Twitch has made a major change to one of streamers’ and viewers’ favorite chat commands, and left many content creators confused over the decision.
Late on April 28, Twitch announced that they would be changing the ‘/me’ chat command. This command used to make chatters’ messages the same color as their name, primarily just as a light bit of fun.
That said, it soon proved to provide issues for streamers, too. Some viewers would use the command to say that they donated a certain amount of money, for example, tricking other chatters, and sometimes streamers, into thinking it was a real donation.
So, to counteract issues such as these, Twitch decided to make some changes to the chat command — but probably weren’t expecting the backlash that arrived.
📢 We're updating the /me chat command to help minimize confusion and its potential for abuse. The command will now look more like a normal chat message.
You helped us identify this issue! Please continue to share your feedback on UserVoice: 📣https://t.co/FfugOwl0EY pic.twitter.com/iWiAwrlC6f
— Twitch Support (@TwitchSupport) April 28, 2021
Now, the command makes text italic, but leaves the color as is, meaning it won’t match the user’s name.
It turns out, some streamers aren’t happy with this either because they find a lot of use in the /me command, as well as they feel Twitch should be more focused on bigger issues.
For example, DeviCat said that “this can now cause a whole other issue which is that it’s very difficult for people to read, especially if it’s a long sentence or paragraph.”
📢 We're updating the /me chat command to help minimize confusion and its potential for abuse. The command will now look more like a normal chat message.
You helped us identify this issue! Please continue to share your feedback on UserVoice: 📣https://t.co/FfugOwl0EY pic.twitter.com/iWiAwrlC6f
— Twitch Support (@TwitchSupport) April 28, 2021
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Another user, Nospimi, asked who, “with all the unrest and dissatisfaction” within the community, “thought this was a good idea?”
Who’s decision was this? With all the unrest and dissatisfaction in the community, and the growing rift between the users and twitch as a company itself, who thought this as your “big news” was a good idea?
— Nospimi99 (@Nospimi99) April 29, 2021
As NoSpimi points out, there are a number of issues that Twitch users have a problem with right now. For example, the ongoing “hot tub meta” is causing concern for a number of users.
Additionally, transgender Twitch users have been calling for a ‘Trans’ tag for a very long time, with Psyche calling the change “useless” considering the regular requests for such a tag.
This is a completely useless change.
Can we have a Trans tag instead? Thanks.
— Psyche 🪐 (@PsychePlays) April 28, 2021
While the change itself probably seems menial to the average viewer, it could greatly change the experience of a streamer when interacting with their chat.
With Twitch facing a lot of requests for changes across the board, this one has definitely confused a number of users on the site.