Face reveal

Anonymity builds curiosity and a face reveal cashes it in. For channels built on voiceover, gameplay, animation or a VTuber avatar, the reveal is a genuine event, because it answers a question the audience has been asking for years and it can only happen once.

Handled badly it turns into a running joke. Endless teasing, milestone promises that keep moving and thumbnails implying a reveal that never arrives all teach an audience to stop believing you. There is also no way back. Plenty of creators keep the face out deliberately, for privacy, for a day job, or because the character works better without one, and that decision is not reversible.