Popular streaming platform Twitch has a massive community of both viewers and streamers that has helped connect people worldwide, even allowing some to carve out successful professions. It's not uncommon for Twitch to hold online virtual events for its many viewers and creators, not only as a way to celebrate the platform but also to give back to the community.
Glitchcon was one of those said events and was essentially their popular Twitchcon event on an online virtual platform. It featured many kinds of events, celebrities, creators and even an infamous emote. It was hosted on November 14th, 2020, for twelve hours, 12 PM to 12 AM, and was undoubtedly a smashing success that helped fill the void the Twitch community was feeling from a lack of the usual Twitchcon this year.
Twitch actually delivered buses, trailers and backyard renovations to streamers for Glitchcon. Not only were these special treats for these internet celebrities, but they also acted as areas of respite for them as these entertainers would be performing for long hours at a time. Twitch decked out these portable dressing rooms with a working refrigerator stocked with refreshments, Wi-Fi, comfortable beanbag chairs and a thematic neon purple lighting. For those who could not receive a trailer or bus like streamer Valkyrae, she and her roommates got their backyard redecorated by Twitch with four bathtubs, a wall of balloons and a massive tent with a projector.
A huge schedule of events appeared to be crammed within the twelve hours that Glitchcon went live, all featuring popular Twitch streamers and some well-known celebrities. Big companies like Verizon Communications and Adobe Inc. were sponsors of such events. These events catered to the multiple kinds of streams and streamers that many viewers visit the platform to see. This included art, music and gaming, with video game competitions being some of the most popular events. Some of these events are either scheduled too close to each other or can even overlap as there was no telling when something like a video game competition would end. And that's the beauty of the virtual Glitchcon vs. the physical Twitchcon.
Viewers could partake in multiple events by simply opening another window or tab with the streamer hosting or partaking in the event. Primary channels like Twitch, TwitchPresents, TwitchGaming and TwitchRivals also streamed entire events or announced winners of competitions. Instead of having ten windows open of each streamer's perspective of competing in a tournament, TwitchRivals would host and stream the entire competition.
The gaming competitions featured popular competitive streamers like Yassuo, loltyler1, Ninja and Bugha - a young gamer best known for winning the Fortnite World Cup with a three million dollar reward. The featured games included big names like League of Legends, Fortnite, Fall Guys: Ultimate Knockout and Valorant. They were known as Super Team Showdowns and had each streamer or a team of streamers with an assigned team captain compete against each other in the ultimate test of skill. Some highlights include a heated argument between streamers xQc and loltyler1. Meanwhile, Ninja got to pull off a massive last-minute clutch in the Fortnite Semi-Finals.
Celebrities like T-Pain and Mica Burton also made appearances during other events such as the Austin Talent Show, where streamers would compete and perform in front of live audiences, while some guests would either act as judges, hosts or key figures in these events, like Pokimane in "Guess the Gamer." Other events included a cosplay competition, artist showcase, The Kenny Beats Battle Extravaganza music competition and more. While some of these events were streamed for just the pure fun of it, many competitions gave competitors chances to win huge sums of money.
Viewers were not limited to just watching these events, either. They could take place in some of the events through the live chat, including a crash course on game development and an interactive tabletop RPG. They could also take part with a hype train of bit donations, emote spams, comments or even being directly referred to for input and thoughts on a competitor's performance. Viewers were also able to vote for winners in competitions. To reward those who have participated in the Glitchcon event, the infamous Golden Kappa emote was given to viewers for use.
Extra notable things that happened during Glitchcon include Twitch using the event as a chance to explain their management styles with the current DMCA issues and their plans to do better. They promised to share more info via their social media platforms and are working to be more open with communication to both streamers and viewers. Twitch also took the opportunity to give back to the community at the event; as announced by DrLupo and Emmett Shear, a sum total of one million dollars was donated by Twitch to StevenInSpawn and AbleGamers.
To wrap everything up, Twitch threw their streamers and their viewers an afterparty. Popular stream group OfflineTv would have a physical party catered by Twitch while the viewers got to partake in a virtual global celebratory music stream of artists and musicians.