Iām sorry if this is cynical, but Iād really like your input on it (as an experience polygon vid/pat stream viewer): Do you think Pat is pushing the after hours streaming stuff because Polygon is ending? Or, at least, to try and maintain the āfunny video/personalityā fans? Iāve noticed a lot of other polygon vid personalities are doing similar things, and main polygon video content keeps slowing down and changing, presumably in compliance w/ vox media strategy? Have you noticed too?
First of all real bold of you sending this to a Pat fanblog where all I do is make dumbass shitposts and post cat clips, as if I know a single goddamn thing about anything, but since you asked Iāll try to answer as many of your questions as possible. (Iām not mad about being asked btw I just really find it funny youād send it here of all places lmao). Disclaimer time: I am not in any way affiliated with Polygon or Vox Media nor do I know how they operate behind the scenes.
Do I personally think Polygon is ending and that Pat streams because of that? Short answer, no. However, I believe Polygonās necessary (yes, I said necessary) and inevitable (yes, INEVITABLE) change in content is due to a lot of deeper issues people might not know about, which Iāve gathered from research and being an idiot whomst has watched Youtube for 10+ years. Let me just say, the last year or so has pretty much been the āEverybody Knows Shits Fuckedā song on repeat until we die so this is going to be a long ass post. Buckle up kiddos weāre warp speeding into this fuckfest together.
Youtube Advertiser Boycott And The Algorithms
Every social media website employs the use of algorithms to decide how content gets sorted, and Youtube isnāt any different. Thatās why Youtubers constantly ask you to ālike, comment and subscribeā because it helps their content get noticed through Youtubeās internal system ā such as search priority, the trending section, your homepage and your recommended tab, as well as the recommended sidebar on individual videos. As for content, one of the more effective models was to find a niche and cater to it, something Polygon did by creating Monster Factory and similar humored series alongside their serious content.
And for a while, it worked. Except things change.
Before we get any further I highly suggest you read this article writtenĀ by Julia Alexander about the complicated history of Youtubeās monetization system, but Iāll try to give a quick summary. Something controversial will happen on Youtube, causing brands to pull their business from the platform until they can get more security on what types of videos their ads play on, then Youtube refines the system to give brands more control. Rinse and repeat. The new system results in a massive amount of videos being demonetized, causing creators to lose revenue and viewer engagement and then request appeals to have their content reviewed by humans, which in turn improves the algorithm. Those most negatively affected by the system must diversify their payments either through Patreon, Twitch, merch, etc, or in worst case scenarios, give up on their dreams of being a Youtuber.
Youtube has a lot of incentive to keep creators updated on changes, so when users ask, āhey, can we know whatās going on with the website?ā Youtube responds with an informative, āabsolutely not. Die.ā The userbase, as a result, is forced to run their own investigations. Nerd City published a video revealing another algorithm (one just as prone to mistakes) assigns all videos with an MPAA-style rating to make it easier for businesses to decide what sort of content theyāre comfortable advertising on. This rating ā hidden from both the uploader and their audience ā Cannot. Be. Appealed. Good fucking system am I right!!! (Also, please watch the video if you get the chance, it brings up some points about machine learning and how the system negatively affects marginalized creators).
One more thing, do you remember what I said earlier about how a video gets popular on Youtubeās internal system? Well, creators have reason to believe a higher rating attributes to view suppressionĀ ā meaning their videos might end up exempt from the things I listed. This makes it so much harder for a channel to grow their userbase outside of an already established audience. If youāre following along you might be able to tell where Iām going with this, but if notā¦
What Does This Have To Do With Video Games Polygon?
Once again, I do not know any of the behind the scenes Polygon lore and a lot of this is guesswork on my part. Iād imagine as a branch of Vox Media, Polygon would have a higher priority getting any potentially demonetized videos appealed than smaller, independent channels do. However, when your own website is reporting the system responsible for sorting and rating videos goes deeper than just demonetization, with a full MPAA-style ranking thatās been shown to suppress the growth of certain content not deemed advertiser friendly, such as excessive profanity and sexually suggestive content, which turns out is a subset of the niche your channel has developed ā thatās a problem.
This isnāt me being critical of their content or saying what they make is bad (considering Iām a fan of it as well), this is an objective look at the reality of a rapidly changing platform. Unfortunately, the biggest flags in my head for Polygon happen to be the Jackbox series and⦠Monster Factory. Thereās absolutely no way some of those videos are getting a kid-friendly rating, and itās possible the bot is slapping some of them with a mature rating ā the worst one where enough of those could potentially affect the rating of the entire channel. Griffin, in one of the Spore MF videos, emphatically yells, ācome fuck thisā to the heavens; lo and behold, a few years later Youtube finally does.
Of course, this is just one of a few different problems Polygon is facing. The Mcelroys left to focus on their own businesses, taking some of their fans with them. Other fans who mainly want the video game news might end up unsubscribing if too many videos irrelevant to their interests are posted. Some series, while perfectly funny in their own right, have trouble breaking out and appealing to a wider audience.
Polygone But Not Forgotten?
Iāll try to put it as softly as I can: almost all creators on Youtube have to reevaluate the content they put out and how it fits into Youtubeās ad-friendly guidelines if they want to continue receiving ad revenue and viewer engagement from the site. This is not just a Polygon specific problem, and as a news channel they benefit a lot more by working within the new parameters. Polygonās primary priority should be their video game website, where I go to read all the articles that arenāt about video games, as ad revenue is probably more stable and allows them more room for sillier content. As for their channel, the āhorny nicheā appeal doesnāt have as much of a place anymore. Well, on Youtube at least.
Twitch, however, seems like a better home for Polygonās familiar borderline type of humor. On a stream Pat said, as the live video producer, heās responsible for getting their channel partnered which will come with some very important benefits, such as the ability to subscribe. Iād assume creating content for Youtube takes priority over this, and thereās also the fact that Pat is just one person and needs to balance this with other things like āhaving a lifeā and āeating??? Perhaps???ā (maybe even A Vegetable). By the way, to answer one of your other questions, itās normal for creators to have projects outside of their work and build their own personal brand, like Patās Twitch channel, Brianās Youtube channel, Simoneās author account and everyoneās countless podcasts. Itās not recommended to rely solely on Youtube for your income, even before the ad boycotts, so if you can diversify your content then do so.
Listen, I know this is disappointing and I know itās not the answer people want. Youtubeās new system isnāt going away and the video team needs to accommodate for these changes or otherwise Perish. I believe in Polygonās ability to deliver informative, humorous and accessible content, they just need the time to do it. As an audience, a way to offer support during this difficult time is to just be as understanding and patient as possible, and give the content they put out a chance if you can.
Now I am not an expert on any of this, but if you have any questions or comments you can send them to my main @malarcana and Iāll try to answer them. Thanks for reading!














