What is Just Chatting Twitch?

Ever wondered what just chatting on Twitch is? In this article, we’ll explain everything you need to know. For years, Twitch was dominated by pro gamers and gaming broadcasters, garnering millions of viewers who wanted to watch people play video games all day. While many Twitch streams continue to provide game content, a big portion of the site has migrated away from it.

Twitch introduced the “IRL” category in March 2017, allowing streamers to broadcast themselves doing anything other than gaming, such as cooking, wandering around town, or simply sitting in front of their camera talking to viewers. As Twitch sought to identify its material more correctly, the IRL category grew and was eventually split into various categories, culminating in the inclusion of the “Just Chatting” category in late 2018.

What is Just Chatting?

Unlike some of the other IRL-inspired categories, such as Art and Tabletop RPGs, Just Chatting proved to be very wide, allowing various broadcasters to communicate with their listeners without needing to game or perform a specific activity while broadcasting. Because of its broad popularity, Just Chatting swiftly became one of Twitch’s most-watched categories.

Since May 2020, Just Chatting has been the most popular category on the entire site, despite brief times when Escape from Tarkov, League of Legends, and Grand Theft Auto V drew the most views. So, what is the appeal of Just Chatting? Actually, there are several explanations.

To begin, anyone may perform a Just Chatting broadcast. They can broadcast under the Just Chatting category on Twitch as long as they have an internet connection and possibly a camera or microphone, neither of which is officially required. In certain circumstances, no game purchase is necessary, and no broadcasting software is required.

However, the comparatively simple setup isn’t the main reason Just Chatting is so popular. In actuality, many viewers just want to engage with broadcasters. Even in gaming categories, many viewers want the broadcaster to read out their chat message, subscription alert, or donation. So it’s not surprising that a category that fosters interaction between the chat and the streamer would be quite popular.

Just Chatting streamers may also entertain their viewers in a number of ways. For example, HasanAbi, one of Twitch’s most famous broadcasters, uses his chat to debate politics and other current topics. Hasan and other streamers use their chat to surf Reddit, view YouTube videos, and watch TV shows, which doesn’t exactly fall into a category other than Just Chatting.

Some viewers have criticized Just Chatting streamers’ “lazy” approach, claiming they are not creative and frequently use other creators’ content to fill time during a stream. Others have voiced indignation at a few female streamers, such as Amouranth, who have pushed the boundaries of what is considered sexual material on the network.

Regardless of the criticism, this category is here to stay, with thousands of presenters and many more people tuning in.