xQc Reveals Why Everyone Is Wrong About Ninja
After an unusually slow month for Ninja, various YouTubers and media organizations reported a surprising drop in viewers on his Twitch channel. However, the popular gamer found an unlikely defender in xQc, who has taken the time to look at more than one analysis of Ninja's falling statistics to refute them point by point.
Reports of Ninja's decline are far from a new thing, although they share one solid detail in that Ninja has never quite returned to the height of his popularity in 2018 when he clocked over 200,000 subscribers on Twitch, per BBC. However, in July 2021, a combination of an unusually low amount of hours streamed along with some interesting choices of games played seems to have led to what Dexerto reported as a 50% drop in viewership, for a monthly average of 3,600 viewers per stream. Interestingly, the article did note that Ninja's view count shot up to an average of 10,000 the two times he opted to stream "Fortnite."
The issue began to make its way around the internet, inviting deeper analysis, including a video from YouTuber InternetAjay titled "The Toxic Rise and Fall of Ninja." When xQc got wind of that, he took some time to defend his fellow streamer's numbers and choice of games played. Here is why xQc thinks everyone is wrong about Ninja.
xQc thinks casual analytics don't reflect the complexity of streaming
While the two haven't always seen eye to eye, like when a comment from xQc about streamers being paid for charity work sent Ninja into a Twitter rage, xQc has become a steady defender of Ninja's stats and conduct.
Responding to the video posted by InternetAjay, xQc refuted Ninja's allegedly toxic behavior and stood up for his Twitch numbers. Regarding the video's assertion that Ninja's less admirable comments had cost him viewers, xQc said, "Imagine gaslighting your audience and everybody else that it's these small instances and outbursts that make up the entirety of the failure of his entire career?"
xQc also made it known that he did not think that the analysis in the video presented a complete picture. The streamer explained, "If they were to really go about the statistics of it, you would have to make a comparison of the popularity of 'Fortnite' on YouTube and on Twitch, popularity of Mixer, people who transferred and their decline ratios."
xQc responded even more passionately to a Game Rant article that reported Ninja's drop in viewers. In a Twitch clip, he takes issue with the assessment that Ninja's stats had dropped because of his move away from "Fortnite," stating, "People have to try and fail before anybody can succeed. Shutting down patterns of attempting new stuff is stupid!"
While it might be unusual to see xQc go to bat for Ninja, it is reassuring to see popular streamers support one another as they explore new options for content creation.