How far would you go to get views? For Twitch streamer Izidore, it went as far as Chinese water torture. It worked like this: if viewers donated a certain amount of “bits” (a type of virtual currency on Twitch), a little bit of water would drip onto his head.
This is basically the definition of Chinese water torture. According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, it can be described as “a form of torture in which a person is restrained and subjected to repetitive drips of water on the forehead.”
According to All That’s Interesting, the method of torture was first mentioned in the late 15th century by lawyer Hippolytus de Marsiliis. This type of torture was touted as being able to psychologically damage its victims. The repetition makes the victim more and more unable to withstand the jarring droplets and their random appearances.
Still, Izidore managed to withstand this torture in the 16-hour-long stream, which amassed over 400,000 views. He made a machine that would send water droplets to his head depending on how many “bits” he received from viewers. So, if you think about it, viewers paid to torture him.
The obvious takeaway from this story is not to torture yourself for views. But for Izidore, there didn’t seem to be much psychological damage. “That was so fun, chat,” he said cheerfully. “The outcome was way better than expected.”
Nonetheless, we wouldn’t recommend putting yourself through the Chinese water torture.
