Twitch is removing watch party feature due to ‘declining’ use, but many believe it was doomed from the start

On March 14, Twitch announced that it would be shutting down the Watch Parties feature on their streaming platform on April 2, claiming its usage “has declined over the years.” Some Twitch users, however, believe Watch Parties were doomed from the start due to their flawed design.

Twitch posted the announcement on the Watch Parties feature article which previously served to explain its usage to viewers and creators. “We launched Watch Parties in 2020 to offer streamers a way to enjoy Prime Video content with their communities,” Twitch wrote. Some streamers did use the feature to greater or lesser extent, but its usage has dwindled over time and will subsequently be shut down with its resources allocated to other features, the company said. Some Twitch users on social media, however, thought the platform was doomed from the start due to its requiring Twitch Prime from viewers wishing to join.