Google is looking to further enhance the reach of its YouTube Gaming app, announcing Thursday that its expanding its iOS and Android apps to Canada, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand; and promises to get more countries in the mix in the near future.
Launched in August of last year, YouTube Gaming is Google's answer to Amazon's livestreaming platform Twitch. With a global YouTube Gaming website and apps for Android and iOS in the U.S. and U.K., Google is seeking to muscle in on the live content audience that Twitch has had supreme control over the past few years.
This latest worldwide endeavor puts Google in a prime position to do so with the newest countries getting an improved YouTube Gaming experience right off the bat. Navigation on the site has been simplified greatly and the change is mostly witnessed on the homepage, which no longer features a sidebar. Rather, YouTube Gaming is placing all of a users favorite channels and games right in front of them with a variety of tabs. There is also now a Live tab, that displays top streams and games that are broadcasting at any given time.
Android users are also getting an added bonus in the form of a pop-out player that allows users to watch a video or livestream while watching other apps. In addition, users will have the ability to watch the video at 60 fps, making the experience of watching a stream more closely resemble what its like if they were actually playing, and DVR mode which will allow users to to rewind livestreams as they happen.
In related news, Google has added the ability for users to stream mobile games from any Android device. Support for this feature was already introduced in October, but its expansion adds on to YouTube Gaming's advantageous position over Twitch.
The issue here is that Twitch requires developers mobile SDK or a Sony-made capture app to enable livestreaming or capture from smartphones. On the other hand, since YouTube Gaming is so deeply integrated with the Google-owned mobile OS, the feature can be built in without any extra effort from developers or users. All YouTube Gaming users have to do is utilize the device's front camera and microphone - simple.
Fledging streamers in pertinent countries can download the YouTube Gaming app from Google Play and the iTunes app store.
