Game night knockout: friends on the couch, a glowing tournament bracket on the big screen

ExplorePlayTournaments

Play Tournaments

Run a knockout tournament on your PC

Create a public event, share one link, and let viewers register with Twitch. They play the game running on your Windows PC. They join from a browser: no game install, and no StreamChum account.

Get startedHow it runs
✓Included with Play once Play Host is paired
  • Knockout brackets: 1v1 through 4v4, or custom
  • Public event page with roster, countdown, and bracket
  • Players connect Twitch for a name and avatar only
  • You start, seat, and pick winners from that same page

Instant Play still uses a nickname, waiting room, and up to four pads when you do not need a bracket.

How it runs

Create the tournament in Play and run it from its page

01

Create it on the Play page

Pair the Windows Play Host. Tournaments show even if a session is not live yet. Open the Tournaments tab, name the event, pick 1v1 through 4v4 (or custom), add games, and set a cover.

02

Share the player link

View/Edit opens the public page at /play/t/…. Players enter with Twitch for a name and avatar. They do not create a StreamChum account. The page links Terms and Privacy at connect.

03

Start, seat, pick winners

Start Play and the event from the public page. Seat the current match on P1 through P4, choose the winner, and the bracket advances. You can cancel the event if you need to stop.

The event page

One URL for players, chat, and the host

Everyone watches the same page: cover, countdown, who registered, who is playing, and the knockout tree. A finished event becomes a static recap with the bracket, roster, and champion until you delete it from Past.

Players

Enter, wait, join

Upcoming: enter with Twitch, or withdraw. Live: when the host seats a match, those players are taken into Play. If someone is away, a Join button and a forfeit countdown appear. Everyone else stays on the page until it is their turn. The final winner gets a full-screen announcement, then the page returns to the finished event.

Host and mods

Run it in place

Workspace owners, admins, and moderators signed into StreamChum get host tools on that page: edit details while it is upcoming, auto-pair or assign teams, start, seat, pick winners, and cancel.

Past

Keep or delete the recap

Completed and cancelled knockouts appear under Past on the Play page. View opens the static public recap. If you delete it there, the public link stops working.

Formats

Knockouts that fit a couch, or a long list

1v1 to 4v4

Choose a standard or custom team size

Single-elimination. For 2v2 and up you can auto-pair at start, or assign teams yourself. Empty slots in the tree become byes so the bracket stays even.

2 to 128

Player slots you set

Registration closes when the field is full, or when you start. Play still seats at most four pads per match. That is the same P1 through P4 room as Instant Play.

Games

Search or browse Inspiration picks

Search for a game, or tap Looking for inspiration to pick by player count, genre, and year. That catalog is PC local play, kept current daily from IGDB, the same list Instant Play shows before the host is paired.

Cover art

Add cover art to the event page

Pick an image from Media, or generate one from the event name and description. Generated covers use the same creative AI credit wallet as Element Builder. Name the tournament first.

  • Upload from the Media library, or generate with AI
  • Cover shows on the public page and on the Play page cards
  • You can still edit name, description, games, and cover while the event is upcoming
What you need

Tournaments use the same Play Host

Host

Windows Play Host

Get the zip from Downloads, pair it, and install ViGEmBus from the app if needed. Guests get a virtual pad, not desktop access. Setup is in the Play Host docs.

Seats

Four pads per match

Seat the current match when both sides are ready. Players in that match join from the event page. The rest wait there. You pick the winner when the round is done.

Casual

Instant Play is still there

Nickname join, waiting room, and one-click seating stay on Instant Play. Use tournaments when you want a public bracket, Twitch identities, and a recap you can keep.

StreamChum PlayDownloads
Frequently asked questions

What streamers ask about tournaments

Setup for the host is on the Play host docs. Casual rooms are on Play.

No. You host on your Windows PC. StreamChum Play streams the picture out and maps their browser pads back as virtual controllers. They do not download or install a client.

StreamChum PlayBring viewers into live games from their browser.DownloadsStudio for Windows and Mac, plus OBS and Stream Deck plugins.StreamChum StudioGo live, or record the program to a file. Custom looks in seconds.

Run your stream from one login.

Go live from Studio, work across your connected channels, post to Discord, and create a custom look.

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