Twitch brings the energy in its refreshed identity
Porto Rocha has created an expanded identity system for the livestreaming platform that channels the myriad personalities and passion points found across the online entertainment universe
“If you ever go to TwitchCon, you’ll see multiple people with the Glitch mark actually tattooed on them,” Twitch’s then ECD Byron Phillipson told us back in 2019, when the livestreaming platform revealed its first identity refresh since it launched in 2011.
It’s therefore safe to assume that changes to Glitch – the nickname given to the platform’s speech bubble logo – will always be handled with a light touch. However, as the brand’s identity update by design agency Porto Rocha reveals, there is still plenty of room for manoeuvre.
The Glitch logo has been transformed from a flat design into a glossier 3D iteration in a reversal of trends from the 2010s, which saw a lot of brands strip away metallic shadows in favour of block shapes.
The same thinking has been carried through to a broad suite of 3D illustrated motifs that add personality to the identity and serve as contextual markers to signpost the content people are interacting with.
The wider elements of the identity have also been dealt with carefully, maintaining instantly recognisable brand assets like its purple colour palette. Meanwhile, the Twitch wordmark is the same in principle, but it’s joined by a vibrant complementary palette and sparkly flourishes that come to life in motion.
The existing typeface – a customised version of Roobert, named after the music synthesiser pioneer Robert Moog – has been evolved with the help of Displaay Type Foundry, and will appear in “simplified typography systems”. The Porto Rocha team have also spent time mapping out a “more intuitive layout approach” to make it easier for the brand’s internal team to continue creating fresh graphics of their own.
While the wider identity is maximalist and energetic, it has been joined by an updated UI that strips away clutter and focuses attention on the streams.
The UI features rounded framing devices for assets, backgrounds and labels that are echoed in brand comms, bringing a consistent design to people wherever they encounter Twitch as they tab between different parts of their lives.
