xQc Discusses the Dangers of Viral Viewbotting Stunt by Twitch Streamer

Streaming phenom Felix ‘xQc’ Lengyel has voiced strong concerns regarding the viewbotting practices emerging from a recent incident involving a Twitch streamer, labeling the actions as “harmful.”His reaction underscores a growing unease within the Twitch community about the implications of artificially inflating viewer counts.

Throughout the years, Twitch has faced several instances of viewbotting, where artificial viewers are added to a channel. This can either be a malicious attempt by trolls aiming to get a streamer banned—since this violates Twitch’s regulations—or an unethical tactic leveraged by streamers seeking to catapult themselves to rapid success.

The controversy reignited on March 19 when streamer QueenGloriaRP inadvertently showcased a viewbotting program live during her stream, causing a significant stir within the community. The visible interface of the program appeared to grant her the ability to manipulate viewer counts and comments. Following this revelation, QueenGloriaRP promptly restarted her stream, but not before being banned by Twitch.

Reactions to the Viewbotting Incident

The viral clip capturing this incident soon caught the attention of xQc, who expressed disbelief upon viewing the stream. He remarked, “Err, yo? The f*ck?” highlighting his astonishment towards the blatant display of the viewbotting tool.xQc further elaborated, stressing that even if the incident were staged, the representation itself is significantly detrimental and should warrant a ban.

He asserted, “To say ‘Oh guys, it’s a skit’—even if it were a skit—it doesn’t change the fact that it creates harmful implications. If this is real, merely the act of showcasing it is enough grounds for a ban.” xQc compared the situation to creating skits with elements that encourage cheating in gaming: “It’s just as bad to show a program you can buy for a gimmick on stream, ” he argued. In his view, using such programs, whether staged or not, undermines the integrity of competitive gaming.

As Twitch continues to refine its policies against viewer manipulation, recent changes have introduced a more accessible method for users to report channels suspected of employing fake profiles to enhance their viewer metrics. These measures come amid concerns that the tools could be exploited maliciously; however, their implementation appears necessary if viewbotting remains a persistent challenge on the platform.

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