
Hogwarts Legacy is still days away from a wider release and it’s already breaking records. On Twitch, the game is the all-time most popular single-player game on the platform.
Hogwarts Legacy’s hype has been brewing for some two years now. As the game garnered more popularity, it also received flak from the trans community. The game’s author J.K Rowling isn’t the biggest LGBTQ+ supporter, evident by her public opinions, and all of that left a mark against Hogwarts Legacy. However, the game is still overwhelmingly popular.
Those who shopped Hogwarts Legacy’s pricey Deluxe edition got early access on February 7, which means only a few have yet played it. Still, Hogwarts Legacy topped Twitch’s viewership, beating the most-watched Just Chatting category.
Twitch is primarily about video games, but the Just Chatting category remains the most watched. The likes of GTA, League of Legends, Valorant, and more have failed to surpass the viewership count of the casual chatting streams. But, one day into early access, Hogwarts Legacy has managed to pull off the impossible.
On February 7, the game had 1.3 million viewers on Twitch, breaking the record for the most-watched single-player game. Previously, this record was held by the uber-popular Cyberpunk 2077, a game that had players on their toes for over half a decade. In 2020, Cyberpunk roped in about 1.1 million viewers, which was incredible for a new game.
In 2023, Hogwarts Legacy attracted more than a million people within 24 hours of Deluxe’s release. The count has lowered since then, as only 300K viewers are active on Hogwarts Legacy streams. However, it’ll likely see a massive surge again on the official release date when more streamers will have access to the game.
All of this happened under the shadow of the controversy looming over streamers playing Hogwarts Legacy. Only a few dared to play the game live despite viewers shaming and boycotting the streamers. Among notable names was Felix “xQc” Lengyel, who called out the boycotters for bullying small streamers.
“You’re trying to make people feel bad for f**king purchasing a video game?” xQc said.
Besides standing with those who streamed the game, xQc also gave a surprisingly positive rating of 9.3 to Hogwarts Legacy. But many still stand their ground and refuse to stream the game. Whatever the case, Hogwarts Legacy has managed to hit a massive milestone that many popular games strive for.
It remains to be seen if this hype lives on as the general audience tries out the game on February 10.
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