In recent years, streaming has become a protagonist of the entertainment companies in the world. We don’t just stream our favorite songs, movies, and TV shows online, but even concerts and all sorts of events. This trend has also reached the gaming world in more than one way, with streaming technology changing the way we consume games on a massive scale. From let’s plays on Twitch and live in-game concerts on Fortnite to streaming games from the cloud – streaming technology is revolutionizing the gaming industry. Let’s have a look at three different ways streaming is now being used in gaming.
Let’s plays: Streaming your gaming sessions live online
When Twitch was created back in 2011, nobody could have anticipated how big the streaming platform would one day be. Created as a live streaming platform solely for gaming content, Twitch brought the gaming community together on one platform to share their passion for gaming. With more than 15 million active users, Twitch is now the biggest game streaming platform that allows players to stream their games live on the web for followers to watch. These so-called lets plays are a massive hit among gamers who love to share their content and watch others play. It’s almost as if Twitch created a platform for a huge LAN party for players from around the globe.
But it’s not just the casual hobby gamers that stream their games online. Esports would have most likely never become as big as they are now had it not been for the help of streaming technology. Esports tournaments, where professional players take it out on the virtual battlefield, are streamed live online for people from all over the world to watch. Just as you would watch a football game, esports tournaments are streamed live online, which helped the digital sport gain global popularity. With that, streaming played a key role in the emergence of esports.
Livestreaming for new in-game experiences
Streaming technology hasn’t just changed the way we share our love for gaming with the community, it’s also changing games themselves and creating completely new in-game experiences that have never been possible before. A major example are the live in-game concerts Epic Games organizes within their hit battle royale Fortnite. Players can visit the virtual stage within the game with their avatars and attend massive concerts by real artists. DJ Marshmello, rapper Travis Scott and singer Ariana Grande have already held astronomical concerts within the game which were streamed live with fascinating visual effects. Millions of players flocked to the virtual stage to watch.
In-game concerts are, however, not the only way streaming technology is changing gaming experiences. Thanks to live streaming, people can now even visit a virtual casino to have a lifelike playing experience on the internet. Online casinos offer a wide variety of casino games, such as slot machines and table games for users to play from the comfort of their homes. With the introduction of live dealer games, users can now play popular games such as live roulette online with a real croupier via a livestream. This sort of playing experience is available across the world, so, for instance, even Arab players can play a live dealer roulette with an Arabic-speaking croupier. With the help of the live stream, the dealer appears on the player’s screen and brings the casino experience into their home. Evidently, streaming technology is changing and creating new gaming experiences in different ways.
Streaming games: The new way to play online
Cloud gaming is probably the biggest trend today that shows how streaming technology is revolutionizing the industry. The concept is often described as a Netflix for games. Just like with the popular streaming service, cloud gaming allows you to access content in a stream on the web, rather than downloading it to your device or inserting a CD. Games are stored in remote data centers that are equipped with high-quality gaming technology such as PCs and consoles. Gamers access these games through the internet, and the visuals of the game are streamed onto the player’s screen.
This new technology has seen a massive rise in recent years, with more providers creating their own cloud gaming platforms. The implications of this trend are huge. Players can access their entire game library through the cloud on almost any device, rather than having to be at home on their usual console or PC. As players are only streaming the visuals onto their screen, even a low-performance smartphone can be used to play AAA video games. Although cloud gaming technology is still in its infancy, it has the potential to change the way we access and play games online while reducing barriers between devices for a more seamless gaming experience.
The face of the gaming world is continuously changing, with new trends and technologies transforming the way we access, play, and experience games. While platforms such as Twitch account allow the gaming community from around the world to come together online, in-game concerts and live dealer games use live streams to create new gaming experiences. Cloud gaming on the other hand is using streaming technology to make your entire game library available online without needing a download or even a powerful gaming device. With all this happening, it seems safe to say that streaming is changing the gaming industry in many ways.
