YouTube content creator Felix "PewDiePie" Kjellberg states he intends to follow through on his announcement that he will delete his channel after reaching 50 million subs.

YouTube legend Felix "PewDiePie" Kjellberg is no stranger to controversy, but his latest claim to notoriety might be the most impactful one he has ever made - the man many credit with making the "Let's Play" style of videos popular on YouTube might be calling it quits on his massively influential PewDiePie channel. PewDiePie stated earlier this week that if he hit 50 million subscribers, he planned to delete his YouTube channel, an account that sees PewDiePie earn millions of dollars each year for his content.

While PewDiePie initially made the claim when his channel was well short of 50 million, the video he released about it quickly caused subscriber numbers to inflate as many users didn't believe he would go through with it and wanted to call his bluff. While his channel still exists, PewDiePie has indicated that it might not be there for much longer, giving fans a countdown on his Twitter:

[HTML1]

PewDiePie's adherence to his story has rumors flying, with many fans attempting to make sense of the fact that the popular YouTuber could throw away something so valuable on what appears to be nothing more than a whim. Those looking for potentially logical explanations - if such things exist in this situation - have pointed to the fact that PewDiePie's recent Goat Simulator team-up project might be what is drawing him away from his content creation, but it's still a baffling decision if it holds true.

PewDiePie's claim that he will delete his channel might be a scandalous statement, but it's a different tone of scandal than fans and detractors of the YouTuber might usually see from PewDiePie. Earlier this year, PewDiePie came under fire for accepting pay for reviews, and his defense left some feeling as though he might not be telling the whole story - still, though, there wasn't much ill will directed towards the YouTuber after the fact and it's unlikely that controversy played much of a role in his apparent decision to leave his YouTube channel behind.

Whatever his reasoning, PewDiePie's statement will soon be put to the test - he has less than 24 hours to delete his channel before the time he set for himself expires, and fans the world over will know the fate of one of YouTube's biggest gaming channels sooner rather than later. Will it be just another massive troll from a man who is no stranger to stirring up internet controversy, or will YouTube's "Let's Play" scene change dramatically in the span of one day?

Source: Twitter