YouTube Gaming is finally good to go.
After a promising soft launch during the annual E3 trade show, Google is pressing start on its game-streaming competitor to Twitch. YouTube Gaming allows for both game streaming and — based on the list of supported encoders — live video streaming as well. There's a chat interface, video archiving (via YouTube, naturally) and all sorts of other features that regular streamers should be familiar with.
There was a time when Google was targeting Twitch as a potential acquisition. A deal with the YouTube gatekeeper ultimately fell apart when Amazon stepped in and snatched up the opportunity. But it's clear that Google has had an interest for some time in offering live-streaming as part of its services, and YouTube Gaming is its answer to Amazon's Twitch acquisition.
Getting started is a simple process of navigating your browser over to gaming.youtube.com and following the steps in a setup process (that includes phone verification). You'll need to set up encoding software, fill out the necessary info for your stream and tick off any optional features. There's a checklist right there on the setup page, but Google also put together a more involved guide to getting set up.
YouTube Gaming supports streaming from PlayStation 4, Wii U and Xbox One consoles, provided you've got a capture device sending video from the console to your computer. Google specifically calls out Elgato's HD60 as a YouTube Live Verified device, but there's a good chance that other game capture solutions work as well. If you've got one, try it out before you run out and buy something new.
There are also mobile apps coming to Android and iOS shortly after the service formally launches at 1 p.m. ET on Aug. 26. It's not clear if these apps are just for viewing streams or if you'll be able to use them to broadcast your own mobile gameplay. We've reached out to YouTube for clarification. We're also waiting to hear if the existing YouTube console apps will be updated to support streaming directly from the console (as opposed to using something like an Elgato).
It's worth it to take a moment and consider where YouTube will exist in the current game-streaming landscape. While it's not without competitors, Twitch is the undisputed king right now, offering equal parts live video service and bustling community of active celebrity streamers. It's primarily a free service, though a Twitch Turbo monthly subscription eliminates most ads and comes with priority customer support.
Completed Twitch streams are stored for 14 days if you're a regular user or 60 days if you're a Turbo subscriber or Twitch partner. Users have the option of exporting archived video streams before they're erased or splitting them into shorter "highlights" (up to two hours of video), which can be saved indefinitely on the site.
There's a relatively widespread sentiment around the Internet that Twitch chats — which sit right next to a running video unless the viewer opts to hide it — are both difficult to follow because of the heavy comment flow on popular streams and often filled with toxic commentary. The same can be said for YouTube comments, however, and it's likely we'll see similar behavior in YouTube Gaming chat. These things are very difficult to police.
The big advantage YouTube offers is a well-established infrastructure for archiving videos. Well before YouTube Gaming launched, the site existed to host video. That's not exactly news, but it means minimal hassle for a video going from live broadcast to saved for repeat viewings.
Twitch released a statement via SVP of Marketing Matthew DiPietro, which you can read here:
The opportunity in gaming video is enormous, and others have clearly taken notice. We’re proud of what we’ve accomplished in the last 4 years, but our eyes are on the future. We are focused on building upon the foundation we’ve laid with the Twitch community, and incorporating the next-generation features the community has asked for. We are dedicated to being the best social, global, multi-screen video platform for gamers, period.We have a very ambitious and long-term product roadmap, some of which will be revealed in the coming weeks and months, particularly at TwitchCon, where we’ll have the chance to catch up in person with some of our most prolific partners, and their legions of fans.For our current stats, we have 1.5 million broadcasters (11K Partnered channels), 100 million viewers per month who watch 106 minutes per person per day on average, and 38 million installs of our mobile app with 4.7 billion minutes watched across 10.3 million unique devices.We also just set a new concurrent viewership milestone. On Sunday, 8/23, Twitch boasted more than 2 million concurrent viewers on the platform with a lot of those eyes belonging to fans of ESL One: Cologne 2015 and the League Of Legends’ NA LCS Finals.
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