The first quarter of gaming content has been monumental for both Twitch and YouTube Gaming, according to new insights presented by Newzoo. Including an encourage statistic regarding esports content and the growth of mobile titles, there’s plenty to get excited about if you’re a member – or spectator – of this industry.
2 billion and 0.4 billion viewing hours were racked up by Twitch and YouTube Gaming respectively in the very first quarter of 2018. Of those hours, 11.6% of Twitch’s viewership and 8.2% of YouTube Gaming’s viewership comprised of esports content from events and leagues. In this front, Twitch had eight times the amount of hours watched than YouTube Gaming did.
Casual and mobile titles are ridiculously popular on YouTube Gaming. There are five mobile titles in the Top 20 games with the most viewership: Mobile Legends, Clash Royale, Arena of Valor, Garena RoV, and Monster Strike. Surprisingly, there are no mobile titles in Twitch’s Top 20. Casino, strategy and simulation games strived on YouTube Gaming, whereas MMORPG and fighting games emerged at the top on Twitch.
Accounting for the Top 20 games on both platforms, Twitch accounted for 82% of the total viewership hours in Q1, presumably attributing a hefty portion to the rise of Fortnite and streamers such as Ninja. The only games in the Top 20 that had more viewership on YouTube Gaming are World of Tanks, Casino Games, Minecraft, and Mobile Legends.
The Top 10 channels on YouTube made up 18% of the platform’s viewership in Q1, with the Top 100 channels taking 42% of all viewing hours. In comparison, Twitch’s Top 100 games made up of just one-third of the total viewing hours. Twitch had more variety in its top performing game genres, with Action, MOBA, and shooter games making up 61% of its viewership compared to 69% on YouTube Gaming.
Streamers on both Twitch and YouTube are equally popular in some instances. The five biggest independent streamers on Twitch had an average of 35,400 viewers compared to YouTube Gaming’s 12,416 – though when you look at games that are bringing in a lot of viewers on both platforms, both Twitch and YouTube Gaming are performing similarly.
Esports Insider says: While it’s intriguing to compare the two platforms, one thing emerges clear: gaming content is pulling big numbers, and esports is making up a healthy percentage of the total viewership. This, on the surface, is a great sign for the esports industry – and the gaming industry – as a whole.