Twitch Acquires Internet Gaming Database For More Solid Game Searches

Fans and players alike know that Twitch is the place to be when it comes live streaming and video coverage of their favorite games. The platform became a revolution in 2013 when it peaked in at a whopping 45 million unique viewers.

A year later, Twitch was considered as the fourth largest source of Internet traffic in the United States. By 2015, it had more than 1.5 million broadcasters and roughly around 100 million viewers per month.

With all things considered, Twitch's numbers will not stop growing, and now that it has recently acquired the Internet Gaming Database (IGDB), its digits will just keep on rolling.

The acquisition was described by Tech Crunch as a “small but strategic move” by Twitch. There wasn't much fanfare, but for those who are in the loop, there is more to this than just buying the IMDb of gaming.

IGDB's love for gaming resonates on every crevice of its headquarters. The men and women behind the directory are passionate about what they do, and they turned it into a dream job. For one, IGDB is what they call as a “one-stop-infospot” where all relevant information about games are found. Here, any visitor can search for a specific game as ask about its rating, reviews, story lines, release date, supported platforms, you name it, they have it.

Product owner Jerome Richer De Forges detailed more on the acquisition on Medium, wherein he broke the news about joining Twitch. His statement clearly came with a big smiling face, and it became more radiant when he said that the opportunity will take IGDB “to a whole new level” and will give them the chance to be “an even bigger part” in a player's “gaming life.”

De Forges also mentioned that IGDB and Twitch share the same ideals when it comes to gaming, and this alone has made the collaboration a “perfect fit.”

“We will be able to tap into their experience, resources, and skills, which will enable us to accelerate our progress and deliver the version of IGDB we all always dreamed about,” he said.

With the merger pretty much a done deal, De Forges added that IGDB's API will stay put, but they are planning to combine their premium and free tiers “into a single new free tier.” The gaming database will also take time to “clean up some features” to make room for “new and improved tools.”