Plays.tv launches Chrome extension to make capturing and sharing Twitch clips super easy

It’s about to get real simple to share the most amazing moments from your favorite Twitch streams.

Plays.tv, Raptr’s video-clip-capturing service for Twitch, is introducing a Chrome extension to streamline the process of grabbing an instant replay of live broadcasts. The company already has a client that people can use to capture 30-second videos, but the browser add-on ensures that the capturing capabilities are always at your fingertips. This should help fill out the Plays.tv website with a huge amount of video content.

The extension is incredibly fast and simple. After installing it, I jumped into the first Twitch stream that was playing on the front page. The add-on, which is typically a gray version of the Plays.tv logo, turned blue when it was ready, and then all I had to do was activate it to save. You can confirm that you want a clip by clicking on the extension itself, hitting CTRL+Shift+1, or by typing “!plays” into the Twitch chat. And you can imagine how you might see a rush of people spamming chat with “!plays” during a key moment in a competitive match.

I entered the “!plays” command, and I was automatically brought to this page, which loaded my video in a matter of moments:

I was also given the option to trim and rename the clip. The streamer got the credit for the video, and my name was on the bottom for sharing it.

“It’s kinda like — ESPN’s SportsCenter is maybe not the best description — but this is a really easy way to capture and share cool moments,” Raptr chief executive and Plays.tv boss Dennis Fong told GamesBeat.

The potential of this tool is huge — especially for esports events. And Plays.tv was keenly aware of ensuring that the plugin has as few friction points as possible. That means you don’t need an account with Plays.tv to use the extension, and it gives you a link to share as well as the option to embed the clip wherever you want.

For Plays.tv, the end result is that its site could turn into the go-to resource for catching up on esports and the moments from livestreams that everyone is talking about.

“If I follow Riot or Intel Extreme Masters on Twitch, and I connect my account to Plays.tv, anytime any user shares a clip of that stream, I’ll see it in my feed,” explained Fong. “You can think of it as a really quick and easy way to see highlights … it’s like NFL RedZone.”

As busy football fans have discovered, sometimes it’s a better use of your time to just catch the highlights later. Plays.tv is positioning itself as the best way for esports fans to do exactly that.