There was recently announcement Matthew Patrick, the longtime host and creator of the Game Theory Channel, known by his online alias MatPat, is stepping down as host of all four Theorist channels. This has put the Internet in jeopardy.
The trigger was Mr. MatPat’s withdrawal from his position. series of reactionsusers across platforms are experiencing the loss of another beloved content creator, also raising concerns about his upcoming retirement announcement.
MatPat’s announcement sparked a larger conversation about creators who have “retired” or “quit” YouTube with varying numbers of followers. Content creators are scaling back their daily video production for a variety of reasons, citing burnout and the logistical and creative challenges video production poses compared to the early internet.
Beyond mat pads
Many creators agree with this opinion. Minecraft YouTuber Jordan Maron, also known as Captain Sparkles, made the following post after announcing his retirement. video I’m trying to explain some confusing fan trends.
“To be successful in content creation, you have to dedicate your entire life to it, because even if you don’t, someone else will, and they will be successful in their own way,” Maron said. There’s a much higher chance that content will break out.”
underlying assumptions
Creators, especially those who have been successful over the past few years, are starting to slow down as their life and career priorities change. This is already starting to lead to trends we’re seeing today in the form of announcements that aren’t exactly retirements.
What makes this an existential crisis?
The answer lies in recognizing how big a deal it is that so many of the biggest names in content creation are leaving. Their withdrawal opens the opportunity for other new creators to join the fight.
In the era of 57% Generation Z wants to take advantage of opportunities when they are presented with them, but this moment represents a change in the makeup of the internet. It exposes those who grew up with this film to the reflections of their own aging.
“When you think about existential crisis, it’s inherently personal,” says Justin Grandinetti, Ph.D., assistant professor in the School of Communication. “I’m sure for a lot of people who come up with these guys, it’s a moment where something about the content you’re engaging with, something about your general cultural environment changes. ”
It is that shift that creates the emotions expressed by today’s users, as the audiences of creators like MatPat and CaptainSparklez reach parallel realizations.
life goes on
Despite the Internet’s shielding of life’s progress, life within and outside the Internet is still progressing. Just like the creator, daily life has moved forward. Personal interests changed or developed, and passions changed.
But unlike them, consumers have relied on the relationships they build with creators through content as a crutch to get through the anxieties and stressors of daily life.
For creators, maintaining that relationship through continuous content production has become a tedious task.
How content creators are facing change
This lopsided split is partly a result of the rise of content creation as a legitimate business online. The birth of the Internet gave rise to what has been thought of as “.Wild West (USA)” is defined by independent creators who take advantage of new spaces like digital canvases.
This explosion of personal and creative effort gave birth to sites like MySpace, Facebook, and YouTube, and Adobe Flash-based games and videos took this new realm by storm.
Creators who have recently retired or downsized cite in their videos the changing digital landscape as part of the reason for their exit.
“I don’t like late nights. I don’t like the fact that Steph and I have been work-first for over 10 years.” Said Matt Pat.
“Now, for the lucky few who have been able to turn around, [content creation] Having embarked on careers that generate untold millions in income, they probably weighed the need to carry on the burden of steering a ship in corporatized waters sorted by such rapidly evolving algorithms. ” Captain Sparkles said in a later video.
While most users are sympathetic to the plight of creators whose passion has become a cutthroat business and they want to find a way out of it, more existential questions remain.
As creators, people like MatPat need to step away from this remarkable work they’ve been doing for the better part of the past decade and figure out their new role.
Those who grew up watching these creators, as their viewers, are aware of the fact that part of their aging includes enduring the changes in the digital content landscape that will soon occur after their retirement. Must be accepted.
Consumers can’t hold on to the nostalgia their favorite creators give them in hopes of holding them back from the future. The future is still coming, with or without our approval.
