Despite launching in March 2017 – yes it really has been that long – the Nintendo Switch still lacks basic functionality and support for popular services. One of those services was Twitch, but that has now changed.
The popular livestreaming platform has launched a free download on the eShop which is just 31MB and can be found here.
“Big news! Twitch is now available on Nintendo Switch. Starting today, all the Twitch goodness you care about from gaming, to music, to exciting live esports — it’s all available on your Nintendo Switch. With millions of unique creators every day streaming everything under the sun, if it’s worth watching, it’s live on Twitch right now,” Twitch writes in an announcement.
Also provided is a list of features for the app:
- Sign in to your Twitch account for easy access to all your followed channels
- Browse for live content by category
- Search to discover new streamers
- Watch VODs and clips from a streamer’s profile
- Watch on the big screen with your Switch docked or take it on the go in handheld mode
What interested us most is a feature that isn’t even included in that list, and that’s support for the touchscreen.
Many app developers and game devs just kind of forget that the Nintendo Switch has a touchscreen, though we’re willing to forgive them as the experience of using the screen on the console is far from an enjoyable experience with a screen that doesn’t feel particularly fun to use and awkward ergonomics even with the Joy-Con controllers removed.
But the touchscreen, much like streaming services themselves, is a matter of options and having more options as a customer is always appreciated. We’re sure a decent swathe of people have particular use case scenarios where having Twitch on the Nintendo Switch will be a massive boon, touchscreen support and all.
Many have argued in the past that porting these services to the console is a waste of time due to most people having a phone and / or tablet which will usually have a much better quality display when compared to the Switch. We can’t argue against that point but, again, customer freedom and choice should never be ignored and we’re happy to see Twitch make the move after all these years.
The last time we wrote about a streaming service being added to the Nintendo Switch it was, of all things, Pokémon TV in August of this year.
