Computer game manufacturers need them for marketing, and their fans can identify with them: gaming influencers make a living from other people watching them play. But there are risks involved.
Eileen, alias Kunshikitty, speaks into her smartphone, which is mounted on a slim tripod. She talks to her fans in real time, taking them along to Gamescom in Cologne, the world's largest computer games trade fair. Questions from followers come every second, popping up on another smartphone that Kunshikitty has attached to her wrist. They want to know how many steps the 28-year-old has already taken today, which cell phone network has the best reception at the trade fair, how long you have to wait in line for your favorite game.
Eileen from Cologne is a so-called content creator in the games sector. Almost 190,000 people follow her on Twitch, a platform popular with gamers. Her channel has been around for eight years, and she has been able to make a living from it for a year now. Eileen explains her success as follows: “I think that live streaming creates a very special bond between the viewer and the person speaking into the camera. It's different than just uploading pictures to Instagram, for example.”
“Enjoying entertaining people”
The superstars of the German gaming influencer scene are called Montana Black and Gronkh. They are among the first in Germany to live stream themselves playing computer games. Several million people now follow them on platforms such as YouTube and Twitch. The twin sisters Janine and Nadine, aka “HappyZwillinge”, are also avowed Gronkh fans. Inspired by their idol, they film themselves playing games and stream them live on the social media platform Twitch. More than 2,000 people now follow their channel. They often play games together with their followers and talk about common interests.
Now the two sisters from Leipzig are among the 15 young talents who have been selected for the first “Gamescom Creator Academy”, a kind of coaching program. They have completed five weeks of seminars – including on how to get more followers.
Nadine and Janine dream of making money from streaming one day. “We enjoy entertaining people, telling people about our passion for gaming. Of course, you have to stand out a bit from others, because there are already a lot of gaming creators. What goes down really well with us is that we are twins.”
Where the marketing budget goes
The industry has long recognized the importance of computer game influencers. The best marketing for games can be done through them, explains Felix Falk, Managing Director of the Association of the German Games Industry. “With the help of influencers, games manufacturers can publicize their games in a very authentic way and spark enthusiasm for them. Some manufacturers invest their entire marketing budget in this collaboration alone.”
Live streamer Kunshikitty also earns money through such advertising collaborations. The close connection to her followers and her reach on Twitch make her interesting for advertisers. “For me, my followers are like friends. And I think if I recommend a game to someone who sees me as a kind of friend, then it has a completely different effect. Then they're more likely to try it out.”
Unfiltered impressions – and sometimes disinformation
Content creators have made the gaming world more democratic, says Manoucher Shamsrizi. The sociologist is co-founder of gamelab.berlin at the Humboldt University in Berlin and studies the sociopolitical impact of gaming.
The influencers shared their unfiltered impressions, and there is now a suitable channel for every niche. But where people send out information without regulation, there are also risks, says Shamsrizi. “Many gaming influencers now talk much longer about gaming products, for which they are paid to market, than about the actual game. That used to be different and this is sometimes viewed critically in the community.”
There are also violations of child protection laws, cases of sexism, racism and disinformation. “We must find tools to minimize these risks and enter into dialogue with the actors to ensure that factual information is provided and not disinformation,” demands Shamsrizi.
Too many influencers at Gamescom?
In recent years, there has also been increasing criticism of the large number of influencers who come to Gamescom. They use the trade fair for self-promotion and block stands, according to the community.
The twins Nadine and Janine from the Twitch channel “HappyZwillinge” see it more relaxed: “Especially for the people who can't be here, this is a good way to get an impression of the trade fair. And not just through content from the big games producers, but also from the small creators who personally show the trade fair.” They will also be streaming live from Gamescom, for the very first time.
