Twitch announced today that a new program will give Overwatch League viewers tokens that they can use to buy team-based character skins inside Blizzard Entertainment’s popular shooter.
Overwatch League is Blizzard’s giant esports initiative, pitting city-based teams from around the world in regular competition at its new complex in Los Angeles. It also offers salaries to its competitors. The opening day of Overwatch League drew 425,000 concurrent Twitch viewers. Promotions like this will encourage Overwatch players to watch even more of the league, and it could also bring back viewers who watched Overwatch League during its debut but have since lapsed.
If you connect your Battle.net account to Twitch, MLG.com, or OverwatchLeague.com, you can earn one League Token after watching teams compete on each map. At the end of the final map of competition, a random, unspecified number of viewers will receive 100 tokens. You need 100 League Tokens to unlock an Overwatch League skin inside the game.
Twitch is also going to offer Overwatch skins to users who use the site’s Cheering with Bits system, a currency that you can buy with real money and then spend as a tip during streams. You can earn timed-exclusive hero skins this way, and you can also unlock emotes and other team-branded items.
Twitch also announced that it is working on a VIP Overwatch League ticket that will unlock more in-game items, behind-the-scenes videos, and more.