[AnimeGamer]

2 Top Esports Streaming Platforms 2023

For many, esports has become this untouchable tier of gaming that only the best of the best can achieve as, in some regards, it requires far more skill and hard work than some physical sports. A factor in cultivating this mindset is the tournaments themselves, as, for a long time, many could only see skilled plays in tournaments. But in recent years, this barrier has been destroyed with the advent of streaming platforms.

Anyone decent in esports can now stream his journey to millions and build a following while bettering his skills and being recruited into a professional team, as many have been. The following are just a handful of streaming sites that are pretty beginner friendly and will help you get started.


Table of Contents

1. Twitch
   
2. Youtube
   

Twitch

Figure 1-1. Twitch

To say Twitch is the king of all streaming platforms would be an understatement, as it has held the title of the best streaming platform for years. Even with other sites making considerable efforts to catch up, Twitch stays ahead of all of them. This is because it is easy for new streamers to start with the renowned Twitch chat to interact with their fans and build a solid following. It is also easy to monetize, as after you have amassed a certain number of followers; you can get sponsorships and bits. Some may even subscribe to your Twitch channel, which gives you a monthly revenue for each subscriber, and you might even become an official Twitch partner. Though Twitch is famous for many types of streams, there is but one that has gained worldwide renown, and that is esports streams. For many, finally seeing the best players in the world, like TenZ and Simple, destroy their opponents, and interacting with them was enough encouragement to go out and start streaming. One game that took over esports streams and tournaments last year is Guilty Gear Strive.

Figure 1-2. Guilty Gear Strive

Guilty Gear Strive is one of the latest games by the highly acclaimed Arc System works and is said to be their best game to date, and with due reason, as it is the most fun and technically deep fighting game to come out in recent years. It features a roster full of old and new faces from the Guilty Gear franchise, with the older ones retaining their nostalgic feeling while being adapted to the new engine and meta. The newer characters are also quite fun to play and have interesting new storylines to follow in the main overarching narrative of the franchise. This is all achieved while keeping the characters as balanced as possible with the help of new mechanics and abilities. Due to this, the game has seen a massive rise in popularity in the esports scene and has garnered many established esports players under its banner, one of them being Hotashi.

Figure 1-3. Hotashi Twitch Channel

Hotashi, or “Julian Harris,” is one of the most acclaimed Guilty Gear players out there, as he has been playing Guilty Gear games for a long time while also streaming all of his tournament matches on his Twitch Channel. He has also become one of the strongest NA Guilty Gear Strive players. This can be seen by his winning the EVO 2021 online and coming 4th in the EVO championship. Not only has he won over. $17,000 dollars from tournaments, but he also earns roughly $10,000 dollars from his twitch streams annually. This shows that if you have esports talent, Twitch can quickly help you find an audience and community while also helping you make a steady income.

Youtube

Figure 2-1. Youtube

Youtube is a site made by some friends back in the dark ages of the internet, and one no one knew would become the beast it is now. To say Youtube has killed Television for the newer generations would not be false, as, on it, you can enjoy the content you want and watch the creators you like while avoiding the rest. And with it being one of the oldest and best video platforms, it garnered many different fanbases and communities. One of those communities was the esports community which used the video-sharing nature of Youtube to spread word and clips of their tournaments far and wide. 

Many current pro players were undoubtedly introduced to esports through Youtube. These same players now stream their matches and games on Youtube to build the same kind of community they were once a part of. And with good reason, as Youtube is the best for content monetization than its peers and is used by many more people, which increases the chances of getting Ad Revenue from streams and videos. One of the games streamed and talked about by many is Dragon Ball FighterZ.

Figure 2-2. Dragon Ball FighterZ Roster

Dragon Ball FighterZ is a 2D fighting game set in the world created by Akira Toriyama and is said to be the most faithful adaptation of its source material into a game. It features a roster full of the most iconic 40+ characters from the series. The gameplay is face paced and requires little skill to start, but it will take time to master all the intricacies of the combat system. The system’s actual depth can be easily seen by watching pro players, and one of the best Dragon Ball FighterZ players is SonicFox.

Figure 2-3. SonicFox Youtube Channel

SonicFox is one of the most famous esports players in the fighting game genre, as he has won countless online and offline tournaments (LAN), such as the EVO championship and coming 2nd in the summit of power event, both of which had over $10,000 dollars in the prize pool. He also has a successful Youtube channel which has over 200k followers. Recently he also got signed onto the Pro-Esports Evil Genius and is said to have made over $700,000 dollars from his esports alone. His channel also helps him earn over $5,000 dollars from views and ad sense alone. This shows how Youtube can help you start your esports streaming career and make a steady income while also doing what you love.