Anonymous fan lost $60,000 gambling
Popular Twitch streamer Imane “Pokimane” Anys urged a fan to go to rehab after they claimed Trainwreck’s gambling streams caused him to lose $60,000.
“I’ve honestly lost 60k+ because sadly, I followed Trainwreck down the rabbit hole, and I’m still going,” said the fan in Poki’s Twitch chat.
Trainwreck is a popular figure on Twitch who spends most of his on-screen time gambling. He has been transparent about the dangers, often claiming he would never gamble if he was not paid so much. Unfortunately, it seems as if mere exposure has caused one Twitch user to fall deep into debt.
Pokimane Responds
Pokimane is beloved on Twitch for her light-hearted and sensible nature, on top of her attractive personality. She has a hardcore following of fans and has had at least one million followers since 2018.
Twitch streamers with large audiences do not always catch messages in the chat, but this user’s stuck out to Poki.
“Do you plan on stopping? You’re $60,000 down!”
“Do you plan on stopping? You’re $60,000 down!” Anys exclaimed. “It could only go further. You do realize that, right? I’m so curious. Please tell us more. Why are you still going if you’re so far down already?”
Anys also went on to remind her audience that gambling companies are always going to exploit patrons. She deemed the gambling industry to be predatory, saying that it was built around gamblers losing money.
The fan later confirmed in her chat that they were suffering from an addiction, to which Poki responded:
“Don’t try to do it alone,” said Anys. “Don’t think that you can beat this addiction easily alone. Look for resources and people that can help you step by step to eliminate this addiction, or at least eliminate the influence in your life.”
The influence of Trainwreck
Trainwreck, whose real name is Tyler Niknam, spends most of his on-screen time gambling and has become synonymous with the industry. The 31-year-old has been steadily climbing in followers since 2016, reaching one million in October 2020.
don’t get greedy or you will pay the price”
Despite his fame within the industry, he has been quick to remind followers that gambling is not sustainable long-term. In a recent tweet, he even went so far as to say “don’t get greedy or you will pay the price.”
Despite the constant perils, Trainwreck recently set a world record for a non-jackpot win, claiming a $22.5m prize. This win came via the Might of Ra, a popular online slot game. Moments like these can supersede the streamer’s repeated warnings and stick out to people like the self-admitted addict in Poki’s chat.
Pokimane’s advice to the struggling fan was to take time away from Twitch to focus on the problems at hand.
“If I was in your shoes, I would probably quit watching streams in general because you might be too incentivized or tempted to watch gambling streams and then gamble yourself.”
To Trainwreck’s credit, he has always been an advocate for supporting problem gamblers. He even recently took aim at Swedish streamer Roshtein who he claimed was not being transparent with his viewers.
The discussion between Pokimane and the fan spilled over to Reddit, where the community debated gambling streams. Critics felt that the chatter represented their problems, while others claimed that individuals still control their decisions.