Erik Range was born in Braunschweig in 1977 and, as Gronkh, has become one of the biggest German YouTubers and Twitch streamers. We give you an overview of the career of the probably first German Let’s players and show you where he stands in 2023.
Today, Gronkh is an integral part of the German content creator scene. But getting there wasn’t always easy: before his online career, Gronkh worked as an entrepreneur, web designer, programmer and game developer.
In 2007, Gronkh founded PlayMassive GmbH together with his good friend Valentin “Sarazar” Rahmel, which still operates several websites today. There were news and reviews of various games, especially in the MMORPG area.
But there was a problem: fewer and fewer people wanted to read long game reviews, so a new medium was needed.
Do you recognize these German Twitch streamers by their dubbing voices in video games?
The big brother of the internet
In 2010, Gronkh started making videos for YouTube with his buddy Sarazar. In doing so, they followed an emerging trend from the USA: Let’s Plays. In contrast to structured game reviews, the videos didn’t follow a script, they just started talking.
The success even surprised Sarazar and Gronkh themselves. Because at first they were rather skeptical: who would rather watch a video like this than gamble themselves? Gronkh told Spiegel in 2012 that it was a bit like it used to be when you watched your big brother play (via spiegel.de).
Viewers were less interested in seeing great gameplay than in experiencing the games alongside Gronkh and hearing what he had to say. If everything didn’t go perfectly, it was all the more fun.
Gronkh was diligent and produced tons of content: he usually published 2 episodes of Let’s Plays per day for games like Dragon Age: Origins, Monkey Island or FEAR
The big success came with the block game Minecraft. Over more than 3 years, 1,278 episodes of Let’s Play with a total length of over 21,000 minutes were released. The viewers loved the funny sayings and the YouTuber’s somewhat sloppy style.
The videos quickly reached thousands and eventually hundreds of thousands of views. Episode 001 of Let’s Play Minecraft now has over 17 million views (as of 01/27/2023).
Then as now, Gronkh’s Let’s Plays were characterized by the right mix of excitement and humor. He is never at a loss for a snappy saying – such as the pun that we have included for you here:
Video games, travel and a pinch of social criticism
How did his content develop? Gronkh didn’t stop at just uploading annotated gameplay videos to YouTube, even though that’s still an essential part of his online presence today. He also ran the Superhomies channel with Sarazar.
There, the two documented their private and professional trips or showed themselves trying local dishes and snacks.
In addition, the two hosted a web show called Let’s Play Together on former German YouTube competitor MyVideo. They left the show in 2014, but Gronkh found a taste for live streaming.
Gronkh has therefore been a regular feature on Twitch since 2014. There he basically did the same with his “Live Let’s Plays” as on YouTube, but live and with direct interaction with the viewers.
In addition to the evergreen Minecraft, Gronkh shows various current games on Twitch, from horror to Point’n’Click to the Sims, everything is there. He also chats with his viewers in Just Chatting and makes reactions.
A special highlight is the annual charity show Friendly Fire, which he organizes together with the gaming group PietSmiet. It takes place alternately on the channels of Gronkh and PietSmiet.
Friendly Fire 8: Despite inflation, more than 1 million euros are donated again and the record from last year is almost reached
These social aspects are very important to Gronkh: In an interview with Der Spiegel in 2016, he explained that although his content is intended for entertainment, he also incorporates important topics and positive values.
I play games and talk about it. You don’t win an Oscar for that and you tend to occupy a niche program there. It is clear to me that the “Let’s Play” track does not have the highest intellectual demands. But I want to keep people entertained and emotionally involved while playing. And I also weave social criticism into my program from time to time, insisting on togetherness. This is only superficial, but I would like to at least broach the subject.
Gronkh via mirror
Incidentally, Gronkh is also active as a voice actor: for example, the YouTuber was heard in Just Cause 3, The LEGO Batman Movie, Spider-Man: A New Universe and Life is Strange: True Colors.
The biggest successes
Gronkh became so successful: From the first German Let’s Player, Gronkh developed into the largest YouTuber in Germany. Between 2014 and 2016, Gronkh had the most subscribed YouTube channel in Germany.
Gronkh has already received several awards for his work. In 2012 he won the German Web Video Award three times, received the golden play button for more than one million subscribers on YouTube in 2013 and made it into the Hall of Fame of the Berlin Computer Games Museum in 2014.
In 2014 and 2015 there were renewed awards at the German Web Video Awards and in 2020 Gronkh was named “Best Streamer” at the Gamescom Awards.
There were also television appearances, such as with Stefan Raab and Jan Böhmermann.
Gronkh reached a rather unpleasant milestone in 2018: After several large streamers were targeted by the state media authorities, he became the first German content creator to apply for and receive a broadcasting license – albeit under protest.
Twitch: MontanaBlack now wants to be on the air 24/7 – Gronkh showed it
Where does Gronkh stand today?
In contrast to other early stars of the German YouTube scene, Gronkh is still active and true to himself. So there are still quite regularly 1-2 Let’s Plays per day on YouTube and the streams on Twitch.
The concept is still popular: With 4.9 million subscribers, his main channel is still one of the most subscribed German YouTube channels.
In December 2022, it landed in 6th place among the German-language channels, but has now had to admit defeat to Julien Bam and BibisBeautyPalace, for example.
However, these types of success were never particularly important to the content creator: he did not want to be in the limelight, preferring to see himself on an equal footing with his viewers. Today, he seems to be mostly focused on what he enjoys doing: making let’s plays and having a good time with his viewers.
On Twitch, however, Gronkh regularly makes it into the top 5 of the largest German streamers. On average, between 15,000 and 20,000 people watch it at the same time while it is on the air.
So Gronkh managed not only to exploit a passing Minecraft hype, but to remain relevant for years. He’s no longer the undisputed number 1, but he’s built something that will last.
Many gamers in Germany grew up with his Let’s Plays, may even have discovered a love of gaming through him and fondly remember the time they watched their “big brother” play games. Other viewers have grown up with Gronkh, still listen to him today, or have rediscovered him over the years.
When a voice of reason was asked for in the current debate about loot box madness and chubby Twitch streamers in Jan Böhmermann’s “ZDF Magazin Royale”, the choice fell – of course – on Gronkh. That seems to be the role that Gronkh has in the community today: that of the sensible, big brother.