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Disclaimer: Gaming is pretty much the single most saturated niche on YouTube, to the extent that it even has its own platform (Twitch). The tops below are my list of things that cover what I see people doing right, what they are doing wrong, things that we don't see and they will work equally for any platform. That having been said I am not a gaming-channel authority and as such I request/encourage readers to include their opinions as well as their criticism of my article. By working together we all become better.
Gaming; it is the new American dream. You pick up your favorite title, plug it in and start streaming. As you play the fans come rolling in, you amassed millions upon millions of views as well as hundreds of dollars in superchats every time you hit record. Life is good.
Except you are not that guy. You are the guy with 125 subscribers clawing and scratching your way through an endless field of gamers all making what feels like the exact same content. So how do you stand out? What can you do to set yourself apart and make yourself known? Even in todays market there are things that you can do in order to make it as a gamer, but understand that it is going to come at a price. It will require work. Let me say that again... It will require work. This can not be overstated.
Pick A Game
The YouTube algorithm is not as hard and complicated as people make it sound. Honestly, the biggest problem with the algorithm (I'm going to call it Search and Discovery form here on out as 'the algorithm' is a misnomer and SDS is easier to type) is that so many people want to be successful but refuse to bend to the wills of SDS. It's not as fun cutting out the parts of your video that you like when they perform poorly. It inhibits your artistry and right to free speech when you have to cut the curse words and it is a PAIN to make those tedious, time-consuming edits to your videos. But if you want to be found you need to take a serious look at your analytics and make data-driven decisions. You are going to need to take the time to edit yours videos. And I highly suggest you start by making it simple for the SDS to put your videos in front of people who want to see them by niching down. Pick one game and be a master. be an authority on that game. It is sooo much easier for YouTube when they know that you make Stranded Deep videos. Not video game videos, not random videos about games that some people care about but not everybody cares about... give YouTube a single, laser-focused thing to focus on. You make Stranded Deep videos. So when people type Stranded Deep YouTube is like 'hey, I know a channel that has TONS of Stranded Deep content!' Believe me, if you make content for 5-10 different games and someone searches Stranded Deep YouTube is not saying 'Hey... I know a channel that makes a bunch of random videos about various games one of which is Stranded Deep.'
Be An Authority
This is tough! This is sooo hard! You need to be the best at the game. You need to be an authority. You need to be able to answer ALL the questions. DO playthroughs, that is fun and entertaining and we all enjoy that. But you also need to be the guy to talk to. A great example of this is Farket. He started making videos about The Forest... and while he did videos on other games as well (he found an early, cult audience with The Forest) his main focus was on The Forest. He did several playthroughs, but what really set him apart was the detailed and thorough videos he made about how the game works. He made videos about the map, how to find all the weapons, which weapons were statistically better, which weapons were better versus enemies, which weapons were better versus buildings, what was the fastest route to find all the weapons... every week was a new, data-driven tutorial on things he had discovered. He took over the wiki page and created Reddit and Discord pages for the game. His knowledge was encyclopedic.
This level of energy and passion can be daunting. It can take the fun out of the game. But like I said, being a successful gamer on YouTube comes at a price and the first payment is often your enjoyment of the games you play. Be ready for that.
Be Entertaining
So not only do you need to put in the work and lose your enjoyment of a single game... you need to be entertaining when you do it. You need to be fun. You need charisma. Even when you have been streaming for six hours on your third day of the week and you are tired and your eyes hurt and all you want to do is run to a friends house and do anything that isn't this video game you MUST put a smile on your face and entertain your audience. Don't get me wring; I am a HUGE proponent of mental health. And this is why. Because these days happen. You will get burned out and you must prepare for that. But you need to be able to balance mental health with your ability to remain entertaining. When you lose your ability to entertain your channel is dead.
Being entertaining isn't as daunting as it may seem, but it will require you to get creative. I don't have specific statistics to refer to but I believe that channels who feature the gamer's face while playing fair better. It adds another layer of interest to the game because it gives a narrative to the events that are transpiring... so while you are not required to show your face if you really want to succeed it is advised. Practice talking to the camera like it's your best friend. Practice explaining what is happening in the game. As mentioned above you should be editing your videos to get a leg up on your competition, so you can edit out the dead space and the 'ums' and 'uhs' and any other stupid thing you say. Yeah... that's work. But all part of the game. Also... did I mention this will require work. That means putting in work being a personality. Don't fake it (unless putting on a mask and being a character is something you want to take a crack at). Normally I would advise you to be 110% you. Be you on your best day... just do that every day. Or at least when you are recording.
Pick the Other Game
Cyberpunk 2077... there you go. After a heinous eight-year production process the game of the year is finally here! It is in our hands and we can FINALLY start playing it and making our videos and growing our channels!!! Right?!
Nope.
Don't get me wrong, you can take all the advice above and just swing for the fences, there is nothing wrong with that. But let's be realistic; there are probably 100 people streaming that game as we speak. While the odds of you performing for Cyberpunk search/suggested are improved with the information here the fact of the matter is that the market is as saturated as s physically possible with this game. Which is EXACTLY why right now is the time to make content about something else. Go and serve an underserved niche. Use the TubeBuddy keyword research tool to uncover games that people are searching for with little competition.
Edit Your Videos
I know I mentioned this twice now, but it deserves a moment as it's own specific tip. People are so accustomed to seeing a game being played that it behooves you to do something to set yourself apart and your editing is a REALLY good way of doing that. Cut out the boring parts of the game. Add overlays. Create your own game related graphics, maps, HUD, use your own music... anything you can do to customize the experience is going to add a TON of appeal. Add cutscenes, memes etc. There are soo many options that are available in the editing bay.
Say Goodbye to TV and Hello to Nick Nimmin!
This is kind of a universal thing I say to anyone grinding for YouTube, but it fits here equally as well. When I started I was serious about making a successful YouTube channel... like SUPER serious. I gave up television, gaming and the radio for two full years (and then some). That was all time spent NOT being successful on YouTube. Instead of watching TV I watched Nick Nimmin videos. Instead of listening to the radio during my 45 minute work commute every day I put on a Roberto Blake playlist. My time spent gaming was replaced with Dee Nimmin and Daniel Batal videos (and yeah, as a gamer you are going to sacrifice gaming time to your channel).
Get Creative
No, I don't have any tricks for this. But getting creative is the difference between a good channel and a great channel. Maybe it means supplimenting your videos with the occasional niche-related prank or recording your dad's reactions to the game as you play. Maybe it means setting up your system so that you play the game at the beach every day or find a deli that is willing to let you stream from one of their booths as a means of free advertising. The more out there you can get the more eye-catching and attention grabbing you can be the more likely you are to be seen (just don't be f***joshy). Get together with your friends and have a brainstorm session, see what fun things you can come up with.
We are living in a different world right now. The evolution of technology continues to take us to new levels in everything that we do. These advancements bring us amazing games; works of art that stand historically alongside greats like Michaelangelo and Van Eyck. They also give us unparalleled access to people in a way we've never known, and this can make for stiff competition when you are trying to stand out. Make your content great, put in the work and make data-driven decisions. It can be crowded... but crowded isn't impossible.
Gaming; it is the new American dream. You pick up your favorite title, plug it in and start streaming. As you play the fans come rolling in, you amassed millions upon millions of views as well as hundreds of dollars in superchats every time you hit record. Life is good.
Except you are not that guy. You are the guy with 125 subscribers clawing and scratching your way through an endless field of gamers all making what feels like the exact same content. So how do you stand out? What can you do to set yourself apart and make yourself known? Even in todays market there are things that you can do in order to make it as a gamer, but understand that it is going to come at a price. It will require work. Let me say that again... It will require work. This can not be overstated.
Pick A Game
The YouTube algorithm is not as hard and complicated as people make it sound. Honestly, the biggest problem with the algorithm (I'm going to call it Search and Discovery form here on out as 'the algorithm' is a misnomer and SDS is easier to type) is that so many people want to be successful but refuse to bend to the wills of SDS. It's not as fun cutting out the parts of your video that you like when they perform poorly. It inhibits your artistry and right to free speech when you have to cut the curse words and it is a PAIN to make those tedious, time-consuming edits to your videos. But if you want to be found you need to take a serious look at your analytics and make data-driven decisions. You are going to need to take the time to edit yours videos. And I highly suggest you start by making it simple for the SDS to put your videos in front of people who want to see them by niching down. Pick one game and be a master. be an authority on that game. It is sooo much easier for YouTube when they know that you make Stranded Deep videos. Not video game videos, not random videos about games that some people care about but not everybody cares about... give YouTube a single, laser-focused thing to focus on. You make Stranded Deep videos. So when people type Stranded Deep YouTube is like 'hey, I know a channel that has TONS of Stranded Deep content!' Believe me, if you make content for 5-10 different games and someone searches Stranded Deep YouTube is not saying 'Hey... I know a channel that makes a bunch of random videos about various games one of which is Stranded Deep.'
Be An Authority
This is tough! This is sooo hard! You need to be the best at the game. You need to be an authority. You need to be able to answer ALL the questions. DO playthroughs, that is fun and entertaining and we all enjoy that. But you also need to be the guy to talk to. A great example of this is Farket. He started making videos about The Forest... and while he did videos on other games as well (he found an early, cult audience with The Forest) his main focus was on The Forest. He did several playthroughs, but what really set him apart was the detailed and thorough videos he made about how the game works. He made videos about the map, how to find all the weapons, which weapons were statistically better, which weapons were better versus enemies, which weapons were better versus buildings, what was the fastest route to find all the weapons... every week was a new, data-driven tutorial on things he had discovered. He took over the wiki page and created Reddit and Discord pages for the game. His knowledge was encyclopedic.
This level of energy and passion can be daunting. It can take the fun out of the game. But like I said, being a successful gamer on YouTube comes at a price and the first payment is often your enjoyment of the games you play. Be ready for that.
Be Entertaining
So not only do you need to put in the work and lose your enjoyment of a single game... you need to be entertaining when you do it. You need to be fun. You need charisma. Even when you have been streaming for six hours on your third day of the week and you are tired and your eyes hurt and all you want to do is run to a friends house and do anything that isn't this video game you MUST put a smile on your face and entertain your audience. Don't get me wring; I am a HUGE proponent of mental health. And this is why. Because these days happen. You will get burned out and you must prepare for that. But you need to be able to balance mental health with your ability to remain entertaining. When you lose your ability to entertain your channel is dead.
Being entertaining isn't as daunting as it may seem, but it will require you to get creative. I don't have specific statistics to refer to but I believe that channels who feature the gamer's face while playing fair better. It adds another layer of interest to the game because it gives a narrative to the events that are transpiring... so while you are not required to show your face if you really want to succeed it is advised. Practice talking to the camera like it's your best friend. Practice explaining what is happening in the game. As mentioned above you should be editing your videos to get a leg up on your competition, so you can edit out the dead space and the 'ums' and 'uhs' and any other stupid thing you say. Yeah... that's work. But all part of the game. Also... did I mention this will require work. That means putting in work being a personality. Don't fake it (unless putting on a mask and being a character is something you want to take a crack at). Normally I would advise you to be 110% you. Be you on your best day... just do that every day. Or at least when you are recording.
Pick the Other Game
Cyberpunk 2077... there you go. After a heinous eight-year production process the game of the year is finally here! It is in our hands and we can FINALLY start playing it and making our videos and growing our channels!!! Right?!
Nope.
Don't get me wrong, you can take all the advice above and just swing for the fences, there is nothing wrong with that. But let's be realistic; there are probably 100 people streaming that game as we speak. While the odds of you performing for Cyberpunk search/suggested are improved with the information here the fact of the matter is that the market is as saturated as s physically possible with this game. Which is EXACTLY why right now is the time to make content about something else. Go and serve an underserved niche. Use the TubeBuddy keyword research tool to uncover games that people are searching for with little competition.
Edit Your Videos
I know I mentioned this twice now, but it deserves a moment as it's own specific tip. People are so accustomed to seeing a game being played that it behooves you to do something to set yourself apart and your editing is a REALLY good way of doing that. Cut out the boring parts of the game. Add overlays. Create your own game related graphics, maps, HUD, use your own music... anything you can do to customize the experience is going to add a TON of appeal. Add cutscenes, memes etc. There are soo many options that are available in the editing bay.
Say Goodbye to TV and Hello to Nick Nimmin!
This is kind of a universal thing I say to anyone grinding for YouTube, but it fits here equally as well. When I started I was serious about making a successful YouTube channel... like SUPER serious. I gave up television, gaming and the radio for two full years (and then some). That was all time spent NOT being successful on YouTube. Instead of watching TV I watched Nick Nimmin videos. Instead of listening to the radio during my 45 minute work commute every day I put on a Roberto Blake playlist. My time spent gaming was replaced with Dee Nimmin and Daniel Batal videos (and yeah, as a gamer you are going to sacrifice gaming time to your channel).
Get Creative
No, I don't have any tricks for this. But getting creative is the difference between a good channel and a great channel. Maybe it means supplimenting your videos with the occasional niche-related prank or recording your dad's reactions to the game as you play. Maybe it means setting up your system so that you play the game at the beach every day or find a deli that is willing to let you stream from one of their booths as a means of free advertising. The more out there you can get the more eye-catching and attention grabbing you can be the more likely you are to be seen (just don't be f***joshy). Get together with your friends and have a brainstorm session, see what fun things you can come up with.
We are living in a different world right now. The evolution of technology continues to take us to new levels in everything that we do. These advancements bring us amazing games; works of art that stand historically alongside greats like Michaelangelo and Van Eyck. They also give us unparalleled access to people in a way we've never known, and this can make for stiff competition when you are trying to stand out. Make your content great, put in the work and make data-driven decisions. It can be crowded... but crowded isn't impossible.
