вЂњItвЂ™s challenging when thereвЂ™s a heat wave to use the lights and makeup,вЂќ Nikatine continued. The thing is, itвЂ™s not always feasible for a livestreamer to show up on-stream - especially right now, in the middle of a taxing pandemic and a variety of ecological disasters unfolding across America. вЂњI have noticed a marked decrease in viewership on days I donвЂ™t use a face cam, sometimes as much as 15% to 20%,вЂќ said Nikatine, a Twitch partner who has been livestreaming for two years, over email. The demand is especially excruciating for women, who are frequently judged on sex appeal. For some, itвЂ™s not enough that a Twitch streamer is entertaining you have to show your face, and you have to look good while doing it. But also, in the past, Pokimane has been criticized for daring to do livestreams without any makeup, an expectation that lays bare just how much pressure livestreamers face when it comes to looks. Her lively personality easily lends itself to a more cartoonish depiction like this, for one. IвЂ™d rather have people comment on this cute little anime drawing of me, you know?вЂќДЇor anyone following PokimaneвЂ™s livestreams, this turn of events isnвЂ™t surprising. вЂњEspecially because, I donвЂ™t know, sometimes it gets tiring to get people comment on you. вЂњNo-cam streams are so comfy,вЂќ Pokimane said during the livestream. The gregarious personality isnвЂ™t pivoting to full-time anime girl livestreams anytime soon, but she did say that sheвЂ™ll likely use her Vtubing avatar when she does streams without a camera broadcasting her real-life face. PokimaneвЂ™s livestream, by contrast, was more of an experiment. Vtubing is a genre of its own, and some people devote their entire careers to it. Virtual YouTuber agency Hololive recently announced a line of English-speaking personalities based on mythical creatures, in an effort to better cater to the market outside of Japan. And where eyeballs go, money soon follows. On YouTube, videos with Vtubers can get hundreds of thousands of views. While the practice isnвЂ™t new, in recent years Vtubing has dramatically risen in popularity and visibility to the degree that there are social media accounts dedicated to sharing funny Vtuber moments. In other words, Pokimane was dipping her toes into the world of вЂњVtubing,вЂќ or entertainers who do livestreams or YouTube videos as virtual girls. But midway through September, the popular Twitch streamer debuted a pastel-colored 3D anime model of herself, which was rigged to follow her real-life movements. Usually, when streamer Imane вЂњPokimaneвЂќ Anys goes live on Twitch for her 5.5 million followers, you can expect to see her bubbly face anchoring the broadcast as she reacts to the game sheвЂ™s playing, or responds to the endless flood of comments.

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