Twitter post showing three photos of Markiplier with wide-eyed shocked expressions

Markiplier

2012internet personalityclassic

Published September 5, 2026

Mark Edward Fischbach, known online as Markiplier, launched his YouTube channel in March 2012 with an Amnesia: The Dark Descent reaction compilation that pulled over a million views1. He grew into one of the most popular figures in YouTube's Let's Play scene, reaching nine million subscribers by 2015 through jumpscare-heavy horror playthroughs, animated fan collaborations, and high-profile charity streams4.

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Overview

Markiplier built his following on loud, jumpscare-driven horror playthroughs, with early Amnesia: The Dark Descent runs setting the template for his exaggerated reactions and self-deprecating humor1. His catalog leaned heavily on indie horror titles, most notably Five Nights at Freddy's, and grew to include animated fan collaborations, charity livestreams, and personal video updates about his life and health3.

Fans often quote his guttural yells and one-word bits like 'E,' with an Urban Dictionary entry describing him as 'a man from YouTube who makes strange gutteral noises and plays horror games'6. His public friendships with Jacksepticeye and PewDiePie also turned into a running fixture of gaming YouTube culture6.

Origin & Background

Platform
YouTube
Creator
Mark Edward Fischbach
Date
2012

Mark Edward Fischbach was born June 28, 1989, in O'ahu, Hawaii, and posted his first YouTube videos on an earlier account under the Markiplier handle before switching to his current channel4. On April 7, 2012, he uploaded an Amnesia: The Dark Descent reaction compilation that drew over a million views1. He reuploaded the video to his main channel on May 26, 2012, then followed up on May 29 with a clip explaining the channel switch, which pulled roughly 200,000 views2.

How It Spread

By September 2015, Markiplier was hosting YouTube's 49th most-subscribed channel with more than nine million subscribers and roughly three billion aggregate views4. He was among the Let's Play creators signed to Maker Studios' Polaris gaming network, which Disney acquired in April 20144.

His Five Nights at Freddy's coverage, kicked off with an August 12, 2014, playthrough that drew over 35 million views, is widely credited with pushing the franchise deeper into YouTube's mainstream3. A LixianTV animation of the same playthrough, posted September 28, 2014, drew tens of millions more views on his channel.

Charity work anchored his public profile as much as the gameplay. A May 22, 2015, hospital update about surgery for an intestinal blockage drew over five million views5, and by that August he had raised more than $650,000 for various causes4.

Frequently Asked Questions