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YouTube will stream the CoD and Overwatch leagues in 2020
Activision Blizzard's next big esports bet, Call of Duty League, gets underway today. While the company worked with Twitch in the past on Overwatch League, that's not where you'll be able to watch its latest foray into top-level competitive gaming. YouTube will be Activision Blizzard's exclusive worldwide streaming partner (except for China) for both leagues this year, along with Hearthstone events and other esports endeavors.
Facebook Gaming viewership skyrocketed in 2019
Twitch has a bit less of a stranglehold over game streaming than it did a few years ago, and Facebook Gaming in particular seems to be on the rise. In December 2019, it had an 8.5 percent market share (i.e. the total time people spent watching those two services, Mixer and YouTube Gaming) compared with 3.1 percent a year earlier, according to data from StreamElements and Arsenal.gg. That represents a 210 percent increase in monthly viewership year-over-year to just over 102 million hours watched.
Top Twitch streamer CouRage jumps to YouTube
In the wake of several high-profile streamer departures from Twitch to Mixer, Jack "CouRage" Dunlop is also jumping ship. But instead of going to Microsoft's platform, CouRage will stream exclusively on YouTube.
Jack Black takes on PewDiePie in YouTube channel debut
Jack Black has launched a YouTube channel dedicated to "games, food, and life". For now, "Jablinksi Games" features just one upload: a 29 second intro vid in which the Hollywood actor jokes that he'll be bigger than Ninja and PewDiePie, two of the site's biggest creators. The clip has already racked up almost 2 million views, while the channel has more than 582,000 subscribers at the time of writing. Black is promising a new video every week to be shot, directed and edited by his son.
YouTube's revamped gaming hub offers faster access to top streams
YouTube is as determined as ever to compete with Twitch, and it's giving its dedicated gaming portal a makeover to make sure that happens. The new YouTube Gaming hub borrows key features from the mobile app, including faster access to top live streams, pages for specific games and a new "On the Rise" section that highlights up-and-coming creators. You'll also find entire "shelves" for both live streams and trending videos on top of personalized content that reflects your tastes and subscriptions.
'PUBG' is quietly changing video games with its 3D replay technology
The new replay tools offered in PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds are so much more than standard video-capture technology. In fact, it isn't video capture at all -- it's data capture. The 3D replay tools allow players to zoom around the map after a match, tracking their own character, following enemies' movements, slowing down time and setting up cinematic shots of their favorite kills, all within a 1-kilometer radius of their avatar. It's filled with statistics, fresh perspectives and infinite data points to dissect. This isn't just a visual replay; it's a slice of the actual game, perfectly preserved, inviting combatants to play God.
YouTube's Twitch-like subscriptions are available to any channel
YouTube just stepped up its efforts to compete with the likes of Twitch and Mixer. As of today, YouTube Gaming's sponsorships (read: paid subscriptions) are open to any eligible creator. So long as you run a gaming channel that's enabled for livestreaming, can earn money and has at least 1,000 free subscribers, you too can ask viewers to pay a monthly fee (now $5) that unlocks custom emotes, immunity to chat slow mode and participation in sponsor-only chats. Naturally, this also means hooking into the third-party tools that game streamers take for granted, such as StreamLabs (for notifying you when there's a new sponsor) or a sponsors-only Discord chat.
Twitch vs. YouTube Gaming: A ‘Destiny 2’ snapshot
YouTube Gaming hit the net in August 2015, promising to compete with the live-streaming world's dominant force, Twitch. Two years later, both sites have evolved. Twitch offers a raft of nongaming streams -- including anime and '90s-TV marathons, cooking shows and creative corners -- plus it instituted an in-chat tipping system and enabled game sales directly on individual channels. Twitch has its own bustling economy. Meanwhile, YouTube Gaming produced live shows, reorganized its UI a few times and rolled out "sponsorships," allowing viewers to send cash to streamers each month. Today, YouTube Gaming is lagging behind Twitch when it comes to actual viewer numbers, as demonstrated by the hottest new release: the open beta for Destiny 2. The beta went live July 18th, and it's been a hot topic across the video game community, with dedicated fans clamoring to consume every shiny new weapon, map and mode. Destiny 2 represents big-budget, AAA games with massive audiences -- the gaming industry's bread and butter. So, how is it faring on the two largest live-streaming sites?
Twitch comments for pre-recorded videos are like a slow chatroom
If we've learned anything from experiments like Twitch Plays Pokemon, it's that a large part of the streaming site's success lies on the enthusiasm of its community. Twitch viewers don't just watch streams, they participate by flooding their favorite streamers chatbox with memes, emoji and a never-ending march of inside jokes. When the company launched the Twitch Uploads beta, the company encountered a problem: there's no chatroom for pre-recorded videos. Today, Twitch is taking steps to fix that, introducing a chat mode for uploaded content that locks messages to specific moments in the video.
Facebook Live makes the overdue jump to desktop
Facebook users have been able to broadcast live videos for over a year now. It's been mobile-exclusive since it was introduced, but Facebook has been working on bringing the feature to other platforms. Last year, the company revealed that it was rolling out live video to select desktop users. Now, starting today, all computer-bound Facebook users have access to the feature, the company said in a blog post.
Twitch chases YouTube with improved upload options
Content creators who have been testing the waters of Twitch's new Uploads Open Beta can now wade in just a little deeper -- the gameplay streaming site has announced a slew of improvements to the manual upload feature, including increased tag character limits, new language settings and, most importantly, much wider support for common video file formats.
YouTube Gaming to air weekly live show with Geoff Keighley
Video game journalist and presenter Geoff Keighley is teaming up with YouTube for a new live show. It'll be broadcast every Thursday at 8pm ET/5pm PT under the YouTube Gaming banner (presumably, you'll be able to watch it through regular YouTube too.) Rather like Keighley's E3 show, it'll have trailers, gameplay footage and developer interviews, all wrapped up in a professional studio environment. Popular YouTubers Nadeshot, iJustine, MatPat and iHasCupQuake will be popping up too (this is a YouTube show, after all) no doubt to raise interest and awareness.
Crowd Play puts the audience in control in Telltale's 'Batman'
There are plenty of gripes that your choices in Telltale's point-and-click adventure games don't make a difference in how their stories play out. But with the studio's take on Batman, that appears to be changing. What's more, you won't be the only one making the often incredibly difficult narrative decisions. The studio is introducing feature called "Crowd Play," and according to Shack News it's something you turn on at the outset of a game. Doing so creates a shareable web link, and people with the URL can vote on different dialog options, which are then tallied live onscreen.
'Mega Man' stars in charity speedrunning marathon this weekend
Are you ready to watch 160 hours of people playing through video games incredibly quickly? Then grab some snacks, coffee and a spot in the most comfortable seat in your house because Summer Games Done Quick returns this weekend to sate all your vicarious speed-running desires. Games on tap include the ultra-tough Demon's Souls and Donkey Kong Country: Tropical Freeze as well as classic fare like The Legend of Zelda II: The Adventure of Link, Tetris: The Grand Master Series, multiple Mega Mans and Super Metroid. If you need a schedule to plan your holiday weekend around, that lives over on the Games Done Quick homepage.
YouTube Gaming launches event hubs with E3 live streams
YouTube Gaming is making live coverage of eSports competitions and other big events much easier to find. The channel is launching event hubs, starting with E3 in June. Each hub will house all the official YouTube shows and streams covering that particular tournament or expo, so you can browse them all in one page. YouTube's E3 coverage will begin with EA's and Bethesda's keynotes on June 12th, followed by a 12-hour stream on June 13th. It'll cover press conferences, live "Let's Play" playthroughs and maybe even the free public event the expo's holding this year. Twitch is still E3's official streaming partner this year -- and we're covering the event, as well! -- but YouTube's hub sounds like a good place to check if you're looking for even more videos.
Cat treats and the secret to livestreaming success
As livestreaming has grown into a billion-dollar business, it's prompted a series of important questions about the future of technology and society. For example: When people share every moment of their lives with the internet, what is privacy? Does accessible, global communication build more community or less? How many AmazeBalls would you spend to feed a treat to a stranger's cat?
Forge makes livestreaming easier
About a month ago, my cousin asked for tips on livestreaming. He had OBS, the software of choice for many streamers, but he had a long way to go before his debut on Twitch or YouTube Gaming. OBS works, but it's complex for people just starting out, offering a lot of options that could screw up your livestream with an accidental click. OBS is sometimes tricky even for entrepreneur Jared Kim, who's been developing game-capture apps for the past eight years. He has a theory about the steep learning curve: Services like OBS aren't made for casual streamers. They're dense because they're used mainly by professionals or dedicated players who can spare the time (and money) to make their livestreams perfect. This leaves my cousin and tons of other potential Twitch stars in the dust. For them, Kim has more than a theory: He has a solution.
YouTube Gaming app hits Canada and 3 more countries today
The YouTube Gaming mobile app is live in Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand, for iOS and Android devices. The app launched in the US and UK last year, and YouTube promises it'll hit "many more countries" soon. Plus, the Android app receives a few tweaks this fine morning: It's now possible to pop-out the player so it's visible over other apps, and it's been upgraded to support 60fps playback, DVR mode and quality switching (much like the iOS and desktop players already do).
Play god live on Twitch in 'Legend of Dungeon: Masters'
Livestreaming sites like Twitch and YouTube Gaming are driving developers to rethink the way their games are played (and watched). One studio in particular has embraced this spectator-focused industry, and it's pushing the boundaries between player and audience member: Robot Loves Kitty is the husband-and-wife studio responsible for Legend of Dungeon. Its latest spinoff, Legend of Dungeon: Masters, allows Twitch viewers to drop helpful items or dangerous foes into the games played by their favorite streamers, live. It's almost like playing God, but in a dark, hellish dungeon -- perhaps "playing Lucifer" is a more correct phrase.
Game streamer Hitbox takes on Twitch with 4K eSports broadcasts
Pop quiz hotshot: Name a game broadcasting service that isn't Twitch, YouTube Gaming or MLG.tv. Give up? You're forgiven. Vienna-based Hitbox.tv is relatively new to the space and its looking to make a name for itself by offering features that the competition doesn't. Like streaming eSports events in 4K at 60FPS starting this fall, for instance. As Twitch expands into more and more non-gaming avenues, Hitbox thinks it can serve the core crowd that might feel alienated by those moves. The Austrian company has picked up some new investments recently -- most notably from the folks behind World of Tanks, Wargaming. A canned statement from the latter says that forthcoming games will "integrate game data" into broadcasts and that it should be pretty easy to do so. Hitbox also offers a wide-open revenue split system that every broadcaster has access to, rather than Twitch's curated Partner program highlighting its top broadcasters.
