The Twitch Profile/landing page, also known as a channel, is not just a platform for video streaming. It becomes a sort of meeting area for the streamer’s community. Streamers will create branded channels that have corresponding emotes, video overlays, and panels (information legends) in order to create a high-quality virtual room experience for their viewers.
The key components of the visual system are the overlays, emotes, streamed video, and the bots that act as a mediator between all of the components. The overlay is the added layer on top of the stream footage that is configured by the streamer to contain bots of all sorts that provide a variety of functions, i.e. essential elements such as a webcam projection, latest events, sponsorships, and other alerts. According to Twitch Streamer and Digital Artist Ibu Bundu, “(The visuals) are extremely important,” (Twitch Takes, 2021). He goes on to explain that most of the things that a streamer provides, whether it be entertainment, tutorials, etc. are visual in nature…so making sure that you have good visuals is essential. It’s so essential that an artist can make a lucrative business out of creating branded alerts, panels, overlays, emotes, and more for streamers. Bundu explains that in order to become a successful streamer and create a strong community, quality visuals are second only to having a welcoming and friendly personality. He also describes bots as the “automated assistants” who run the alerts and the visual functions so that the streamer can focus on interacting with his/her viewers.
The bots enhance the profile/channel/virtual room by congratulating and welcoming new subscribers to the page. The streamer can also program the platform to give subscribers a special branded badge next to their name to differentiate themselves from non-subscribers in the chat. When donations are given, the bots will display engaging emotes thanking the viewers, further prompting the streamer to vocally thank the donor as well. The visual representation of this interaction works as a sort of reward system for those who subscribe and also helps encourage the growth of the community. You can see the visual components (alerts, overlay, etc.) in action in the full video interview below (time mark 00:17:17).
In order to better understand the Twitch Sociotechnical System, I spoke with Digital Artist and Twitch Streamer Ibu Bundu. Check out the video interview to learn more about what makes Twitch special, how it affects its users, and what it takes to create your own inclusive community. You can watch Ibu’s Twitch stream here, check out his art here and read his highly-rated Webtoon, RUNE, here.
