Tyler “Ninja” Blevins is the most followed streamer on Twitch. He grew up with Fortnite, now he offers an expensive course so that others can become as successful as he is. But his colleagues can only laugh about it.
Why is?
Ninja was one of the first to stream Fortnite and became super successful. But who were the first streamers who made it to something?
Twitch: Who were the first successful streamers?
What is this course? Ninja offers its 30-day course on the “Masterclass” platform. It aims to teach aspiring streamers how to get started, how to build a streaming personality, and how to market themselves.
The catch: Although the course only lasts a month, you have to take out an annual subscription, which starts at $180. That’s almost €200. It gets even more expensive if you want to see the courses on multiple devices or offline.
You can also see how Drew’s own experiment went in the original English-language video. In it he shows full physical commitment and even dyes his hair.
YouTuber criticizes the course: “It’s all available online for free.”
What happened? On July 31, 2022, YouTube comedian Drew Gooden released a satirical video offering his take on the course and trying to implement the advice. His conclusion: “It ruined my life.”
Even in his imagination of Ninja, it’s clear that Drew doesn’t think too much of its streaming qualities. Ninja just played the right game at the right time, marketed themselves well, and said yes to every offer.
The course is structured like this: First, Drew shows a PDF that is sent to all participants. It explains some important terms that every streaming beginner should know. But also what a keyboard actually is and what the mouse is all about.
Then follows a multi-part video series. In the first part, which lasts a little over an hour, Ninja explains the basics, which equipment you need and how you can get started. Then it’s about topics like building a community and a brand.
This is the criticism:
Does Drew have anything positive to say? Yes, he has! However, the most valuable thing about the course is something that Ninja has no part in: the community of aspiring streamers who give each other feedback and praise.
Disguised Toast laughs at Ninja’s course
This is what he has to say about the course: Content Creator Jeremy “Disguised Toast” Wang watched Drew’s video of the class streamed with his followers on Twitch. He almost couldn’t stop laughing.
He doesn’t think Ninja is the right person to teach others how to stream or give advice on a tech setup.
One piece of advice, however, puts him out for good: To keep viewers engaged, Ninja recommends reading and responding to messages in chat. For example, if a viewer tells you about his sick dog, you can ask about the pet next time.
I do the exact opposite. Someone tells me how sad they are and I’m like, ‘I don’t give a fuck, you’re killing my vibes, get lost.’
Disguised Toast via Twitch
But then he backtracks a bit, of course he cares about his viewers. He just can’t take care of each individual, but as a whole they are important to him. But he doesn’t want a parasocial relationship with his viewers.
Another Twitch great is Asmongold, but I don’t think anyone should follow his life tips. He recently admitted to simply showering with bugs in his tub instead of cleaning them up. You can read about how he now wants to get his life under control on MeinMMO.