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In a recent case of online trolling, Twitch streamer ‘erobb221’ fell victim to his viewers during a sponsored livestream.
The star was taken aback when his Twitch chat collectively used a feature in his channel to abruptly close his game during the stream.
Erobb221’s Experience with Trolls
Erobb221, a popular figure on Twitch, is no stranger to dealing with internet trolls.
As with many streamers and influencers, the experience of handling trolls is somewhat common, but for erobb221, it tends to occur more frequently.
The streamer has, on several occasions, made innocent mistakes which trolls were quick to exploit, like revealing what’s on his other screen or being tricked into force-closing games.
During a sponsored livestream on June 30, erobb221 faced another trolling incident.
He had partnered with Ubisoft for a session of Rainbow Six Siege, but his viewers managed to turn the situation on its head.
The Twitch Trolling Incident
As erobb221 engaged in the game and interacted with his chat, the game abruptly shut down. The sudden turn of events left erobb, as well as many of his viewers, speechless.
While some viewers thought that the game might have crashed, the streamer clarified that the game’s abrupt closure was a result of his troll chatters exploiting his channel point reward system.
“I have a channel point reward system,” he attempted to clarify, visibly frustrated, “no the game didn’t crash…”
Understanding Twitch’s Channel Point Reward System
In 2019, Twitch, owned by Amazon, launched the channel points system for all its Affiliates and Partners.
This feature allows viewers to accumulate 10 points for every five minutes of a watched stream, with an additional 50 points available every 15 minutes for active chatters.
Viewers can then redeem their amassed points for various rewards, which are determined by the streamer. While the default rewards include emote redemptions, highlighted messages, or the ability to send chats in subscriber-only mode, some streamers offer more unique rewards.
Erobb221’s Unique Channel Reward System
Erobb221’s channel is known for its unconventional rewards, including the ability to switch off his monitor for 50,000 points or to disable his mouse and keyboard temporarily.
One of the most costly rewards lets viewers press a specific key on erobb’s keyboard for 100,000 points.
This reward was at the center of the recent trolling incident, as two viewers coordinated to use their rewards simultaneously.
They chose to hit ALT + F4, a universal shortcut for force-closing applications, effectively shutting down erobb’s game in the middle of the livestream.
Dealing with Online Trolling
This incident serves as a sobering reminder of the challenges that online personalities face regularly.
Trolling, in various forms, continues to be an issue for content creators, highlighting the need for robust systems and policies to safeguard their experiences.
Despite the unfortunate incident, erobb221’s livestream provides an insightful example of how user interaction mechanisms, like Twitch’s Channel Point Reward System, can sometimes be manipulated by viewers.
As the online world continues to evolve, so too must the tools and strategies to manage and counteract these unexpected forms of audience interaction.
