Gaming Panel at Summer in the City 2019

The Gaming Panel took place on the Sunday of Summer in the City 2019, on the Gaming Stage. It featured Talia Mar, Gee Nelson, Simi (tamago2474), and Callum “SeaPeeKay” Knight. It was moderated by Bird Keeper Toby.

The panel started with each creator introducing themselves and the games their content focuses on. Toby began, sharing that his content is related to the world of Pokémon.

Both Talia and Callum focus on Minecraft, with the addition of other games, and Simi creates videos and streams Neopets, Club Penguin and The Simpsons: Hit & Run. Finally, Gee plays a variety of games, both alone and alongside Talia. She also streams on Twitch.

Toby then asked the panellists if they ever feel a pressure to create content which differs from their main game.

“If I don’t like it, I don’t play it” exclaimed Talia, explaining how she was gaming before she began streaming, and so she doesn’t feel pressure to make sure it goes well. Callum disagreed, however, explaining how due to the popularity of Minecraft, he feels he has to make content that stands out against other creators.

On the flip side, the panel was then asked if they ever feel the pressure to keep creating content focused on their main game, rather than trying out different games.

Simi was first to reply, explaining that he separates playing games for leisure from playing them to produce content or stream, so he isn’t always focused on a selection of games. Gee then replied that she finds “when you start streaming you just relax”, which the creators all agreed to.

Toby then posed the question of if they could, would the panellists move on from creating the same content? With Minecraft, Callum explained how it regularly receives updates, or he takes part in servers, which means he can interact with other gamers content. Simi then replied, highlighting how as he also makes satire and story videos, he can change things up.

The next question covered sponsorships. Toby asked the panellists if they have any specific stand out moments from when they’ve worked with companies. Callum was first to answer, with his example being when he worked with Mojang, the creators of Minecraft.

He explained that a group of creators including himself were taken to Stockholm to be told about the game’s new updates, but were also taken speedboating and to visit a castle.

Leading on from this, Toby asked if the creators ever fear that their audience will assume they are only playing certain games for the advantages of sponsorships. “I think as a general rule, people understand that it’s my job” stated Callum. Gee agreed, explaining how her audience is always supportive because it’s a success for the creator.

The panel closed off with the question: “What are your three favourite game characters?”. Talia answered Moira and Reaper from Overwatch, and then Pikachu because it was her childhood nickname.

Callum chose Minecraft Steve, Crash Bandicoot, and Hanzo from Overwatch, while Simi chose Clank, Ellie and then struggled to find a third. Finally, Gee chose Reinhardt and Torbjörn from Overwatch.

Photos by George Yonge.