My interest in broadcasting media has brought me to Twitch as a platform for live distribution of content. Much of what is actually delivered on Twitch I feel fails to take advantage of the medium’s potential. Twitch nonetheless enables the sociality of computer games, recalling the arcades. What’s more, it is generally free form, offering a channel for performances and creative work not typically found elsewhere.
Below are several Twitch related projects I am involved with.
Digital Culture Collaboratory
I am currently working with the UWM Digital Culture Collaboratory, an interdisciplinary research group examining Twitch and game streaming communities. Our group regularly streams across several shows, each focusing on a different genre or academic discussion.
Currently on hiatus until Fall 2018, “Classic Quests” is a weekly show produced with Scott Bruner, where we explore and discuss early computer RPGs. We are currently focused on the Ultima series due to its influence on our respective research projects.
Twitch on Twitch
The “Twitch on Twitch” works are recent experiments with Open Broadcasting Software (OBS) chat windows pulled from the the most popular broadcasters on the streaming platform. For me, it’s fascinating to watch the cascade pouring up alongside the main window. As an amateur streamer who tries hard to listen and be attentive to anyone who happens to show up, it’s awkward and often uncomfortable to watch this cacophony of conversation. Are these conversations though? Or simply comments and emoticons bouncing back and forth? Is this engagement or just affirmation that someone is listening? Or are they all bots?…
These experiments are each a collage of user interface, compiled and manipulated in OBS. The process is live streamed from beginning to end – which is usually when the work feels done and options are exhausted for the time being.
At this time, these works are strictly “in progress” and don’t represent a finished product.
Strange Playces Channel
Below is the channel where I sporadically stream.
[getTwitchPlayer]
