How to Start a Gaming Channel in 2024

Summary

This video script explores the dynamics of successful gaming content on YouTube, emphasizing the importance of understanding current trends. It advises against focusing on a single game and highlights the value of diverse content creation. The script discusses various content types, from news updates to video essays, and underscores the significance of watch time and storytelling. It features insights from successful creators and suggests strategies for improving engagement and views, ultimately encouraging a thoughtful approach to content creation.

Takeaways

• 😀 **Diversification is Key**: Focusing on a single game is often unsustainable; successful channels cover a range of games or gaming topics.
• 🚀 **Early Success with Strategy**: Some gaming channels achieve rapid success by understanding current YouTube trends and strategies.
• 📉 **Avoiding One-Game Channels**: Centering a channel around one game can limit growth and engagement, unlike channels covering various games.
• 🔍 **SEO Isn't Everything**: For news and updates, relying solely on SEO is not effective; personal opinions and unique angles are crucial.
• 🎮 **Let's Play Evolution**: Traditional Let's Play videos without a clear narrative or plan are less popular; storytelling and progression are favored.
• 📊 **High Skill-Level Content**: Videos showcasing high skill levels, like speed running, attract viewers interested in learning or being entertained.
• 🎥 **Video Essays and Documentaries**: In-depth video essays and documentaries allow for slower content creation, offering a unique perspective.
• ⏱️ **The Power of Watch Time**: Long-form content, like 12-hour gameplay videos, can significantly increase watch time and viewer engagement.
• 📈 **Quality Over Quantity**: Focusing on creating fewer, higher-quality videos can lead to better engagement and more substantial viewer retention.
• 🔧 **Content Crafting**: Spending time to craft content with clear titles, thumbnails, and narratives can greatly enhance a video's appeal and performance.

Q & A

What is the main challenge for new gaming channels on YouTube?

The main challenge is that gaming is a very crowded space on YouTube, but the key to success is understanding what works on the platform today and creating content accordingly.

Why is focusing on one video game not a sustainable strategy for a YouTube channel?

Focusing on one video game is not sustainable because it can become boring for the creator and the audience over time, and it's also a business risk unless the game has a massive total addressable market.

What is the total addressable market (TAM) in the context of YouTube gaming channels?

The total addressable market refers to the potential audience size for a game, with massive TAM games being household names like Minecraft, The Sims, and Diablo that can support long-term channel success.

How do successful gaming channels diversify their content?

Successful gaming channels diversify by creating content for one audience rather than one game, occasionally covering different games or topics to keep their content fresh and engaging.

What is the issue with focusing solely on news and updates videos in gaming?

News and updates videos are problematic because they are often saturated, and creators need to differentiate themselves by providing unique opinions and perspectives rather than just reporting the news.

Why are generic Let's Play videos not performing well on YouTube?

Generic Let's Play videos are not performing well because they lack a clear plan, storytelling, and progression, which are essential for standing out in a saturated market.

What advice does The Spiffing Brit give for standing out in a saturated gaming market?

The Spiffing Brit advises finding an emerging market within the saturated game or having an established hook that people recognize and find interesting, or coming up with a unique idea that can shake the landscape.

How can gaming video creators add storytelling to their content?

Gaming video creators can add storytelling by planning ahead, researching, and choosing a video topic that tells a story, which should be clear in the title and thumbnail.

What is the benefit of creating video essays or documentaries for gaming channels?

Video essays or documentaries allow creators to work at a slower pace, craft a video over a long period, and create content that is more engaging and informative for the audience.

How does watch time on YouTube affect a video's success?

Watch time is a key metric on YouTube that, if increased, can improve a video's visibility and success. It's more important than just getting views, as it indicates that viewers are engaged and watching the content.

What is the significance of the 12-hour video compilation trend in gaming content?

The 12-hour video compilation trend is significant because it caters to viewers who want to binge-watch content, provides a continuous experience, and can lead to high watch times and engagement.

Outlines

00:00

🎮 The Dynamic Landscape of Gaming on YouTube

The paragraph discusses the challenges and strategies for success in the crowded YouTube gaming space. It emphasizes the importance of understanding current trends rather than relying on generic tips. The speaker shares their experience and insights, highlighting the pitfalls of focusing on a single game and the need for a broader audience-centric approach. The paragraph also points out the evolving nature of gaming content, suggesting that creators should offer opinions and personal perspectives to stand out. The success of channels like DarthMicrotransaction TV and lilsimsie, which cover a range of games while maintaining a consistent audience focus, is noted. The paragraph concludes with a call to action for creators to adapt their strategies to increase discoverability and viewership.

05:00

🚀 Breaking Through the Saturation: Strategies for Gaming Content

This paragraph delves into specific types of gaming videos that are currently successful on YouTube. It advises against a singular focus on one game, suggesting instead a thematic approach that resonates with a particular audience. The Spiffing Brit's strategy of maintaining a unique selling point across different games is highlighted as effective. The paragraph also introduces the concept of 'video essays' or documentaries as a rising content format that allows for deeper storytelling and slower production pacing. Examples of successful video essays, such as those by Space Cadet Rewind and Idyl, are provided, emphasizing the importance of understanding one's audience and delivering content that is both nostalgic and informative. The paragraph encourages creators to consider the value of high-quality, narrative-driven content over quick, saturated formats like generic Let's Play videos.

10:02

📈 The Power of Watch Time and Long-Form Content

The final paragraph reveals the significance of watch time as a key metric for YouTube success, surpassing other factors like views and subscribers. It discusses the rise in popularity of long-form content, including speed running videos and compilations, which offer extended watch time and viewer engagement. The paragraph shares the speaker's revelation from 2023, which is the potential of long videos to drive watch time and, consequently, channel growth. It also touches on the viewer's preference for binge-watching and the utility of long videos as a background or companion content. The success of Settled's 'Swampletics' series and its 12-hour compilation video is used as a case study to illustrate the effectiveness of this strategy. The paragraph concludes with a recommendation for creators to focus on crafting quality content that can captivate viewers over an extended period.

Keywords

💡Gaming

Gaming refers to the activity of playing video games and is central to the video's theme, which discusses strategies for success on YouTube in the gaming niche. The script mentions various gaming channels and the types of content they create, such as gameplay guides and Let's Play videos, illustrating the diverse ways gaming can be presented on the platform.

💡YouTube Channel

A YouTube channel is a user's individual account on YouTube where they can upload and manage their videos. In the context of the video, channels are the primary entities creating gaming content, and the script discusses how different strategies can lead to the success or failure of these channels in attracting viewers and growing their audience.

💡Total Addressable Market (TAM)

TAM refers to the total market size available for a particular product or service. In the script, it is used to describe the potential audience for a game, with the suggestion that focusing on games with a massive TAM, like Minecraft or The Sims, can lead to more sustainable success for a YouTube channel. This concept is crucial for understanding the business side of gaming content creation.

💡Content Strategy

Content strategy in the video refers to the approach a YouTube channel takes to create and distribute its content. The script explores various content strategies, such as focusing on a single game versus diversifying across different games and topics, and the impact of these strategies on a channel's discoverability and viewer engagement.

💡News and Updates Videos

News and updates videos are a type of gaming content that focuses on the latest developments in the gaming world, such as new game releases or updates. The script suggests that a sole focus on this type of content can be limiting, as it often leads to repetitive content and emphasizes the importance of adding personal opinions and insights to stand out.

💡Generic Let's Play Video

A Let's Play video is a format where creators record themselves playing through a video game while providing commentary. The script labels 'generic Let's Play videos' as those lacking a clear focus or storytelling element, which can lead to saturation and lower viewer engagement. The video suggests that adding a narrative or unique angle can improve the success of these videos.

💡Storytelling

Storytelling in the context of the video pertains to the art of narrating a story, which is recommended as a method to enhance gaming content. By incorporating storytelling, creators can provide a more engaging and structured viewing experience, as opposed to simply reacting in real-time. The script gives examples of how adding story progression can make gaming videos more appealing.

💡Video Essays

Video essays are a form of content that presents a detailed analysis or exploration of a topic, often in a documentary style. In the script, video essays are highlighted as an emerging and successful content format in gaming, allowing creators to delve deeper into their subject matter and provide a more thoughtful and engaging viewing experience.

💡High Skill-Level Content

High skill-level content refers to gaming videos that showcase advanced gameplay, such as speed running or complex strategies. The script identifies this type of content as being popular due to its inherent entertainment value and educational aspect, as viewers can learn from the expertise displayed and apply it to their own gaming experiences.

💡Watch Time

Watch time on YouTube is a metric that measures how long viewers spend watching a creator's videos. The script emphasizes watch time as a key factor in YouTube's algorithm for promoting content, suggesting that longer, more engaging videos can lead to higher watch times and increased visibility for gaming channels.

💡Speed Running

Speed running is a gaming technique where players aim to complete a video game as quickly as possible. In the video, speed running is mentioned as a type of high skill-level content that can attract viewers interested in seeing impressive feats or learning tips to improve their own speed running skills.

Highlights

Gaming is a crowded space on YouTube, but new channels can still succeed by understanding current trends.

Avoid focusing on one video game, as it's unsustainable and limits your audience.

Channels that focus on one game but occasionally cover others can still achieve success.

Content creators should aim to make content for an audience, not just for a game.

News and updates videos should not solely rely on search and SEO; personal opinions can make them stand out.

Generic Let's Play videos with no clear plan or story are not performing well.

Adding storytelling and progression to gaming videos can help them stand out in a saturated market.

Video essays and documentaries in gaming are gaining popularity and allow for slower content creation.

High skill-level content, such as speed running, can attract views and has a built-in story.

Long videos, including compilations of series, can benefit from increased watch time on YouTube.

YouTube playlists can be clunky, and long videos offer a better binge-watching experience.

Focusing on watch time is key to YouTube success, as it influences views, subscribers, and monetization.

Storytelling and viewer progression are important for retaining viewers and increasing watch time.

Creators should consider the binge-watching habits of viewers when planning content.

Long videos can serve as companions for viewers playing the same game, providing ideas and inspiration.

YouTube's preference for watch time over click-through rates means creators should focus on content depth.

Transcripts

- Gaming is easily one of the most crowded spaces

on all of YouTube, but somehow people are still blowing up,

even if they start their channels right now.

In fact, in rare cases, some channels blow up

with their first video and that success is happening early

because these channels are starting their YouTube journey

knowing what works today on YouTube,

and after watching this video, you will too.

I've been making these gaming guide videos

for a few years now, but in this one,

I want to avoid the generic tips.

So here's what we're gonna do instead.

First, we'll talk about what's not working

so well in gaming right now.

Then we're gonna dig into what is working

and from the perspective of a lot of different types

of gaming channels.

And finally, I'll share with you

my biggest revelation from last year.

It completely changed the way I see gaming on YouTube.

This affects everything, from how you physically record

and produce your content, all the way through

how often you should be posting your content.

So what's not working right now

and how can you keep from wasting

a whole bunch of time making videos

that pretty much nobody is discovering?

Well, for starters, going all in on one video game

is a losing strategy, at least, in most cases.

Centering your entire YouTube channel

around one video game isn't just unsustainable

for you as the creator,

I mean, even your favorite games get boring after a while,

but it's also unsustainable from a business perspective.

Unless you've chosen a game with a massive TAM,

or total addressable market,

you are not gonna be enjoying much long-term success.

And when I say massive total addressable market,

basically think of games

like Minecraft, The Sims, Diablo,

games that are huge household names and franchises.

And heck, even creators who do focus on one of those games

tend to also bounce around a bit.

In the case of DarthMicrotransaction TV,

they're pretty much all in on Diablo IV,

but occasionally do talk about other games.

Path of Exile, Last Epoch, World of Warcraft,

those videos may not be getting as many views

as some of the Diablo videos,

but they're still enjoying respectable view counts.

In one example, they have a video

titled "Why Gaming Isn't Fun Anymore."

It's doing really well for their channel

and potentially could, over time,

reach a lot of new viewers.

Over in a whole different corner

of the gaming YouTube universe is lilsimsie.

Her channel covers, you guessed it, The Sims,

except even lilsimsie is leaving room in her channel

to cover different games, in this case, a recent video

about an upcoming Sims competitor.

Channels like lilsimsie and DarthMicrotransaction TV

are making content for one audience, not one game.

And look, focusing on one audience

can be tough and also risky.

I'll help with that more in a little while though,

because the next type of gaming video

we need to discuss right now is news and updates videos.

This type of content has changed so much.

When you cover new updates and releases,

your strategy should not be solely focused on search and SEO

because think of it this way,

what happens when a new game comes out or a new update?

Well, first, a bunch of journalists

and big YouTubers get early access,

which gives them a leg up.

Then all the other humans

get a hold of this game when it finally launches,

and the content creators among them

all make the same exact video.

And finally, in the case where you make that video

and you've covered the new update, then what?

You still need more to do, right?

I mean, most channels don't just stop

at one video every six months.

Essentially, this means it's not a great strategy

for everyone to be the news and update person.

So instead of just reporting on the news,

you should use the one thing that you have

that literally nobody else does,

and that's your specific opinion.

For example, here's somebody who took a different approach

when they covered the recent Minecraft 1.21 update.

At the time of recording, you'll notice

that they have 6.5K subscribers,

but their update video has 789,000 views.

Why though, is this just luck?

Well, let's take a look at their video page.

It does seem like they've been more focused on Minecraft

since this big viral hit for their channel.

Specifically, they seem to be giving their opinions

on a lot of different Minecraft topics and updates.

Some of these videos are doing better than others,

but ultimately, no, I don't think

that their massive successful video was all luck.

To me, some of these titles and thumbnails

and topics are just more appealing than others.

For example, the videos featuring strong opinions

about easy to quickly understand concepts

are doing really well,

but the videos that speculate a bit too much

or have slightly confusing titles or thumbnails

are still doing well, but not to the same degree.

The coolest thing about this video

is that it's not just good for YouTube search.

The opinion in both the title and the thumbnail

is also on display, meaning that this video

is going to show up in YouTube browse as well as search.

So when it comes to covering news and updates,

be more like TheGeekFactor.

Their Minecraft 1.21 video beat out update videos

from channels with over a million,

and in one case, 11 million subscribers.

Another type of gaming video

that hasn't worked in quite some time

is the generic Let's Play video.

I'm talking specifically about these videos

that you click on

and it feels like the creator just kind of hit record,

but didn't go into the recording session

with much of a plan.

Now you can absolutely play a game

and provide real time commentary

and react to things that are happening,

but you have to plan ahead a little bit.

You need to do some research and pick a video topic

that's going to tell a story, and that needs to be clear

in the title and thumbnail as well.

When you don't do that work up front,

you don't get views on your Let's Plays.

The thing is these types of gaming videos

are so easy to make and therefore, they are super saturated.

Recently, I had a chance to talk to The Spiffing Brit,

and he summed all this up pretty nicely.

- [The Spiffing Brit] If you are going

to go into a saturated market, you have to find

the emerging market inside of that saturated game.

I think the best example of this would be the first arrival

of 100 days content in Minecraft.

And so if you are going to break into a saturated market,

like say Minecraft, you've got to enter

with either an established hook that people would recognize

or would find interesting that it's proven to have worked,

or you've either just gotten a one in a million idea

that no one else has ever done,

and it's gonna shake the landscape.

- When it comes to games, there's a lot of ways

you can add a bit of story progression to your videos,

and if you do that, you're gonna be ahead

of so many other gaming channels.

Now that you know what's not working on YouTube,

but let's dig a little bit deeper

into what is working super well in gaming today.

We already touched on doing gameplay challenges

and adding a bit more storytelling

and progression in the videos,

but Spiffing Britt had more to say on this topic

that I wanted to share.

Remember earlier when I said

I wanted to help a little bit more

when it came to finding one audience for your content?

Well, Spiff does that really well on his channel.

Every time he posts a new video,

it's about a different game,

but you'll notice that there's a specific theme

across each upload.

- [The Spiffing Brit] Take your unique selling point

and just move it to a different game

that you do want to play.

When I'm tired of playing one game,

I just go find a different game.

- If you want people to watch your channel for you

and not just the game you're playing, this is how you do it.

You need a thing that people remember you for.

When I think Spiffing Britt, I think, "Oh, that's that guy

that breaks games in YouTube all the time."

And yeah, if you didn't know Spiffing Britt

isn't famous for just breaking video games.

Some of his most popular videos

revolve around breaking YouTube itself.

He became known for breaking things

and now he can break all kinds of things, not just games.

A genre of videos that's new to me

started to catch my attention a lot more last year.

And then I noticed gaming channels

are really jumping into this space.

You should really start paying attention to video essays.

Video essays, or some might even consider them

documentaries, are really cool for a bunch of reasons.

One, they allow you to create at a slower pace.

You can play your game, take some notes,

and really craft a video over a long period of time.

Two, since you're uploading less,

you only need to think of one title

and thumbnail combination rather than a whole bunch

over the course of a week or a month.

And three, you get to enjoy games a lot more

rather than if you just picked up a new game

and pressed record to get content out as fast as you can.

Your essay is about the experience that you had in a game.

You're not just reacting to what's happening in real time.

You are informing people about your unique experience

that you had time to sit down

and actually appreciate for yourself.

We covered a channel recently

that made a video essay about an older game

called Wing Commander.

It was their very first video

and it did take some time for it to finally gain traction,

but once it did, it hit over 100,000 views.

Their second video essay was about Star Wars: X-Wing,

and it also hit 100,000 views,

but in even less time than the first video essay.

The audience that they're talking to with this content

is likely a bit older and maybe has some nostalgia

for these classic space games.

That understanding of their audience

has made Space Cadet Rewind a huge out of the gate success,

and that's even if their videos

take several months to produce.

But another channel that's also doing gaming video essays

that don't take quite as long is known as Idyl.

He started out by making videos on Old School RuneScape.

Some are about various challenges

and others were about plugins that he actually created,

which I mean, talk about effort.

Not only is he making a video,

but he's having a program an entire plugin

to go along with it so that he can make the video.

He's enjoyed some pretty good success

making those types of videos in the past,

but more recently, he's pivoted into video essays

and not just on Old School RuneScape.

He's branched out a bit more,

and these video essays chronicle his experience

in various MMOs.

These videos are created after Idyl takes some time

away from uploading to sit down

and actually play and experience the games.

The titles and the thumbnails alone speak to a video

that obviously took a lot of time to create,

and they demonstrate a very clear point of view up front.

Creators that do this slower paced kind of content

tend to disappear for a while,

but once they finally pop back up in your recommended feed,

you know immediately that not only did this video

take a long time to make, it's gonna be worth watching.

I mean, seriously, in the last six months,

how many videos have you made?

And when you total up that six months worth of videos,

how many views are you left with?

If your upload frequency is high

and your views are low, let me ask you this:

what if you did take a really, really long time

to make your next video?

You're gonna spend this month making a video

on a topic that you're really passionate about

and that not enough people are talking about.

Considering the time investment,

this obviously won't be for everybody,

but it's something you might consider.

Another type of gaming video

that's worked really well for a long time

is a category that all dub high skill-level content.

Speed running is a prime example,

but it's basically anything that could require

a lot of skill to achieve,

thus getting your gaming channel a lot more views.

One of the benefits behind this content

is that your title and thumbnail kind of create themselves.

They're super popular because the story

is also built in, right?

I mean, you're being upfront about trying to hit

some type of record or otherwise achieve

something impressive in a familiar game.

Players of that game either watch that content

to simply be entertained or to learn from you,

so they can also become better speed runners themselves.

You'll also notice that sometimes

this content is super long,

and that's because it really doesn't require any editing.

This works because it's actually super important

not to edit the original run.

If you need to prove that you actually beat this game

in an hour and a half,

you can't have jump cuts in the video.

Otherwise, it would be too easy to cheat.

But if this type of content has been around for so long,

why am I bringing it up today

as some kind of magical new strategy?

Well, in the case of those super long

speed running videos, it's watch time.

I don't know if it's because of YouTube shorts

or something in our drinking water,

but all of a sudden, it feels like a bunch of people

are willing to sit down and watch a one hour,

a three hour, or even a 12 hour gameplay video.

Yes, this was my big revelation of 2023,

and I studied it a lot, so I could sit here today

and tell you how you can potentially benefit from this.

And it doesn't matter if you speed run games

or if you're not even a gaming channel.

Watch time is a key metric on YouTube,

and it's one that here at vidIQ,

we don't often talk about too much.

Honestly, that's because so many of the creators

that come to us are asking kind of the same questions.

They tend to ask, in no particular order,

about titles, thumbnails, subscribers, views,

and ultimately, monetization.

But the truth is if you can figure out watch time,

it's gonna bring all of that stuff into focus.

But that does mean that you should be brainstorming ways

that every so often you could make a super long video.

If you did this even once in a while,

what would you make that video about?

How long do you think it would take to record and edit it?

And most importantly, what can you do

to make sure that even just a portion of those viewers

makes it to the very end?

Well, as I talked about earlier,

storytelling is gonna be key.

And for gaming channels, it's kind of easy

because you can lean on progression to tell that story.

Viewers love progress, whether it's speed running,

massive Minecraft builds or even long grinds and MMOs.

That's exactly what Settled did when he began

his Swampletics series in Old School RuneScape.

And even if you don't play MMOs,

pay attention because this strategy could work

for so many other types of channels.

Each episode on average was about 20 minutes long,

and they focused solely on his character

that was locked in a specific region of the RuneScape map.

Quests being completed, rare items being dropped

or just levels going up.

Once Swampletics wrapped up, Settled had become

one of the biggest creators in all of RuneScape,

but he wasn't done

because then he made his next genius move.

He took his entire series

and compiled it into one massive 12-hour video.

At the time of recording this video,

that video has four million views.

But why?

Who the heck is watching a 12-hour video

that's just a whole bunch of other previously released

videos crammed into one package?

Would a YouTube playlist not have served the same purpose?

Well, I have a few theories here,

and these are based off of several hours

of my own research on the topic.

What I found is that this type of video

is perfect for the kind of person who loves to binge.

You know how Netflix started releasing

seasons of shows in like two parts?

Yeah, people don't like that.

Whether it's for five minutes or for five hours,

a viewer wants to hit pause and resume on their terms.

What I've also seen is that people love

to put this kind of content on in the background,

whether it's because they're doing chores

or maybe they're trying to go to sleep.

The fact of the matter is they're not going to engage

with YouTube to keep playing videos.

They just want something that's gonna stay on.

With games, a lot of people in the comments of these videos

admit to sitting down and actually playing the game

alongside the video.

It keeps them company and it gives them ideas

and inspiration for things

they could be doing with the game.

Games like RuneScape can be played

in so many different ways,

so if you sit down and watch someone's 12-hour video,

whether it's all at once or in parts,

you're gonna pick up a lot of things

and you're gonna learn a lot about this game

that you may not have known before.

And on the subject of playlists,

no, I'm sorry, they are not good enough.

I don't know about you, but I find it incredibly difficult

to pause in the middle of a series on a playlist

and pick it back up later.

It's so much easier to have a 12-hour video, hit pause,

and then whenever I want, come back to it.

YouTube remembers my place on one long video

way better than it remembers my place in one long playlist.

YouTube, honestly, your playlists are just a bit clunky

and could probably use an update.

But also, YouTube, just don't listen to me

because I'm enjoying the really long videos

and the tons and tons of watch time I'm getting from them,

so thank you.

My big takeaway from last year

and from all of this is watch time.

And yes, titles and thumbnails

and click-through rates and average view durations,

it's all important, but if someone clicks on your video

and they don't stick around, it doesn't matter

because that video stops spreading.

Viewers want to be taken on a journey

when they click on that Let's Play video you made.

They want to hear your opinions

when they click on your gaming update news videos,

and they appreciate it when you spend time

crafting your content.

But to get that watch time, you need quality content.

And in this video I take a look at your gaming videos

to see how you can improve

your overall editing and presentation.