An Introduction to Live Streaming and the Gaming Community at USC

By: Nancy Aguilar ‘22

Watching live streams is something I regularly do in my spare time. I got into the world of live streaming over the pandemic and I’ve grown to really admire and appreciate entertainers on this platform.

What is Live Streaming?

Before I continue, what is live streaming? Live streaming is simply when a person turns on a camera and broadcasts to the public. They do various things like play video games, travel, or simply talk or run errands on stream. You can do anything you want really. Once people get a following—or regular viewers—they become a professional live streamer because they start earning money for their viewership. I personally really enjoy watching people play video games on live streams.

I tend to watch live streams when I work or study. If you’re also the type of person who likes background noise or activity while you work or study, I recommend trying live streaming because one of the upsides of doing that is that you won’t have to constantly be choosing new videos or music like you do with short videos or music playlists. Live streams can last anywhere from 1 hour to 12 hours a day! Meaning that you can find a video for almost any length of time that you’re going to be working and not have to deal with shifting from video to video.

Another unique quality about watching live streams is that they’re unedited so they have a uniquely real feeling to them. It honestly feels like just lounging around with a friend because you’re watching someone for hours on end and it’s not “edge-of-your-seat” exciting content, it’s just hanging out most of the time.

Additionally, live streaming is a giant viewing party. No other form of entertainment invites the audience to actively talk and engage while the “show” is happening. Comments from viewers appear in real time for live streamers and it adds to the experience. It’s unlike any other online entertainment that I’ve seen. Live stream viewers have even developed their own language which you’ll quickly come to learn if you watch consistently. It’s a really cool thing to see even if you’re not personally interested in it.

Live Streaming/Gaming at USC:

I don’t personally know any live streamers here at USC but I know many fellow trojans that enjoy live streamers and it’s yet another one of the many communities that can be found at USC, especially in the gaming community here.

If you’re interested in video games—whether it’s participating or watching them—USC has an esports [electronic sports] club and they compete competitively throughout the year. They have teams for specific games like: League of Legends, Overwatch, Hearthstone, Rocket League, and Starcraft 2. But they’re always looking to expand so if you’d like to start your own team this is also a possibility. I’m not familiar with the process for trying out for the competitive team but they have casual events every week that are open to everyone! So if you’re curious about learning more I highly recommend stopping by at one of their events.

Esports teams are also featured at USC’s concert events and you can watch them play in person at USC school wide events like conquest or other carnival events. They traditionally do Super Smash Brothers tournaments and it’s a really fun experience that I highly recommend if you like watching video games. There are also tournaments open to the general public so this may be something you find interesting as well.

The bulk of the updates and viewership experience happens on live streams for these events. Which means you can keep up with tournaments and competitive games from the comfort of your home. I’ve found that the tournaments and competitions are readily accessible through the Twitter accounts of the teams (@USCEsports).

If you’re interested in a career in making or designing video games, USC also has a broad source of courses and degrees that can help you achieve your goal of being in the gaming industry. Their Game Design Program is USC’s most famous and it is a hybrid of both its Viterbi School of Engineering and the School of Cinematic Arts. You can keep up with them on live streams as well, their annual Game Expo (which happens every May) is happening this year on May 12th at 2PM PDT. You can get more information on their Twitter here: (@USCGames). Even if you are just more casually interested in the development aspect of video games and don’t necessarily want a career out of it, average students are invited to play test video games that fellow students create and it’s a very fun experience. This used to be in-person play testing but with the COVID pandemic they’ve adapted this system to be feasible online through Zoom as well.

And—Just for Fun—Live streamers I recommend:

Valkyrae

Winning the Game Award for Content Creator of the Year in 2020, Rachel Hofstetter is a Filipina-German-American who does a variety of games—most notably Fortnite, Among Us and GTA V. Her energy is insane and she is a great person to watch if you’re new to games because her style is more casual and for just having fun!

XQC

A French-Canadian former professional video game player who received MVP for his performance at the Overwatch World Cup in 2017 and currently the most watched streamer on the planet, Félix Lengyel is a very notoriously competitive streamer. Although he has a controversial past, you’ll surely be entertained by his sporadic personality if not by his amazing skill.

HasanAbi

HasanAbi or Hasan Dogan Piker is a news/political live streamer with typically left swinging views. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with his views, I think Hasan is worth watching because he explains his views and reacts candidly to new political/world events that are occurring live. This is another great thing about live streaming, there is no other medium where you can get someone’s opinion or reaction on something live to this extent. Political commentary is also a very unique thing for a live streamer to talk about and this gives Hasan a distinct edge on this medium.

Fuslie

Leslie Ann Fu is a Chinese American live streamer known for variety games, most recently thriving on GTA V Role Playing. GTA V Role Playing is essentially when you pretend that your character in GTA is a real person and the GTA city (in this case Los Santos) is the real world. Many streamers play on the same server which is exclusive to streamers and this form of streaming quickly becomes like a reality show in a sense because you follow one character as they interact with the world and other people around them. Leslie’s quick humor/wittiness and ability to adapt to new situations and styles is what makes her so fun to watch. It’s like she’s doing stand up and improv for hours on end.

RatedEpicz

RatedEpicz, who also goes by Randy, is a very unique live streamer because his actual identity is unknown. He is what is known as a faceless streamer because nothing is known of his personal life. He is a British live streamer who plays GTA V Role Play as well, but with a very different style than other streamers on this platform. RatedEpicz has spent years on this game and it really shows because his agility and style in playing this game is unmatched by any other streamer I’ve seen play this game. He knows the ins and outs on what it takes to be a legendary criminal in the city but also has the humor to keep up with live streamers who thrive off of situational comedy. In sum, RatedEpicz is a great blend of both so I highly recommend him.

All in all, I hope this article helped you better connect to your interests on campus or introduced you to a new form of entertainment that you weren’t aware of before. If there’s one takeaway to get from this article is that USC has a corner for everyone and every interest—even if you think it’s a crazy interest that one else would be into. Explore USC and you’ll be sure to find a place for you.

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