Olivia R. April 6, 2020
People have been turning to Twitch in record numbers amidst lockdown orders due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Twitch shared their Q1 numbers from 2020 and they show that people are turning to streamers while under strict orders to stay inside. The Amazon-owned streaming platform surprassed 3 billion hours watched for the first time in its history. It also reached all-time highs for average concurrent viewership, up 15.5% compared to the previous quarter.
Twitch made up 65% of the total hours of streaming watched this quarter, but Facebook Gaming, Mixer, and other streaming platforms also saw increases due to lockdowns around the world. YouTube Gaming made up 22% of the views, with a little over 1 billion hours of viewership, followed by Facebook Gaming. That platform made up 11% with over 550 million hours of viewership. Mixer came in at 2% of viewership, with 81 million hours watched this quarter.
Streamers have been taking full advantage of the increased visibility. The platform experienced record-breaking streaming hours, with over 121 million hours streamed in Q1. That's 72% of the total hours of streamed footage online. Mixer followed after, making up 17%, followed by YouTube Gaming Live and then streamers on Facebook Gaming.
Most viewed esports of 2020 so far
The gaming event with the most viewership in 2020 thus far is Awesome Games Done Quick. The speedrunning event raised millions for charity back in January. The two events coming in behind the speedrunning gathering took place during the lockdown. The LEC had almost 21 million hours watched, followed by the LCK with 17.7 million hours watched.
It's no surprise then that League of Legends is currently the most viewed game of 2020. So far, the MOBA has pulled in well over 427 million hours watched. It's followed by Fortnite, which is no stranger to the top streaming spot, with 287 million hours watched. Twitch's Just Chatting category is in third, with 285 million hours watched in 2020 so far. This is no surprise, since many people following social distancing orders probably enjoy having someone to chat with.