Facebook Gaming's viewership numbers grew by a considerable amount early this year, allowing it to set a new milestone. 

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(Photo : Screenshot From Facebook Gaming Facebook Page)
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According to DotESports, the closest competitor to Twitch in terms of game streaming managed to set a record 617 million watch hours last month. This is around 100 million watch hours more than December of last year, and the highest that Facebook Gaming has ever tallied since August 2021. 

The data comes from StreamElements analytics partner RainMaker.

But despite the record-setting month, Facebook Gaming is still miles behind its biggest competitor, Twitch. Based on data from StreamElements, the preeminent game streaming platform is still the king of the hill with 2 billion watch hours-a redemption feat by all means, if you know what happened last year. 

In June 2021, despite the constant growth of the popularity of game streaming as a whole, Twitch went below 2 billion watch hours for the first time in its history. 

As for the most popular games on both platforms, the topnotchers seem to feature erstwhile leaders and newcomers. The popular survival game "Rust" made its first appearance in the top 10 with 63 million watch hours-a massive 842% increase month-on-month. It even led the likes of "Apex Legends" (58 million hours), "Minecraft" (57 million hours), and "FIFA 22" (44 million hours). 

However, it still lags behind far more popular games like "Fortnite" 964 million hours), "Escape From Tarkov" (91 million hours), and "Grand Theft Auto V" (149 million hours. The one at the very top is the so-called "adults only" 2D platformer "Just Chatting" with an insane 279 million watch hours. 

Facebook Gaming has been steadily on the rise since last year, as reported by Digital Trends. Ever since its launch back in June 2018, it has seen constant growth in terms of overall viewership, which led to it controlling 13.8% of the game streaming market in terms of hours watched as of November 2021. It has even surpassed YouTube Gaming last year in terms of views. 

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Facebook Gaming Vs Twitch: Which One Should You Choose As A Streamer? 

In recent times, there has been a discussion about which platform is the better one for streamers (specifically gaming content creators). Both Facebook Gaming and Twitch have their own pros and cons, but at the end of the day, it depends on individual preferences. 

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(Photo : Image from ELLA DON on Unsplash)
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For those who are trying to choose between the two, here are a few considerations you should be aware of which could make choosing a bit easier. 

Facebook Gaming Pros

  • It pays better than Twitch because it allows creators to keep 100% of the money they earn from subscriptions (via StreamersPlaybook). While Twitch is implementing their AIP Program to deal with this issue, the pay divide is still far bigger, especially for beginners who just need to get their careers off the ground. 

  • Its mobile app is more catered to both streamers and viewers than Twitch's app, which seems to be tailor-made for viewers. 

  • It has more in-depth analytics.

Twitch Pros

  • It has a far bigger reach (this is already a given). 

  • Twitch is built specifically for gamers and almost their every need.

  • Its "Pay It Forward" culture opens up an alternative revenue stream aside from just paid subscriptions, as it encourages monetary gifting to streamers if viewers like their content enough. 

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Written by RJ Pierce 

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