A "Cloud Player" is someone who forms strong opinions about, discusses, or even "critiques" a video game without having actually played it themselves. Their knowledge and experience with the game come second-hand, typically from:
Watching live streams (on Twitch, Douyu, etc.)
Watching edited video playthroughs or highlights (on YouTube, Bilibili, etc.)
Reading guides, forums, and discussions
The "cloud" in the name is a direct reference to cloud computing—the idea that their gaming experience is stored "in the cloud" of online videos rather than on their own device.
Common Characteristics & Behaviors
Strong, Often Uninformed Opinions: They might passionately argue about a game's difficulty, story quality, or game mechanics based solely on what they've seen, missing the tactile feel and decision-making pressure of actual gameplay.
Backseat Gaming: They are notorious in live stream chats, telling the actual player what to do, often with phrases like, "Why didn't you do X?" or "This boss is easy, you just have to Y."
Spoiling Content: Having seen the entire game via a streamer, they might spoil plot twists or late-game content for people who are actually playing through it.
The "Looks Easy" Fallacy: Watching a skilled streamer beat a difficult boss can make it seem easy, leading Cloud Players to underestimate the challenge and criticize players who struggle.
The Connotation: It's Usually an Insult
Being called a "Cloud Player" is overwhelmingly negative. It implies that someone's opinion is invalid, unqualified, and annoying. It's a way of saying, "You don't know what you're talking about because you haven't actually experienced it yourself."
Example in a Sentence (from a gaming forum argument)
Person A: "This new boss in Game X is so badly designed. It's completely unfair and impossible to beat."
Person B: "Are you a Cloud Player? I just beat it last night. It's tough but totally fair if you learn its patterns. You wouldn't know that from just watching a stream."
Related Concept: 云通关 (Yún Tōngguān)
This is a closely related term meaning "to cloud-complete" a game. It refers to the specific act of watching a full playthrough of a game from beginning to end, thereby experiencing the entire story and gameplay without ever touching a controller.