Location
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
Event Website
http://www.hicss.hawaii.edu
Start Date
1-4-2017
End Date
1-7-2017
Description
This paper is an analysis of individuals who livestream gameplay on Twitch. Two core concepts - ‘playing along’ and ‘playing for’ – are put forth as two poles to a continuum to better discuss tandem play in the context of livestreaming. From an analysis of participants’ exit interviews and observations of larger Twitch streams, it is shown that livestreaming is a form of tandem play, but only to a point. As audiences grow, ‘playing along’ becomes difficult for streamers. The ‘ceiling’ of tandem play is reached when a streamer is so focused on entertaining the largest number of people possible that they are no longer playing along with their spectators, but only playing for them.
Playing along and Playing for on Twitch: Livestreaming from Tandem Play to Performance
Hilton Waikoloa Village, Hawaii
This paper is an analysis of individuals who livestream gameplay on Twitch. Two core concepts - ‘playing along’ and ‘playing for’ – are put forth as two poles to a continuum to better discuss tandem play in the context of livestreaming. From an analysis of participants’ exit interviews and observations of larger Twitch streams, it is shown that livestreaming is a form of tandem play, but only to a point. As audiences grow, ‘playing along’ becomes difficult for streamers. The ‘ceiling’ of tandem play is reached when a streamer is so focused on entertaining the largest number of people possible that they are no longer playing along with their spectators, but only playing for them.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/hicss-50/dsm/games_and_gaming/4