What does Pog mean on Twitch? Meaning & origin of PogChamp and POGGERS emotes

The lexicon of many Twitch streamers and viewers can wildly differ from anyone not familiar with the community, and one such example is Pog, or POGGERS. The history of the humble PogChamp emote is actually a long and winding one.

Twitch has many of its own idiosyncrasies that unite the community. As well as evolving metas, from the hut tubs, to ASMR, to the controversial TV meta, Twitch users also have their own terminology, mostly through emotes, that might seem nonsensical to a newcomer.

PogChamp, and it’s many variations like Pog and POGGERS, is one obvious example. There’s a good chance you’ve seen these words floating around in a meme or on Reddit without ever knowing their meaning.

Contents

What is Pog on Twitch

Origin

Pog/POGGERS are variations of the popular PogChamp Twitch emote – one of the platform’s most used emotes. Through the Better Twitch TV Google Chrome Extension, users can enter “Pog, PogU, POGGERS, WeirdChamp,” and many other alternatives to have a twist on the OG emote.

PogChamp is used to express excitement, amazement, or disbelief, usually when a streamer pulls off an impressive play, a big clutch, or a talented skill. The term is now banded around Twitch and has even spread into other parts of the internet like Reddit, Twitter, and YouTube.

PogChamp: When did it start & why was it removed?

The original emote originated from Ryan “Gootecks” Gutierrez, a player who became popular in the fighting game community.

Ryan was filming an episode of his Cross Counter show when a tripod was accidentally knocked over nearby on set. It caused Ryan to naturally become simultaneously shocked and surprised, pulling a superb facial expression in the process.

The face was subsequently captured and became the PogChamp emote as it best represented the new connotations that ‘Pog’ had taken on over time.

During the January 6, 2021, Capitol Riots in Washington D.C, Ryan Tweeted his take on the events, which were deemed as inciting violence by Twitch. As a result, Ryan’s face was disassociated with the emote and Twitch’s original vision was to use different streamers’ faces as a replacement.

This was maintained for around two weeks but people quickly grew tired of the idea and even disliked it. Which led to the ‘KomodoHype’ emote becoming the new PogChamp emote now commonly seen. Now, KomodoHype is the official PogChamp emote, but Pog, PogU and POGGERS are still based on the original emote.

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