‘Minecraft’ most-watched game on YouTube over last decade

Demand for “Minecraft� videos is huge. It’s the most-searched-for term on YouTube after “music.�

Turns out, the supply is just as vast. YouTube said Wednesday it stocks 42 million videos related to the virtual-world building game “Minecraft,� the most-watched game on YouTube over the last decade based on total viewing time. It’s followed by “Grand Theft Auto� and “League of Legends.�

YouTube announced the statistics as part of its 10th anniversary festivities, making it clear that Amazon.com’s highly successful Twitch.tv video operation isn’t the only game-streaming heavyweight. (Each day, millions of people watch other people play video games on YouTube and Twitch.tv.)

In November, Google-owned YouTube hired Ryan Wyatt, a popular gaming commentator, as global head of gaming. It’s working to improve live-streaming tools for gamers. And it’s celebrating Wednesday as “Let’s Play Day,� an homage to videos of people playing a game while chatting about their actions.

YouTube said Let’s Play video producer Markiplier has been searched for on YouTube 10 times more often than singer Jay-Z over the past year. He now has 7 million subscribers.

Other highly watched game series include “Call of Duty,� “FIFA,� “The Sims� and “Five Nights at Freddy’s.� Lesser-known titles on the top 10: building game “Garry’s Mod� and puzzle-and-fighting combination “Puzzles & Dragons.�

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