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Twitch Turbo elevates eSports broadcasting to the next level – for a price

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Twitch continues its 2013 expansion with Twitch Turbo, a new paid subscription service to its streaming video game television service. Subscribers to Twitch Turbo will be able to watch eSports matches free of advertising as well as receive additional perks like custom community tools (chat text colors, etc.) and priority customer service. The service will cost $8.99 per month, a relatively high price compared to other streaming entertainment services. Netflix by contrast is just $7.99 per month. Since Twitch’s audience has grown from 16 million to 23 million subscribers in the past nine months, it’s easy to understand why the company is interested in ramping up monetization.

“The average viewer watches over an hour and a half of videos each day,” explains Twitch CEO Emmett Shear, “Over two-thirds of our logged-in users chat each day. We wanted to find a way to provide the ultimate Twitch experience.”

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Twitch Turbo represents the second significant expansion for the streaming eSports company. On Wednesday, Twitch announced that it had partnered with Activision Blizzard to bring its game broadcasting tools to home consoles starting with Call of Duty: Black Ops 2. Xbox 360 owners have access to tools that let them upload Black Ops 2 play, commentary, and webcam footage seamlessly. The service will be available on Sony’s PlayStation 3 soon as well.

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The crossover in audience between Twitch and Call of Duty is strong enough to support Activision’s decision to partner with the service, but that crossover should also give insight into the potential of Twitch Turbo. Parting that audience from its money is no easy task. While Call of Duty games like Black Ops 2 earn $1 billion in revenue within weeks of release, those players are reticent to spend more on additional services. When Activision opened the Call of Duty Elite service in 2011, 10 million players signed up but only 2 million agreed to pay the $50 per year fee. By the end of 2012, Call of Duty Elite was forced to become a free service.

Call of Duty Elite and Twitch Turbo are more similar than they first appear. Both premium subscription services were based around adding value through small perks and preferential treatment and appealed to similar audiences. At $108 per year, Twitch Turbo is a more expensive proposition than Call of Duty Elite. The service will be an interesting experiment for Twitch but it is not a guaranteed source of new growth.

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Anthony John Agnello
Anthony John Agnello
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Anthony John Agnello is a writer living in New York. He works as the Community Manager of Joystiq.com and his writing has…
The best Wildcards in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6
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The concept of a Wildcard might sound like a risky endeavor in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6, but this part of your loadout isn't random at all. We haven't seen this system since Cold War, and even those who remember it from that game will need to learn all the new cards there are in Black Ops 6. You can only equip a single Wildcard on your loadout, but they are powerful enough to completely redefine your playstyle. So far, there are only six to unlock while grinding through the levels with your friends, but picking just one is still a tough choice, especially if you want to use a permanent unlock on one after hitting Prestige. We've ranked all the Wildcards in Black Ops 6 so you can always have the winning hand.
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There is a level of personal preference in which Wildcard you will find better than others, but in most cases, the ones we've ranked as the best will help every player gain an edge in online matches. Here's our ranking of each Wildcard from best to worst, along with what level you unlock them at.
Perk Greed - Level 54
The last Wildcard you unlock is easily the most powerful. Perk Greed lets you unlock a fourth Perk to your loadout instead of being limited to three, which can borderline break the game if you choose the right set of Perks. It is also the most versatile of the Wildcards since it gives you the most options to play with instead of a specific bonus you may not find useful. It can also more easily unlock the special bonus buff you get for equipping three Perks from the same category.
Gunfighter - Level 33
Right in the middle of the unlock list, Gunfighter is one Wildcard you could easily make a case for over Perk Greed in some situations. This one increases your attachment points for your primary weapon by three. If you're rocking a top-tier weapon already, this Wildcard can let you tweak its stats even higher. We rank it second because it only applies to one weapon and thus is a bit more limiting.
Overkill - Level 24
For such an early Wildcard, Overkill is quite a powerful choice. This card lets you equip any weapon (except melee weapons) in your Primary and Secondary slots instead of the ones typically reserved for each. That means you can build a loadout with two Primary weapons and be far more versatile on the battlefield. Instead of having to trade off range, damage, rate of fire, mobility, or any other aspect of your game, you can cover almost all your bases by picking two Primary weapons that cover each other's weaknesses.
Prepper - Level 45
Field upgrades are powerful, don't get us wrong, but having two instead of one isn't always that much of a game-changer. It's a bit less useful than Gunfighter only because field upgrades are more situational and require more attention to use to their full potential. If that's you, then this is a great choice.
Danger Close - Level 38
Who doesn't want another grenade, Molotov, or combat axe? Is getting a second Lethal worth the Wildcard slot, though? Not in our opinion. Most of the time, Lethals are used in desperation or as a way to deny enemy movement for a time, and even then, they are risky because of how vulnerable you are while using them.
Tactical Expert - Level 15
The first Wildcard you get is better than nothing, but only just. It's exactly like Danger Close, only you can hold two Tacticals instead of Lethals. This is, by nature, a little worse since Tacticals don't have the ability to kill an enemy (unless you get super lucky and you directly hit an enemy with one who is on low HP). You can get some use out of them, but you're better off upgrading as soon as you have another option.

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In the world of Call of Duty Zombies, one type of weapon has always been the most powerful, but hard to get. Wonder Weapons are back in Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and that includes the old favorite known as the Jet Gun. This jet-engine-looking weapon is part of a long string of steps you can only do on the Liberty Falls map but is well worth the effort. Make sure you have your crew around to watch your back while reading through our guide on how to craft the Jet Gun, aka the Thrustodyne M23.

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