Japan dominated the video games conversation on Twitter in 2019, boasting the most active gaming community on the app and sustaining the hype around its most talked-about game: a 4-year-old mobile game called Fate/Grand Order.
Twitter announced today that more than a billion tweets about gaming were posted during 2019, 20 percent more than 2018, with Japan’s conversations around Fate/Grand Order leading the way. This is the second year in a row that Fate/Grand Order topped Twitter’s list.
Japanese are known for topping Twitter metrics over the years. Even in the last week alone, Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa managed to post the two most retweeted tweets in history. Even as far back as 2011, users in Japan tweeted so fervently about a classic anime showing up on TV, the topic surpassed Beyonce’s pregnancy announcement as the app’s most tweeted-about event.
“Twitter’s popularity in Japan continues to play a role in what games people talk about locally and globally,” Rishi Chadha, global head of gaming partnerships at Twitter, told The Post. “The fandom from the region continues to drive conversation around many of the most tweeted about games in the world, showcasing that video games truly have no borders.”
For example, Final Fantasy, a Japan-native series that has not seen a new release in more than three years, climbed even higher in 2019, likely pushed by feverish anticipation for the March remake of the groundbreaking Final Fantasy 7.
Chadha said he expects Japan to further influence the conversation in 2020, especially since legendary fighting game tournament EVO takes place in Tokyo later this month. This summer the Intel Open World will precede the Tokyo Olympics and the Tokyo Game Show in the fall.
Fortnite still managed to be the second most tweeted-about game, with Final Fantasy coming in third. PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds and Minecraft were the only other two games made in the West on the list.
FaZe Clan was the most tweeted about esports team, with G2 Esports and Cloud9 coming in second and third. To no one’s surprise, the League of Legends Worlds Championship was the most talked about esports event, with EVO 2019 and Fortnite World Cup falling next.
While esports events drew eyes, noncompetitive personalities dominated the conversation. Tyler “Ninja” Blevins, who occasionally participates in Fortnite tournaments but is better known for his streaming, can add another notch to his reputation as gaming’s most popular personality. Spanish YouTuber ElRubius, who has amassed billions of views over the years, comes in second, with Irish YouTuber Jack Septic Eye being third.
Here are all the most talked about topics and personalities of 2019, according to Twitter:
