing a bonus film round, in which their faces were photoshopped onto famous movie stills. We know the fans lapped it up, but how did the Yogscast feel? “You think we look tired today? We’ll all be dead on our feet tomorrow,” Sjin, real name Paul Sykes, said. He looked down the table at where Ross, Alsmithy and Trott of Hatfilms were sat. “They’re all knackered but we wouldn’t give this up for the world. Our subscribers and followers are all so dedicated, queuing to see some losers who make videos on the internet.” And with a combined 20 million subscribers over their network of channels, it’s not hard to see why they had so many fans come to see them.
BATTLE OF THE LIVE STREAMS
Who will come out on top as the best live streaming website?
VS Twitch.tv was launched 4 years ago, and soon became the most popular game streaming site on the internet. With over 11 million monthly visitors, it was unlikely any other streaming service would come close. And this continues to be the case. YouTube Gam-
ing lauched in 2015, in order to compete with Twitch. However, when real gamers were asked about their preference, all of them prefered what they were used to. Twitch streamer Debbie Timmins, also known as Weefz, claimed that the interface was worse on
YouTube Gaming than her original streaming location. “I’m not sure what’s a video and what’s a live-stream. It’s just difficult to use.” So as YouTube Gaming grows up and expands, will it outcompete Twitch? Only time will tell.
DIAMONDMINECART AWARDED DIAMOND PLAY BUTTON
Source - YouTube.com
YouTube channel ‘TheDiamondMinecart’ hit 10 million subscribers on the 26th of March. He celebrated his achievement by announcing it on stage at Insomnia Gaming Festival. Dan Middleton started his channel in 2012 in order to share his Minecraft videos with
children. However, Middleton created his first channel, ‘PokemanDanLv45’, when he attended The University of Northampton. A Wellingborough local, Middleton is married and works from home. Reaching 10 million subscribers means that YouTube will award a Diamond play button.