Streamers with great setups employ a dual-computer streaming setup, playing on one computer while the other computer handles the stream. Still, having a second monitor will make it easier to manage your stream, make layout transitions, and, most importantly, keep up with viewers on the chat. The second monitor won’t necessarily improve the quality of your stream. If you already have a capable computer, that’s a good chunk of money you won’t have to spend, and microphones and webcams can be found for around $100 each. Yeah, that’s not much, but the computer itself will take up most of the budget.

The image above is something to aspire to, but not all the items are necessary to start with. You don’t need much to get started, and there’s a good chance you may already have some of the equipment needed to stream. This streamer has all the essential components, but there are a few pieces of extra hardware, as well, such as the lighting stands, audio mixer, and the third monitor. What I can do, however, is tell you the kind of equipment you need, how to set it up, and how to get from playing video games on your desk to streaming to (hopefully) thousands of people. Just do you, and other like-minded people will hop on your chat with subs and donations in no time. While I can’t help much with the personality aspect, I can say there’s an audience out there for everybody, so don’t try too hard to appeal to the masses. To start, all you need are a few pieces of hardware, some video games - although not all streamers play games - and an on-camera personality that’ll resonate with an audience.

But you don’t need an RTX 2080 Ti graphics card or a 4K curved monitor to stream. Top streamers are celebrities in their own right, complete with high-end streaming setups that would make the average wallet cry. The rise to the top has many paths, but you have to start somewhere. With video game streaming becoming a massive content creation outlet in the past few years, more and more people want to stream on the side, hoping to one day become a full-time, sponsored streamer.

With only a few pieces of hardware and free software, you can start streaming video games on Twitch with Twitch Studio.

Video streaming software for twitch