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By Torrey Hart
The biggest name in gaming is headed back to the biggest name in streaming: Tyler Blevins, known as “Ninja,” will once again exclusively stream on Amazon-owned Twitch after leaving for a lucrative deal with Mixer last year.
Microsoft shuttered Mixer in July and partnered with Facebook Gaming, leaving Ninja looking for a new home. In July, he fueled speculation by going live on his YouTube channel — on which he was 24 million subscribers — for the first time.
On Sept. 10, he posted a 12-second video on Twitter, where Ninja has 6.3 million followers, announcing his decision.
“I am excited to get back to streaming full time and connecting with my loyal fan base,” Ninja said in a statement. “In this next chapter, I’m going to make it a point to elevate and bring more eyes to underrepresented creators.”
Ninja, who is known for playing Fortnite, has about 15 million followers on Twitch, where he got his start. The next-biggest streamer, Turner “Tfue” Tenney, has just over 9 million followers. He has streamed nearly 8,400 hours of content on the platform, generating 484 million views.
“Tyler is an iconic force in the gaming community, and it’s been amazing to see the impact he’s made on the industry and broader culture,” Twitch Vice President Michael Aragon said in a statement. “Gaming — and the people who love it — are being recognized by a broad mainstream audience now in part because of Tyler, and we know he’s just getting started.”
Ninja has said he makes more than $500,000 per month from streaming. His previous multi-year deal was Mixer was reportedly worth between $20 million and $30 million, and he reportedly turned down a deal worth double that to go to Facebook Gaming.
The terms of Ninja’s new multi-year deal with Twitch were not disclosed.
