Starting a Gaming YouTube Channel [Advice]

[sjones900]

So recently I've been wanting to start up a gaming YouTube channel and I've uploaded a few videos, and I don't expect a huge amount of views... But I was curious has anyone here done / been doing this? What are your experiences? What have you done to get your content noticed?

I should mention this is purely for fun, I have enjoyed it a lot so far. I just think I would enjoy it much more if I had an audience

Link to my channel will be in my signature. Any and all feedback is welcome!

 

[ilman]

What games are you going to play?
If it's PC games, be sure to have a decent rig and plenty of storage. I can recommend Shadowplay to record your games if you have an NVidia card, as it has great quality and negligible performance hits.
If you're going to play console games, invest in a good capture card.
In any case, you'll also need a decent mic(a good headset should have one that should work) and some editing skills (if it's just for fun, I can recommend Camtasia, since it isn't as complicated as other programs).

 

[Depravo]

My advice would be to watch the latest episode of South Park. S18E09 #REHASH

 

[sjones900]

What games are you going to play?
If it's PC games, be sure to have a decent rig and plenty of storage. I can recommend Shadowplay to record your games if you have an NVidia card, as it has great quality and negligible performance hits.
If you're going to play console games, invest in a good capture card.
In any case, you'll also need a decent mic(a good headset should have one that should work) and some editing skills (if it's just for fun, I can recommend Camtasia, since it isn't as complicated as other programs).

I'm mostly going to do PC games, right now I'm doing a play through of Penumbra Overture. I bought the trilogy a while back and it's kind of an under rated game and I thought it would be a good place to start. I do use NVidia Shadowplay for newer titles, but anything older isn't supported. In that case I use FRAPS. My Mic is decent I guess... but it does have some noticeable distortion. As for editing, I do have some prior experience with video editing, so my go to program is Adobe Premiere.

My advice would be to watch the latest episode of South Park. S18E09 #REHASH

I did see that episode! I enjoyed it quite a lot, it does bring up a point in society where the content is becoming less and less relevant. I think as long the commentary genuinely adds to the value of the content then it's acceptable, but if you just have a person playing say... I don't know, Surgeon Simulator and they don't even speak or say anything that's really relevant. Really what is the point?

 

[RevPokemon]

I don't make videos but from my opinions of the ones I watch my opinions are

Make videos under 18-20 minutes long any longer than that then make multiple videos

Write your material before you go and try to stay on topic

Try to join a group of fellow makers online

Use a good rig which you have

Imo pick orginal games and not ones that every one else does as it's unique

Also remember it takes time to grow

 

[Hells Malice]

Really all you can do to get your videos out there is tag it properly (and thoroughly).

I think the best advice i've heard is, make videos because you want to, not because you want to be famous. If you force it and are a try-hard about it, you'll probably never get much of a sub base. Other than that, gaining subs is a slow painful process. I'd suggest if you plan to play a game that has a definitive start and finish (like Penumbra), make sure to always finish the series. Sounds obvious but yeah, it's easy to turn people away by having a bunch of unfinished series on your channel.
If you're serious about making videos, i'd also suggest a non-headset mic, if you don't have one already. It makes a huge difference in the quality of your videos considering people have to listen to you every single video. I have a really good headset and for voice chatting and the like, you'd think it was great. But whenever I record with it I just can't stand it. I picked up a Blue Snowball Ice for cheap and am happy with it.

oh and never get one of those obnoxious intros that take forever. I can't count the amount of times i've backed out of a video because I can't be assed to even just skip the intro.

 

[RevPokemon]

Also it may be minor but you need a good logo/avatar that is related to gaming.

 

[CompassNorth]

Keep the commentary casual

 

[sjones900]

Thank you everyone! I really appreciate all of your advice, I will definitely try to incorporate it all into my videos. I do also plan on getting a Blue Snowball Mic, since they're relatively affordable with excellent sound quality. I'm still a little camera shy, but I hope doing this will help me overcome that.