The NZXT team had a great opportunity to sit down with HazelNuttyGames, an amazing creator and a renowned streamer in the World of Warcraft community. We wanted to get the scoop on her start in WoW, her mindset and approach to PC gaming, and what sparked her love for games in general.
As a content creator, how do you handle balancing the stresses of your job?
One of the simultaneously best and worst things about content creation is that your hours and availability are entirely self-directed. For a lot of people, that makes it really easy to fall into ‘always-on’ mode by default. I’m not perfect at this, but what I’ve found to be key is making sure each day has ‘on’ and ‘off’ hours so that things get done, but I also get to a point in every day where I can shut everything down and disengage.
What are some of your techniques that you use to take care of your mental health while offline?
It sounds obvious, but doing the basics for my physical health is the foundation that I build my mental wellbeing on top of. Daily walks in particular are my favourite because I get my exercise, fresh air, a change of scenery and some time to think through whatever’s on my mind. I also function vastly better when I’ve been eating well, so I like to spend time offline experimenting with meal planning and prep to make sure that I’m getting good food without it getting stale or boring.
What got you into gaming and what are your favourite aspects of it?
I always liked PC games as a kid, and then as a teenager they became a common ground to bond with friends over. My favourite aspect of gaming is the idea of a clean slate- when it’s a fresh save file or character and you’re level 1, you have the same advantages and options as anyone else and where you take it is 100% up to you. That even playing field and the agency to do whatever you want with it is an appeal that keeps me coming back.
What are the origins of your name?
I wish I had a thought-provoking story here but as I remember it, the HazelNutty branding came from a kitchen-table brainstorming session when I was making my channel and a vague preference for hazelnut-flavoured drinks.
How has your system from NZXT BLD made your streaming and gaming experiences easier?
With my BLD rig, I can finally crank every setting in WoW to the moon and still get 60+fps at 4K. My stream is smoother than ever and having it all ready to go without the headache of finding parts and building it myself is fantastic.
Who are your heroes?
Role models that inspired me in content creation are definitely Hafu and Dodger/Dexbonus. Both are wonderful examples of being funny and genuine and successful in the gaming content space in a way that’s unique to each of them. The gaming space hasn’t always been a welcoming experience for women and their determination and success in the face of that is something I really look up to.
If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to yourself about streaming/content creation?
This is tough because I’ve always done the best I could with the resources I had available, so the first instinct of going back and lecturing on the importance of consistency probably wouldn’t help. I think I’d tell myself to be more flexible- many times early on I would start a series that wasn’t doing well, and I would pass by other opportunities or current topics just to doggedly finish something purely because I had started it. Don’t be so afraid to drop something if it’s not working and you learned what you could from it- your time is your most valuable resource. Don’t pour it into holes that go nowhere.
What tips do you have for others who want to start streaming/content creating?
Before you start is the best time to do your research and learning about online safety. Nobody wants to think about getting doxxed but prevention is easier than damage control in this area.
With that out of the way, I’d say start, even if you don’t think you’re good enough. You’ll get better by doing, so make videos or stream and then look at what you made and figure out how you’re going to make it 1% better next time. Think about what you like in the content you consume, and why you click on the videos and streams that you do. Where did you find them? Why did you stay? Is there anything you wish they would do more or less of? Be the content that you want to see.
A warm thanks to HazelNutty for taking the time to answer our questions. Find her channels here. We would love you to join our community Discord. Keep in touch with NZXT on our Instagram, and Twitter. Thanks for stopping by!