Andy Bundy

Category: Twitch

  • Splatoon 3’s Grand Fest: A Celebration of Music and Community

    Splatoon 3’s Grand Fest: A Celebration of Music and Community

    Splatoon 3’s Grand Fest Event happened September 13-16, 2024. The Grand Fest was a live concert set in a new area of the game in which the three diva bands from the three games, Callie and Marie; Marina and Pearl; and Shiver, Frye, and Big Man, rotate the stages and sing the songs that they’re best known for. It was kind of a big deal. In making the time to play this event, it got me reminiscing a little bit about the impact that Splatoon has made in my life not just as a player, but as a content creator as well!

    I made an overlay based off the Splatoon UI since at the time I was playing a TON of Splatoon 2.

    It all started with Splatoon 2. The game came out on the Switch and since I didn’t have a Wii U despite what some videos might have led on, I never was able to experience the first game in the series. The game was a breath of fresh air for someone who enjoyed shooter games but didn’t like series like Call of Duty or Medal of Honor. It was quirky, colorful, and fun! In 2019, I decided I would take a day a week and devote it to Splatoon 2 so I could hone my skills a bit. I wasn’t expecting to be amazing or anything, but it was good to have that consistent game to stream.

    With that streaming came friends. My current mod FalcoFlyer found me because I happened to be playing the game. Because of Falco (I think), I was introduced to the Splatoon/Variety streamer Fish and all of the Splatoon players in his community. Needless to say, if I ever wanted to play or talk Splatoon, I had a community that I could rely on.

    As the game dwindled in popularity after the Final Fest in Splatoon 2, my streamer friends kind of went their own ways, but I was able to maintain those relationships even without the game which was amazing.

    Splatoon 3 eventually came out and a lot of friends didn’t really latch on to the game at first. I was hooked and got the game on release. I wasn’t as entrenched in the game although I did enjoy it! I’d play most of the Splatfests when I was available and still made time to play every once in a while.

    Even in Splatoon 3 I found friendship through games. I got a bit of a regular team with Kirik the Orc, A MACHINE, WatermelonOrc and Lady_Chuckleton. It was so much fun getting together and playing games and just hanging out in Discord while we Splatoon!

    From May 2023, tweets of our teams doing some matches during the Legend of Zelda Crossover Splatfest

    The coolest thing in my opinion about Splatoon as a series is how they’ve created a whole culture of music and fashion inside the series. There are so many different musical groups and fashion brands that any player can make their own fashion combos to their heart’s content.

    When Splatoon 3 announced their Grand Fest and the fact that all three of the main music groups were going to not only have their own stages but also combine for a number, my heart leaped. Despite not playing the first game, Callie and Marie have had a presence in both games and I’ve definitely grown attached to these characters.

    A clip from the stream of the final night of the Grand Fest (September 14, 2024)

    Having all three of the groups singing together was ethereal. Nintendo really outdid themselves with the production that went into this festival. I’m incredibly happy that I shared this event with so many of my friends, as I played with so many of my streamer friends, like Kirik, WatermelonOrc, Josh Jepson, and more!

    While a lot of people associate me with Banjo-Kazooie, Splatoon has an almost equal part in my heart. I’m so glad of the community that I’ve found through the game and the content I created because of it.

  • What I’m Thankful For: 2023 Edition

    What I’m Thankful For: 2023 Edition

    American Thanksgiving is this week, and every once in a while, I like to take some time and write down what I’m thankful for in my life.

    Health

    Despite having a kidney stone at the end of October, I feel like I’ve been able to be relatively healthy the past few years. I’ve definitely been thankful for the Fit Fam community in my Discord, especially Zerkeo who has been solid in the commitment for fitness.

    Streamer Friends

    I love streaming. While it has its ups and downs it’s been a crazy experience. I don’t want to name every streamer I’m thankful for as there’d be too many and I’m afraid I’d miss one.

    Stream Viewers

    I’m definitely thankful for all the viewers that have taken the time to watch my streams. The viewers make the experience that much more enjoyable and I wanted to thank you for it.

    Have a great Thanksgiving if you celebrate, and thank you for reading!

  • Finding That Group That Wants to Watch You

    Finding That Group That Wants to Watch You

    Let’s say that you’re a content creator on Twitch and/or YouTube. You’ve done a couple of streams here or there, but you noticed that there aren’t a lot of people looking into your stream? Twitch’s current platform isn’t really made for discovery, so how do you find your audience? This blog post is my advice on how you can find your audience for your content creation goals.

    Know your Content

    If you were asked, could you define your content in 2-3 sentences? Could you tell someone what kind of content you make in a ride up or down an elevator? Before we go and look at the stats of what you’re currently doing, it might be a clever idea to think about what you are providing for your audience. This will be the “backbone” of how you go forward in your search.

    If you were to ask me what my content is, I would define my content in this way: “I create content so that I can play video games but not alone. I strive to play a lot of diverse types of games and emulate the feeling of sitting with your sibling and watching them play a game. I try to foster a sense of community and as my favorite game is Banjo-Kazooie, a lot of my content tends to lean toward games of that style.”

    Do Some Research

    Twitch is big. It’s really big. It’s hard to fathom sometimes how mind-bogglingly big it is. According to Twitch, there are over 2 MILLION streamers, with 10 MILLION Daily Active Users (source). There is a good chance that there are a handful of people who like the same content you do. I’ve been so amazed on the groups of people that I’ve come across in my time as a streamer on Twitch.

    As an example, I’ve been a part of a few different communities:

    There are content creators who also span past the few types that I’ve mentioned before. Some people are competitive eSports players, some solely do “Just Chatting” types of streams where there isn’t much if any gameplay.

    If you’re not sure what attracts your community, you can do a few things. First, you can do a quick look at your Twitch/YouTube Analytics if you’ve posted a few videos or streamed a few times. Twitch specifically has some really good ways to see what viewers you have in common with other content creators.

    Twitch actually has a really good tool that you can use in their analytics that tells you where your viewers come from, whether it’s from sites outside of Twitch (like on social media sites, etc.) or inside Twitch by notifications or other streamers. Check out their article about analytics, specifically their Discovery Analytics!

    Andy_Bundy’s Twitch Discovery Analytics Jan 2022-Jan 2023

    Another great way to find “your people” would be to go on your platform of choice and search for the games you are interested in or games that you stream. I have found so many friends by either streaming or watching games such as Banjo-Kazooie, Diddy Kong Racing, Knockout City, Fall Guys, and more!

    Keep in mind the times when you stream as well. Streaming at one time might be good for one group, but time zones exist and people don’t all watch Twitch at the same time. I have viewers from all over the world, but I only see certain ones if I stream at certain times. I also am only able to watch certain streamers because of my free time for the same reasons.

    Get Involved

    Typically starting out you won’t have a lot of audience members. Check where other people who have similar interests are gathering, whether community Discords, forums, or other mediums like that. Don’t just go to promote your stream, though. Get involved, make friends, and become a part of the community and when you do go live, you would then be able to attract those viewers from your community.

    While I do advocate to self-promote yourself, a word of caution: Don’t spam. Posting your go-live messages to streamers already live or in communities that you’re not actively involved in can be considered spammy and won’t net the viewers that you want.

    Conclusion

    In conclusion, it’s not beneficial to just stream if your goal is to build an audience. Taking the steps to getting involved in communities, knowing your content, and doing your research will greatly increase your viewers and community members for the content you create!

    Do you have any other thoughts on building your audience on Twitch and/or YouTube? Leave me a comment below or discuss it in The Bear Cave Discord #creator-chat channel!

  • Top 5 Favorite Streamed Games of 2022

    Top 5 Favorite Streamed Games of 2022

    2022 was a great year, and although my streaming time was shorter than in years past, I wanted to kind of give my thoughts on the top 5 games that I streamed (according to hours streamed) on Twitch this year!

    5. Mario Party Superstars

    Who doesn’t love a good game of Mario Party? A lot of times throughout especially the beginning of 2022, I had a ton of fun playing Mario Party boards with friends. The games were fun, and although we still don’t currently have DLC for the game, I have made some memorable moments with friends!

    Huge shout out to all of the friends I played Mario Party Superstars with this year:

    I think that’s my favorite part of Mario Party…playing with others…

    Clip of Mario Party Superstars, clipped by me

    4. Pokémon: Shining Pearl

    For some reason, I skipped this generation when it originally came out on the DS. It was interesting venturing into the Sinnoh region and went in blind. I don’t know how far I would’ve gotten in the game if I had not streamed it. I can’t say that it would be my favorite generation, but I enjoyed the experience!

    Clip of Pokémon Shining Pearl, clipped by me

    3. Banjo-Kazooie

    This obviously shouldn’t surprise anyone that Banjo-Kazooie shows up in the list of games I play the most on a stream. This year, there was a Banjo-Kazooie randomizer that was released, and I really enjoyed playing through the game in a new and fresh way. I don’t think there were any ROM hacks that I played this year, but maybe? Being the third highest in stream time, I don’t know if there was anything else, but the randomizer is worth my time. I would consider doing another seed or so in the future…

    A clip from the Banjo-Kazooie Randomizer, clipped by Captain_Dyablos

    2. Earthbound

    I had never played Earthbound before, and it was fun taking the journey and COMPLETING the game! The humor in the game was hilarious, and the game was honestly difficult. I was thankful that I was able to finish it without too much trouble.

    Clip from Earthbound, clipped by TheArcadeBear

    1. Pokémon Legends: Arceus

    It’s funny that this year I not only explored Sinnoh, but also its ancestor region of Hisui. This game was massive, so it’s understandable that it’s the most streamed game of mine in 2022. It was so interesting getting to see the historic region of Hisui and seeing connections to the current day, especially since I was playing Shining Pearl around the same time.

    Clip from Pokémon Legends: Arceus, clipped by CurbyB0i

    Honorable mentions go to Mario Party 2 (Top Game for Average Viewers) and Sonic Adventure DX (Top Game for Max Viewers) for being the top games when sorting by other data.

    I’ve been so thankful this year for everyone who has participated, supported, or lurked in the streams that I’ve done this year. What were your favorite streams this year? Do you have any games you are looking forward to seeing in 2023? Are there specific games you want me to stream? Let me know! Either comment on this post, or let me know on social media!

    Catch the story version here:

    Top 5 Streamed Games of 2022
  • Deltarune Chapter 2: A Quick Review

    Deltarune Chapter 2: A Quick Review

    So last week I went and streamed a whole 6 hours and played through Deltarune: Chapter 2, which is the sequel to Deltarune: Chapter 1 (go figure).

    Here’s the full stream if you want to watch the craziness:

    Full Stream of Deltarune Chapter 2 (Originally Streamed on Sep 21, 2021)

    So the game is incredibly quirky. I love it. The humor is on point and Toby Fox really knew what he was doing when he made this chapter. Without going too much into it, the interpersonal relationships between all of the characters feel genuine, and I was chuckling and laughing the entire time that I’m streaming.

    I was talking with a friend of mine and he did mention that I haven’t done parts of the game, so I fully plan to revisit this on stream some time in the near future. This review is going to go based on what I have experienced.

    Gameplay

    The RPG aspect of Undertale/Deltarune is incredibly intuitive, and I was able to get back into the hang of the game relatively quickly. At least on the Steam version, I was able to use both the keyboard and controllers (I opted for Xbox Controllers personally) in-game.

    The combat is similar to the previous games in that you can either attack or perform “actions” to spare and recruit baddies to your cause. The ACT in battle is hilarious because each action is unique based on the baddy. It relies heavily on the writing, although there are some actions in which you’ll need to perform some sort of timed action, such as throwing an object or dropping one.

    There are a few more mini-games in this chapter than the previous one and it’s amazing. One I noticed straight away as a clone of a well-known Nintendo IP and was enamored by it.

    Music

    As with Undertale and Deltarune, Toby Fox released a banger soundtrack. The music was really good with a soundtrack of multiple styles and did a fantastic job of supplementing the mood with a soundtrack that just amplified the mood. I’m eagerly waiting on YouTube Music to put the Chapter 2 Soundtrack up…I love listening to music in my car from there.

    Characters

    Many characters from Deltarune Chapter 1 return in this game in various forms, and there are also many new characters you’ll meet in the game. The great thing about the Undertale/Deltarune series is that each character, either player characters or NPCs, have distinct personalities.

    Conclusion/Rating

    This game has been a roller coaster of a ride and if I know Toby Fox, I know that I’ve only scratched the surface with what this game has to uncover. There are a few more chapters coming down the path so I’m excited to see where the story goes past this. The ending left me on a gigantic cliffhanger and while the chapter itself was only around 6 hours, I had an incredibly enjoyable time with it!

    I’m going to give this game a rating of:

    Rating: 4.5 out of 5.

    4.5/5

    Do you agree? What do you think of the game? Let me know in the comments or in my Discord Server!

  • Bundy’s Streaming The Game Awards!

    Bundy’s Streaming The Game Awards!

    Join me as we watch The Game Awards LIVE on Twitch! Based on the announcements we’ve heard, it sounds like the show is going to be a night of big surprises and more! Join me on my Twitch Channel!

    I hope you’ve heard of The Game Awards, but if you haven’t, The Game Awards are an awards show similar to the Emmys and Oscars for Gaming! The Game Awards “recognizes the best video games of the year and world premieres the most anticipated games of the future.”

    Join us tonight and let’s enjoy seeing who won and what’s yet to come in gaming!