As gaming influencers have taken over YouTube, PlayStation and Xbox YouTubers shaped a niche for console video game content.

Both Xbox One and PlayStation 4 consoles have been hugely successful, with large communities throughout the world. As of March 2021, the PlayStation holds 65.8% of the market share, while the Xbox holds the remainder, although this may fluctuate as the next console generation progresses. The Xbox is popular mostly due to its online services and the famous Halo series. The PlayStation, meanwhile, is best known for its selection of nearly 300 exclusive titles, as well as 1,700 cross-platform titles.

According to Google, 90% of gamers watch at least one gaming-related video per week. Even more impressively, 64% of gamers have downloaded a game after learning about it on YouTube.

Game companies are taking note of the popularity of gaming influencers, and influencer marketing on YouTube is booming. Halo developers are leading this trend by utilizing YouTube and the top Xbox influencers in their video game marketing strategy.

For a savvy console game marketing campaign, working with influencers is simply a no-brainer. Here are the top 15 PlayStation and Xbox YouTubers gaming brands can partner with.

The Top PlayStation and Xbox YouTubers

Hollow

Hollow, a popular PlayStation YouTuber who tops the list of popular Xbox YouTubers, has over 3.7 million subscribers. He mostly records let’s plays, with his face in the corner of the video. These are usually single-player games, with Hollow talking to the audience and not to random teammates.

Despite playing on PlayStation, Hollow isn’t a bad fit for Xbox game marketing, either. Most of the titles he plays, like the Assassin’s Creed, Resident Evil, and Hitman franchises, are cross-platform. This focus on the most popular, mainstream games is a big part of what drives Hollow’s success.

Leading game developers including Ubisoft partner with Hollow to promote their games. Check out Hollow’s sponsored review of Ubisoft’s Riders Republic here:

MKIceAndFire

MKIceAndFire is bucking the trend of shorter, more social videos and instead releases hour-long let’s play videos with no commentary whatsoever. Technically, these aren’t let’s plays at all — in gamer parlance, they would correctly be called “long plays.” Whatever you call them, the formula works; the channel has 2.57 million subscribers and counting.

MKIceAndFire played exclusively on PlayStation 4, and more recently switched to PlayStation 5. Even so, most of the games they play are cross-platform, so it’s safe to assume there are plenty of Xbox players in their audience.

Gaming brands like MORTAL KOMBAT partner with this YouTube creator:

GhostRobo

GhostRobo is one of the rare, truly cross-platform gaming YouTubers. At the time of this writing, his two “hottest” videos are a Resident Evil demo video on PlayStation 5 and a news segment on the upcoming Halo sequel on Xbox Series X/S. He has 1.84 million subscribers.

GhostRobo’s videos are mostly gameplay recordings with minimal commentary. That said, he also records the occasional retrospective or news video, where he’s a lot more chatty.

The channel has partnerships with various game titles including Ski Lifts Go Wrong and Dungeon Boss.

PlayStationGrenade

PlayStationGrenade, whose real name is Adam, is a British YouTuber. As the name of his channel implies, Adam is exclusively a PlayStation streamer, and he has garnered an impressive 1.8 million subscribers.

Adam offers two main types of content. First, he plays Fortnite — lots and lots of Fortnite. Secondly, he makes overview videos of other games. These overviews are usually story-related and cover a number of franchises, including a very popular series on the story of The Last of Us.

The channel has been continuously sponsored by Ubisoft promoting titles like FarCry 6 and Watch Dog Legion.

TheGamer

TheGamer is a team of YouTubers that works together to put out one or two videos a day. This rapid pace of production — and eclectic group of creators — has drawn 1.76 million subscribers. Another reason they’re able to draw so many subscribers? They play both Xbox and PlayStation games.

As you might imagine from a group that puts out at least a video every day, TheGamer has a number of playlists. These range from story guides to Easter eggs to product reviews. They don’t perform let’s plays, though; all their videos are 10 minutes or shorter.

The channel has sponsorship collaborations with various game publishers including Wargaming.

Scott The Woz

Scott the Woz is a fast-talking YouTuber who spends his time talking about video games. From current releases to deep dives into gaming history, his 1.34 million subscribers enjoy watching a wide array of content. Among his most recent videos, we found a retrospective on the Nintendo Virtual Boy, a 15-minute rant about video game value packs, and a humorous review of Wii Chess.

When Scott talks about new releases, he usually talks about Nintendo exclusives. However, he also discusses cross-platform games when they garner his interest.

Arekkz Gaming

Arekkz Gaming is actually a four-man crew, headed by Arekkz (pronounced “Erics”), with his henchmen Vestmore, Twosixnine and Paradisecentral all chatting about the latest releases. The format of the show is most certainly social, with a lot of emphasis on mechanics and the experience of the everyday gamer.

Arekkz Gaming currently has 1.2 million subscribers, and most of their videos are about Monster Hunter Rise. That said, they occasionally cover other games or gaming news in general.

The player is sponsored by brands like Argos and Elgato.

TagBackTV

TagBackTV is a mixed PlayStation and PC gaming YouTuber with 925,000 subscribers. Which platform he’s playing on hasn’t really been relevant so far, since he focuses on popular, cross-platform games like Red Dead Redemption II and Cyberpunk 2077. On the other hand, his Animal Crossings series will not apply to PlayStation or Xbox players at all.

TagBackTV has an approachable style and releases an even mix of walkthroughs and “best of” videos.

The channel has a portfolio of brand sponsorships including collaborations with non-gaming brands like G-portal and Ridge Wallet.

Spllitz

Spllitz is a PlayStation streamer with over 600 thousand followers. His videos are a bit different in that they’re not geared towards the average gamer. Instead, they’re geared towards other streamers, or towards the most hardcore gamers who want to customize their gear and stream their footage.

Spllitz represents an interesting opportunity for video game marketers because he can help you reach other influencers. His core audience of dedicated gamers are also the type of people who are most likely to buy a new game.

Spawn Wave

Spawn Wave is a general gaming YouTuber who follows video game news, game and hardware reviews, unboxing videos, and guides. He covers games on all platforms, including Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, and PC. This broad approach has helped him gain 573,000 followers.

Spawn Wave releases one or two videos per day, an impressive rate for what appears to be a one-man operation. At this speed, he has plenty of time to cover a dozen or more topics per week.

Mystic

Mystic is a PlayStation YouTuber with over 550,000 subscribers. Part of the reason he’s able to attract this kind of following is that his videos are so eclectic. Most streamers fall into a single niche; they play one or two games, and that’s where they get all their viewers.

Mystic, on the other hand, does a bit of everything. He plays the Resistance series, God of War, Spyro the Dragon, Jack and Dexter, Ratchet and Clank, and a handful of others. He also records let’s plays, game reviews, unboxings, and general gaming news.

GronKy

Gronky focuses exclusively on three games: Fortnite, Fortnite, and Fortnite. This might not be the most diverse selection, but his half-million audience doesn’t seem to mind. His videos include mostly raw gameplay footage of ranked multiplayer games. However, he also makes a lot of videos with tips and tricks. Many of these are geared towards console players and the control scheme.

Rerez

Rerez is a semi-serious, semi-humorous YouTuber who mostly works on “worst of” videos. This can mean playing genuinely awful games for your entertainment, or highlighting hilarious bugs in beloved titles. Either way, he reliably puts out at least one video per month, and his approach has earned him 283,000 followers.

HappyConsoleGamer

HappyConsoleGamer is hosted by an energetic gamer named Johnny, sometimes joined by his wife Kim or his other friends. His main series is called “Games We’ve Been Playing,” and covers games that he and others are currently playing. This can be any game on any platform, from old Game Boy titles to the latest console releases.

HappyConsoleGamer has 262,000 followers, and has been online since 2008. In that time, he’s discussed just about every genre and style, although he definitely prefers RPGs.

The influencer’s sponsored deals include his review of Final Fantasy VII Remake, a PlayStation title by Square Enix.

PS360HD

PS360HD is a cross-platform YouTube creator with over a hundred thousand subscribers. The channel’s videos consist entirely of gameplay videos, with no commentary. Over time, they’ve streamed games as diverse as Resident Evil 8 and FIFA.

As the channel name implies, they started back in the era of the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. Today, most of their videos are focused on next-gen remasters of PS4 and Xbox One games.

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Whether you want to partner with the top PlayStation streamers to promote your exclusive content, or team up with Xbox YouTubers to talk about your new online game, there are plenty of social media stars capable of reaching a wide audience.

But partnering with the top PlayStation and Xbox YouTubers can be a challenge. That’s where a video game advertising agency comes in. That way, you can focus on creating a great game, assured that your video game marketing campaign is taken care of.