Why did the number of viewers of chess streaming distribution explode?



Chess is a board game that is played all over the world, but since around 2020, its popularity has skyrocketed on the streaming service Twitch, and the number of viewers has exploded. News media

protocol explains the factors behind online chess, which is suddenly growing in popularity.

Chess.com finds streaming success --Protocol — The people, power and politics of tech
https://www.protocol.com/chess-streaming-twitch-hikaru-botez

◆ Chess.com
There are many online chess games that anyone can freely develop. However, according to the protocol, 65-70 % of online chess players use Chess.com . In fact, at the time of writing , over 57 million players have Chess.com accounts. In addition, Twitch broadcasts the game on Chess.com, which has been played for 18.3 million hours in January 2021 and 18.1 million hours in February 2021 by the time the article was written .



Chess.com acquired the chess engine

Komodo in 2018. Komodo has excellent game analysis ability and will help users improve their skills. Chess.com has also created dozens of battle AIs with different personalities to entertain users with a variety of tactics. These features make Chess.com very popular in the online chess game world, but according to the protocol, Chess.com-related streaming distribution received little attention until 2020.

◆ Hikaru Nakamura
'Chess.com's popularity in streaming is largely related to the presence of Hikaru Nakamura , one of the youngest grandmasters in history at the age of 15,' the protocol said. I am. ..

Nakamura started streaming on Twitch in July 2017. Partly due to the effect of the promotion by Chess.com, Nakamura succeeded in attracting hundreds of viewers in the first distribution. After that, Mr. Nakamura has been distributing regularly since 2018, and by the beginning of 2020, he said that he had gathered more than 80,000 followers. However, protocol said, 'It cannot be said that it is a top streamer with about 80,000 followers,' and Mr. Nakamura became popular when the demand for streaming distribution increased significantly due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection. Claims.

The new coronavirus has dramatically increased the total viewing time of game-based livestreaming by nearly 50% in a month --GIGAZINE



In April 2020, Nakamura delivered a chess coach to former Overwatch pro player and Twitch's popular streamer xQc . This distribution attracted a lot of attention, and the average number of viewers of Mr. Nakamura's distribution exceeded 13,000 in May 2020. Since then, the number of viewers has continued to grow, and in February 2021, the average number of viewers exceeded 24,000. The protocol states, '20% of the time chess-related broadcasts are played on Twitch is when Nakamura's broadcasts are watched,' demonstrating Nakamura's importance to the popularity of online chess.

◆ Bothes sisters
According to the protocol, only a handful of top players can make a living as chess players, and the others have had to become coaches or take other jobs. However, the chess epidemic in streaming has brought a new life plan to chess players. The protocol cites the Canadian chess player Botes sisters as an example of how the chess epidemic in streaming has affected players.

Both Sisters Botes were enough players to be selected to represent Canada in the World Chess Championships. However, according to the protocol, the two did not think they could make a living from chess. In 2020, the Botez sisters said, 'I want to enjoy chess as a hobby rather than participating in a highly competitive tournament,' and opened the chess channel Botez Live in 2020. Furthermore, in December 2020, we joined the professional esports team ' Team Envy ' to liven up chess in the world of streaming distribution.

Welcome Andrea & Alexandra Botez To Envy --YouTube


◆ Online chess tournament 'Pog Champs'
In June 2020, when chess began to flourish on Twitch, Chess.com hosted an online chest tournament, PogChamps, with a $ 50,000 prize. Many well-known streamers, including xQc, participated in 'Pog Champs,' and the number of simultaneous viewers on Twitch reached 150,000. Since then, Chess.com has held online chest tournaments such as the 2nd 'PogChamps' and ' BlockChamps '. In 2021 February the third time ' PogChamps 3 has been held', Chess.com is Grand Theft Auto V and, Fortnight along with Twitch of as 'the most watched in that game at Twitch' It has gained popularity enough to be displayed on the top page.




According to the protocol, some people are worried that chess in the real world will decline due to the popularity of chess in streaming distribution. But Nick Burton, vice president of business development at Chess.com, said, 'Chess is a game that has been around for a long time. Even in a future where the term e-sports doesn't exist, the chess culture will continue to exist. There will be. '

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in Web Service,   Game, Posted by log1o_hf