Young North Americans are turning to YouTube and TikTok ahead of Twitch for streaming games

Nearly half of Generation Z and Millennials in the US and Canada watch video game streams every week. YouTube and TikTok stand out as the platforms of choice, even surpassing Twitch, the historic giant of game streaming.

According to data from YPulse, a striking trend is emerging in video game streaming habits among the younger generations. Whether they stream videos in order to follow eSports competitions or simply enjoy other players’ gameplay, almost 50% of Generation Z and Millennials engage in this activity on a regular basis.

Nearly a third of them watch video game competitions once a week or more often. This statistic underlines a growing involvement in the gaming community, where content creation and interacting via chat messaging play a central role.

YouTube has established itself as the undisputed leader in video game streaming, with over half of young people choosing it for watching competitions or following other players. One key factor in its success is its ability to offer long, interactive content, enhanced by live chat functions.

TikTok, with its fast-paced, entertaining nature, ranks as the second most popular platform, in particular among 18-24 year-olds. These results demonstrate a clear preference for traditional social media platforms over dedicated gaming hubs.

Is Twitch losing steam?

Although Twitch was once the go-to destination for streaming gameplay, it now finds itself in third place. Only a quarter of 13- to 39-year-olds use Twitch for streaming games and eSports, with usage particularly low among teenagers, the study pointed out.

This decline can be attributed to the ease of access to streams via social networks where users are already present, reducing the need for them to switch platforms. TikTok has widely popularized video game live streams on the “For You” feed, which offers video content or live streams to users on the app, even if they are not subscribers to the various accounts.

For this report, YPulse used responses from a national sample of 1,500 people aged 13 to 39, from October 10 to 19, 2023, in the US and Canada. – AFP Relaxnews