Trainwreckstv went off during a recent stream about what he sees as obvious viewbotting among newer content creators. During a conversation with xQc, Train laid out his case for why some streamers’ numbers just don’t make sense.
“There is not a single human in this world that can maintain the same average and peak viewcount across all categories,” Train argued. His point was simple. Real audiences fluctuate. They tune in for specific games, drop off during boring parts, and definitely don’t stick around in the same numbers when someone’s literally sleeping on stream.
xQc, who was on the call, backed him up with quick agreements throughout the discussion. The two streaming veterans seemed to share the same skepticism about certain patterns they’ve noticed.
Train’s main red flag is consistency that’s too perfect. He explained that legitimate streamers see their numbers bounce around based on what they’re doing. Playing a popular game? Numbers go up. Switching to something niche? They drop. Taking a bathroom break? People click away. That’s normal viewer behavior.
But some newer creators apparently maintain identical peaks and averages whether they’re gaming, chatting, or even sleeping. Train finds this suspicious. He compared it to real-world events where even the biggest acts see different turnouts depending on the venue or show.
The viewbotting problem isn’t new to streaming platforms. Bots are automated programs that inflate viewer counts without representing real people watching. They can make a stream look more popular than it actually is, potentially attracting real viewers who think something interesting must be happening with all those people watching.
Spotting bots isn’t always straightforward though. Streamers and viewers often point to weird patterns like viewer counts that jump in perfect steps rather than gradual waves. Or chat that moves too slowly for the supposed audience size. Some notice when thousands of “viewers” stick around through hours of sleep streams without any drops.
Train didn’t name specific streamers, keeping his accusations general to the “new generation” of creators. This makes sense given how hard it is to prove viewbotting without access to platform data. Even suspicious patterns can sometimes have legitimate explanations like embedded streams on other websites or promotional placements.
Both Twitch and Kick have systems to detect and remove bot traffic, though the exact methods stay secret to prevent workarounds. Twitch has sued viewbot providers in the past and regularly bans bot accounts in waves. But the cat-and-mouse game continues as bot makers find new tactics.
Train’s position adds an interesting wrinkle to the discussion. He has an advisory role with Kick, the streaming platform that competes with Twitch. Both he and xQc stream on Kick after signing major deals with the platform. Some might see this as a conflict of interest when discussing competitor metrics, though Train’s observations could apply to any platform.
The conversation highlights ongoing tensions in the streaming world about what’s real and what’s fake. For viewers, it raises questions about whether their favorite streamers’ success is genuine. For legitimate creators, viewbotting by others can feel like cheating in an already competitive space.
