Ludwig’s DreamHack subathon was very different from his previous record-setting stream: Here’s why

Ludwig attempted to replicate his famous record-breaking subathon stream this past weekend. But this time, he had a few twists. Instead of having an uncapped length to a Twitch stream shilling subscriptions, he raised money for a couple of charities for 50 hours.

Oh, he also did it from a glass box at DreamHack Atlanta, putting himself on display like a zoo animal. Surpassing his goal of $300,000 for charity, the stream’s Tiltify campaign page shows a total of $314,256.54 that will go to the Alveus Sanctuary and No Kid Hungry.

Analytics firm Stream Hatchet released a graphic today showing Ludwig’s viewership spread over the weekend. While he didn’t necessarily perform to the high watermark that his previous subathon set last year on Twitch, the shorter edition of the event still posted noteworthy figures.

Racking up 882,000 hours watched, the stream peaked at 57,500 viewers at the end of the stream, according to Stream Hatchet. In total, he averaged a little bit less than 18,000 viewers. 

Ludwig’s previous subathon lasted 31 days after beginning on March 14, 2021. That marathon stream was the creator’s attempt at breaking the platform’s record for active subscribers. He broke that record by hitting more than 283,000 subs, according to TwitchTracker, surpassing a mark previously held by Ninja (269,154).

That stream averaged more than 40,000 viewers and peaked at more than 201,000. Considering the history Ludwig was attempting to make, it would be nearly impossible for him to match that with a second subathon. But as he mentioned when announcing his recent venture, that was not the goal.

For him, it was less about replicating what he had previously done and more about evolving the concept by putting himself on public display with various forms of “torture” and supporting charity. But the gimmick didn’t seem to reap the same dividends.

This stream was on YouTube, where livestreaming typically garners fewer viewers than on Twitch. But it appears as though the arduous nature of trying to break the sub record with a lengthy marathon stream is what made that event so successful.

That isn’t to suggest that Ludwig’s glass-box event didn’t achieve exactly what it intended to. After all, it did go above and beyond the lofty charitable goals set forth by the streamer. But labeling it a “subathon” will automatically solicit comparisons to a stream that may not ever be matched.