In response to a fan’s question, Shroud admitted that he thinks it’s cool some streamers are opening Pokemon card packs on Twitch and explained why other people shouldn’t roast them.
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that Pokemon cards have had a bit of a resurgence in 2020. Twitch streamers have been sinking thousands of dollars into booster packs, hoping to find some rare and valuable cards.
But while many streamers and their viewers have been enjoying the ride, others are less enthusiastic about it. Chance ‘Sodapoppin’ Morris described it as “kid-friendly gambling” and even destroyed rare cards on stream.
Tyler ‘Tyler1’ Steinkamp also called it “stupid.”
Michael ‘Shroud’ Grzesiek finally shared his thoughts on the trend too, and he’s more open-minded about the pop-culture phenomenon. However, he also had some stern words for those who go out of their way to “roast” it.
“What’s your view on Pokemon card streams?” asked one viewer. Shroud hasn’t chimed in on the topic yet, at least not in detail. So, his view is something many people are curious about.
“It’s cool, man. It’s cool. I love that we live in a world where you can… make content out of anything,” said Shroud. “I think it’s awesome that people are creating content out of opening Pokemon cards.”
“I’m not really a fan of people roasting people for that kind of content,” he said. “Some people roast [them]… because they think it’s unfair, it’s too easy, you just made content out of nothing. But who the fuck cares?”
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“Who cares what level of content people do and have unless it’s you,” he added. “You should only be worrying about your own content. It’s okay to think that’s a cheap way of getting views, but to talk shit on it doesn’t really make sense just because you wouldn’t do it.”
“Gambling [on stream] is ethical?” asked another viewer. It’s a reasonable question since the Pokemon card opening trend has been likened to gambling. However, Shroud believes it’s only unethical if streamers encourage others to do the same.
“They’re not doing it to try and persuade you to gamble. They’re not doing it to try and convince you to buy Pokemon cards yourself,” said Shroud. “Now, if they are, I’d say that is arguably questionable. They’re just doing it themselves.”
In the end, not everyone appreciates the Pokemon card pack opening craze, and that’s okay. The criticism and comparisons to gambling are warranted.
However, Shroud just wanted to remind everyone who doesn’t enjoy it to stop wasting their time getting too invested. There’s plenty of other content to create and watch, so why bother?