“Did that person really blow up Stardust?”
I got the news right in the middle of a gaming session. Just as the Steam trash game I started on a viewer’s recommendation was about to wrap up.
The rumor was that an unknown drunkard who had provoked me was attacked by mysterious users, leading to Stardust’s explosive demise.
“[I mean, they didn’t even issue a Buster Call and it blew up.]”
“[Kayaks are one against a hundred, you know…]”
“[A handful of Kayaks did a slaughter, though;;]”
“[The fandom Kayak can even hold their own against internet ghosts.]”
“[Hasn’t it barely been three hours? The firepower is savage.]”
“Hmm…”
Honestly, it would be a lie to say I didn’t feel a thrill. I couldn’t outright declare to the viewers to go deal with him in case controversy erupted, but deep down, I hoped he’d get schooled.
Hearing that a viewer ended up closing the Stardust page because they couldn’t handle the flood of comments gave me a slight sense of catharsis.
“So, it’s because of the Kayak that Stardust blew up? Isn’t the real reason still a mystery to everyone?”
“[Ah, lol, right? No one knows if it was a Kayak or not.]”
“[Randomly picking people to hurl accusations is a mysterious faction. ㄷㄷ;]”
“[It could’ve been Nicang’s fandom instead of Kayak.]”
“[According to my hired private investigator, they were always up to no good.]”
“[It’s divine punishment, for sure. ㅇㅇ]”
It was a rare, pleasant piece of news during the broadcast. I felt energized, thinking about how I could tackle the rest of today’s content with vigor.
“Okay, then….”
“[Whoa hey]”
“[?? Is this the wrap-up?]”
“[No, no, no, no, no, no, no]”
“[Stop, stop, stop, stop, stop]”
“[What the hell, you can’t just leave after playing a trash game]”
“[Oh, the clickbait]”
“[These days, the broadcast just feels lazy.]”
A chuckle slipped out. I had pretended to tease ending the stream, but this honest reaction was refreshing.
Currently, there were about 12,000 viewers. Three hours ago, when I first started streaming, there had been around 20,000—an astonishing 8,000 had dropped off in that time.
Those 8,000 were likely just a flow of viewers. Wandering around different streams, looking for something fun.
The reason they left my broadcast was simple. I was playing a Steam trash game notorious for being unwatchable and splitting the audience.
The content I was about to present would need to be with my loyal viewers, not the wanderers.
Because it was content that I had to do with the viewers.
I was deliberately doing a bit of Ant Tickling to sort things out. Yet, those 12,000 viewers who didn’t drop off can be considered my true loyal viewers, the concrete layer, if you will.
12,000. A whopping 12,000. Just looking at that heart-pounding number makes me truly realize the scale of my broadcast, and I can’t help but think that I did well with the Ant Tickling before diving into the actual content.
I can no longer say it’s all fluff. It’s obvious for anyone to see; this is a big business.
Anyway, the joking ends here.
The viewers, caught up in a large-scale frenzy due to the broadcast end notification, were collectively mumbling to themselves. I signaled the start of the actual content.
“I’m starting Part 2 of the content. Yes, this isn’t the end of the broadcast. There’s no way a Pro Streamer like me would just end after a mere 3 hours, right? I apologize to those who recommended games, but Part 1 was just a fishing content. It was a kind of filter to keep only those viewers who would stick around no matter what content I do.”
[Wow]
[This is incredible~~~~]
[Kayak! Kayak! Kayak! Kayak! Kayak! Kayak!]
[This is really sad]
[Those who went to sleep after just watching Part 1 are gonna cry tears of blood tomorrow, lol]
[Wednesday at 1:30 AM… 12,000 strong concrete… Kayak is a legend]
[The viewers who were going crazy while crying have begun to glow with a different meaning]
[Looks like a crazy cult leader, lol]
[Emotional control at a high level;;]
[Kayak’s First Broth has donated 10,000 won!]
– So what’s Part 2 content? (Heart racing)
It’s kind of annoying that they put parentheses on the donation. If it was intentional, then I’d say it was a success.
“Honestly, it’s not that amazing of a content to even call it content…”
After a brief pause, I continued.
“I’ve opened a fan cafe. Part 2 is a look around this newly created fan cafe.”
*
Creating a fan cafe. That was something I had been planning for quite some time, and it was also something I had half-confirmed during my recent meeting with Nicang.
While I might not be able to do Stardust to communicate with my fans, I figured that a fan cafe could at least be established.
I thought it would be much better for viewers to interact in a fan cafe, posting on the bulletin board and having two-way communication, rather than just me posting pictures and writing monologues like Stardust.
From watching other streamers, it was clear that there weren’t a few who had also opened fan cafes. They even used the examination of the fan cafe as part of their content.
When they started their broadcasts or had some downtime, it was quite impressive to see them reading the posts made by viewers to interact.
When there was nothing to do in between, I found it quite impressive that the streamer interacted by reading posts from viewers.
[So you wanted to take it easy and reap the rewards, huh?]
[Wow! Fan cafe!]
“You say I opened a cafe to take advantage? That’s slander. Slander! Did my heartfelt intention to create a cafe for the fans and viewers not come through to you all?”
Even though I said this, I did feel a little guilty. Honestly, seeing other streamers read their fan cafes did make me think, “Wow, that’s a sweet deal,” at least once or twice.
Still, I felt justified. My intention to open the cafe was more about considering the viewers than shamelessly exploiting it.
<Ogale Padak donated 1000 won!>
-Wait, the gallery is perfectly fine, so why bother opening a fan cafe?
I had anticipated this question as well.
“Absolutely. I was just about to address this! You’ve all been discussing my broadcasts and me heavily in the Abyss gallery, right? You’re not actually supposed to do that.”
Each gallery has specific topics that suit it. Typically, those topics follow the name of the gallery. So what about the Abyss gallery? It’s primarily about discussions related to the Abyss.
What does it mean to discuss the Abyss? The Abyss is fundamentally a game. So naturally, the conversations should revolve around in-game play, game-related teasers, new patches, and all things game-related.
It means that conversations about Kayak, the founding figure of the Abyss gallery, shouldn’t dominate the space.
[But the gallery host is still the host…]
[The broadcast host is a classic.]
[Kayak’s right, though. The essence has been muddled for a while now.]
[I like Kayak, but it’s a bit much when all we talk about in the Abyss gallery is only Kayak.]
[I came in through the Abyss gallery, but still…]
[With SGal and the Abyss broadcast gallery existing, there’s no real need for that here.]
“I’ve been sitting back and watching, but now that my broadcast has grown in size, I believe this is a matter that cannot be overlooked.”
A fool creates trouble. This could lead not only to minor dislike but could also breed anti-fans on a larger scale.
Imagine a newbie just starting with the Abyss entering the Abyss gallery to find information but instead finding it flooded with posts about some streamer named Kayak. They don’t even know who Kayak is, but right off the bat, they’ve stacked a dislike point against them.
“That’s part of the reason I created the fan cafe. From now on, please utilize the fan cafe. Let’s use the gallery for its original purpose.”
“Well, I even made a fan cafe because of this. Please use the fan cafe from now on. Let’s use the gallery for its original purpose.”
[The cafe’s inconvenient, huh…]
[Leaving my beloved hometown, what a bummer]
“Just shut up and listen to the Broadcast Host”
[The gallery post refresh rate is gonna drop like crazy lol]
The viewers’ reactions were all over the place. Some were in full agreement, while others were whining, but hey, it can’t be helped.
No decision can satisfy everyone, right?
“Anyway, I’ve opened the cafe, so please show your support. If you join now, you’ll be one of the founding members! Please sign up a lot.”
As soon as I revealed the cafe address, the number of members started to skyrocket like crazy.
8 members, 27 members, 137 members… When that overwhelming firepower pushed it over four digits, the cafe site briefly crashed.
“I’ve only made boards for broadcast-related announcements and a free board. Other boards, like a humor board, will be added slowly later.”
Saying that, I clicked on the free board. I wanted to check what posts had come up in the meantime.
A newly created fan cafe. What kind of posts did people write?
– If the Broadcast Host is cute, mega thumbs up lol
(Animated gif of Jin shaking their head)
(Animated gif of Jin wide-eyed in surprise)
(Animated gif of Jin slyly smiling)
…
(Animated gif of Jin focusing on a game, then reacting to a donation)
Let’s kick things off with me lol
“Uh….”
The purpose and intention of establishing the fan cafe hadn’t strayed far. It was about me, revealing the fandom for me.
But the reason I was taken aback was different. The handwriting—should I call it that? The style of writing reminded me of something I’d seen before.
I mean, doesn’t this look just like posts from the gallery?
The other posts were the same. They were written for the fan cafe, yet they were hardly different from the stuff I’d seen in the gallery.
I couldn’t help but let out a sigh.
“Um, everyone. Since this is our fan cafe, how about writing a bit more like it’s a fan cafe?”
[Excuse me?]
[Haha, you all need to adopt that Naver cafe tone]
[I’ve been in the gallery for too long]
[Stop making it obvious you’re from the gallery, guys]
[Is this a gallery or a fan cafe?]
[Can that happen, Teacher?]
Yeah, can that even happen?
Even I questioned whether it was attainable after I said it.
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