South Africans face unique challenges in creating online content compared to international YouTubers and Twitch streamers, as we are hindered by our relatively under-developed infrastructure and expensive internet.
As a result, very few South Africans are able to upload regular content and the South African online community is relatively small.
MyGaming caught up with Arielle “Constantine104” Pieterse to find out just how one becomes a YouTuber and online gaming personality in South Africa.
Would you mind introducing yourself?
My name is Arielle Tanya Pieterse, otherwise know on the internet as Constantine104.
I focus mainly on Let’s Play videos with a few vlogs thrown in for good measure and also because I just love talking THAT much.
When I’m not recording for my channel I can be found playing League of Legends or Guildwars 2.
I was a co-host on the NavTV gaming podcast and as of the end of June will be hosting the official NAG podcast.
What is your current gaming setup?
- i5 6600 3.3 ghz
- MSI Geforce GTX 750Ti
- H170 Pro Gaming Asus motherboard
- 8 GB DDR4 Adata RAM
- 128 GB Seagate SSD
- Thermaltake Chaser A31 case
- Razor Deathstalker aroma keyboard
- Madcatz MOUSE9
- For recording console games, I use a ROXIO game capture HD pro.
How do you manage to balance work/life with your gaming schedule?
Balancing everything can be really hard, especially because I am not naturally a very organised person.
I also THRIVE on procrastination. But since I decided to start up my Youtube channel and take charge of my own happiness, I have forced myself to be more organised, and for the more part it really has helped a lot.
I also co-own a company called Boxed Candy Productions. We do photography/videography (focusing on weddings and events) and web/graphic design. So that takes up most of my evenings and weekends.
I am also a professional dancer with a focus mostly on Acrobatics and Contemporary.
How difficult is it dealing with South Africa’s internet issues as an online personality?
I am going to try and answer this one as quickly and simply as I can, because if I stay on this question to long I’ll start thinking about it and then I’ll get angry,
I have a LOT of trouble with infrastructure letting me down. I am lucky if I get a 2mb line speed. Lucky.
This year I’ve decided to just make my channel work regardless. Yes there are certain obstacles that make YouTubing harder for me, but nothing is impossible.
I know for instance that Twitch streaming is pretty much out of the question for me on my current home internet line, so in the next few months I’m going to have to sit and look at other options like maybe getting a 3G contract just for Twitch.
The other thing is that I pre-record most of my videos at least a week in advance because of how long my upload time is and the fact that if I upload a video it kills the whole line until is up.
So I pre-record, upload every night while I sleep and then just schedule them to become live on certain days/times.
Is there a large South African viewership? What is interaction with viewers like?
My channel is still a baby, but so far I’ve been very impressed with the South African YouTube community.
I do think we still have a very small community, if you compare us to the American YouTube community for example, BUT I don’t necessarily think that that is such a bad thing.
In my opinion, our smaller community has given me a chance to stand out and be seen. And also to discover other content creators who have the same passions as me. And even though they may not be plentiful, I’ve found them very interactive and engaging on each others content. Which as fantastic for me who is just starting out.
There is a lot of growth in the gaming and online communities of South Africa currently happening, so this feels like a very good and exciting time to find myself part of it.
I also think that the challenges I face as a ‘South African’ YouTuber are pretty much the same challenges I would find anywhere.
Where can people follow you?
The NAG podcast will also be available on NAG.co.za, iTunes, Soundcloud or my Facebook page every Friday morning.
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