Twitch TV is an interesting phenomenon. When I first heard about it, I actually thought it was kind of stupid. Why would I want to go to a site and watch other people play video games, when I can be the guy who is actually playing the game! Not very voyeuristic I know, but I can watch myself playing video games and, dare I say, probably get more enjoyment out of the experience.

However, I’ve come to learn that Twitch is more than just watching the worst chatroulette ever.

It’s About Content

Blood Legion is a raiding guild that takes a raid encounters, pushes its face into the pillow, and tells it to bear down. On Twitch, you can watch them have their way with Warlords of Draenor raid encounters in beta. I haven’t raided anything but the fridge, so it’s nice to be able to see encounters like this that I would never have the opportunity to see otherwise.

It’s About Learning New Skills

The best way to learn a skill is by watching other people do it. Sure, you could do it yourself, but if you have no clue what you’re doing then you might as well be humping a doorknob. Figuring out PVP by doing it is like sticking a fork in a wall outlet. You knew it was going to hurt before you did it, but when it happened (and happened very fast) you were sprawled out on your back, halfway across the room, with smoke coiling off your body. Quick and painful is what I’m saying here.

Gold making is another skill that somehow people just can’t seem to figure out in WoW. It’s like they’re trying to figure out the square root of the letter G. They’re boggled, and after selling all their gear they have just enough cash to buy a tabard to cover their shame.

A number of gold farmers and highly skilled arena/pvp studs spend hours a day doing their thing on Twitch. Watching what they’re doing can put some coin in your pocket, or honor/conquest in your honor/conquest purse.

It’s About Meeting New People

There are some unique snowflakes out there streaming content, yo.

Sodapoppin plays WoW, League of Legends, and a little bit of Sims. But mainly he’s on WoW doing PVP, and generally engaging in good-natured dickbaggery. He’s a guy who makes gold in-game by accepting 1v1 challenges from viewers who want to kick his ass. And they pay big gold to do it too. It shows a good reflection of his character. Little bit cocky, a whole lot of entertaining.

Umren wanted to hit one million gold before WoD. He’s done it, and after watching him fly in circles for hours at a time… well you can certainly understand why he looks a little haggard in his black cowboy hat. He offers a free guide to viewers to help others make a pile of gold of their own. By mentioning this, I have also fulfilled my TGIF gold making tip for the week. Brofist!

Bajheera is a guy who I’ve spoken about on numerous occasions. He’s a top-shelf PVPer who really interacts with his community. He often involves his views by doing transmog raids with them, or battlegrounds. Those who have the chops, he’ll even do arenas with. Hit ‘im with a flex!

Kaceytron primarily plays League of Legends, but she also involves herself in WoW every once in a while. Yes, the ladies or “girl gamers” also have channels on Twitch. Many of them sit with their cleavage on full display (gotta get them subs!), and even more are harassed because DURR PRETTY GIRLS ON COMPUTER! Kaceytron is different because she actually trolls the trolls. She plays the character of elitist girl gamer, who isn’t really as “diamond” as she thinks. But she knows how to ride out the wave of horny angry boyslabs, and she’s actually kind of entertaining once you “get” her. But she usually has plenty of cleavage unleashed, which pulls the blood from the brain and therefore makes trolling the trolls that much easier for her.

Do you watch Twitch? Who are your favorite Twitch streamers?