Pride Month has become a media experience no longer relegated to marches thanks to the global reach of the Internet and queer content creators or LGBTQIA+ allies. The future of the LGBTQIA+ community looks brighter every year thanks to improvements being made and the resilience of its Twitch streamers and content creators, with whom Game Rant is conducting a series of interviews. One such individual is blizzb3ar, a queer Twitch streamer who wants to uplift the voices of marginalized groups of people, especially those of LGBTQIA+ individuals who are underrepresented within the community itself.
Last year, Game Rant started a Pride Month Streamer Spotlight, which we’re happy to continue this year with several fresh streamers.
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Why blizzb3ar Feels Like He Has to Be a ‘Villain’
Recently, blizzb3ar shared a tweet stating that he will keep on being loud, passionate, and a problem. When he was asked why he felt like he had to be a problem, he replied that he happily takes on that role because good change has to happen, and someone has to raise awareness. That’s why the Twitch streamer feels like he is a villain, in the sense that he is passionate about amplifying the voices of those who are not represented enough in the queer community.
This negative perception of vocal LGBTQIA+ individuals as “villains,” to blizzb3ar, stems from the fact that they are vocal about their sexuality and gender identity in a world where these things are still fighting to become the new norm. The reason why blizzb3ar takes on this role, even though it’s not the best feeling, is that he felt the lack of people like himself growing up. He now actively protects others in his community on Twitch, and he feels that, by doing so, he is also protecting his young self.
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The Importance of Therapy For Coming to Terms With One’s Identity and Trauma
Despite being relatively new to therapy, currently taking a second run at the idea in a more professional context, blizzb3ar believes this tool is a powerful way to overcome insecurities and trauma tied to being queer. According to the streamer, there shouldn’t be deadlines that people put on themselves for coming out and expressing their own identity, because they would always be unfair deadlines. Coming out is a journey that one has to narrate for themselves at their own pace, slowly accepting that it may be hurtful to come out or even traumatic, regardless of how beautiful it can be.
Therapy is a great way of unlearning all the self-hate and trauma inflicted on him by others, according to blizzb3ar. There’s a huge degree of control one can have over coming out to others, especially with social media and the Internet being places where one has to be careful about what sort of information they share. Still, the streamer believes it helps to talk to a therapist, and to talk with like-minded people, especially if they happen to share experiences or identities.
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blizzb3ar’s View on Being a Twitch Streamer
Because blizzb3ar is now streaming on Twitch full-time, he has come to discover more benefits and concerns regarding the platform. One of the major pros about being a streamer who’s out is that blizzb3ar gets to meet a lot of new people like him, be it fellow streamers or viewers who tell him how meaningful his channel is. That’s why blizzb3ar wants his space to be a comfortable, safe environment where he and everyone in his community can be unapologetically themselves.
However, being open is something that can lead to becoming a target for haters, where blizzb3ar feels Twitch currently fails to be a safe platform. In his experience, the streamer has been hate-raided five times, and he has been attacked by white supremacists while Twitch did little to actively protect him aside from granting banning tools. Another issue is that Twitch gets 50 percent of the income for every subscription to blizzb3ar’s channel, which means streamers who are not at the top may struggle to even pay rent.
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LGBTQIA+ Video Games That blizzb3ar Recommends
Because representation is so important to blizzb3ar, he likes games that offer great representation for himself and fellow LGBTQIA+ individuals - especially those who are not as represented. Because blizzb3ar cares about bisexual and black representation in particular, one of his favorite games is Stardew Valley, where players can make their own character and marry whomever they want with zero impact on the story. There is not a lot of bisexual representation in gaming, and having the option of being with a person regardless of their identity is valuable, even if it’s in the fictional world of a farming simulator.
Another game that made the cut on blizzb3ar’s list is Apico, a beekeeping simulator full of funny character names that are all bee-related. Apico has cute graphics and game mechanics that make it charming, but it also does something else right: the characters that players meet all have their pronouns by their name, which offers a great way of integrating representation. This choice is one that helps queer individuals feel less alone in a world where pronouns are often enough affirmation to make one’s identity feel valid.
Check Out More Pride Month Streamer Spotlights
2021 Pride Month Spotlight: MermaidRoyal on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: PikaChulita on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: JeffBrutlag on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: LuxieGames on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: Breadwitchery on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: QueerlyBee on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: AshleyRoboto on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Spotlight: TaylorRynai on Twitch 2021 Pride Month Recap 2022 Pride Month Spotlight: Toph on Twitch
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