Microsoft’s new Mixer Create app lets you live stream games from your phone

Microsoft’s mobile game streaming app Mixer Create is launching out of beta testing today on iOS and Android, allowing gamers to broadcast the games they’re playing right from their phone. This feature works on Android with all games, but is more limited on iOS. On iPhone, select games that have enabled Apple’s ReplayKit functionality will work, the company notes.

That means games like Star Trek Timelines, Goat Simulator, Modern Combat 5: Blackout, and others will be supported.

The app can also be used for co-streaming, which allows up to four streamers to combine their streams into a single viewing experience, Microsoft says in its announcement. In the new app, there’s now an invitations feature that’s partially functional for now. Currently, you can accept or reject the pop-up co-stream invites, but in a few months, you’ll be able to send out these co-stream invites as well.

Gamers can also use the app for non-gaming related purposes, too – like vlogging through a feature that lets them ‘go live’ at any time to initiate a real-time broadcast to their fans.

Plus, streamers can interact with viewers in their channel’s chat interface when broadcasting, as they could on PC or Xbox.

This includes access to moderation tools as well. Some gamers may choose to use the Mixer Create app for chat, while streaming from their computer or console, Microsoft suggests.

The launch comes shortly after rival Twitch debuted an updated streaming app of its own, which included the ability to live stream from mobile devices to their channels. Like Microsoft, Twitch is also working to expand beyond gaming to allow its streamers to broadcast other content, including personal updates and other artistic endeavours.

While Microsoft has some features gamers want, its traction in the streaming market still lags behind both Twitch and YouTube in terms of reach. According to a recent study by Streamlabs, Twitch has a much larger chunk of the streaming market, ahead of YouTube in second place. Microsoft, Periscope and Facebook Live had only slivers.

However, Mixer (a startup that won TechCrunch Disrupt last year, when it was then called Beam), is still a relatively new entry to this market, and could catch up in time, or at least increase its share.

Mixer Create is live now on both Android and iOS.