Valkyrae reveals why she turned down Twitch comeback to stay on YouTube

Rachell “Valkyrae” Hofstetter has revealed why she knocked back a potential Twitch comeback to stay on YouTube Gaming for another two years, with one big reason ⁠— outside of the money ⁠— swaying her choice.

Valkyrae is staying on her red-branded YouTube throne for another two years, with the reigning Queen of the Google-owned platform happy to sign.

There was a Twitch offer, which did turn her head for a time; a comeback on the purple platform was “interesting,” but just not enough in the end, Hofstetter explained. While there were a few factors, one stood out above the rest ⁠— Valkyrae, and her fans, are happy on YouTube.

“YouTube’s fantastic, I couldn’t be happier,” she said.

And, 100 Thieves co-owner added, she wanted to avoid “disappointing” the fanbase she’d cultivated on Google’s website over the last 48 months.

“Last time I switched [sites] I was depressed. It felt like I’d made a mistake. I felt guilty, felt like I’d abandoned my community. I didn’t want to do that again.”

Then, of course, there was the YouTube money too ⁠— the financial side of Google’s power-play offer played quite the part, Hofstetter admitted on the OfflineTV Podcast’s latest episode, in swaying her.

Valkyrae has never been coy about “getting the bag” via her streaming career and has happily talked in the past how financial incentives have played a role in her career. The same question popped up for the 30-year-old as she tossed up two rival offers, before Google’s titanic video site upped the kitty.

“If I could, I would love to talk about the YouTube contract they offered me,” the platform’s stream-queen said. “But I don’t think I can. I can’t! I would absolutely love to share what they offered me, but it’s just not possible.”

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Her suggestion, however, was her recent two-year extension was worth quite a bit of coin; a fact only bolstered by YouTube’s plans to use her as a site icon.

There were questions surrounding where Valkyrae would land right up until her announcement on January 31, with the leading suggestions claiming she would trade red for blue and defect to Facebook.

That was never on the cards though, she reveals.

“I was messing with my fans, and it grew from there,” the 30-year-old laughed. “They really thought I was going to Facebook because I kept baiting them in my final streams. They started assuming it was a new platform, and people were making Facebook profiles and things.

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“But no, it’s nothing serious like that,” the YouTuber ⁠— for another two years, at least ⁠— repeated. “It’s no big deal: I’m happy here, so I’m staying on YouTube.”