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<ul class="summary-list"><li>You can uninstall games from <keyword id="2444135" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Battle-net">Battle.net</keyword> in two ways, using the app or your computer's typical uninstallation process.</li><li>If you want to use the Battle.net app to uninstall your games, you just need to open the specific game's "Options" menu.</li><li>If you don't want to use the Battle.net app, you can also use Windows' "Apps and features" menu, or your Mac's "Move to Trash" option.</li><li>Uninstalling Battle.net games will free up any space they've taken on your computer's hard drive.</li></ul><p>If you use Blizzard's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/battlenet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Battle.net</a> <keyword id="6357332" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Gaming">gaming</keyword> service often, there's no doubt that you'll eventually need to uninstall a game. Whether it's because you're bored of it, or you just need to free up storage on your computer, uninstalling is easy.</p><p>Even better, there's two ways to uninstall games. And they both work on both Mac and PC.</p><h2><strong>How to uninstall Battle.net games using the Battle.net app</strong></h2><p><strong>1. </strong>Start the Battle.net app on your computer.</p><p><strong>2. </strong>In the navigation pane on the left, click the game you want to uninstall.</p><p><strong>3. </strong>On the game's details screen, click "Options." It should be right below the game's logo.</p><p><strong>4. </strong>In the drop-down menu, click "Uninstall."</p><div type="image" title="How to uninstall Battle.net games 1" height="1224" width="2069" msid="79730604" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>5. </strong>In the confirmation window, click "Yes, Uninstall."</p><h2><strong>How to uninstall games without using the Battle.net program</strong></h2><p>If you've uninstalled the Battle.net app or it isn't working properly, you can still remove games without it. In fact, any Battle.net game can be uninstalled using the same method you would use to delete any program. </p><p>If you're using Windows, follow the steps in our article about how to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-uninstall-programs-on-windows-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">uninstall programs on Windows 10</a> to remove the game using Windows' "Apps and features" menu. </p><p>On a Mac, you can just right-click the game's icon in the Applications folder, and then select "Move to Trash." You can also drag the icon straight to the trash icon in the bottom-right. Check out our article, "<a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-uninstall-apps-on-mac" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to uninstall apps on your Mac computer in 3 different ways</a>," for more details.</p><h2>Related coverage from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tech Reference</a>:</h2><ul><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-battle-net-name">How to change your Battle.net name on the Blizzard Entertainment gaming platform for free</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-epic-games-name">How to change your Epic Games display name, so that people you play with can see you with a new title</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-does-stadia-work">How does Stadia work? How to stream games on Google's cloud-gaming platform</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-stream-on-discord">How to stream on Discord and broadcast your webcam or screen to everyone in a channel</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/is-ps5-backward-compatible">Is PS5 backward compatible? Here's what you should know about playing PS4 games on the PS5</a></h3></li></ul>

How to uninstall Battle.net games from your PC or Mac computer to free up storage space

<ul class="summary-list"><li>You can change your <keyword id="2444135" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Battle-net">Battle.net</keyword> name, known as a BattleTag, once for free or again at-cost on the <keyword id="309013" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Blizzard-Entertainment">Blizzard Entertainment</keyword> platform.</li><li>BattleTags don't need to be unique, and you can change it once for free, with a fee for additional changes.</li><li>To change your BattleTag, go to your Blizzard account settings in a web browser and find the BattleTag settings in your account details. </li></ul><p>Blizzard's Battle.net <keyword id="6357332" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Gaming">gaming</keyword> service is a popular platform for purchasing and playing Blizzard's extensive library of games. Because it includes multiplayer gaming and social features like chats, you can choose a gamer tag - which Blizzard calls a BattleTag - so you can be found and identified online.</p><p>Your BattleTag is unique, so you don't have to worry about other gamers having the same name. Blizzard allows you to change this tag once for free. After that, you're <a href="https://us.shop.battle.net/en-us/product/battle-tag-name-change">charged a change fee</a>, which is currently $10 per BattleTag change. </p><h2>Blizzard's BattleTag naming rules</h2><p>Blizzard gives you a lot of freedom when creating your name, but you'll need to follow these conventions when changing your BattleTag:</p><ul><li>It must be between 3-12 characters long.</li><li>It can't start with a number, but numbers are allowed.</li><li>You can't use any spaces or special symbols.</li><li>It also needs to follow Blizzard's online code of conduct, which prohibits rude or offensive language. </li></ul><p>Here's how to change your BattleTag for free or at cost.</p><h2>How to change your Battle.net name on a computer</h2><p><strong>1.</strong> Open the <a href="https://www.blizzard.com/en-us/?ref=battle.net" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blizzard website</a> in a web browser. </p><p><strong>2.</strong> At the top right of the page, click "My Account" and log in with your Battle.net credentials if necessary.</p><div type="image" title="How to change your Battle.net name 1" height="1351" width="2400" msid="79690158" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>3.</strong> Click your BattleTag at the top right of the page. </p><p><strong>4.</strong> In the dropdown menu, select "Account Settings."</p><div type="image" title="How_to_change_your_Battle_net_name 2" height="1247" width="2218" msid="79690160" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>5.</strong> In the navigation pane on the left, choose "Account Details."</p><p><strong>6.</strong> In the BattleTag section of the main page, click "Update." </p><div type="image" title="How_to_change_your_Battle_net_name 3" height="1792" width="3185" msid="79690161" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>7.</strong> Enter your new BattleTag and click "Change Your BattleTag." </p><p><strong>8.</strong> If this is your first time changing your BattleTag, the change will appear immediately. </p><p><strong>9.</strong> If you've already changed your name at least once in the past, you will now need to buy a new BattleTag to proceed. </p><div type="image" title="How to change your Battle.net name 4" height="1264" width="2247" msid="79690163" hostid="261"></div><h2>Related coverage from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tech Reference</a>:</h2><ul><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-epic-games-name">How to change your Epic Games display name, so that people you play with can see you with a new title</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-twitch-username">How to change your Twitch username in 6 simple steps, and rebrand your streaming channel</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-nickname-on-discord">How to change your nickname on Discord for a particular server, or change your username for all servers</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-steam-username">How to change your Steam username in 4 simple steps, and delete all traces of what your username used to be</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-your-name-on-ps4">How to change the username on your PS4's PlayStation Network service in 2 ways</a></h3></li></ul>

How to change your Battle.net name on the Blizzard Entertainment gaming platform for free

<ul class="summary-list"><li>You can get a refund on Battle.net for purchases you made at its online store as long as you meet certain requirements.</li><li>You will more than likely be able to get a refund on a game if you've purchased it within the last 3 days and haven't played it.  </li><li>Request a refund by going to the Support page, choosing the game, and then selecting the refund option in the Payments section. </li></ul><p>Sometimes things don't go as planned, and you need to return a purchase. If you make a game purchase using <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/blizzard" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blizzard's</a> Battle.net <keyword id="6357332" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="Gaming">gaming</keyword> platform, you may be able to get a refund as long as you meet certain criteria. </p><h2><strong>How to qualify for a refund on Battle.net</strong></h2><p>While <keyword id="309013" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Blizzard-Entertainment">Blizzard Entertainment</keyword> has never published official guidelines for what conditions the company will honor to give a refund, you will very likely be able to get a refund on games if you meet the following criteria:</p><ul><li>The game is newly purchased within the last 3 days.</li><li>You haven't started the game; if the game has been played at all it won't qualify for a refund. </li></ul><p><keyword id="70115" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="blizzard">Blizzard</keyword> did not respond to a request for comment on the exact parameters of its refund policy. </p><h2><strong>How to get a refund on Battle.net</strong></h2><p><strong>1.</strong> Open the <a href="https://www.blizzard.com/en-us/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Blizzard website</a> and log into your account, if you are not already signed in. </p><p><strong>2.</strong> At the top right of the page, next to your BattleTag, click "Support."</p><div type="image" title="How_to_get_a_refund_on_Battle_net 1" height="1391" width="2393" msid="79931920" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>3.</strong> Click the game you want to get a refund for. </p><p><strong>4.</strong> On the game's support page, click "Payments." If you don't see that, click "I would rather categorize the issue."</p><div type="image" title="How_to_get_a_refund_on_Battle_net 2" height="1375" width="2070" msid="79931922" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>5.</strong> Click "Request a refund."</p><p><strong>6.</strong> Choose a reason for the refund and then submit the request.</p><p>If you are unable to get a refund but meet the guidelines listed above, or have a special circumstance, click "Contact Support" in the Payments section and try sending a note to customer support to explain your situation.</p><h2><strong>Related coverage from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tech Reference</a>:</strong></h2><ul><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-change-battle-net-name" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to change your Battle.net name on the Blizzard Entertainment gaming platform for free<br /></a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-uninstall-battle-net-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to uninstall Battle.net games from your PC or Mac computer to free up storage space</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-refund-a-game-on-steam" target="_blank" rel="noopener">You can refund games you buy on Steam, but there's a time limit - here's how to get your money back</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-a-refund-on-ps4" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to get a refund on your PS4 using the chat support feature on the PlayStation website</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-a-refund-on-google-play" target="_blank" rel="noopener">How to get a refund on Google Play for past purchases</a></h3></li></ul>

How to get a refund from Blizzard's Battle.net gaming platform

<ul class="summary-list"><li>You can uninstall the <keyword id="349789" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Epic-Games">Epic Games</keyword> Launcher from your PC or Mac in just a few moments each.</li><li>To uninstall the Epic Games Launcher from your PC, go to the "Add or Remove Programs" section of the Windows Control Panel.  </li><li>To uninstall the Launcher from your Mac, find its icon in your "Applications" folder and move it to the Trash.</li><li>Before you uninstall the Launcher, be sure to fully close it and any games running through it.</li></ul><p>A few years ago, the only game launcher that anyone needed to think about was Steam. Now, between Battle.net, GOG Galaxy, and the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/epic-games" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Epic Games Launcher</a>, it seems like every new game comes with its own program to run it.</p><p>If you've installed the Epic Games Launcher but later decide you don't want or need it, you can uninstall it with just a few clicks.</p><p>Just note that before you uninstall the Epic Games Launcher or any of your games, you should make sure they're fully closed. If you're on a PC, this might involve <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-force-quit-on-pc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ending their processes through the Task Manager.</a></p><h2><strong>How to uninstall the Epic Games Launcher from a PC</strong></h2><p><strong>1. </strong>In the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-search-in-windows-10" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Start button search box</a>, type "remove" and then click "Add or remove programs" when it appears in the search results. </p><div type="image" title="How to uninstall Epic Games launcher 3" height="1332" width="2369" msid="78712567" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>2. </strong>In the list of programs, click "Epic Games Launcher" and then click "Uninstall."</p><div type="image" title="How to uninstall Epic Games launcher 4" height="1296" width="1601" msid="78712568" hostid="261"></div><p>Wait while Windows uninstalls the program. </p><p>You've now completely uninstalled the Launcher, along with any games you might have installed using the Launcher. </p><h2><strong>How to uninstall the Epic Games Launcher from a Mac</strong></h2><p><strong>1. </strong>Open the Finder and click "Applications" in the left sidebar.</p><p><strong>2. </strong>Find the Epic Games Launcher icon and move it to the Trash. You can do this by dragging the icon to the trashcan in your Dock, or by right-clicking it and selecting "Move to Trash."</p><div type="image" title="How to uninstall Epic Games launcher 5" height="1699" width="2076" msid="78712569" hostid="261"></div><h2><strong>Related coverage from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tech Reference</a>:</strong></h2><ul><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-are-drivers-on-windows">Your Windows computer runs using 'Drivers' — here's what they are, and how to find them</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-an-emulator">Emulators can turn your PC into a Mac, let you play games from any era, and more — here's what you should know about the potential benefits and risks of using one</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-download-nvidia-drivers">How to download Nvidia drivers to keep your computer's graphics running smoothly and vibrantly</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-take-a-screenshot-in-minecraft">How to take a screenshot in Minecraft on any platform</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/does-ps4-pro-play-4k">'Does the PS4 Pro play 4K games?': Yes, and it can also play 4K movies — here's how to set it up</a></h3></li></ul>

How to uninstall the Epic Games Launcher from your PC or Mac, along with all of its games

<p><strong><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://www.flickr.com/photos/29486854@N06/3306172020/in/photolist-639ZKS-6bxy9V-6cQbC6-7eYqe9-efAPnm-efAPtd-8h1wZv-ajh2Lj-ajh39y-ajh2zq-8h1wXR-fvNQtJ-fvyySn-fvNQry-fvNQpd-fvzK8R-fvNQmq-fvNQjy-fvQFHQ-fvNQiY-fvzK7k-fvyyUa-fvzK8v-c9r8ws-c9qT7J-c9rMBN-c9qUsL-c9qTAh-c9qU3s-c9r4tq-ajh1SL-ajh1Uo-ajeefF-ajee8z-ajh1Zo-ajebqg-ajh2vC-akjn61-ajeeKR-ajeeJK-ajgYam-ajeb6i-akjkE9-ajeedx-ajh2x3-ajeboz-ajgXRb-8rzugw-8rwoJV-ajh33W-ajh3Rq">Flickr</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></strong></p><ul><li><strong><a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/atvi-stock">Activision Blizzard's</a> Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 scheduled to release in October includes a new battle royale mode. </strong></li><li><strong>Oppenheimer doesn't see that taking away from Fortnite, which appeals to a younger, broader audience. </strong></li><li><strong>Instead, the new Call of Duty feature is better positioned to attract hardcore first-person shooter fans. </strong></li><li><strong><a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/atvi-stock">Watch Activision Blizzard trade in real-time here.</a></strong></li></ul><p><a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/stocks/atvi-stock">Activision Blizzard's</a> Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is scheduled for release on October 12, and will likely be a big hit given the franchise's large following and improvements on weaponry. The much-anticipated game will also have a battle royale mode, recently popularized by Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battleground, but it is unlikely to have the same broad appeal as Fortnite. </p><p>"We believe the game is not positioned to appeal to wider, younger players like Fortnite is," Oppenheimer analyst Andrew Uerkwitz wrote in a note to clients. "Instead, we believe this game is built to be the best-in-class hardcore [first person shooter]." </p><p>Epic Games' <a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/fortnite-competition-strength-for-electronic-arts-2018-5-1023880821">Fortnite</a> shot up in popularity within recent months, capturing audiences with its battle royale mode and its "freemium" business model that allows the game to run 100% free on consoles. <span>In March alone, Fortnite raked in </span><a href="https://www.superdataresearch.com/us-digital-games-market/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">$223 million in revenue</a><span> across all platforms, according to research firm Superdata. </span></p><p>Rather than competing head-to-head with Fortnite for young players, Uerkwitz believes the new feature is better suited to gain market share from games like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Siege, PlayerUnknown's Battleground, and Battlefield which are more popular with experienced players. Black Ops 4 will be more attractive to hardcore first-person shooter fans with its "deeper/flexible load-outs and tactical game play." </p><p>Activision Blizzard also said the PC version of Black Ops 4 will run on Battle.net, an online gaming, social media, and digital distribution platform. Battle.net currently supports games such as Overwatch, Starcraft: Remastered and Destiny 2. The push should better expand the Call of Duty player base on the PC as that version is positioned to make use of Battle.net's social features and tools, Uerkwitz said. </p><p>Activision Blizzard is up 11% this year. </p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Markets Insider</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p>     <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ian-bremmer-globalism-american-dream-dead-chinese-dream-alive-2018-5">Ian Bremmer: Why the American dream doesn't exist anymore</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

Call of Duty's new feature isn't a Fortnite killer, analyst says

<p class="source"><span>Nvidia</span></p><ul class="summary-list"><li>Nvidia announced on Tuesday the full release of its GeForce Now game streaming service, which has been in beta for several years.</li><li>GeForce Now will compete against other streaming services like Google Stadia. With that said, GeForce Now is geared towards PC gamers rather than console gamers, as GeForce Now supports PC games stores like Steam, Uplay, Epic, and Battle.net.</li><li>Compared to Stadia, GeForce Now seems to have some major benefits, like a significantly larger games library. GeForce Now also won't require users to buy a game that they already own in one of the supported games stores.</li><li>Also important, GeForce Now allows cross-play with players who aren't using GeForce, too.</li><li>But unlike Google Stadia, GeForce Now has one glaring drawback: No 4K streaming.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/nvidia">Nvidia</a> announced on Tuesday that its <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/geforce-now">GeForce Now</a> game streaming service is out of beta and is available on full release for everyone.</p><p>The main gist of GeForce Now is that it lets you play PC games on a wide variety of devices, including desktops, laptops, mobile devices, Nvidia Shield streaming devices, and even Macs and low-power Chromebooks. The games themselves run on computers in Nvidia's cloud, and a game's video is streamed over the internet, much like a Netflix video. </p><p>It can easily be its own standalone service, or it can complement a PC gaming setup by bringing games to any device wherever there's a good internet connection. All-in-all, GeForce now is geared for those entrenched in PC gaming platform rather than console gaming, but many gamers play on both platforms. </p><p>If this idea sounds familiar, that's because numerous <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/game-streaming">cloud game streaming services</a> are beginning to emerge, like <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/stadia">Google Stadia</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/project-xcloud">Microsoft's Project Xcloud</a>, and these nascent services pose have the potential to make a big impact on the gaming industry and how people play video games. </p><p>Check out all the relevant details you need to know about GeForce Now, and the main ways it's already better than Google's Stadia:</p><p class="tagline"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/bi-intelligence-daily?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_subscription&amp;itm_content=microsoft&amp;itm_campaign=bi-intelligence-daily"></a></p>

Nvidia's GeForce Now game streaming service just became available to everyone, and it's already better than Google's Stadia

<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare"/Activision Blizzard</span></p><p class="caption">"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" was released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on October 25.</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/call-of-duty-modern-warfare">"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare"</a> generated more than $600 million in sales during its first three days.</li><li><strong>It's <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/activision-blizzard">Activision Blizzard's</a> most successful digital launch of all time, setting sales records on <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/pc">PC</a> and <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/playstation-4">PlayStation 4</a>.</strong></li><li><strong>"Modern Warfare" uses a new engine with photo-realistic graphics. The game also allows players on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One to play together for the first time in the history of the series.</strong></li><li><strong><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.</a></strong></li></ul><p>"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" had a massive launch, bringing in more than $600 million in its first three days. Publisher Activision Blizzard said "Modern Warfare" sold more in its first weekend than any "Call of Duty" game released since 2013.</p><p>With a new blockbuster release each year, "Call of Duty" is one of the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/best-selling-video-game-every-year-2018-11">best-selling video game franchises of all-time</a>, and publisher Activision has doubled down for 2019 by releasing both "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" and the free-to-play "Call of Duty Mobile" in October.</p><p><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/call-of-duty-mobile-downloads-revenue-first-week-2019-10">"Call of Duty Mobile" saw more than 100 million downloads</a> during the first week of October, but that didn't stop "Modern Warfare" from becoming the top-selling digital launch in Activision's history.</p><p>"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" also set new records on the PlayStation Network for the most digital preorders, and the most three-day digital sales on PlayStation 4. Activision also said "Modern Warfare" has become the top-selling "Call of Duty" PC launch ever, beating out last year's "Call of Duty: Black Ops 4."</p><p>"Black Ops 4" was the second-best-selling game of 2018, trailing "Red Dead Redemption 2." "Call of Duty: WWII" was the best-selling game of 2017, and "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" is likely to lead the charts for 2019 at its current pace.</p><p>"Through the first three days, Modern Warfare has more total players and total hours played than any Call of Duty opening release in the last six years," Activision President Rob Kostich said in a statement.</p><p>For the very first time, "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" unites the millions of "Call of Duty " players on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC by allowing cross-play and cross-progression, regardless of which version you're playing. The game also has a cinematic single-player campaign, which "Black Ops 4" lacked. "Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" was built on a new engine too, giving the game a major graphical improvement from last year.</p><p>"Call of Duty: Modern Warfare" was released for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC on October 25. The PC version of "Modern Warfare" is available on Battle.net, Blizzard's online gaming platform.</p><p class="tagline"><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/intelligence/brand-investment-esports?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_leadgen&amp;itm_content=videogames&amp;itm_campaign=brand-investment-esports"></a></p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-its-hard-for-planes-land-on-water-2019-10">Why it's so hard for planes to land on water</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

The latest 'Call of Duty' game is already setting sales records on PlayStation 4 and PC, and it's likely to become the best-selling game of 2019

<p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li>The next game in the "Call of Duty" franchise will feature a battle royale game mode in the same vein as the popular game "Fortnite."</li><li>The new game mode will allow 80 players to compete against each other on one map.</li><li>On Thursday, the game's developer, Treyarch, revealed the full map.</li></ul><p>Earlier this year "Call of Duty," one of gaming's most recognizable first-person shooter franchises, announced that it would be stepping into the battle royale genre popularized by "Fortnite" and "PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds" with a new mode in "Call of Duty: Black Ops 4."</p><p>Titled "Blackout," the mode will pit 80 players against each other on the largest map in the history of the series.</p><p>Developer Treyarch revealed the full map for "Blackout" on Sept. 5th via Twitter. "Blackout" will feature a number of returning characters and weapons from previous Black Ops games. In prior announcements, Treyarch said the map will feature some familiar locales and players will be able to wage war from land, sea, and air with a variety of vehicles.</p><p>Private beta tests for "Blackout" will be available to players who pre-ordered "Call of Duty: Black Ops 4" starting next week. PlayStation players will have access to an exclusive beta period from Sept. 10-14. Xbox One players will be able to join in on the fun Sept. 14 and the beta will continue on both consoles until Sept. 17th.</p><p>For those who prefer PC, there will be a single day of private beta for pre-orders on Sept. 14th, before the game enters open beta from Sept. 15-17.</p><p>"Call of Duty: Black Ops 4" will launch October 12 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC. The PC version will be exclusive to Blizzard's Battle.net.</p><div></div>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/samsung-galaxy-note-9-review-worth-it-2018-8">The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is a $1,000 phone that's actually worth it</a></h3>        <div>                    </div>    </div>

'Call of Duty' reveals the full map for its battle royale game mode inspired by 'Fortnite' - and PlayStation 4 owners will get a chance to play the beta early

<ul class="summary-list"><li>You can get a <keyword id="1421063" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="PlayStation-Store">PlayStation Store</keyword> refund by speaking to a live agent after you answer a series of simple questions through the PS customer support bot.</li><li>For most purchases, you have two weeks to request a refund — so long as the content hasn't been used or downloaded.</li><li>Games, in-game consumables, season passes, subscriptions, and pre-orders are among the <keyword id="6532" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="Playstation">PlayStation</keyword> Store purchases that are eligible for refunds. </li><li>You will need a PlayStation Store account and the owner of the payment source used to buy the content on-hand in order to receive a refund. </li></ul><p>Have you recently bought a skin for "Fortnite," a subscription to "GTA Online," or pre-ordered the "Spider-Man: Miles Morales" game and decided you no longer want it? Are you among the many PlayStation console users experiencing issues with "Cyberpunk 2077," CD Projekt's highly anticipated release that's featured some notable <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/cyberpunk-2077-players-on-ps4-xbox-one-bugs-glitches-2020-12">glitches</a>?</p><p>If digital purchases similar to these have been made through the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/playstation-store">PlayStation Store</a> and for whatever reason you no longer want them, there is a possibility for a refund. The process for securing one - including a unique set of steps for Cyberpunk 2077 - begins with confirming whether you're eligible. </p><p>You should note that guest accounts cannot request PS Store refunds, only account owners. It's also necessary that the account holder's information match the payment source used to purchase the PS Store item. </p><p>Once you know that your purchase qualifies, you can begin the refund process through PlayStation's <a href="https://cdn-sony-psn.suth.digital/index.html#/chat/web/Bj6zKFHAJPt?hbg=000000&amp;htc=FFFFFF&amp;sbg=0076d5&amp;stc=FFFFFF&amp;ac=003791&amp;btnbg=003791&amp;font=SST-Roman,sans-serif&amp;obc=CDCDCD&amp;apiUtilsUrl=https://sony-psn-dashboard.suth.digital&amp;btc=white&amp;devMode=false&amp;topicStart=refund&amp;mobile=false&amp;allowClear=false&amp;showCMS=false&amp;referrer=https://playstation.com/support/store/ps-store-refund-request&amp;htext=PlayStation%20Support&amp;phtext=&amp;wl=true&amp;data=%7B%7D&amp;originPageName=ps-store-refund-requestp;phtext=&amp;wl=true&amp;data=%7B%7D&amp;originPageName=ps-store-refund-request">customer support chat</a>.</p><h2>What qualifies for a refund in the PlayStation Store</h2><p>Three PlayStation Store content types are eligible for refunds: games and add-ons, subscriptions, and pre-orders. In general, PlayStation gives you 14 days from the date of purchase to request your refund, but there are some caveats. </p><p>Full game purchases, in-game consumables, season passes, and any downloadable content qualify under the games and add-ons refund policy. If you've already started to download or stream the game or add-on, you're ineligible for a refund - unless the game content proves to be faulty. (You can work out whether you're eligible with a live PS Store agent.)</p><p>Unlike the general policy around games and add-ons, you can get a refund on subscriptions if you've already started using the service. But that refund may be reduced - otherwise known as a partial refund - depending on how much you've used the service in relation to the length of its terms. Refund reductions are based not just on how long you've had the subscription, but whether you've played online, downloaded any monthly games, have used cloud storage, and more. </p><p>Finally, there are two options for those seeking a refund on pre-ordered games, depending on when you made the purchase. If you bought your pre-order over 14 days before its official release date, you could request a refund until the content's release date. However, if you pre-ordered a game or other content fewer than 14 days from its release date, like other PS Store content types, you can submit a refund request up to 14 days after the purchase date. If your pre-order included extra content available before the product release, you would lose access to it once you confirm the cancellation and refund.  </p><p>Regardless of what you purchased, PlayStation will refund your purchase to the payment source you used to buy the item, with a few exceptions. If you paid with Bancontact (MisterCash), Giropay, Ideal, Paysafecard, Postepay, Sofort, Yandex, mobile operator billing, and money vouchers, the refund would be sent instead to your PS Store wallet.</p><h2>How to request a PlayStation Store refund</h2><p><strong>1.</strong> <a href="https://my.account.sony.com/central/signin/?duid=000000070009010015e5a23e5fc864a4795d8710f33cedcae2fe5d0427d2718cd55e3cbe2e373871&amp;response_type=code&amp;client_id=e4a62faf-4b87-4fea-8565-caaabb3ac918&amp;scope=web%3Acore&amp;access_type=offline&amp;state=f9faedf8bbbfb1d035686f3688e7a2068b3ee2efa3a0b67f916a03a446bf165c&amp;service_entity=urn%3Aservice-entity%3Apsn&amp;ui=pr&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fweb.np.playstation.com%2Fapi%2Fsession%2Fv1%2Fsession%3Fredirect_uri%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fio.playstation.com%252Fcentral%252Fauth%252Flogin%253Flocale%253Den_US%2526postSignInURL%253Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.playstation.com%252Fen-us%252F%2526cancelURL%253Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.playstation.com%252Fen-us%252F%26x-psn-app-ver%3D%2540sie-ppr-web-session%252Fsession%252Fv4.3.3&amp;auth_ver=v3&amp;error=login_required&amp;error_code=4165&amp;error_description=User+is+not+authenticated&amp;no_captcha=true&amp;cid=b6fd9c8d-8b0e-4127-836b-8af4d3629089#/signin/ca?entry=cab6fd9c8d-8b0e-4127-836b-8af4d3629089#/signin/ca?entry=ca">Sign in</a> to your PlayStation account, or if you don't have one, <a href="https://id.sonyentertainmentnetwork.com/id/create_account_ca/?entry=%2Fcreate_account&amp;auth_ver=v3&amp;access_type=offline&amp;state=f9faedf8bbbfb1d035686f3688e7a2068b3ee2efa3a0b67f916a03a446bf165c&amp;ui=pr&amp;client_id=e4a62faf-4b87-4fea-8565-caaabb3ac918&amp;no_captcha=true&amp;redirect_uri=https%3A%2F%2Fweb.np.playstation.com%2Fapi%2Fsession%2Fv1%2Fsession%3Fredirect_uri%3Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fio.playstation.com%252Fcentral%252Fauth%252Flogin%253Flocale%253Den_US%2526postSignInURL%253Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.playstation.com%252Fen-us%252F%2526cancelURL%253Dhttps%253A%252F%252Fwww.playstation.com%252Fen-us%252F%26x-psn-app-ver%3D%2540sie-ppr-web-session%252Fsession%252Fv4.3.3&amp;response_type=code&amp;scope=web%3Acore&amp;service_entity=urn%3Aservice-entity%3Apsn&amp;cid=b6fd9c8d-8b0e-4127-836b-8af4d3629089&amp;duid=000000070009010015e5a23e5fc864a4795d8710f33cedcae2fe5d0427d2718cd55e3cbe2e373871#/create_account/wizard/entrance?entry=create_accountate_account/wizard/entrance?entry=create_account">register for a new account</a>.</p><p><strong>2.</strong> Launch the <a href="https://cdn-sony-psn.suth.digital/index.html#/chat/web/Bj6zKFHAJPt?hbg=000000&amp;htc=FFFFFF&amp;sbg=0076d5&amp;stc=FFFFFF&amp;ac=003791&amp;btnbg=003791&amp;font=SST-Roman,sans-serif&amp;obc=CDCDCD&amp;apiUtilsUrl=https://sony-psn-dashboard.suth.digital&amp;btc=white&amp;devMode=false&amp;topicStart=refund&amp;mobile=false&amp;allowClear=false&amp;showCMS=false&amp;referrer=https://playstation.com/support/store/ps-store-refund-request&amp;htext=PlayStation%20Support&amp;phtext=&amp;wl=true&amp;data=%7B%7D&amp;originPageName=ps-store-refund-request&amp;_k=96rqs3amp;wl=true&amp;data=%7B%7D&amp;originPageName=ps-store-refund-request&amp;_k=96rqs3">chatbox</a> and wait for the bot to initiate a series of questions that help start the refund process.  </p><ul><li><strong>Note:</strong> As of December 2020, the chatbot will prompt you about whether your refund pertains to "Cyberpunk 2077." See the section below for information on how to request a "Cyberpunk 2077" refund. </li></ul><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image1" height="1431" width="2877" msid="80012961" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>3.</strong> Select "Refund Request."</p><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image2" height="1438" width="2880" msid="80012964" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>4.</strong> Choose "I'm Ready" to begin the refund process. </p><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image3" height="1478" width="2878" msid="80012968" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>5.</strong> When prompted about whether you are the account holder, click "Yes, I am." </p><ul><li><strong>Note:</strong>  The payment source owner must be on hand. Either retrieve them to continue the refund process or make a note of your support ID and return to the chat when they're ready. </li></ul><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image4" height="1436" width="2874" msid="80012970" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>6. </strong>Select the payment type used when the purchase was made. </p><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image5" height="1436" width="2880" msid="80012972" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>7.</strong> Choose why you're requesting a refund.  </p><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image7" height="1435" width="2880" msid="80012979" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>8.</strong> You'll now be asked if the purchased items have been used or downloaded. If your response is "Yes," a refund is not possible as it interferes with Sony's cancellation <a href="https://www.playstation.com/en-us/legal/playstation-store-cancellation-policy/">policy</a>. </p><p><strong>9.</strong> If that's not the case, you'll be asked whether this is your first time requesting a refund, followed by a question about why you asked for the previous refund.</p><p><strong>10.</strong> The final prompt will ask how long has it been since the purchase date. Fill in the provided blank. </p><ul><li><strong>Note:</strong> If you don't remember your purchase date, you can find it in your account's <a href="https://www.playstation.com/en-us/support/store/check-ps-store-transaction-subscription-service/">transaction history</a>.</li></ul><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image8" height="1580" width="2869" msid="80012981" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>11.</strong> You'll be supplied with your support ID and then given the option to connect to a live agent.</p><h2>How to request a refund for 'Cyberpunk 2077' on PlayStation</h2><p>In December 2020, following the glitchy initial launch of "Cyberpunk 2077," PlayStation pulled the game from its store and offered buyers a full refund of their purchase. The company announced a separate refund process and a <a href="https://www.playstation.com/en-us/cyberpunk-2077-refunds/">webpage</a> explicitly dedicated to it. In a later <a href="https://twitter.com/AskPlayStation/status/1339762162609209346">tweet</a>, Sony acknowledged that users have been experiencing problems submitting "Cyberpunk 2077" refunds due to high volume. So if you are facing technical hiccups, consider trying again at a later time and date. Otherwise, here's how to get a "Cyberpunk 2077" refund. </p><p><strong>1.</strong> Visit the "Cyberpunk 2077" refund <a href="https://www.playstation.com/en-us/cyberpunk-2077-refunds/">page</a>. </p><p><strong>2.</strong> Sign in to your PlayStation account if you haven't already. </p><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image9" height="1436" width="2874" msid="80012983" hostid="261"></div><p><strong>3.</strong> After signing in, you'll be redirected to the refund portal. Select "Click here to submit a refund request." </p><p><strong>4.</strong> The page should reload with a confirmation message noting that the refund request has been submitted. </p><div type="image" title="PlayStationRefund_Image10" height="1581" width="2876" msid="80012985" hostid="261"></div><h2>Related coverage from <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/tech-reference" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tech Reference</a>:</h2><ul><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/is-ps5-backward-compatible">Is PS5 backward compatible? Here's what you should know about playing PS4 games on the PS5</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-long-is-left-on-my-playstation-plus-subscription">How to check how long you have left on your PlayStation Plus subscription in 3 simple steps</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-sign-into-playstation-network-ps4">How to sign in to your Playstation Network account on a PS4, and set up two-step verification for added security</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-cancel-playstation-now-on-ps4">How to cancel a PlayStation Now subscription on your PS4 in 5 simple steps</a></h3></li><li><h3><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-get-a-refund-on-battle-net">How to get a refund from Blizzard's Battle.net gaming platform</a></h3></li></ul>

How to get a refund from the PlayStation Store for a game, pre-order, or subscription purchase

<p><span><div class="KonaFilter image-container float_right"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div>At its BlizzCon conference on Friday, Blizzard - the developer behind some of the biggest game franchises ever, including "World Of Warcraft," "Diablo," and "StarCraft" - announced "Overwatch," <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/blizzard-overwatch-trailer-2014-11">its first new franchise in 17 years</a>. </span></p>
<p><span>The game will come out "sooner than you think," the company says, but a beta version will be available next year. Blizzard describes the game as a <span>team-based multiplayer shooter. It features a bunch of stylized characters who all have a variety of looks and skills.</span></span></p>
<p><span><span>During a panel for the game, director Jeff Kaplan <span>Chris Metzen,</span> Blizzard senior vice president of story and franchise development, said that they're not sure yet whether it will be a free or pay-to-play model, <a href="http://www.gamespot.com/articles/overwatch-business-model-console-plans-undecided/1100-6423452/">GameSpot reports</a>. And whether the game comes to other consoles is also still up in the air. Right now it's just confirmed for PC. </span></span></p>
<p><span><span><span><span>"We would love to see Overwatch played on whatever it could be played on," Kaplan said.</span></span></span></span></p>
<p><span>So if you're a PC user and you're interested in signing up for the beta, it's really easy.</span></p>
<p>First, go to the <a href="http://us.battle.net/overwatch/en/">official page</a> for "Overwatch." </p>
<p>At the top of the page, click on the yellow button that says "Beta."</p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div></p>
<p>You then have to enter your Battle.net account, or create one if you don't have one already.</p>
<p>Once you're signed in, click on the "sign up for beta" button. </p>
<p><div class="KonaFilter image-container"><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></p>
<p><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">And that's it. It's not a guarantee that you'll be invited to play the beta, but it's worth a shot. </span></p>

Here's How To Be One Of The First To Play The New Game From The Makers Of 'World Of Warcraft'

<p>Say what you will about people watching other people play video games live. The numbers don't lie.&#xa0;</p><ul><li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><strong>1.7 million people</strong> broadcast game streams every month on the largest streaming game service, Amazon-owned Twitch, according to </span><a href="https://www.twitch.tv/year/2015">data from 2015</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">.</span></li><li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">An average </span><strong style="line-height: 1.5em;">100 million people</strong><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> tune in to those streams. For comparison, there are just over 40 million PlayStation 4 consoles in the wild.</span></li><li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Amazon thought Twitch&#xa0;was impressive enough that </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-buys-twitch-2014-8">it bought the company for just shy of $1 billion back in 2014</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">.</span></li></ul><p>Twitch&#xa0;is available on&#xa0;every game console, to either watch games played or to broadcast your own. It's available on phones, tablets, computers, and set-top boxes like the Apple TV. It's the standard broadcast network of eSports tournaments the world over. As an added bonus, it's got the might of Amazon behind it. Who could challenge that?</p><p>Who indeed:</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Nearly one quarter of the Earth's human population, <strong>1.6 billion people</strong>, uses&#xa0;Facebook. When the company makes even a small change to its service&#xa0;- <em>The</em> Social Network -&#xa0;it can be tremendously impactful.</p><p>In the case of Facebook Live, a tool that enables any Facebook user to instantly&#xa0;live stream their&#xa0;life from their phone, Facebook made a huge change. Suddenly, there are notifications from friends, publications, celebrities, and anyone else you're connected to on Facebook (<a href="http://www.techinsider.io/how-to-get-rid-of-facebook-live-notifications-2016-6">there's a way to turn that off</a>). They're somewhere! Doing something! Right now! And you can watch it -&#xa0;<em>live</em>!</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>In June, Facebook announced a&#xa0;partnership with gaming powerhouse Blizzard Entertainment: All of Blizzard's games, from "World of Warcraft" to "Diablo 3" to "Hearthstone" to "Overwatch" are&#xa0;instantly streamable -&#xa0;<em>live</em>! - on Facebook Live.</p><p>You push a button, there's a short countdown (3....2....1), and you're off to the races, livestreaming your game directly to Facebook in high-resolution.</p><p>The service is available starting right now, Blizzard&#xa0;announced on Friday. The service was unveiled with&#xa0;this video on - where else? - Blizzard's&#xa0;Facebook page:<div></div></p><p>It's easy to imagine just such a service&#xa0;on everything from your&#xa0;iPhone to that PlayStation 4 in the living room.</p><p>Facebook agrees.</p><p>"Imagine every game that people are playing, regardless of platform, they have the opportunity to do one-button 'Go Live' to Facebook. That would be pretty awesome!" Facebook's director of games partnerships, Leo Olebe, told Business Insider in an interview earlier this year.&#xa0;</p><p>So we pushed. Is Facebook making that concept a reality?</p><p>"Yes, yes. It is," he told us. "Gamers are everywhere. They're on every different device, they're playing any time, and we want to be where gamers are."</p><h2>Creating the future of game streaming on Facebook</h2><p>Olebe is responsible for the partnership with Blizzard Entertainment, and says he and his team are "talking to developers just about every day."</p><p>What Facebook's doing with Blizzard is&#xa0;the first truly easy solution for streaming games directly to the largest social network in the world, and it's a relatively quick rollout when viewed in the context of Facebook's larger Live push.</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>Facebook Live initially went public last summer, but only for "Public Figures" (like Beyoncé and Mark Zuckerberg). Private citizens - normal people like you and me and <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/chewbacca-mask-on-facebook-live-video-2016-5">Chewbacca Mom</a>&#xa0;- only got access&#xa0;in January 2016. Even then, it was still limited to "Point your phone at something and make a video. Live!"</p><p>But then Facebook did something very smart: It released&#xa0;what are called "APIs," which are a means&#xa0;for more professional production to be broadcast on Facebook. Suddenly you've got publications like, say, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/businessinsider">Business Insider</a>, figuring out how to stream video games directly to Facebook.&#xa0;</p><p>Our setup requires a game capture box, an expensive piece of software, several cameras, mics, and lights, dozens of wires and adapters, an audio mixing board, and someone with experience operating a live internet broadcast (preferably).&#xa0;</p><p>If you're a normal person who doesn't work&#xa0;at a large publication, it's a big hassle. That hassle is something Olebe wants Facebook to solve.</p><p>"If we can make it easier - democratize, if you will - the ability for people to go live on Facebook, that's a great thing," he said. "We're working on tools and products and services internally to really enhance Live, and we're working on those things with [game] developers and publishers from around the world."</p><p></p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"></div><p></p></div></div><p>On the PlayStation 4, there's a button on the front of the controller that says "Share." When you push it, you're whisked to a screen that asks you where you'd like to share your games. Perhaps you'd like to upload a clip to Facebook? Perhaps you'd like to livestream a game directly to Twitch or YouTube?&#xa0;</p><p>There is no such option for Facebook Live. Nor does such an option exist with iPhone games, or PC games. And that's exactly what Facebook will need to solve if it wants to court the hundreds of millions of people watching and streaming games.&#xa0;</p><p>Olebe knows that, and sympathizes with the current situation. He insists on the importance of getting the product out, getting feedback, iterating based on that feedback, and growing. Here's the long-term view, from Olebe&#xa0;himself:</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">"It's absolutely in our interest, and yes, the Blizzard partnership is a step down this road, to make it as easy as possible. If you're going live from your mobile phone, you go on your Facebook page and you hit "Go Live." And it's like 3, 2, 1 and you're now live.&#xa0;There is a future where you have that similar type of experience but for gameplay. And so in this case, the implementation isn't live yet, but they're literally inputting a "Go Live" button into Battle.net and into Blizzard games. So you'll be playing "Overwatch," and you'll be able to just hit the "Go Live" button and it'll go live to your Facebook feed because you've used Facebook Login - you've connected your Facebook account - and now you hit the "Go Live" button and - boom! - your gameplay is being streamed to Facebook."</p><p>With 1.6 billion users, the best video player on the internet, and a partnership with one of the world's most successful game studios, Facebook is sending a direct message to Amazon's Twitch:&#xa0;<strong>Watch out</strong>.&#xa0;</p><p>Olebe repeatedly reminded me during the interview that Facebook already commands an audience of "650 million people," who are "either playing games on Facebook or with Facebook." The number includes people playing Facebook-based games, as well as the millions of people connecting to Facebook using the Login service, which lets&#xa0;you use your Facebook account to sign&#xa0;into services and games ranging from the world's most popular game console (the PlayStation 4) to one of the world's most popular games ("League of Legends").&#xa0;</p><p>Can Facebook turn all of those 650 million people into livestream video game watchers? Perhaps, but even if Facebook can't, a fraction of that number could easily best the existing heavy: Twitch. Olebe wouldn't tell us when its "Go Live" functionality will arrive in Blizzard's games (let alone on something like the PlayStation 4), but at the rate Facebook is already moving on live video, expect live video games to invade your social feed more and more as the year goes on.</p><p>You might be watching or, better yet, <em>streaming</em> your own games before you know it. That's the whole point!</p><p>As Olebe told us, "The idea that Facebook can be a place where people share the games that they love is, in my mind, a pretty compelling thing."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-facebook-thinks-political-views-liberal-democrat-2016-8">Here's how to see what Facebook thinks of your political views</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="p4ajZqNTE6v6Uv55buaOzN2mlOx5U0Pt" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

Facebook has finally made its move against one of Amazon's biggest properties

<p>Say what you will about people watching other people play video games live. The numbers don't lie. </p><ul><li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"><strong>1.7 million people</strong> broadcast game streams every month on the largest streaming game service, Twitch, according to </span><a href="https://www.twitch.tv/year/2015">data from 2015</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">.</span></li><li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">An average </span><strong style="line-height: 1.5em;">100 million people</strong><span style="line-height: 1.5em;"> tune in to those streams. For comparison, there are just over 40 million PlayStation 4 consoles in the wild.</span></li><li><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">Amazon thought Twitch was impressive enough that </span><a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/amazon-buys-twitch-2014-8">it bought the company for just shy of $1 billion back in 2014</a><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">.</span></li></ul><p>Twitch is available on every game console, to either watch games played or to broadcast your own. It's available on phones, tablets, computers, and set-top boxes like the Apple TV. It's the standard broadcast network of eSports tournaments the world over. As an added bonus, it's got the might of Amazon behind it. Who could challenge that?</p><p>Who indeed:</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span><a href="http://pictures.reuters.com/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&amp;VBID=2C0BXZY5CKS7L&amp;SMLS=1&amp;RW=1920&amp;RH=843#/SearchResult&amp;VBID=2C0BXZY5CKS7L&amp;SMLS=1&amp;RW=1920&amp;RH=843&amp;PN=4&amp;POPUPPN=196&amp;POPUPIID=2C0BF1N6HCM6">Robert Galbraith/Reuters</a></span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Nearly one quarter of the Earth's human population, <strong>1.6 billion people</strong>, are Facebook users. When the company makes even a small change to its service - <em>The</em> Social Network - it can be tremendously impactful. </p><p>In the case of Facebook Live, a tool that enables any Facebook user to instantly live stream their life from their phone, Facebook made a huge change. Suddenly, there are notifications from friends, publications, celebrities, and anyone else you're connected to on Facebook (<a href="http://www.techinsider.io/how-to-get-rid-of-facebook-live-notifications-2016-6">there's a way to turn that off</a>). They're somewhere! Doing something! Right now! And you can watch it - <em>live</em>!</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"><p class="source"><span>Twitter/Colin Jones</span></p><p class="caption">Everybody is live! WHO WILL YOU CHOOSE?!</p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>On Monday, Facebook announced a partnership with Blizzard Entertainment: All of Blizzard's games, from "World of Warcraft" to "Diablo 3" to "Hearthstone" to "Overwatch" will be instantly streamable - <em>live</em>! - on Facebook Live.</p><p>You push a "Go Live!" button, there's a short countdown (3....2....1), and you're off to the races, livestreaming your game directly to Facebook in high-resolution. It's easy to imagine just such a future on everything from your iPhone to that PlayStation 4 in the living room.</p><p>Facebook agrees.</p><p>"Imagine every game that people are playing, regardless of platform, they have the opportunity to do one-button 'Go Live' to Facebook. That would be pretty awesome!" Facebook's director of games partnerships, Leo Olebe, told Tech Insider in an interview on Tuesday morning. </p><p>So we pushed. Is Facebook making that concept a reality?</p><p>"Yes, yes. It is," he said. "Gamers are everywhere. They're on every different device, they're playing any time, and we want to be where gamers are."</p><h2>Creating the future of game streaming on Facebook</h2><p>Olebe is responsible for the recently-announced partnership with Blizzard Entertainment, and says he and his team are "talking to developers just about every day."</p><p>What Facebook's doing with Blizzard is the first truly easy solution for streaming games directly to the largest social network in the world, and it's a relatively quick rollout when viewed in the context of Facebook's larger Live push.</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><p class="source"><span>Facebook</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>Facebook Live initially went public last summer, but only for "Public Figures" (like Beyoncé and Mark Zuckerberg). Private citizens - normal people like you and me and <a href="http://www.techinsider.io/chewbacca-mask-on-facebook-live-video-2016-5">Chewbacca Mom</a> - only got access in January 2016. Even then, it was still limited to "Point your phone at something and make a video. Live!"</p><p>But then Facebook did something very smart: It released what are called "APIs," which are a means for more professional production to be broadcast on Facebook. Suddenly you've got publications like, say, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/TechInsiderEntertainment/videos/1152585781442608/">Tech Insider</a>, figuring out how to stream video games directly to Facebook. </p><p>Our setup requires a game capture box, an expensive piece of software, several cameras, mics, and lights, dozens of wires and adapters, an audio mixing board, and someone with experience operating a live internet broadcast (preferably). </p><p>If you're a normal person who doesn't work at a large publication, it's a big hassle. That hassle is something Olebe wants Facebook to solve.</p><p>"If we can make it easier - democratize, if you will - the ability for people to go live on Facebook, that's a great thing," he said. "We're working on tools and products and services internally to really enhance Live, and we're working on those things with [game] developers and publishers from around the world."</p><p><div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image"><p class="source"><span>Sony</span></p></div><p></p></div></div></p><p>On the PlayStation 4, there's a button on the front of the controller that says "Share." When you push it, you're whisked to a screen that asks you where you'd like to share your games. Perhaps you'd like to upload a clip to Facebook? Perhaps you'd like to livestream a game directly to Twitch or YouTube? </p><p>There is no such option for Facebook Live. Nor does such an option exist with iPhone games, or PC games. And that's exactly what Facebook will need to solve if it wants to court the hundreds of millions of people watching and streaming games. </p><p>Olebe knows that, and sympathizes with the current situation. He insists on the importance of getting the product out, getting feedback, iterating based on that feedback, and growing. Here's the long-term view, from Olebe himself:</p><p style="padding-left: 30px;">It's absolutely in our interest, and yes, the Blizzard partnership is a step down this road, to make it as easy as possible. If you're going live from your mobile phone, you go on your Facebook page and you hit "Go Live." And it's like 3, 2, 1 and you're now live. There is a future where you have that similar type of experience but for gameplay. And so in this case, the implementation isn't live yet, but they're literally inputting a "Go Live" button into Battle.net and into Blizzard games. So you'll be playing "Overwatch," and you'll be able to just hit the "Go Live" button and it'll go live to your Facebook feed because you've used Facebook Login - you've connected your Facebook account - and now you hit the "Go Live" button and - boom! - your gameplay is being streamed to Facebook.</p><p>With 1.6 billion users, the best video player on the internet, and a partnership with one of the world's most successful game studios, Facebook is sending a direct message to Amazon's Twitch: <strong>Watch out</strong>. </p><p>Olebe repeatedly reminded me during the interview that Facebook already commands an audience of "650 million people," who are "either playing games on Facebook or with Facebook." The number includes people playing Facebook-based games, as well as the millions of people connecting to Facebook using the Login service, which lets you use your Facebook account to sign into services and games ranging from the world's most popular game console (the PlayStation 4) to one of the world's most popular games ("League of Legends"). </p><p>Can Facebook turn all of those 650 million people into livestream video game watchers? Perhaps, but even if Facebook can't, a fraction of that number could easily best the existing heavy: Twitch. Olebe wouldn't tell us when its "Go Live" functionality will arrive in Blizzard's games (let alone on something like the PlayStation 4), but at the rate Facebook is already moving on live video, expect live video games to invade your social feed more and more as the year goes on.</p><p>You might be watching or, better yet, <em>streaming</em> your own games before you know it. That's the whole point!</p><p>As Olebe told us, "The idea that Facebook can be a place where people share the games that they love is, in my mind, a pretty compelling thing."</p>    <div class="margin-top">        <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/what-its-like-twitchcon-live-gaming-2015-9">20,000 gamers turned out for Twitch's first convention - here's what it was like</a></h3>        <div>            <div>        <div class="ooyala-video-player" data-video-autoplay="false" data-video-id="1kY21zdzorxgLoOJZuk_5ocOKKjl0k-s" data-player-variable="ooyalapopvideo" id="ooyalaplayer_popvideo" style="width:1280px;height:720px"></div>        </div>        </div>            </div>

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