Retrogaming on YouTube is… growing!?
Sep 12, 2023 – minute read
You might have noticed a change to the YouTube logo today that gives a nostalgic nod into the world of retrogaming — a celebration of classic games, consoles, devices and more that immediately transport us to those early days.
There were 1,000 times more uploads of videos related to retrogaming in 2023 as there were in 2007.
As we dove into the archives and the endless ways our gaming community on YouTube has kept retrogaming alive, one thing caught our attention: the growth of retrogaming as a topic and as a community over the last 20 or so years. In fact, there were 1,000 times more uploads of videos related to retrogaming in 2023 as there were in 2007.1 That’s a lot of let’s plays, speedruns, hot takes, refurbs, mods and history lessons.
It’s especially fun to see this happening now, when the gaming industry overall seems to be moving at lightspeed. Games keep getting bigger, more immersive and real, while the boundaries of play continue to be pushed further.
And yet, we keep looking back.
While the majority of retrogaming videos uploaded to YouTube correlate with consoles from the 1980s and 1990s, we’re noticing a slow increase of more modern consoles from the 2000-2010 era2, showing that retrogaming is ever evolving and expanding as those consoles slowly become considered as “retro.”
Like many of our gaming communities, retrogaming is a global phenomenon, with top viewership inUS, Japan, Russia, Brazil, and the United Kingdom3. In Japan, one of the most-viewed channels is @gccx20th, the official channel of the classic TV show Game Center CX, which began airing 20 years ago.
For more on the retrogaming community, check out our Culture and Trends site, where we nerd out on everything from a non-comprehensive breakdown of the types of retrogaming content to the #1 most uploaded console… it’s worth a read.
But before you go, here are a few videos to help you discover, or rediscover, the joys of our retrogaming community on YouTube, and the Creators that keep these stories, games, devices and memories alive.
1. Source: YouTube data, Global, Jan - June 2007, Jan - June 2023
2. Source: YouTube data, Global, lifetime
3. Source: YouTube data, Global, 1 Jan - 6 Sep 2023