Twitch launches its new desktop app in beta

Twitch is finally ready to take over your desktop — sort of. The beta version of the game streaming site's new desktop app is now available to download, giving you quick access to your favorite Twitch streams and much, much more in a dedicated spot on your PC.

Aside from being able to watch your favorite streamers, Twitch is hoping the desktop app will serve as a home for the different communities that use its service. To bolster that aim, the app also packs support for community servers that let you and other members chat and watch streams with custom voice and text rooms. You can also make voice and video calls with the app, making it a logical tool to use for keeping in touch with teammates as you play.

A lot of this extra functionality comes as part of the app's legacy: it's essentially a re-branded version of the former Curse app, which Twitch acquired in 2016. That history can be seen in one of the app's other big features, which lets you find, manage and install add-ons for games. A cloud storage component to this will also help you keep your settings in sync across machines.

Interested? If so, you can test out the beta app by grabbing it directly from Twitch now.

See at Twitch

Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl