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What is Stream+? Other than a new Twitch-specific currency that will be used to bet on Twitch streams, we’re not entirely sure.
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Watch games, get coins.
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This is a fuzzy screenshot from the TwitchCon feed, but it does show off the gambling interface in the top left.
TwitchCon, the annual convention dedicated to its namesake’s popular game streaming service, kicked off Thursday night with an event hosted by Amazon Game Studios. There, the game publisher announced that Twitch will be handing out a form of currency called “Stream+”, which will debut in the upcoming multiplayer sports brawler. Break away.
An Amazon Game Studios rep mentioned the currency while describing several ways the new game will “integrate directly” with Twitch (which makes sense to some extent, since Amazon acquired Twitch in 2014). The reveal included a short clip of Break away action that confirmed viewers’ ability to bet on matches and “earn Stream+ Coins by watching”.
The reveal was sparse on Stream + details otherwise. Amazon hasn’t confirmed exactly how the coins can be spent and what they would unlock, including inside Break away or across the entire Twitch ecosystem, not to mention whether Stream+ currency can be bought, sold, or traded. Gambling watchdog groups will certainly be keeping a close eye on this implementation, especially in light of a major gambling scandal that has dogged the Steam gaming market. In that case, enterprising users found workarounds to trade and monetize in-game currencies and items, building major gambling sites as a result.
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Broadcasters can now generate, move and adjust stats on screen. Pretty neat.
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Use a match builder to promote and invite more Twitch viewers to your Breakaway session.
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MOBA meets Rocket League meets fighting games. Or something.
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Seven heroes were revealed on Thursday.
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You better believe one of them was a huge dude with a giant axe.
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Morgan Le Fay is my favorite.
Break away was revealed with a live match and some basic descriptions of its martial arts systems, and at first glance, the developers of Double Helix Games (which Amazon acquired in 2014 after their work on the Killer Instinct reboot) seem to put a relatively unique spin on the incredibly busy hero-battle genre. Instead of controlling creeps and lanes, players will spend their time building extensions on their side of the “field”, including catapults and barrier walls, then run around exchanging fireballs and punches, trying to hit a ball into one of the get different points. nets. The other key Twitch integrations include the ability to easily promote games and invite players via a Twitch stream and give broadcasters extensive access to create live stat windows on the screen (allowing hosts to highlight specific stats, just like with major league sports broadcasts on TV). The latter implementation in particular looked pretty slick in the demonstration.
Amazon Game Studios said we could expect similar Twitch integration in other games, revealed in very, very short teases: Melting pota six-on-six MOBA with elements of betrayal and deception (meaning players can switch teams whenever they want), and New world, an open-world multiplayer soapbox adventure. However, we didn’t get any release dates or estimates for any of the revealed games Break awayThe company’s Open Alpha will begin “soon,” company representatives said on the TwitchCon stage, and the game will be playable on the TwitchCon show floor all weekend.
List image by Amazon Game Studios