At TwitchCon, I Learned the Secret of Why Some Twitch Games Become Smash Hits

Sometimes it’s easy to forget that Twitch got its start as a gaming-focused offshoot of Justin.TV. Although games are still highlighted on the front page, it’s the “just chatting” category that tends to dominate.

Perhaps that’s why there was a limited selection of developers showing off their games, compared to the many companies showcasing streaming hardware and technology at TwitchCon 2025.

However, Twitch remains primarily a video game streaming site, and going viral on the platform can mean substantial riches for game creators.

Among the handful of developers at the biannual Twitch convention in San Diego in early October, many were focused on community experiences. This makes sense, considering that in 2025, titles like Peak and Baby Steps, which intentionally use clunky controls for exaggerated reactions, have dominated the platform.

It’s impossible to predict which game might go viral on Twitch, but there are some trends among the hits to watch out for.

The venerable online shooter Fortnite is considered a Twitch darling, remaining one of the best titles eight years after its release. Before taking over Twitch, Fortnite was a base-building game with crafting mechanics when it launched in 2017. Its developer, Epic Games, quickly released a new mode with a battle royale gimmick, similar to PUBG’s popular model. It pits one player against 99 others, all fighting to be the last one standing. This quick reaction to trends has helped Fortnite succeed.

Among Us, Minecraft, and Escape from Tarkov are other examples of games that started with a single concept, only for the community to influence the design.

Of course, the underlying gameplay of all these successes had to be rewarding and enjoyable, but it also allowed for viral moments where players “pounced” with clutch plays, claiming victory despite losing.

Speaking to me in the exhibition hall of the gigantic but uncrowded San Diego Convention Center is Virgil Watkins, head of design at Embark Studios – creators of the upcoming extraction shooter. ARC Raiders — said that viral Twitch games should have simple starting concepts.

“I think they build in a very simple gameplay loop that you can pick up and play and understand very, very quickly, and then explore the depths of it together,” Watkins said. “The biggest factor is the fact that you generate a lot of really funny stories.”

Don’t miss any of our unbiased technical content and lab reviews. Add CNET as your preferred Google source.

Using Twitch to break into the saturated gaming market

Video gaming is big business. It is the largest entertainment media, surpassing the film and music industries combined, according to a 2024 report from Japanese advertising agency Dentsu.

The global video game market is currently valued at $299 billion and is expected to reach $600 billion by 2030, according to Grand View Research. This includes casual online games, mobile games, and big-budget console and PC titles. The attraction of video game revenues has streaming services jump into action, with both Netflix And Crunchy roll offer game downloads to subscribers.

At the same time, the video game market is quickly becoming saturated. According to SteamDB data, around 40 to 50 games are released daily on the online PC marketplace Steam, as reported by Kotaku. With the glut of games released on PC Reviewers, trendsetters, and online streamers alone can help steer audiences toward what’s worth playing.

And if a game takes off on Twitch, it can mean invaluable wealth for developers.

When Among us saw a flash of viral success on Twitch during the COVID-19 pandemic, it propelled the game to stratospheric commercial heights. Although developer Innersloth hasn’t released exact numbers, based on sales data comparing mobile and PC platforms, the game is estimated to have generated $105 million in revenue since launch. This excludes merchandising and other IP partnerships. That’s a huge amount of money for Innersloth’s four-person development team, although the team has since grown.

What made Among Us work was its simple premise (a murder mystery based on a ride through space), its community focus, and the silly visuals of cartoon blobs committing murder. It attracted gamers of all ages and resulted in endless scrolls of viral clips online.

The developers I spoke with at TwitchCon all said they weren’t intentionally trying to make a viral game for the online live-streaming platform, but they acknowledged they were drawing inspiration from past successes. They don’t try to copy the look and gameplay of previous hits. Instead, they want to replicate the exciting novelty of the viral moments generated by these games.

“I think moments of discovery are an important feature, and what I mean by that is if you always know what you expect to see, it’s like watching a TV show for the third time,” said Mac Reynolds, CEO and co-founder of Night Street Games, which is developing the Last Flag title. Reynolds is also the manager of the pop-rock group Imagine Dragons, in which his brother is the lead singer.

Reynolds wants Last Flag to be filled with cool moments that will spark players’ imaginations and force creative gameplay solutions in the heat of battle.

Generally speaking, for a game to take off on Twitch, experiences need to be short, feature a certain degree of randomness for a certain degree of surprise, and have high replayability. Esports titles like League of Legends or Overwatch 2 lend themselves well to Twitch’s success. Both are highly competitive games in which skilled teams can pull off surprises.

“For me, the unexpectedness of the live experience is what makes it magical,” Reynolds said.

Playing unfinished games early is a feature, not a bug (even if there are bugs)

Releasing games in Early Access also helps. It’s a way for developers to release incomplete games for the public to test and invest in as they become more feature-complete.

The ghost-hunting horror game Phasmophobia was released in Early Access in 2020 by studio Kinetic Games, but it still doesn’t have an official release date. Despite its odd appearance, which might suggest a more niche appeal, it has already reached 25 million total sales.

“The community kind of expects us to make all these massive changes,” said Daniel Knight, general manager and lead developer at Kinetic Games. “So we completely changed the progression system from Early Access. We added so many things, like more gear, more cards, ghosts.”

Although Phasmophobia is not positioned as a “live service” game (where there is a constant flow of content and players are incentivized to keep coming back to maximize their rewards), the team has a roadmap to show players how the game will ultimately progress.

“Thanks to early access, we are allowed to make these massive changes,” Knight said.

Early Access also plays into building a community during the development process, which has helped games like Hades and Hades II establish a large player base before their official release. These are the people who are on the ground and will likely defend the game when it comes out.

For developers, maintaining a direct line of communication with their community is crucial, as it can help spread positive vibes and build momentum for online gaming.

The Wired Productions team knows this all too well. Developers are currently working on multiplayer board game Task Time, with veterans from Boneloaf and Mediatonic studios, the creators of Gang Beasts and Fall Guys: Ultimate KOrespectively. Fall Guys, in particular, became a huge hit during the pandemic, selling 11 million copies in the first few months after release and featuring prominently in Twitch streams for a while.

“We’ve already invested a player base and they know who we’re with, they know what the game is and we know we’re listening to their ongoing thoughts,” said Sam Clay, communications manager at Wired Productions.

It is this dialogue that facilitates a deeper connection between player and developer. “Everyone has been involved, the players are part of the development as well,” Clay said.

Integrations are another thing that helps games take off on Twitch. This feature allows viewers to influence the game streamers play via chat, giving the audience a say in their entertainment. There is an ever-growing list of these integrated games on Twitch. Task Time will be another title to watch out for when it releases next year.

An upcoming title from Austin-based developer Sentinel Games, called Cure – A Hospital Simulator, features unique Twitch integrations. In chat, you can become patients, turn into zombies, and have certain actions with streamers, like subscriptions, follows, and raids, appear in the game. It launches on Steam Early Access in November.

The IT factor is the unexpected

Whether it’s 1v99 tag matches, mafia-style whodunit fights, or specter identification in 20-minute increments, every game that goes viral on Twitch includes one thing: the unexpected.

Each hit game brings something new, remixing familiar elements to give players a fresh experience – and, more importantly, one they don’t see on their own.

Streamers and viewers want to experience unique, fun moments together and be able to film them and share them with the rest of the Internet.

It’s not much different from other forms of live entertainment, although instead of gathering thousands of people in an auditorium, everyone participates from their homes.

Reynolds, who has attended quite a few concerts over the years leading his brother’s band, knows the power of community entertainment all too well.

“That’s the magic of live music, that’s the magic of livestreaming, the reason people go to concerts. The reason people follow something on Twitch is because it’s happening in that moment, and you never know what the next moment will be.”