Following the likes of DrLupo and TimTheTatMan, former Twitch variety streamer Ludwig “Ludwig” Ahgren has announced his swap to stream exclusively on YouTube Gaming. This came as a surprise to many, considering YouTube Gaming’s inferior infrastructure had been the butt of many of Ahgren’s jokes in the past. Ahgren will be joining the likes of fellow ex-Twitch streamers and YouTube Gaming pioneers Rachel “Valkyrae” Hofstetter and Jack “CouRageJD” Dunlop officially on November 30th.
Who is Ludwig?
Ludwig “Ludwig” Ahgren was one of the most prolific Twitch streamers, averaging around 20,000 viewers per stream and boasting one of the most historic Twitch milestones of all time. In March of 2021, Ahgren launched a “subathon,” a well-known event in the live streaming community where each subscription earned during the duration of the live stream would increase the amount of time left in the stream.
Ahgren’s record-breaking stream lasted 30 days, from March 14th to April 13th. During that month-long stretch, he managed to accrue 283,066 subscribers, beating out famed Fortnite streamer Tyler “Ninja” Blevins’ 269,154 record from 2018.
Ahgren is best known for streaming “variety” content on his streams. Variety content consists of reacting, “farming” clips, and jumping on popular gaming trends. Ahgren frequently streams with other streamers including those from OfflineTV; the Houston, Texas streaming community; and other Los Angeles streamers like Brandon “Atrioc” Ewing and Nathan “Stanz” Stanz.
Why Did Ludwig Leave Twitch?
In a YouTube video titled “Why I Left Twitch.” Ahrgen posted on his YouTube channel Mogul Mail on November 30th, he states that the swap was “the hardest decision I’ve ever made.” He even referenced leaving the decision to a coin flip—although he would eventually go against the coin’s ruling—because he was so split between choosing one platform over the other.
Ahgren went on to state that his life-changing decision came down to one simple factor: YouTube “fought” for him. He explains that he made a late night phone call to his partner managers at Twitch and YouTube respectively, and told each one that he had chosen the other. He went to YouTube first and was immediately offered a better contract, streaming for fewer hours a month. Interested in getting a similar deal with his platform of origin, he called Twitch immediately after.
However, Twitch’s most subscribed streamer was not met with the same interest. Ahgren explains that they simply told him “we wish you the best” and made no attempts to keep the streamer on their platform. Days later, Timothy “TimTheTatMan” Betar watched this video on his own YouTube Gaming stream and mentioned that his transition from Twitch to YouTube was based on a “very similar story.”
Nonetheless, the live streaming platform wars continue. After taking multiple of Twitch’s former top streamers at this point, YouTube Gaming is on the up. Following the announcement of Ludwig’s departure from Twitch, fellow Twitch streamer and former game show co-host Charles “moistcr1tikal” White Jr. stated that he felt Twitch users would be “surprised” at the big names leaving Twitch next. While Twitch is still the preferred streaming platform, YouTube is making tremendous strides towards the number one spot.
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