The only real surprise is that this move took so long to happen.
Twitch viewers can now buy games from two different areas on the site – the game’s detail page and the channel page itself, with the purchase link tucked under the game being streamed. For partnered streamers, this offers another revenue stream – 5% of all sales made via their channel will go into their pocket. Twitch will take a quarter of the proceeds and the rest will go to the game developer.
It’s basically an all-round win for all concerned.
It should also be noted that the games will be installed via accounts linked through Twitch, such as Uplay, rather than redeemed via separate keys. But like Steam, a separate launcher will keep buyers cocooned within the Twitchverse.
There are a number of factors at play.
With Valve’s absence, the likes of DOTA 2 and CS: Go will be off the table – at least for now – and League of Legends developer Riot Games has not signed up either, taking out three of the biggest streamed games on the platform. It will be interesting to see how Twitch addresses this.
