Hey, gamers, are you prepared for The Game Awards to be much more… expressive? The host, Geoff Keighley, showed the Twitch emotes that will be made available to subscribers during the live stream of this year’s #TheGameAwards, and the internet is already having a good time. The little digital stickers made with @iilucreative are meant to help the viewers show their feelings instantly from joy to cringe and everything in between.
What was the sneak peek? The first picture unveiled a line of fresh emotes showing… a figure. It is a little more than a stylized, blue-and-gold character that could well be the actual Game Awards trophy come to life. Gamers have already started tossing around names like “Trophy Waifu” and comparing it to Machop from Pokemon, and I must confess, I too see some similarities. The emotes show this character in various moods like with a credit card in hand, playing the flute, in the midst of hearts, and one simply marked “Peak.” It is a completely represented mood board in emote form.
There was an instant, and as you might expect, very varied reaction on social media. The total amount of gamers that back it is quite substantial. User @GotDayum characterized it with a very, very simple “Yoooo, these are actually kind of dope!” On the other hand, @AnonicxOfficial stated that “Except maybe the hearts they are all very usable. People will spam them.” That is probably a true assumption. The “flute” emoji seems to be particularly tipped for greatness or at least continuous spamming during orchestral performances.
However, for every fan that is ready to spam, there is a critic that is very eager to give his negative comment. The reactions were not only in a positive light; some feedback was, uh, like more or less disgusted. @Trunigon pointedly made a remark, “All crap that nobody will use.” Ouch. The artistic direction was questioned by others; @NathanRabbe just wrote “Looks ai” while @Immortalkillih termed it “Holy generic crap” and wondered, “Which fiver artist did you pay for this?” Harsh but true, that’s how the internet works. You cannot please everyone, and it appears that The Game Awards emotes are no exception in this respect.
Next, there is the…interesting angle of the discussion. The moment the Trophy Waifu (let’s stick with that name) was shown there, a certain part of the gaming community immediately thought of a very specific scenario. @SirGalahad4U responded with a crying emoji, “You just have R34 artist a FEAST 😭”. And you know what? They are pretty much right. The internet history has taught that even a tiny indication of an anthropomorphic award statue is going to be depicted in…uh, let’s call it soon alternative scenarios. It has become almost a rite of passage now. Another user, @chrisgoad18, simply stated, “She needs a name.” The audience has given its opinion, Geoff. Name your new mascot.
In addition to memes and the inevitable rule 34, some gamers saw real value in the addition. @Gro3_ referred to it as “nice to see twitch putting in the work for the loyal subscribers. small details like this make a difference, especially when you’re live-reacting to game awards.” That is a very good point! Having event-themed, specific emotes does indeed help create community feeling and shared experience for the live watch along which is a major part of TGA’s appeal. It’s yearly about the trailers but also about the hectic, live-tweeting, emote-spamming responses from all the gaming world.
Of course, the never-ending question that comes along with any Game Awards news pops up. User @SnakeEyes9155 raised the matter that is on every gamer’s mind: “Will there be twitch drops mr geoff….” Because let’s be honest, though awesome emotes are fun, free in-game loot is the universal language of gamers. No word on that yet, but the emote drop is a pretty strong sign that the Twitch integration is a big focus for this year. And who knows, one of the emotes could have been a “Wrap It Up” button, like @LordAquaerion mentioned. We’ve all been there, during somewhat long acceptance speeches.
What is the overall picture? The Game Awards are consistently trying to change their identity from just being an awards ceremony to a full-blown event, a digital E3 replacement where announcements and visuals are the main attractions. The use of these custom Twitch emotes is a smart, albeit minor, step aimed at increasing the engagement of the millions watching live on the platform. It gives the audience a voice, or at least a series of funny pictures, to react. This focus on community tools like emotes is a hallmark of platforms like Twitch.
