Hi! If you've arrived at this web page, it's probably because you're not quite sure what twitch, discord or patreon are, or how to link your amazon prime and twitch accounts. Don't worry, I WILL GET YOU THROUGH THIS. 

INTRODUCTION

Basically, I do several things online.

  • Twitch: Where I live-stream me playing video games several times a week, and chat to the people watching

  • Youtube: Where I post regular pre-recorded videos, and a weekly diary

  • Podcast: "Let's Do A Gaming" - Where I interview games industry people.

  • Discord: Where I update people about what I'm up to, and where they can chat when I'm offline - click here to join.

Everything above is free, but those who would like to support my work financially can do so in one of several ways.

  • A one-off donation (you can do that by clicking here)

  • A subscription to my twitch channel (you can set that up by clicking here, and it's free for Amazon Prime users! - for more info on that, see further down this page)

  • A recurring payment via patreon, to support youtube and podcast work (you can set that up by clicking here)

I'll now explain Twitch in a bit more detail. Scroll to the bottom if you're specifically after info about Patreon.

WHAT IS TWITCH?

It's a website that allows me to live broadcast myself playing videogames, and chat with the people who are watching. It's loads of fun, and you can watch online for free, whenever I'm "live", simply by going to my twitch page - twitch.tv/stevefromgo8bit - my schedule is on that page too.

DO I *NEED* TO SUBSCRIBE TO YOUR CHANNEL?

Nope. You can watch everything I do live, and previous broadcasts on demand, absolutely free. If you click "follow" on my twitch page, you can choose to switch on notifications too, so that I let you know every time I go live.

Subscribers do get additional benefits, like ad-free viewing and custom ‘emotes’ (little pictures) to use in the live chat - the latest benefits are listed on my twitch page.

Fundamentally, twitch streamers operate on the basis that people who like what we do, and can afford to, will subscribe, and thus provide income which justifies the time spent doing it. So, if you can afford to subscribe, and would like me to keep doing this, please consider subscribing!

If you'd like to see examples of my streams, there's free sample videos here.

OKAY, I'LL SUBSCRIBE. HOW DO I DO IT?

Go to twitch.tv and sign up, so you have an account on there. Then, if you go here - https://www.twitch.tv/subs/stevefromgo8bit - you can subscribe to my channel. There's several options, but the best one to go for is the $4.99/month one. Pick that and twitch will setup a recurring monthly subscription, which can be terminated at any time. There's no minimum contracts or anything like that.

If you'd like to regularly support me at a higher $$$ level than that, check out the Patreon information below (you'll get more benefits if you also support me on Patreon, rather than just upgrading to $9.99 or $24.99 on twitch).

HANG ON, DIDN'T YOU SAY I COULD SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE WITH AMAZON PRIME?

Yes! If you have Amazon Prime, you can subscribe to a twitch channel for free! Firstly, you'll need to connect your Amazon account and your twitch account - you can do that by clicking here. (You may need to ensure you're signed in to both your Amazon and Twitch accounts whilst doing this, to make the link.) Then, when you go to my twitch channel, or that subscriptions page above, there should be a "Twitch Prime" subscription option. Choose that one and, hey presto, you get a free subscription! It costs you nothing, but I get the same income as I would from a "real" subscription. ONE CAVEAT WITH THIS THOUGH: Amazon Prime subscriptions do not auto renew so, if you'd like to keep having access to all the subscriber benefits, you'll need to make a note in your diary to pop back and renew your subscription each month.

PATREON

Patreon's much more straight forward. Head to https://www.patreon.com/SteveFromGo8Bit and setup a recurring payment for whatever amount you would like - $5 or more will get you early access to all my YouTube and Podcast work. I've tied the Patreon to my Youtube channel and podcast but, obviously, all this money goes into a big pot called "Steve's bank account" and helps me justify spending time generating free work online, rather than going back to working as a project manager in fitness club franchising.

I'VE DONE MY BEST, BUT I'M STILL HAVING TROUBLE SETTING THIS UP!

No worries! Tweet me @stevemcneil and I'll help you get it sorted, because I'm lovely. And I want your money.

SO, JUST TO RECAP, WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO?

If you'd like to support me online, this is the best order for me:

  1. Subscribe to my twitch channel at $4.99/month (or using Amazon/Twitch Prime)

  2. Support me on patreon at whatever amount you're comfortable (at least $5 to get early access to content)

  3. If you find any extra cash down the sofa, throw it at me as a donation.

And don't forget to join the discord group, where we all hang out.

Steve x