Even the biggest of Twitch streamers can’t outrun the long arm of Twitch’s user license agreement.
Félix “xQc” Lengyel is one of the most popular streamers on Twitch with tens of thousands of average viewers and over 9 million followers on his Twitch channel. While he’s often considered Twitch royalty, xQc has gotten banned from Twitch a total of five times. Some of xQc’s bans have had obvious causes, but others are more mysterious. Here’s every time xQc has been banned on Twitch and why.
All of xQc’s Twitch bans explained
xQc’s first ban on Twitch happened in July of 2019. During a Just Chatting stream, xQc opened a video of pornography with drawings overlaid on top of it. Fans scoured the footage to find visibly inappropriate material which they then sent to Twitch. xQc was banned for 72 hours for the offense. Controversy arose when fellow Twitch streamer Alinity committed a similar offense but only received a warning.
xQc’s second ban in March 2020 stemmed from the adult-rated game Strip Connect 4. When prompted to take off a digital characters’ bra, xQc quickly confirmed the option. This obviously violates Twitch’s rules regarding sexual content. This is probably the most egregious thing xQc has done to warrant a ban, as the game required him to opt-in to experience the nudity. Still, he was unbanned quickly afterward.
The Canadian streamer’s third Twitch ban is the funniest. During a Just Chatting stream where fans suggest videos, xQc loaded a video of the Nintendo GameCube startup animation. At the last second, the video switched to footage of two gorillas copulating. It may seem strange for Twitch to intervene, but the 24-hour ban was clearly meant as a slap on the wrist.
xQc’s fourth ban is one of his most controversial. The stream was unexpectedly shut down after showing off highlights from the Tokyo Olympics. He followed recommended protocol for showing the Olympic Games, including muting the official audio. The ban, which was revoked less than a day later, sparked conversation in the streaming community about what Twitch does to protect its streamers. xQc even promised to take legal action in response to the copyright claim made against him.
xQc’s most recent ban took place in August 2021. The exact reason for this ban remains unknown, and xQc himself isn’t sharing any details. Fan speculation has yet to pin down an exact cause, but it could be related to messages sent in chat. Considering that xQc initiated legal action over his Olympics ban, he might have been advised to keep quiet about this one.
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