While many think of gaming as a solo activity, the pastime tends to breed communities. Look at the number of people who are devotees of World of Warcraft, a constantly evolving game that involves people from across the world. Or the comments on forums about popular games such as Skyrim, or the number of hits that video strategy guides receive.
Speaking of which, YouTube is now prepared to offer a dedicated area for gamers this summer. Called YouTube Gaming, what will happen is every game possible will have its own page with videos about it. So if you're a fan of Zelda or a devotee of Bloodbourne, there is bound to be a few videos at least about it.
"Today, the gaming world is much more diverse than the one I grew up with, and the community has created new formats that have made gaming more collaborative and interactive," wrote product manager Alan Joyce on YouTube's blog. "On YouTube, gaming has spawned entirely new genres of videos, from let’s plays, walkthroughs, and speedruns to cooking and music videos. Now, it’s our turn to return the favor with something built just for gamers."
What the YouTube Gaming experience will look like. Credit: YouTube
The product was unveiled at the Electronic Entertainment Expo and is cited by many observers as being a competitor to Twitch, a video platform dedicated to gamers. (The official Twitter for Twitch joked in part, "Welcome Player 2," when YouTube made the announcement.) Fast Company was at the E3 event and spoke to several gamers about the new product.
While their reactions were mixed, a few said that the channel would make it more possible to livestream games as others are playing them. So instead of sitting solo in your living room, you can show your activities to the greater world. Maybe get some strategies and hints as you go, or at the least, show off your flair in disintegrating opponents in Mortal Kombat.
"Since I don’t live stream that often, this could be a way for me to actually start. Live streaming on YouTube has been pretty hit or miss. I know people use other platforms, but they really seem to be pushing this," gamer Bradley Shapiro (Yoshiller) told Fast Company.
One impressive thing about gaming these days is the number of platforms available. Credit: Wikimedia Commons
"A lot of YouTubers want to get into livestreaming and a lot of livestreamers want to get into making VOD [Video On Demand] videos," he added. What really helps is collaborating, and this app can help people from both communities more easily find each other."
And with hundreds or thousands of gamers working together, what cool things could happen? Many of them also have a strong social bent, which leads to the possibility of making a game that would reap benefits. The in-game rewards could include charity donations, for example. Or maybe you can "game" your way to something more interesting, such as launching a rocket.
Seriously. Click here to contribute to the "Shoot to moon with smartphone" challenge on HeroX.
Top image: A screenshot of the YouTube gaming page.
