December Sees 25% Surge in YouTube Gaming Viewership

December 2022 saw Twitch maintain its viewership level from the previous month, reaching 1.6 billion hours, as reported by StreamElements and Rainmaker.gg in their monthly State of the Stream report. However, the platform failed to achieve the two billion hours watched mark, a feat it accomplished in January 2022. Facebook Gaming experienced a 2% decline in December, with 405 million hours watched. In contrast, YouTube Gaming was the sole platform to exhibit growth, with a 25% increase in viewership to 305 million hours. This surge was largely driven by viewers tuning in to watch popular titles such as Grand Theft Auto, Minecraft, and Fortnite. On Twitch, the most viewed games for the month included familiar names like Grand Theft Auto V, World of Warcraft, and League of Legends. Notably, Escape From Tarkov saw a staggering 455% increase, reaching 39 million views, attributed to its pre-wipe event and New Year's drops. The top games on Twitch for the month were: Grand Theft Auto V with 95 million hours, World of Warcraft with 74 million hours, League of Legends with 68 million hours, Valorant with 60 million hours, Call of Duty: Warzone with 49 million hours, Fortnite with 42 million hours, Overwatch 2 with 41 million hours, Escape from Tarkov with 39 million hours, and Minecraft with 32 million hours. StreamElements CEO Gil Hirsch commented, "Twitch has undoubtedly grown significantly from its pre-pandemic numbers, despite a downward trend from its pandemic-era highs." He added, "While Twitch remains the leader in live gaming, it's uncertain whether it will regain momentum or if other platforms like TikTok are affecting its growth."