In 2013, Microsoft and Sony both announced that players would be able to stream their gameplay to Twitch through their consoles. As we approached November, we learned that only the PS4 would have this functionality at launch. Microsoft said the feature would be delayed, but we didn’t know for how much longer. Well, now we know… kind of.
Twitch announced via its official Twitch Support Twitter account that there’s still no ETA for Xbox One streaming. They say to expect a few more months for the feature to roll out, but there’s no telling how long it will actually take. Twitch says it will update if it knows anything, but it’s actually not up to them. A Twitch representative told Polygon that “It’s up to Microsoft to share any details related to the timing and functionality of their Twitch integration.”
So, what about Microsoft? The company told Polygon that Twitch integration is “a major focus on [their] roadmap as [they] work to ensure it is seamlessly implemented into [the] Xbox One experience over the coming months.”
The big question then is whether or not we’ll see Twitch streaming hit the Xbox One before E3 2014. While Microsoft isn’t making any promises, Xbox chief product office Marc Whitten told Engadget that he announced game streaming via Twitch at last year’s E3 with the expectation that it would be out before this year’s E3. As for the next major Xbox One update, game streaming won’t be part of it. Whitten says it will focus on the social features on the Xbox One to make them easier to find.
Image via Twitch/YouTube