Twitch: Livestream Multiplayer Games & Esports

People have played games for centuries, and throughout those centuries, games have always had an audience. Although many people think that video games are an intimate way of spending time alone, well, or for two, there are sometimes more people who want to watch the games than the players themselves. In short, Twitch is very popular. Why?

What’s Good about Twitch?

Twitch is an internet source that allows users to watch or stream live or previously recorded video of the streamer's gameplay. There is also a chat for viewers, and the streamer takes over the process of the discussion. You can use the site to find your favorite players, favorite games, check the gameplay of a particular game you want to try, find new ones, just watch the stream before bed or in the morning, or learn some game tricks. You can find yourself in games, streamer personalities, or just in a social atmosphere on the site.

How to Use Twitch?

According to Twitch rules, you must be at least 13 years old to register. Twitch may freeze your account or channel if you do not follow its rules. The basic rules are known to everyone: do not violate copyright, do not incite ethnic hatred, violence, do not broadcast sexual content, etc. As elsewhere, the site administration can block your account without giving any reason.

Anyone can watch live or archived videos on Twitch, but free registration is required to stream or participate in chat discussions. You can mark the channels you want to follow. You can also subscribe to individual channels for a fee, which will give you a number of additional bonuses. You can even make money with Twitch if you are a player. Twitch has Android and iOS apps that are easy to get used to. The full list of devices that support the Twitch app includes:

• Playstation 4;
• Xbox One;
• Xbox 360;
• Nvidia Shield;
• Laptops and personal computers;
• Tablets and smartphones.

Twitch User Experience

The interface contains icons that allow you to view streams by game name or user channel. If you sign in with your Twitch credentials, you will be able to view updates from the channels you subscribe to (like YouTube). The Featured Games section shows six of the most popular games that showcase what's popular on the Twitch network. Unfortunately, some games, such as Dota 2 and League of Legends, are so popular that they are always featured in the Featured Games section, which creates an element of similarity to the content discovery section. Twitch could benefit greatly from human curation, which would also highlight games under the radar that gather an audience.

Pros

• Huge amount of streams to watch;
• You can customize the visuals;
• Available on many platforms;

Cons

• A bit glitchy if your connection isn’t stable;