Please support Game Informer. Print magazine subscriptions are less than $2 per issue
YouTube Marks Let's Play Day With All-Time Site Top 10 List
YouTube's been around for a decade now, transforming from a way to share the latest SNL Digital Short to a force that's changed gaming forever. Today, the streaming site is celebrating Let's Play day, in a nod to the dedicated fans and streamers who have created so much of YouTube's content. To mark the day, the company has released a list of the top 10 biggest games of all-time on YouTube, based on viewing time. Some might surprise you, while others definitely won't.
Here's the official list, from number one on down:
1 - Minecraft
2 - Grand Theft Auto (series)
3 - League of Legends
4 - Call of Duty (series)
5 - FIFA (series)
6 - Garry’s Mod
7 - The Sims (series)
8 - Five Nights at Freddy’s (series)
9 - Puzzle & Dragons
10 - Dota 2
Looking broadly at the list, it's mostly clear why these games have risen above the others. Games like Minecraft, The Sims, and Garry's Mod offer streamers an opportunity to tell their own stories while playing, as well as provide tips for players who are just starting out. League of Legends, Call of Duty, FIFA, and Dota 2 have a focus on multiplayer, and people tend to enjoy watching pro-level gamers pull off ridiculous wins. If you've watched a video of someone hamming it up while getting scared by Five Nights at Freddy's, you're clearly not alone.
YouTube says that gaming videos have been viewed for billions of hours, which seems crazy until you think about it. PewDiePie alone has more than 36 million subscribers, and one of his videos can easily get several million views in a day – while putting millions of dollars in his pocket every year. It's getting increasingly more difficult for parents to say that playing video games won't amount to anything.
Our Take
I'm a big Puzzle & Dragons player, and it never occurred to me that there would be an audience for Let's Play videos based on the game, let alone that they would be so popular. I'll have to watch a few today and see what I've been missing out on. After all, it's a holiday now.
I’d like to ask you to support Game Informer’s continued coverage of games with a subscription. For less than two dollars per issue, we mail you a full year of 10 print magazines, each with cover stories and preview features filled with exclusive details about the most exciting upcoming games. We profile and interview game creators. We look back on the rich history of gaming, and we celebrate what’s next.
Here on the website, we offer much of our content for free, including game reviews, daily news, videos, event coverage, and more – all with minimal ads.
We do so with a small editorial team, alongside contributing paid writers from around the world – over 65 individuals from 9 countries around the world, just in the last couple of years.
It’s not possible without support.
In a time when game makers and games coverage have faced hard struggles and layoffs, the future of this 30+ year magazine and community is at risk. Our new standalone magazine subscription is the number one way you can keep us alive – and we believe you’ll get a pretty fantastic gaming magazine in your mailbox every few weeks for your trouble.
Thank you.
