Just throwing ideas around: I feel like streamers paying for usage beyond a certain threshold of simultaneous players might solve both problems. That way they

Just throwing ideas around: I feel like streamers paying for usage beyond a certain threshold of simultaneous players might solve both problems. That way they could play it for free capping out at fewer players (number chosen to still perform ok while your autoscaler catches up) and if it's fun, pay to include all their viewers next time. Then you could afford to increase your reserve capacity accordingly. Depends on the game, but if the usage pattern seems too "one-shot" for a subscription to be appealing, could sell in the form of advance bookings, so you could prepare for large crowds ahead of time.