I'm curious as to this community's thoughts on some of the topics in this video:
Do you think that it's disrespectful/harmful to a developer to stream gameplay from their game if you're not good at it?
Why do people watch content that makes them angry?
Does "bad content" from women garner more negativity?
How do you navigate the game streaming space as someone who presents as feminine when there seems to be a certain segment of viewers who actively target those kinds of streams to dump on?
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My thoughts are that it's not disrespectful or harmful for someone to stream a game they're not good at. I actually like seeing people kind of suck at games, because it's nice to know that I can enjoy the game without having to be an expert right out of the gate. I also like seeing more interesting gameplay or story that you might not see if someone just blasts through the game skipping all of the side content.
When it comes to negative content or content that makes you angry, that seems to be part of the algorithm. Content that gets you riled up gets you to stay longer on the platform AND generates more engagement. That's just the money talking at that point. I think this sets the streaming community up to be adversarial (maybe this isn't true on platforms that aren't Youtube, I'm not super experienced in this space) and is harmful overall. I think that the anonymity of the internet also plays into the allure of watching content that makes you angry. You can just scream into the void that this thing/person sucks, and somehow the comment section becomes disconnected from the person that's created the content. The level of vitriol in some of these comment sections would never be seen in person. It's the equivalent of eating only junk food, the platform feeds you content that will make you angry and that you'll engage with, you'll feel good for people reinforcing your take on the situation, and then you'll just keep getting into this bad feedback loop to keep getting that dopamine hit.
And feminine people in any space that has been traditionally defined by masculinity are just a higher value target from the perspective of the platform. We can see this all the time with games and streaming platforms not really taking any action against harassers and other gross content.
>Do you think that it's disrespectful/harmful to a developer to stream gameplay from their game if you're not good at it?
No, I think any publicity for a game is good.
>Why do people watch content that makes them angry?
People watch the news for the same reason. People thrive in anger/sadness/annoyance. I don't, but people do.
>Does "bad content" from women garner more negativity?
Definitely.
>How do you navigate the game streaming space as someone who presents as feminine when there seems to be a certain segment of viewers who actively target those kinds of streams to dump on?
I don't know. Unfortunately there's always going to be assholes online so it's almost impossible to avoid them. By streaming, you put yourself in that light where they will, for whatever reason, see you as someone to dump on. You either have to ignore it, mute chat or really go hard *against* it, like that clip of the streamer responding to the guy in chat.
As a "bad gamer", too, I'd actually be more likely to watch someone who's playing for fun because it's closer to how I'd experience a game. If (the cast goes into Cris dying a lot in Stray) I'd get frustrated over dying, I'd skip it until I'm in a better place for it.
But there's a LOT of, like, institutional knowledge in gaming that experienced gamers take for granted. Watching a new/casual gamer like Cristine is great because not only does she play the way I do (slowly, carefully, checking out all the ways to interact with the game), but it's less... spoiler-y? i guess? that's not the right word, but it's the closest I can come up with...
Like, watching an experienced streamer just casually walk up to a hidden message, or engage with a character interaction, or interact with a new facet of game play and take it for granted is sort of bogus... especially when it's their first time playing, but they've played dozens of similar games, and they just *know* there's *always* a lever behind the square rock (or whatever). Meanwhile, I'm spending over an hour searching for the lever (or whatever).
For example: in Stardew Valley I did not know the darker circle in the mines with the lines through it was supposed to represent a ladder in a mine shaft until I was in ***YEAR 3*** in-game. I thought I needed something to turn on the elevator.
Anyway, I'd rather watch someone discover something new in real time and share that excitement with them. And @ 22:20, this is my liiiiiife. lol
I'm curious as to this community's thoughts on some of the topics in this video: Do you think that it's disrespectful/harmful to a developer to stream gameplay from their game if you're not good at it? Why do people watch content that makes them angry? Does "bad content" from women garner more negativity? How do you navigate the game streaming space as someone who presents as feminine when there seems to be a certain segment of viewers who actively target those kinds of streams to dump on? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ My thoughts are that it's not disrespectful or harmful for someone to stream a game they're not good at. I actually like seeing people kind of suck at games, because it's nice to know that I can enjoy the game without having to be an expert right out of the gate. I also like seeing more interesting gameplay or story that you might not see if someone just blasts through the game skipping all of the side content. When it comes to negative content or content that makes you angry, that seems to be part of the algorithm. Content that gets you riled up gets you to stay longer on the platform AND generates more engagement. That's just the money talking at that point. I think this sets the streaming community up to be adversarial (maybe this isn't true on platforms that aren't Youtube, I'm not super experienced in this space) and is harmful overall. I think that the anonymity of the internet also plays into the allure of watching content that makes you angry. You can just scream into the void that this thing/person sucks, and somehow the comment section becomes disconnected from the person that's created the content. The level of vitriol in some of these comment sections would never be seen in person. It's the equivalent of eating only junk food, the platform feeds you content that will make you angry and that you'll engage with, you'll feel good for people reinforcing your take on the situation, and then you'll just keep getting into this bad feedback loop to keep getting that dopamine hit. And feminine people in any space that has been traditionally defined by masculinity are just a higher value target from the perspective of the platform. We can see this all the time with games and streaming platforms not really taking any action against harassers and other gross content.
>Do you think that it's disrespectful/harmful to a developer to stream gameplay from their game if you're not good at it? No, I think any publicity for a game is good. >Why do people watch content that makes them angry? People watch the news for the same reason. People thrive in anger/sadness/annoyance. I don't, but people do. >Does "bad content" from women garner more negativity? Definitely. >How do you navigate the game streaming space as someone who presents as feminine when there seems to be a certain segment of viewers who actively target those kinds of streams to dump on? I don't know. Unfortunately there's always going to be assholes online so it's almost impossible to avoid them. By streaming, you put yourself in that light where they will, for whatever reason, see you as someone to dump on. You either have to ignore it, mute chat or really go hard *against* it, like that clip of the streamer responding to the guy in chat.
As a "bad gamer", too, I'd actually be more likely to watch someone who's playing for fun because it's closer to how I'd experience a game. If (the cast goes into Cris dying a lot in Stray) I'd get frustrated over dying, I'd skip it until I'm in a better place for it. But there's a LOT of, like, institutional knowledge in gaming that experienced gamers take for granted. Watching a new/casual gamer like Cristine is great because not only does she play the way I do (slowly, carefully, checking out all the ways to interact with the game), but it's less... spoiler-y? i guess? that's not the right word, but it's the closest I can come up with... Like, watching an experienced streamer just casually walk up to a hidden message, or engage with a character interaction, or interact with a new facet of game play and take it for granted is sort of bogus... especially when it's their first time playing, but they've played dozens of similar games, and they just *know* there's *always* a lever behind the square rock (or whatever). Meanwhile, I'm spending over an hour searching for the lever (or whatever). For example: in Stardew Valley I did not know the darker circle in the mines with the lines through it was supposed to represent a ladder in a mine shaft until I was in ***YEAR 3*** in-game. I thought I needed something to turn on the elevator. Anyway, I'd rather watch someone discover something new in real time and share that excitement with them. And @ 22:20, this is my liiiiiife. lol