Making the jump from casual gaming to a live stream isn’t easy. There are so many considerations. Which rig should I use? Which games should I stream? How do I decide when I’m going to stream?
Luckily, there are are a wealth of streaming resources available on the web dedicated to introducing new live streamers to the community. We caught up with @idkatherine (follow Katherine on Twitter) who streams retro games and serves as a moderator for the Small Streamer Community, a Discord server dedicated to sharing best practices for small streamers.
Katherine has been streaming for a year and a half and has over 1,000 followers on Twitch.
“It took me a fairly long time to decide that I wanted to give streaming a go,” Katherine says, “and from the start I knew that I wanted to use my stream to play through my ever growing backlog of older console/retro video games as well as some of the games that I already love.”
That’s something Katherine is very passionate about. Rather than chasing the trendy titles – a common question on Discord is “what should I stream to add followers?” – Katherine sticks to her guns, playing only the games she genuinely enjoys, typically those with puzzles; and the passion comes through in her stream.
“Growing up, my first handheld was a DS and my first console was a Wii,” says Katherine. “I quickly fell in love with them (consoles) and spent countless hours playing faves like Nintendogs, Wii Sports with my parents and Mario Kart Wii. It only ever snowballed from there, as I bought more and more games as I grew up, eventually owning a Wii U and a Switch. This kicked off my love for gaming in general, along with other things like F1, baking, walking and generally exploring.”
In one of Katherine’s streams, she’s playing Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, and gets stuck having to pick through several options on a wheel. But rather than try to win, she defaults to her explorer toolset and starts randomly selecting options, with no regard for whether it will produce satisfactory results (obviously enjoying the game as much as her viewers enjoy her stream). “All that for just 6 star points,” she says after picking a few randomly, “meh, doesn’t seem worth it.” Lol.
The explorer gear she’s honed in on is the kind of thing viewers love too. Only streaming retro games out of love for classic technology like SNES, Nintendo 64, and Gamecube, Katherine switches it up pretty often, keeping her viewers engaged by adding new context to yesterday’s hits.
“Over the past year and a half, I’ve managed to step into a huge range of series, from Mario to Pokemon, Sonic to Zelda and Professor Layton to Donkey Kong Country. The usual format I stick to is series hopping, by playing through one game in a certain series, with my next game being from a different series.”
She says playing what she loves and jumping from series to series keeps things fun and engaging for both her and her audience.
“One worry I had was binging a series and potentially getting burnt out, plus no opportunity to be able to return in the future. So switching back and forth allows me to be excited to return to a series I’ve played before, and to this day I’m still doing the same thing! I love it.”
But while doing what you love may be the takeaway Katherine would have you remember, she acknowledges that there are other important pieces to putting together a successful and engaging streaming experience.
“If I’m being completely honest, it’s not all sunshine and rainbows. Twitch can also have people who will stop by and not be the nicest to you, which leads into my pet peeves. Situations like experiencing trolls, mean people or those who exist just to come into your stream and spoil the game. The best advice I can give for any scenario involving situations like these is have a strong mod team who are on guard and ready to stamp out the rubbish for you.”
But Katherine doesn’t tolerate bad behavior and will regulate as needed to protect her space. It’s all about her viewers and personal space.
“Your stream should be a comfortable space for both you and your community, and if there’s something or someone who is bothering you, then stamp it out. Furthermore, as a woman on the internet, I’ve always been extremely cautious about what I share online due to the sorts of people that exist purely to be creepy (yes, in the past I’ve had a user in my stream ask if I’m single, and yes, they got banned!). I don’t use a facecam simply because I don’t feel comfortable with the idea.”
Katherine says that while it was rare to see women stream a decade ago, in 2022 its become a lot more common.
“We’ve come a long way. Some of the people I love to watch are girls. But we still aren’t where we need to be in terms of acceptance, but we are heading in the right direction.”
In terms of advice for new streamers, Katherine is happy to give tips based on her experience.
Play and do what you love
Katherine says that it may feel like following a trend and playing what’s popular is the best move, but it really isn’t.
“If you’re enjoying yourself with what you play, then it’s more likely that those who come by will enjoy themselves along with you. It shouldn’t matter if what you love is a big popular game, or something more niche and small, if it’s your cup of tea then that’s what matters. The right people will find you and enjoy you for you.”
This also means talking about and doing the things you love to.
“I’d say the things I’ve loved the most are building a comfy, cosy community and bringing people together, as well as the conversations I have with people. They can go from food discussions to the most random topics (such as the Brit in me talking about the weather), but I wouldn’t change it. It’s definitely developed into something I have a big passion for and greatly enjoy. Which to me I’d say is important. If you’re enjoying yourself whilst streaming then that really shines through.”
Don’t get discouraged if no one is talking back, appreciate the lurkers
Katherine says that while it is your job to keep the audience engaged, don’t immediately interpret silence as a lack of interest in your content.
“Lurkers are amazing, and should be appreciated. Don’t get into the mindset of expecting people to talk purely because they’ve stopped into your stream. There are many reasons as to why people like lurking, for example social anxieties, being shy, working or simply just busy doing their own thing and (they) left the stream on. A big shout out to the lurkers!”
Let people get to know you
Katherine says it’s important that your audience is welcomed with an atmosphere and environment that represents you and what they can reasonably expect from your stream.
“Build your page up with panels, artwork, etc. Introduce yourself, let people know what you’re about, what you play. This can also make your stream feel a lot more personal and help people get to know you better. Side note: just promoting a donate/tip button can be quite a turn off.”
Create a list of things you want to talk about before your stream
Let’s be honest, playing a new video game or trying to accomplish something new everyday isn’t easy. And talking about it constantly while you’re doing it is even more challenging. Katherine says that it is helpful to keep a journal of things you’d like to talk about before hand; that way, if the one-way communication becomes difficult you have something to rely on.
“If you’re having problems trying to keep yourself talking, then one thing I recommend is making a list as you go about your day-to-day life of things that occur which may be fun to talk about on stream. This could be an event, something you ate, something you did, something you saw! You can then refer back to this when you’re running out of things to say. This also may lead into something called the ‘bridge of topics’, for example talking about what you had for dinner may lead into a generic food discussion, into restaurants. The possibilities are endless!”
Don’t “go live” without a plan
Having worked in publishing since 2006, I can attest to the “throw it at the wall” until something sticks strategy. It doesn’t work. Katherine says you should resist going live just because you are doing something you think is interesting. It is more important to have a plan.
“One mistake that I seem to notice a lot is people pressing the ‘go live’ button purely because they’re playing a game, and not to throw themselves fully into it (which more often than not results in gameplay with radio silence). Going live means you’re the entertainer, you’re there to keep people engaged and having fun with you. Don’t go live if you don’t feel 100% that day. It’s okay to have days off, to not fully feel up to it. Your community will appreciate you a lot more for taking a day off as opposed to attempting to stream through a bad mood, feeling sick or whatnot. I’ve definitely taken advantage of this, and I usually feel a lot better for doing so.”
Don’t splurge on an expensive rig until you know it’s something you want to do – but when you know, get the right equipment
In fact, you don’t need anything more than what you already have to start streaming right now. Check out our guide to start streaming with Amazon Luna with nothing more than your Amazon account and your phone. But Katherine says once you know, it’s important to have the right gear.
“For me personally, I stream on a laptop and I’m making the most of the space that I do have, which isn’t all that much. As for equipment, I’d say that sound quality and having a decent sound setup is a must to focus on. This will be one of the first things that the average viewer will notice, they want to be able to hear what’s going on. You may choose to use a webcam – or you may not. As much as a webcam can aid you in expressing yourself more, in my opinion a webcam is not at all mandatory. Not everyone feels comfortable to share their face with the world for an array of reasons. It’s more than possible to carry your stream with your personality! Besides, your community would much rather you be comfortable, as it shows through when you aren’t.”
Create goals that are achievable
Katherine added that when she began streaming she had two goals: to build a unique set of emotes with her mascot Munchlax and create the infrastructure needed to grow her community. She’s accomplished both.
“I’m extremely grateful for where I’ve come so far, and I’m proud of what I’ve achieved (and those who know me will tell you that’s very hard for me to say!). However I’m definitely happy to just keep going and doing my thing. Should partner happen then that’s awesome of course, but it’s not my focus. I just want to continue with what I have, and create more fun memories through my games and my community which I appreciate more than they know!”
And finally, don’t get discouraged
This is a big one we see across all streaming communities on Discord. Getting the first follower is a drag, getting 100 seems insurmountable, and maintaining a stream quality that qualifies you for affiliate status on Twitch can appear as impossible as a flight to Mars for new live streamers. But Katherine says persistence is key.
“Don’t feel discouraged if things take a while. The process of growing your stream is a marathon and not a sprint – and you won’t magically grow overnight (unless a video ends up going viral ofc!).”
Happy streaming everyone, thank you Katherine!