Twitch streamers are getting Snap's AR selfie filters

As part of its Snap Camera announcement, Snap Inc. has revealed a partnership with Twitch that will bring augmented reality Lenses to users of the video-streaming site. This will give Twitch streamers access to thousands of Snapchat-style selfie filters, including those made by Snap and independent Lens Studio creators. There's no need for users to have a Snapchat account, though the company is hoping to drive Twitch viewers to its mobile app by letting them unlock Lenses that their favorite streamers are "wearing" during a stream. You just have to scan a Snapcode that shows up on the big screen.

For streamers, setting up the Snap Camera integration is fairly simple. All they have to do is download the standalone Snap Camera application, which works for Mac and Windows desktops, and then they'll be able to choose a Lens to rock in their live session. Viewers will also be able to use Snapcodes to subscribe to channels, while streamers themselves can reward their fans with "bonus" and "thank you" Lenses that are being created as part of the partnership between Snap and Twitch.

In addition to that, Snap Camera is also going to give Twitch streamers access to filters designed for particular audiences, including fans of League of Legends, PUBG, World of Warcraft and Overwatch. The great thing about Snap's Lens ecosystem is that users can create their own filters through the company's Studio tool, which to date has been used to make over 250,000 filters. If you're a Twitch streamer and would like to know how to start using the Snap Camera's features, here's a step-by-step guide that you can peruse.

There's a lot of potential for other video-streaming services to use what Snap Camera has to offer, but Snap says that right now it is focused on ensuring that the Twitch integration is perfect. "We would love to see, as we launch [Snap Camera], if other video services out there find this to be valuable," Eitan Pilipski, vice president of Camera Platform at Snap, told Engadget. "The community in Twitch is very unique. The streamer on Twitch [is] taking on a different persona or character, and we couldn't think of a [more] fun way to give them another tool."