Twitch: VOD or Live?

Twitch: VOD of Live?

https://www.twitch.tv/

I think my regular readers have figured out by now that I am an regular viewer of Twitch. So now I would like to touch on the benefits of both Video on Demand (VOD) or Live watching. Both have an advantage over the other, and both can still support your favorite streamers. So lets talk about some of those perks.

LIVE

The preferred way of most viewers on Twitch is to watch their streamers live. This is because, pending a few other factors, you can interactive directly with that streamer while you are watching them. I've said before and I'll say again, Twitch is an amazing social experience and can even help those of us with depression, anxiety, or loneliness. So being able to talk to not only the streamer, but people in chat as well, can really make for an enjoyable experience which you can only get watching it live.

Another perk to live viewing is that many streamers have giveaways. By being present live, you are probably earning a 'chat currency' which is a loyalty system for viewers, where they earn points that they can then spend on whatever prize that streamer is offering. Not all streamers use the currency system though. Some streamers use third-party programs to do giveaways, and again, it comes down to you being there while they are live to enter (and often times claim the prize.)

If you want to interact directly with the streamer, you may also get an opportunity with party games like Jackbox or other interactive games the community can join in on. This again, requires you to be there when they are live. Streamers have many different ways to decide who joins them in games, but regardless of how, you MUST be there at the time of the game in order to play with them, obviously. A lot of game developers have also created games that integrate directly with Twitch chat, so that you as the viewers get to influence the game that the streamer is playing. I've seen some amazing ones myself, and they can be a lot of fun even if you are only typing "1" or "jump" in chat. Heh.

Support your streamer in several ways. By being there live, you are contributing to their ad revenue, their live viewer count, and their chat activity. These things are important to a streamer for many reasons. Even if you are doing nothing more than lurking in the chat... you are supporting them. Not to mention if you throw in all the extras like sharing a Tweet that they're live, giving them a host, or being interactive in chat with welcoming new people or answering questions the streamer or their mods might not always catch.

Video on Demand (VOD)

So what is a VOD some of you might wonder. It is essentially YouTube, on Twitch. When a streamer goes live, they have the option to have it save to Twitch directly. This means that even if you don't catch them live, you can still see the stream and what you missed in the form of a non-live video. This might not be as exciting an option as watching Live, but I'll share a few perks to watching VOD's.

You support your streamer. Even if you were not able to be there live, viewing their VOD will give credit to their channel. This 'traffic' as its called, can be used by the streamer to show to partners, affiliates and advertisers to encourage more financial support toward their channel. So don't feel bad if you couldn't make a live stream. You can still watch the VOD, and get to see all their glorious content, as well as give them support.

Twitch added an interactive feature in VOD's that let you join in on the chat in a past-tense fashion. This isn't the same as being in chat live, but if you are watching the VOD and you wanted to get in your thought on something, you can say so and it will add it into the chat replay for you so your streamer can see it if they decide to review that VOD.

You can watch a VOD almost anytime you want. Regardless of your sleep or work schedule, a VOD is there for you to pop on once you have the time to sit down and enjoy it. Twitch is meant to be a live streaming site, but we can't always make our favorite streamer's live schedules. Now keep in mind, VOD's aren't permanent... they DO go away after a certain amount of time as far as I've been told. So don't wait months to watch one, but don't be in a panic either... you'll have time. If a streamer makes a 'highlight' though, that stays forever.

Get that perfect clip. Sometimes clipping on a live stream can get distracting, or you can't get the perfect timing on the clip before its passed by. In a VOD, you can still clip! This is in fact the PERFECT opportunity to do so too, because you can pause/play at just the point you like to get that clip just how you want it. A lot of streamers use Discord and have a clip channel, so throw that perfect clip in there and be proud!

Vodcast/Rerun

A "newer" feature (previously Vodcast, now called Rerun) of Twitch I'll mention quickly is the 'Rerun' feature. It is essentially a VOD, but broadcast live; yes I know, that's a little confusing. Basically what this does, is it shows the VOD for viewers/chatters to see together live, but without the streamer present. So you and anyone watching this re-broadcast VOD at the time it shows "live" allows you to interact and chat with those people while you all enjoy the content. So its kind of a blend of the Live cast and VOD. Basically its: Stream, no streamer, live chat.



So there you go. Several ways to watch your favorite streamers, support them, and enjoy yourself some amazing content on Twitch. Don't forget to see if that streamer as a YouTube channel too... which is a great way to catch some of the oldest content from that streamer since YouTube videos stick around forever.