The streaming giant Twitch loses its biggest streamer: Félix “xQc” Lengyel (27) announced a move to the new competitor platform Kick. We at MeinMMO will tell you what this is all about.
Image (Collage): xQc, Stake
What kind of streamer is he? The Franco-Canadian Félix “xQc” Lengyel started with League of Legends before switching to the shooter Overwatch. In October 2017, he began playing for the Texas team Dallas Fuel.
However, his career as a professional was short-lived. In March 2018, after several suspensions for toxic behavior, he was released from the roster and began streaming full-time.
With his – albeit short-lived – background as a pro, xQc was seen as an above-average player on Twitch. His mix of gameplay and unfiltered commentary, combined with nearly daily, multi-hour streams and a penchant for controversy, made his channel grow rapidly.
In 2019, xQc was already in 7th place among the most-watched streamers on Twitch, and in 2020, he took 1st place and never looked back. At least until now, as it was announced on June 16, 2023, that the 27-year-old had signed a million-dollar deal with the controversial competitor platform Kick.
His streaming colleague Ninja, who became huge with Fortnite, reportedly switched to Mixer for a comparatively paltry 50 million.
Streamer assures that everything remains the same
What kind of deal is this? According to reports, the streamer is said to sign a non-exclusive contract with Kick for 2 years. He will receive 35 million USD per year, along with additional incentives of 30 million dollars if xQc reaches certain benchmarks (via New York Times).
In total, the deal amounts to 100 million USD. This would not only be the largest known streaming deal, but it would also place xQc in a league with professional athletes. For comparison: Lakers star LeBron James extended his contract in June for 2 years for 97.1 million dollars (via Twitter).
This is what xQc says: On Twitter, the streamer announced his move in a short video noting that it was time. In it, xQc promised that his content would remain the same as on Twitch. He also stated that he would continue to broadcast from his old streaming home.
Sometimes he would stream for one day only on Twitch, sometimes only on Kick, xQc said. This is not only allowed by Kick but is expressly encouraged. As the German streamer Staiy revealed, the contracts are said to include that streamers must stream for 30 minutes on Twitch before going live on Kick to bring their viewers over.
xQc and gambling
How are the reactions? The enthusiasm among fans of the “streamer “Juicers” seems to be limited. A thread about the record deal in his subreddit reached 4,500 upvotes and 1,400 comments.
Viewers doubt xQc’s promises that his content would not change and seem to have little interest in following him to a new platform. The comment with the most likes states that he will probably watch recordings of the streams on YouTube.
Another user responds that xQc would still spend the first minutes of his streams on Twitch and that he would only watch him for the intros anyway (via Reddit).
Many fans fear that the 27-year-old is switching primarily to show gambling in his streams again (via Reddit). We have compiled some reactions for you:
- ilyasil2surgut writes “The entire gambling arc was so miserable, no content, just brain-dead staring at the slot machines.”
- TrollTrolled bids farewell: “That was probably my last xQc stream, I’m finally free.”
- BurntPoptart fears: “This feels like the beginning of the end.”
Where does the concern come from? Behind Kick is the head of the notorious online casino Stake. The platform was announced just a few months after Twitch implemented new gambling policies and subsequently attracted numerous casino streamers.
xQc himself started showing gambling in his streams in 2021 and even admitted to being unhappy with it. Nevertheless, he started again with the “gamba streams” in 2022 and shocked his viewers with million-dollar losses.
In May 2023, xQc apparently accidentally showed a conversation with ChatGPT in which he asked the chatbot for advice. The 27-year-old wrote: “I am the biggest streamer in the world and have signed with a new platform, Kick. How do I tell my viewers?”
Afterward, xQc allegedly asked how to handle the controversy that would surely follow if he showed gambling on Kick. However, the streamer denied having written the prompts (via Dexerto).
xQc seems to want to embark on a new chapter in his life. Recently, he had especially made headlines with his ugly breakup from the streamer Adept and seemed generally unhappy with his situation:
