Skip to main content

Get excited, gamers — Twitch is about to release a desktop app beta

twitch desktop app screen shot 2017 03 11 at 1 19 57 pm
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Just a few weeks after implementing a system that allows fans to buy games directly from Twitch, the company is making yet another announcement that is sure to leave gamers everywhere jumping for joy (or something more appropriate to the demographic). In a blog post published Friday, Brian Petrocelli, a product marketer at Twitch, revealed that the gaming platform will launch a desktop app beta on March 16. In just five short days, you’ll be able to get onto Twitch more easily than ever before.

“One of the best things about the Twitch community is the people you connect with on your journey,” Petrocelli wrote. “It’s why we are always looking for ways to make it easier to keep in touch.” And the latest way comes in the form of this desktop app, which seems to have been made possible by way of Twitch’s acquisition of Curse a few months ago. Indeed, Petrocelli noted, the Curse and Twitch teams have worked to merge the two platforms to create a unique experience, one that will help “build stronger and more meaningful connections between you, your friends, and your community.”

Recommended Videos

With the launch of the desktop app, Twitch says users will be able to create their own Twitch server that will allow them to stay in touch with the ever-growing Twitch community. Moreover, ” … we’ve made it super easy for you to import and centralize your friends from the game communities you belong to,” Twitch announced. Friends can also now be reached by way of voice and video calls, yet another new feature.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

On March 16, you’ll be able to get the Twitch Desktop App by visiting download.twitch.tv. And remember how we mentioned up top that you could buy games directly from Twitch? You can now download them directly from the desktop app, too. If you thought you had trouble dragging yourself away from Twitch before, things might’ve just gotten a lot harder.

Lulu Chang
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Fascinated by the effects of technology on human interaction, Lulu believes that if her parents can use your new app…
A PC emulator is now on the iPhone app store after previous rejection
A photo of an Apple screen and a close-up of the App Store icon with three notifications on it.

A new game emulator for iOS has joined the party. UTM, an open-source PC operating system emulator, has released UTM SE after a lengthy review process and a previous rejection.

You can download UTM SE for free on App Store for iOS and visionOS, and it'll be added to AltStore Pal, an alternative app marketplace in the EU. "Shoutouts to AltStore team for their help and to Apple for reconsidering their policy," UTM posted on X (formerly Twitter).

Read more
The First Descendant Twitch drops: how to redeem and all rewards
A playable character hold a mysterious orb in The First Descendant's gamescom trailer.

Publishers want to get as many eyes on its games as possible for launch, which is where the power of Twitch drops comes into play. The First Descendant is releasing on July 2, and by watching specific streamers playing the game, you can unlock some exclusive rewards. To our knowledge, these will only be available through these Twitch drops, so you only have a limited time to collect them all. You are probably eager to get into the game and start playing it yourself, but let's quickly go over how to redeem these rewards and what they are.
How to redeem Twitch drops
Starting at midnight PT on July 2 and running through midnight on July 29, watching any Twitch stream under the category of The First Descendant will start counting toward your watch time for the rewards.

Before you start watching any streams, though, make sure you link your Twitch account to your The First Descendant account on this page.

Read more
iPhones and iPads are about to get their first retro game streaming service
A man plays a Razer Kishi V2 on his couch.

Playing retro games on iPhone and iPad is about to get even easier. As reported by Cult of Mac, Antstream Arcade, a subscription service that gives you access to over 1,300 licensed games, is making its way to iOS and iPadOS on June 27.

Antstream, which had already been available on Xbox and Windows, as well as via browser and Amazon, features licensed games from around 20 retro consoles like the Amiga, the Atari 2600, the PlayStation 1, and the SNES. So you can play games like Missile Command, Asteroids, Centipede, Day of the Tentacle, a few older Star Wars games, and many others. There are also challenges and tournaments that allow you to play games against other Antstream users.

Read more