Kick has a new plan to increase its credibility among streamers: It’s hitting the rewind button.
No, Kick isn’t releasing its take on the most-disliked YouTube video of all time. Its interpretation of the word “rewind” is more literal, as its viewers will “soon” have the ability to back up live action and replay hype stream moments right after they happen.
Kick announced its “real-time” rewind tool with a video on X that featured streaming star xQc. The electric-haired Quebecois creator demoed the feature while playing Overwatch; he staged a stream highlight that viewers could not see due to technical difficulties, then showed how simple it is to rewind the broadcast and catch up on the missed action.
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Rewind in real time?
Pick Kick. pic.twitter.com/Uk948wQOV2
— Kick (@KickStreaming) January 27, 2025
“Actually ahead of the curve, hold on now,” xQc wrote on X. Kick founding father Trainwreck responded by admitting that the tool has “a lot of things still to fix,” though he still termed it a “W” nevertheless.
One reason why this feature is such a big W for Kick is because an analogous stream rewinder is not currently available on Twitch. Like other major streaming platforms, Twitch lets streamers turn their highlights into VOD clips, but Kick’s real-time rewind adds a new layer of immediacy to that type of content. That’s why the Stake.com-affiliated hub is now instructing potential users to “pick Kick” if they want to “never miss that moment.”
The feature is also significant in terms of the strategic shift it represents for Kick. The platform got off to a hot start in its early days, when it inked massive exclusive contracts with streamers like xQc. Those deals gave Kick the name recognition it needed at the time, but they also wound up being seen as albatrosses more than anything else. As Kick looks to cater to the other 99% of its community, it is introducing features that give streamers legitimate reasons to jump ship from Twitch — no hefty contracts necessary.
