The Fall of Minecraft and The Rise of The YouTuber

Minecraft and YouTube have gone hand in hand for around 5 years now. YouTube might even have contributed to Minecraft's popularity and Minecraft has definitely created a few new YouTube stars. However, with the Minecraft craze starting to lose steam (it's still popular just not at the hypercraze levels of yesteryear), what happens to those that have been making a rather impressive living from uploading game-play videos?

Surprisingly the answer lies in my GCSE Geography!  Just like Cumbrian Hill Farmers these Youtubers have had to diversify!

There's no jam and tourism here though.  Some channels have already abandoned Minecraft for other creative games such as Roblox. Those still sticking to Minecraft have started to support these videos with other games, covering whatever is popular, discovering hidden gems or following fan suggestions.

Perhaps this ability to engage directly with fans and receive near instant feedback is part of how YouTubers have become the new celebrities.

I'm going to focus on two such celebrities, that happen to be two of my son's favourites, and see what steps they have taken to keep their content fresh and how they have become a brand in their own right outside of YouTube.



First up, DanTDM also known as The Diamond Minecart.

Dan started on YouTube with a Pokemon TCG channel (PokemanDanLv45 if you're curious) but eventually created a new channel featuring showcases of mods in Minecraft (for anyone that doesn't know, mods are unofficial modifications to the game that can add new features and mechanics).

Four years have passed and now the channel has over 14 million subscribers but as the development of mods for Minecraft has declined Dan moved on to multiplayer Minecraft and a range of story maps. Oddly with the decline of mods a lot more is possible using Command Blocks.  This means there has been some truly impressive story maps and even whole new games created within Minecraft (Take a look at Terra Swoop Force for a great example of what is possible). Unfortunately these kinds of creations take time which is not ideal for YouTube channels that put out daily videos.


Looking outside of Minecraft Dan has several popular series such as Tomodachi Life and Pokemon: Brick Bronze (an entire pokemon game/tribute inside of Roblox). There are also a number of games that just don't have enough content to support an entire series. These could be one off mobile apps or shorter games but Dan's fans seem to enjoy the new experiences and seeing him just have fun with games. I've lost count of the number of games my son has wanted to try, just because he has seen them on YouTube: and he's not the only one.

Over the past year or so Dan has tried a few more obscure games, even going back to some Flash based ones. With millions of subscribers that means that there's likely thousands of new people trying these games, and in the case of Riddle School(a point and click adventure) this has resulted in a new chapter in the game 10 years after it had ended. With Dan trying a few new and early access games you can see how much of a difference his influence can have for small developers. I can think of at least two that have been so grateful as to add DanTDM content to their games!


This is the point where channels reach outside of YouTube. You can also see it with the amount of merchandise available, even smaller channels might offer t-shirts etc. Some of the bigger channels even have toys as part of the TubeHeroes range. This is a clever way of avoiding licensing issues with both Minecraft and YouTube that still gives kids a chance to own their favourite characters.

Dan has taken this concept further, recreating regular characters from his videos outside of Minecraft. Primarily this is through a new graphic novel style book featuring an original story but also spans to the live show. Yes I said live show, as in theatres and tour dates! You may have seen our review in Niche Issue 14, if not then go check it out! It's true some guy who played games in his bedroom/loft has put the work in to now be touring the country like some kind of rockstar! There show has now even reached two other continents and there's even rumblings of some kind of animated outing for these characters!


There is another YouTuber creating his own books and may have actually developed his characters outside of Minecraft a bit sooner. Mr Stampy Cat or just Stampy for short or even Stampylonghead/nose as his channel is named.

Stampy hasn't reduced his Minecraft content, if anything he's now producing more but in more diverse and unexpected ways. His main series is currently fast approaching 500 episodes. It started as a standard survival mode let's play but now follows Stampy and several recurring characters as they create new buildings and mini-games. There is an ongoing story with some "big event" episodes that have involved flights to the moon, undersea exploration, battling pirate ships and high altitude thrills in an air balloon. Oh, and a few visits from aliens and father Christmas.

It helps that Stampy himself (Joseph Garret in real life) has a background in film production and editing. Which also comes through in some of his new projects, namely "Stampy Shorts". These shorts might be the kind of projects film students would create but at least so far they have all been created within Minecraft. It may have mixed reactions from fans but I'm impressed by the innovation.

Most of these shorts have a comedy element that unexpectedly feels Monty Python-esque and even though I say my son watches these videos I do find I'm occasionally watching by myself.

For example I'm slightly hooked on the "Quest to..." series. What started as a mission to defeat the Ender Dragon is becamegeneral craziness and surreal builds with around 1/3 of the video dedicated to the intro and an improv comedy sketch..

That brings us onto Stampy's collaboration with Maker Studios for Wonderquest, an educational series built in Minecraft. There are now two seasons of this show, having covered a whole range of topics; from the water cycle to states of matter, all pitched at a level that covers quite a few age ranges. This along with the fun filled story, family friendly humour
and a few guest appearances means there's something for most kids, even if the science is a bit too simple or advanced for them. Each episode is accompanied by an animated short with some
additional lessons, yet another example of characters
breaking out of their Minecraft home.

Stampy still continues with other Minecraft content too, but mixes it up with challenges and game show elements. In particular he takes part in weekly building competitions (Building Time) with fellow YouTuber iballisticsquid. These videos go live the same time each week and they have become a family tradition. We all gather round to watch in much the same way as I sat with my parents to watch Gladiators etc.

These examples are just the start. Other creators have their own project, even family channels such as FGTeev/Funnelvision have branched into animation. Others have collaborated to create the Pixelarity miniseries and at least two I can think of have their own mobile games (iballisticsquid and PewDiePie). So there you have it, YouTubing isn't quite as simple as it used to be, with creative folks pushing their brand well beyond the streaming service.

DanTDM on Tour: QnA

I've been working on some kid friendly content for min-geeks and budding nerds... stay tuned for more on that. Today I bring you a Q&A session with DanTDM (The Diamond Minecart). If you don't know who Dan is then ask your/some kids. He is one of the fastest growing YouTubers with over 12 million subscribers, popular for his Minecraft "let's plays" and "mod showcases", he now has content for a range of kid friendly and trendy games. Dan has recently started his first live tour, having added extra dates after the first run sold out within 24 hours. Interview after the jump.

Why did you decide to go on tour?

I had already started to explore doing what I do live which started by finding ways to tell my Minecraft stories on stage rather than through YouTube. This presented its own challenges since I couldn't edit anything like I would with a video, but it also had its own unique positives such as getting audience feedback, getting them involved and feeling the energy in the room when the audience are reacting to what you are performing. As soon as I had tried this once, I explored different ways to make the best of a live space and that is where the DanTDM tour was born. I wanted to get rid of the screen that separates me and my audience and bring them what they see on my YouTube channel, but share it with them face to face instead.

What can fans expect to see on stage?

One of the best parts of this tour is that it is so unique as a concept that no one really knows what to expect from the show! However, you can definitely expect some custom made TDM games, audience participation, a full story and certainly things that my fans have never EVER seen me do before!

Are there any further tour plans?

Definitely! After seeing the reception of not only the idea of me doing the tour, but the overwhelmingly positive feedback from the first couple of shows, I do want to keep exploring this live space. I'm having such a blast sharing these shows with my fans so I don't see myself stopping anytime soon.

What appealed to you about Minecraft? Why did you start making YouTube videos?

The most appealing part of Minecraft for me is the creativity. You can literally create ANYTHING you want inside this one little game. And from a video making perspective, that is perfect. I started creating YouTube videos because of my passion for video making and I used it as a way to share some silly animations that I did, but then combined that with my other passion, video games. Since then I have been making videos every day!

What are your interests outside of gaming and vlogging?

Outside of YouTube I love spending time with my family and my dogs. Our little Pugs probably have a better social life than I do so we spend a lot of time out and about with them! Music is also another passion of mine whether it's listening, watching, playing or writing.

We understand you are a keen musician. Do you have any music plans for the future? 

Hopefully! The strange thing about YouTube is that you never know what is going to happen, even in the near future so hopefully I can bring music into that at some point.
For those of you coming to the tour, you may have a little musical surprise waiting for you there!

What advice would you give to someone wanting to start YouTube gaming/vlogging?

Just go for it! Every single YouTuber has to start from 0 subscribers and build a subscriber base from there. It's a very slow process so don't give up, learn along the way and most importantly, love what you do because if you aren't loving what you're doing, then your audience won't either.

Produced and promoted by Endemol Shine UK, ticket prices start from £15. Further details and information about where to buy your tickets can be found at www.DanTDMTour.com/tickets.

 If you'd like to see more of Dan and try out some of his videos follow this link https://www.youtube.com/user/TheDiamondMinecart .

Niche Plays: Minecraft Story Mode Episode 6

I can hear you all exclaim “You wrote that amazing preview in Niche's Christmas edition but now you've skipped 5 episodes!” well, I'm giving "Episode 6: Portal into Mystery" this edition of Niche Plays as it can easily be played as a stand-alone episode. (Although you will need to purchase at least Episode 1 to be able to play this but I know the season passes for PlayStation are currently on sale.)

The series handles a lot like other Telltale games, an evolution of point and click adventures with a focus on making your own story, all set in the

familiar world of Minecraft.

This episode starts with our heroes entering a new dimension, to be immediately invited to a gathering at a large creepy mansion. What follows is basically Danganronpa for kids, a crazy, intense murder mystery involving major Minecraft YouTubers; Captain Sparklez, Stampy, Dan TDM, StacyPlays, and LD Shadowlady.

There's nothing quite like this. The choices this time don't seem as major or as plot altering, but if you happen to have kids that are big fans of these YouTubers then to them this is going to be like taking part in a major blockbuster movie alongside your favourite god-tier actors.

I was joined on this adventure by my 6 year old and he was on the edge of his seat the entire time, seeing some of his favourite characters put in harms way, not knowing what would happen next and possibly being responsible for their safety... It's going to be one of those gaming memories I hold on to. This episode does speak to a more specific audience but despite the odd graphical hiccup and variable voice acting skills of the YouTube guest stars, this was an enjoyable experience particularly with a young side-kick along for the ride.