A lot of people know Matthew Patrick as MatPat. He’s known for educational content like debating whether beloved Nintendo character Mario is a communist, solving the “Five Nights at Freddy’s” timeline or even deciding the best boobs in the gaming world.

But before being the widely successful YouTube celebrity MatPat, he was “tiny MatPat.”

Patrick began his content creator journey as “YouTube’s biggest nerd” not with the intention to have millions of subscribers to his five channels — “Game Theory,” “Film Theory,” “Food Theory,” “Style Theory” and “GTLive” — but with the intention to inspire a love of learning in other people.

“I was told by my parents to never stop learning,” Patrick said. “That is the most valuable thing that I could do, never stop asking questions and to always question the world around me. And I was fortunate through my schooling to have great teachers that inspired a love of learning. But I recognized that I was very lucky to have that, and not a lot of other people had that opportunity.

“And so when I was starting the channel in the early days of YouTube, and in my career as a content creator, the thought of, ‘Hey, how can I pass on that love of learning to other people out there who might not have been as lucky?’ That was always a goal of mine.”

With that original goal in mind, Patrick said his favorite thing from his time as a public figure was not the billions of views or the revenue.

It was the impact he was able to leave his theorist community with.

“In middle school and high school, I got it in my head that, ‘Hey, I want to make the world a better place, because I was a part of it.’ The butterfly effect kind of thing,” he said. “And it was one of those things where I never anticipated being able to cure cancer, that’s not my skillset, but by being a positive impact in someone else’s life.

“So when people come up to me and say, ‘Hey, this video helped me pass a test,’ or ‘watching your videos inspired me to pursue this major,’ or ‘you got me through a really hard time in my life.’ That part is always the proudest thing I’ve ever done.”

And he was able to see the impact he made on a college-aged audience on Thursday, with every seat in The Metroplex full during “An Evening with MatPat.” Nearly 1,700 people cheered as Patrick ran through the audience, giving high-fives to his theorist community.

But it isn’t just actions.

WSU students like Student Body President Jia Wen Wang said Patrick left an impact on her during her youth.

“A lot of the times when I was younger, being a nerd wasn’t exactly the greatest thing,” Wang said. “It really always had a negative connotation, and so I really enjoyed having a role model that I could see a lot of the knowledge that he had being applied into some of these spaces. It really drove me to appreciate that knowledge can be used in such different ways.”

However, everything must eventually come to an end. And it did for Patrick over two years ago.

Kind of.

On March 9, 2024, MatPat posted his last video hosting “Game Theory.” Despite Patrick saying it wasn’t an easy decision, even then, he knew it was the right one.

“Saying goodbye is hard,” he said. “Even though it was the right decision to move away from the channels, giving up that part of my life and that regular touch base with the audience was really sad … The theorist community has always been the theorists, right? It’s a community … We are a community of nerds who like overthinking the world.”

Saying goodbye wasn’t just hard for Patrick, though — it was hard on the fans, too.

“It was like, ‘No, what?’” WSU student Emmaline Ferguson said. “Cause you think, ‘Oh, they’re going to keep doing it forever,’ but everybody has a limit.”

Some fans were sad about Patrick’s departure from the Game Theories channel (and its expansions), but others felt it was a bittersweet moment to see him move on.

“I was sad that a part of my childhood was ending, but happy he got to move on and do everything else,” WSU student Kaela Cozine said.

In the last few years of his career on YouTube, he said he was getting an average of four hours of sleep a night. Retirement — for Patrick — has meant self-care.

“I have fewer bags under my eyes now, which is great,” he said. “I am fitter. I’ve been able to regain some element of cardio ability. (When) my kid’s like, ‘play tag with me,’ … I can actually play with him. It’s great.”

He hasn’t stopped working completely, though. Throughout these last two years, Patrick has worked with Congress for the Creator Caucus, cameoed in “Five Nights at Freddy’s 2” as Toy Bonnie, and has appeared at college campuses, like Wichita State University, to speak with students.

Patrick said he enjoys having the time to visit campuses, even if it doesn’t have a “top two” mascot like WuShock.

“Now that I have more time on my hands, that I’m not slammed in a video production schedule, it is nice to get back to go out and meet fans,” he said. “It’s awesome to get to go out and meet the theorist community in especially places that I’ve never gotten to go to before.”

A big mantra for Patrick is the idea of intentionality in actions, and how that can guide you on a path to good things.

“Choosing the things in your life that you’re engaging with and being an active participant in your life is so crucially important,” Patrick said. “… Intentionality in your life, I think, is a big one.”