Notes

Minecraft's recent Surge on YouTube Proves that the "PewDiePie Effect" is still in Place.



Minecraft's recent surge on YouTube proves that the 'PewDiePie Effect' is still in place


The 'PewDiePie' Effect is alive and well thanks to Minecraft's recent rise on YouTube


A term that was used five years ago is still relevant.

By Julia Alexander



Almost two months ago, Felix "PewDiePie" Kjellberg did something that his fans had always wanted to do: he made a Minecraft video, and he's made more since. The result was Kjellberg's biggest successful month to date with more than 570 million views in July, and kicking off an era of new trends with some of the most prominent YouTube creators.



For the first time since January 2017, Minecraft has surpassed Fortnite as the most-searched game on YouTube. It's clear that Minecraft is having a moment again. This is an echo of the "PewDiePie" Effect, one of YouTube's earliest gaming trends.



The "PewDiePie Effect" is a term YouTuber and commentator Matthew "MatPat" Patrick used in a recent video to talk about the influence of creators on the market. In 2014, when Kjellberg (a controversial YouTube creator who has come under criticism for using racist language in a gaming stream and featured anti-Semitic images in a video) was operating as a gaming channel, his decision to upload the "Let's Play" series of a particular game usually led to more sales of that title.



Minecraft does not require Kjellberg; Mojang's crafting game has 91 million monthly gamers. Its success, however, is due in large part to YouTube. YouTube was the first place where the game was found. It became the second most-searched word on YouTube in 2014. In the end, it was due to that popularity - and the fact that creators were joining the bandwagon for attention that Kjellberg never played the game.



"It was like people were playing just because it was popular, and not because they were [having fun] doing it," Kjellberg said in the latest video.
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For the first time since January 2017, 'Minecraft' has overtaken Fortnite as the game with the highest amount of searches on YouTube



Minecraft has now become a full-time job Kjellberg who claims to be enjoying himself playing the game. He also admitted in the video that he "hasn't been paying attention to what people are doing" online anymore, adding that "it's so goddamn liberating."



His efforts are paying dividends. VidIQ, a company that builds tools that allow YouTube creators to monitor their analytics, discovered that Kjellberg is the "top creator of the term "Minecraft" right this moment," according to content strategist Rob Wilson. This means that when users search for "Minecraft," many of the videos on the first page are from him.



"Essentially PewDiePie has embraced the most fundamental principle of the YouTube playbook," Wilson wrote. "Focus on a topic and present it to your viewers with every video you make."



Other YouTube creators have also embraced the trend following McLoughlin's new interest in the game. Sean McLoughlin (a creator with over 22 million subscribers) has also started to play the game. People have noticed Minecraft being in a whirlwind and decided to hop on the train before it disappears again. Wilson states that it's not only Kjellberg. YouTube creator Keemstar's weekly Minecraft tournaments draw traffic and interest. However, Kjellberg's presence is a major factor.



"This could also explain why certain YouTube stars you love have suddenly returned to Minecraft or even dabbled in it, jumping on the wave of a resurgence trend, in this instance," Wilson wrote. "And I'm not going tell you the truth, folks it's exactly what we are doing at the moment. Jumping on a trend."



"This could also be the reason why some YouTubers you admire have suddenly returned to Minecraft."



Kjellberg says he's just enjoying playing Minecraft (a point he highlights in every video) However, he's also reaping economic benefits. Ryan Wyatt, head YouTube Gaming said that Minecraft is not only the most popular game on YouTube, but it's also one the most advertiser-friendly.



Video games are becoming a harder content category to monetize. Even giants like AT&T have declared that gaming is not something they'd like to promote on. There are a few games that advertisers are comfortable with but they're not considered violent or family-friendly. Fortnite, Roblox and Minecraft are three examples of these popular games.



Kjellberg also makes money from his Minecraft obsession with 570 million views in July. Other creators could see the opportunity to make more and hope that the trickle-down effect will boost their earnings.



Minecraft is proving that the "PewDiePie Effect," a term coined five years ago, remains extremely popular on YouTube.


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