Video game research and consulting firm EEDAR has been keeping a close eye on Twitch throughout Q4 2014, and has unearthed some key insights for developers into what makes the site tick.

It revealed that Twitch is evolving into an entertainment hub with a focus on a broad range of games, not just eSports and PC titles - as the AppSpy team is demonstrating on a weekly basis. 

In a chart chronicling the top 20 titles by view volume in Q4 of 2014, we can see that while the very top ranking games boast competitive multiplayer communities on PC, other platforms are pulling in views.

The top 20 include MMORPG titles like World of Warcraft and Day Z, but single-player open world experiences like Destiny and games like Minecraft are also popular.

Tweaks to Twitch

So though Twitch was founded as a hub for PC play, it’s clear that the site is evolving to cover consoles too and - as EEDAR’s Patrick Walker tells Pocket Gamer.biz – mobile gaming.

“Mobile games definitely have a place on Twitch, especially the midcore titles with long term player engagement,” he says.

“Clash of Clans was number 43 in the Q4 rankings (out of 2800 titles).”

However, unlike PC and console developers, Walker advises mobile developers to format their sessions slightly differently to the norm.

“Successful mobile titles drive habitual play through a high number of shorter sessions. The natural fit for Twitch is watching the streaming of longer play sessions, such as MOBA matches or a MMORPG raid.

“Therefore, mobile developers need to match their content to user experience that is ideal for Twitch.

For instance, taking a bunch of shorter Clan Wars individual battles and streaming them one after the other to create a Clan match for highly engaged players.”

Streaming in-game footage on Twitch is an increasingly popular way of getting games noticed. Since being founded in 2011, Twitch pulls in over 60 million viewers every month.

Twitch of the trade

To put that in perspective, in the US the Twitch boasts more primetime traffic than any other website except Netflix and YouTube.

Still, it’s not just consumers that visit the site. Walker advises any developers looking to get their game noticed on site to consider reaching out to other developers.

“Another opportunity is to provide a development resource for other interested developers,” he says.

“One of the areas of side growth on Twitch is training channels, and streaming the development process to other developers.”

EEDAR’s research is a useful insight into Twitch’s success – success that made it the subject of a monumental acquisition by Amazon for $970 million in September 2014.

You can read more of Walker's views about Twitch here.