Game Theory: How PewDiePie Conquered YouTube

MatthewPatrick13

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Jun 17, 2014
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How PewDiePie Conquered YouTube

Soon, PewDiePie will have the most subscribed channel on YouTube. But how did PewDiePie, the Baron of Brofist, skyrocket to the top of the YouTube charts so quickly. And what does Pewdie's record-setting rise mean for gamers on YouTube in general?

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flarty

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Apr 26, 2012
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How is this guy so popular? It's like some retard with no social skills thinking they're funny.
 

PirateRose

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Aug 13, 2008
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They hacked and shut Boxy down so fast back in the day. Why didn't they do the same with PewDewPie?

I remember clicking on one of his videos years ago and I just couldn't get past the first minute. I thought there was no way this guy was going to get anywhere. It has to be a bunch of kids watching his stuff.
 

Kaimax

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Jul 25, 2012
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Honestly, what's wrong with Kids liking him a lot?
You don't like him? good for you. But acting like he doesn't deserve it makes you look like a child throwing a tantrum.


What if EpicMealTime was the #1 Channel in Youtube? What's your complaint for this? Fat people? lol
 

SonOfVoorhees

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Aug 3, 2011
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Have no idea why he is such a success, have tried to watch a few of his vids but they were terrible. But still, good on him though, must be doing some right.
 

DarkRawen

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Apr 20, 2010
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Baffle said:
How it is pronounced? Pew Dee Pie, or Pew Dye Pie? It's probably covered in the video, but I haven't watched that (yet?)
Pew (as in when kids play with guns) Die (as in the word die) Pie (like pie).

OT: I honestly don't get why people dislike Pewdiepie so much. I think that whether or not you like him depends on taste + getting used to how he is, I'll easily admit that he's not someone to watch if you want a serious outlook on a game, but he's surprisingly charming and amusing in his own way. Some people get used to it and enjoy it, some don't. I started watching him because my cousin showed me a couple of his videos and I thought he was funny (back before he got super-famous), and kept up with him because he's amusing, as well as a great guy. Bit thoughtless with what he says sometimes, though, but he's not "the youtube plague" itself like some seem to think.

I was... let's see, probably 17 when I started watching him, not a kid and certainly not fond of childish stuff, I liked him because he felt like someone who was just messing around, and he's stayed like that, if matured quite a lot as well.

Also watched this way back, seeing as I'm also subbed to the Game Theorists on Youtube. :p
 

Guy from the 80's

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Mar 7, 2012
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Kaimax said:
Honestly, what's wrong with Kids liking him a lot?
You don't like him? good for you. But acting like he doesn't deserve it makes you look like a child throwing a tantrum.


What if EpicMealTime was the #1 Channel in Youtube? What's your complaint for this? Fat people? lol


Justin Bieber is the best lol, if you dont like him but like Led Zeppelin you are like a child throwing a tantrum......lol.
 

SnakeoilSage

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Sep 20, 2011
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Baffle said:
How it is pronounced? Pew Dee Pie, or Pew Dye Pie? It's probably covered in the video, but I haven't watched that (yet?)
Felix himself pronounces it "Pew-dee-pie." Say the first two syllables as if they were one word: pewdy-pie.

I'm 30-ish, and I enjoy many of his videos. I enjoyed his earlier horror stuff 'cause he's either really good at faking fear/surprise or he honestly feels it, either way, I get a good laugh. He's also pretty funny in a weird, eccentric sort of way outside of his gaming videos. You might dismiss some of his stuff as "just begging for attention" but he's already got millions of subscribers. He doesn't need to beg anymore and he knows it. He does it for the laughs.

Plus he's an honestly good guy. His non-comedy stuff shows how much he likes people and his pets and his girlfriend. He loves the work he does and he has tried to give something back by working with charities.

So yeah, I roll my eyes when I see someone say they hate Pewdiepie, because we both know you really envy his popularity and success. You do. Just admit it. Even Jim Sterling is not immune to it as he denounces "YouTube fodder" and "Pewdiebait" on the Jimquisition yet gluts his own YouTube channel with videos and shamelessly plugs the channel every chance he gets. It's okay to be envious, guys.

Brofist.
 

hickwarrior

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Nov 7, 2007
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SnakeoilSage said:
Baffle said:
So yeah, I roll my eyes when I see someone say they hate Pewdiepie, because we both know you really envy his popularity and success. You do. Just admit it. Even Jim Sterling is not immune to it as he denounces "YouTube fodder" and "Pewdiebait" on the Jimquisition yet gluts his own YouTube channel with videos and shamelessly plugs the channel every chance he gets. It's okay to be envious, guys.
I thought pewdie bait or youtube fodder meant to be more for games, rather than the guy itself. And if anything, maybe people hate him like a symbol, like phil fish? Whatever the case, I don't think he intended to slander pewds but the games made with the purpose of getting on youtube.

As for me, I don't watch him. I don't think I could stand the kind of content he puts out.
 

Grape_Nuts

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Mar 23, 2011
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I've heard his name because some people won't shut up about him, but I've never felt sufficiently interested to actually watch anything he produces.
 

Rip Van Rabbit

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Apr 17, 2012
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He is a very pleasant guy and I like his general attitude.
His shrieking is rather grating, so his content is not exactly my cup-of-tea. But I can understand and appreciate his appeal. :)
 

Zydrate

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Apr 1, 2009
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You know, I never even heard about him until I got into the Slenderman mythos. Same way I didn't know about Totalbiscuit or Tobuscus (Probably not even spelling that right). I guess it's because I don't follow those communities so I don't hear the "word of mouth".

I've watched a few of his things and I find him kind of annoying. Mostly because he just spouts his chosen few catchphrases over and over.
 

MeisterKleister

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Mar 9, 2012
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Very interesting! I never knew about that Youtube change in 2012, but it does explain some things I've been noticing.

PewDiePie's popularity got me curious at one point, so I decided try and understand why by occasionally watching a bit of his stuff. While I had never really enjoyed the videos where he played horror games (because I found his loud screaming after jumpscares unpleasant - especially when he was using a cheap mic), some of his Happy Wheels compilations actually got genuinely laughs out of me several times for his tomfoolery. And when he plays a recently released interesting looking or AAA game or just a game that I enjoyed (like Dark Souls for example), I was actually entertained watching him (or at least I didn't really mind his commentary while taking in the game footage). Also, he actually edits out the boring bits thereby saving me time, as opposed to some of the other Let's Players I'd been used.

It's a hit-and-miss for me, but since he produces so much content, there are still bound to be relatively many hits (at least for me). ...Or something like that. And when he gets to play games before release, his videos are also a nice method to get acquainted with a new game without spending money. And I guess PewDiePie genuinely has fun while on camera and you can tell, and it's kinda contagious sometimes.
 

Jmp_man

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Apr 24, 2011
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Guy from the 80 said:
Kaimax said:
Honestly, what's wrong with Kids liking him a lot?
You don't like him? good for you. But acting like he doesn't deserve it makes you look like a child throwing a tantrum.


What if EpicMealTime was the #1 Channel in Youtube? What's your complaint for this? Fat people? lol


Justin Bieber is the best lol, if you dont like him but like Led Zeppelin you are like a child throwing a tantrum......lol.
Wait... what? You mean it's wrong to like one thing but hate another related thing? Let me put into your own words for a second:
Pizza is the best lol, if you dont like it but like Broccoli you are like a child throwing a tantrum......lol.
See? It sounds insane when you compare two musicians (Justin Bieber and Led Zeppelin) together. Just because they are related through music does not mean that a person hating Justin Bieber hates music in general.
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Meanwhile... in another post...

SnakeoilSage said:
I'm 30-ish, and I enjoy many of his videos... -snip- ...He loves the work he does and he has tried to give something back by working with charities.
Ya, this is great and all but it only explains why YOU like Pewdiepie, and doesn't show us anything besides your predetermined bias towards supporting him.

SnakeoilSage said:
So yeah, I roll my eyes when I see someone say they hate Pewdiepie, because we both know you really envy his popularity and success. You do. Just admit it. Even Jim Sterling is not immune to it as he denounces "YouTube fodder" and "Pewdiebait" on the Jimquisition yet gluts his own YouTube channel with videos and shamelessly plugs the channel every chance he gets. It's okay to be envious, guys.
And I roll my eyes when people assume one thing can encompass an entire group of people. You assume that EVERYONE that hates Pewdiepie hates him because of his popularity, but you fail to see more then that. It may come as a shock to you but some people do hate him because of his jokes or his videos or his voice or his... well you get the idea.

What I'm trying to say is... stop assuming that people hate something because they're "jealous" the world isn't black and white ya know? (and it makes you look like a prat)
 

Aliasi

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Aug 21, 2014
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I admit, I really don't care for Pewdiepie, but I do enjoy a lot of similar channels such as Markiplier and the Game Grumps. To me, I find Mark to be a less irritating person without a huge ego and always quite willing to make fun of himself, which helps.

However, PDP has certainly helped Let's Play-ers find a presence on Youtube and get the attention of ad networks, so I can't really begrudge his existence.
 

RaikuFA

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Jun 12, 2009
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My only complaint with PDP is if you try and do a LP of a game that he's done and you're not well known, prepare for copyright takedowns and the comments spammed with "PEWDIEPIE PLAYED IT FIRST!!! YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO PLAY IT!!!"