Twitch CEO Makes 2013 Gaming Predictions

When our friends at Mashable set out to pick the minds of game industry luminaries for their 2013 gaming predictions, they asked our very own Twitch CEO, Emmett Shear, for his thoughts. In his comments, Emmett calls upon developers to not only implement advanced spectator modes into their games, but to create games that are more exciting to both play and spectate.

“I can’t wait for the next round of spectator-mode enhanced games. We’ve seen a few titles leading the way here over the past few years, but it’s turning from a trickle to a flood in 2013. I love watching most games on Twitch, but game companies that put in the effort to build good tools for broadcasters makes a huge difference. I believe that spectator-modes are going to expand from RTS [real-time strategy] and MOBA [multiplayer online battle arena] style games into every other type, from puzzlers to sims to shooters.

“I’m a huge fan of what I think of as the ‘indie platforms’: Ouya and SteamBox. I think platform competition is good for everyone in the gaming industry, and I’m excited to see innovation on the controllers and form factors for television-based consoles.

“I hope we’re nearing the end of treating gamers like pedal-pressing rats. There’s an aspect of playing a slot-machine to most games, but a lot of ‘social’ games have stripped out everything else. It’s like they’re selling caffeine pills instead of coffee, taking something that’s a nice bonus and turning it into a purified addiction. “

Do you agree with Emmett’s thoughts? To see what everyone else had to say, including brilliant minds such as Warren Spector and Ken Levine, check out Mashable.