Streamlabs announced on the 22. November 2017 that the streaming bot software AnkhBot joins the family.
Announcement: https://blog.streamlabs.com/ankhbot-is-joining-the-streamlabs-family-1c71dfc26690
AnkhBot became officially Streamlabs Chatbot and with that especially one big thing stood out for us: "Premium features which would have cost something in the near future will stay free". That means we can go wild on creating scripts for it and it will never cost you anything!
With that in mind we reworked and overhauled all our scripts and made them even better but look for yourself below.
Hello fellow nerds, gamers but especially you Streamers out there,
Streamlabs Chatbot (formerly AnkhBot) has an integrated Python API which allows us to create outstanding scripts and tools for you streamers. Among other ideas we were especially fixated on the usage of the StarCraft II Client API since my friend Burny and me both like to play as well as stream that game.
We worked on some tools which work for StarCraft II exclusively and some other scripts which might be interesting for streamers in general. But let's stop talking too much and get started with a quick overview of what we created and now offer:
- OBS Scene Switcher (SC2 only)
- MatchInfo (SC2 only)
- Betting System (SC2 only)
- StreamTimers
- TTS Announcer
- Update Notifier
- Upcoming: Betting System (For casters)
- Upcoming: Stats’n’Track
- Upcoming: ReplayManager
Watching it live is always a good thing. Here's a list of Twitch streamers who use our scripts:
- twitch.tv/wellbrained
- twitch.tv/burnysc2
- twitch.tv/mraptor
- twitch.tv/hoplite1
- twitch.tv/hupsaiya
- twitch.tv/anansi_storyteller
- twitch.tv/16thSquadSanseki
- twitch.tv/rootcatz
- twitch.tv/x5_pig
- twitch.tv/xjustxjordanx
- twitch.tv/breadbeardtv
- twitch.tv/kj_freeedom
- twitch.tv/beastyqt
- twitch.tv/liquidmana
I assume every streamer who worked with OBS knows about the OBS SceneSwitcher Plugin from R1CH which switched the Scenes in OBS depending on if you're ingame or in the menu.
We recreated that in Chatbot and added a bit more functionality to it. Seperate overlays for each scene in the game itself (In Menu, In Game, In Replay) and also a Casting Mode which let's you set up three additional scenes when you are also casting games.
To give you an idea how the settings would look:
This script gathers informations from the matches you play and you can use them either in your Twitch title or in textfiles so you're able to show those infos in your overlay.
Accessible infos:
- For both players: Name, Race and MMR
- Matchup
- Region/Server
- Ingame time in minutes and seconds
Thanks to the cooperation with SC2Unmasked we're also able to offer those two features:
- Identify barcodes and replace the barcode with the real playername in real-time
- Let the bot do custom shoutouts in chat when the opponents streams right now as well
The proper usage with examples and proper "documentation" is within the new Readme which you can access per button on top in the menu.
To give you an idea how the settings look like:
A lot of bots have the option to do bettings in chat but nobody really uses that feature since it's quite a hassle to always set them up manually and for StarCraft II even more so. It's a great idea to do that for every game but .. let's be honest: It's a pain in the ass to do and hence nobody does it.
However! What would happen if that process of creating a bet, letting people do the betting, closes it and actually select winners was automated?
That's where our betting system comes into play since that's exactly what it does! This means you only need to set it up once and decide if you want to enable it this stream or not. Easy, right?
You: "Well, yea... but that's a chat-only thing again, right?"
Mh... well, have a look at these two screenshots:
It's not! We also offer overlays which you can use for your stream and decide on some customizations such as the labels, betting commands for the viewers and animation you want and if the overlay should hide again after the time is up where people can bet so it only fades in again to announce the winner of the match.
Big update for version 1.2.0:
Voting: If you don't like to use a currency for your stream then don't do it. Switch the betting system to a voting system and let them vote without any currency at all. The overlay will be displayed with percentages then instead of total amount of points then.
You like the voting system more but also want to use your currency? We got you covered: Set an amount of points every vote will cost and viewers can vote with just the commands.
Overlays/Themes: We created a theme system for Chatbot and our script so you can go ahead and create your own betting overlay with just a bit of HTML, CSS and JS knowledge. Afterwards just select the theme you'd like to use within the script and change them up on the fly.
A quick look at the menu here as well:
There are two timers which streamers and viewers care about: First a countdown which usually runs before the actual stream starts and second a timer that displays the uptime of the stream.
Both normally require an installation of another program but we want all of it in one solution - so we created StreamTimers.
It looks like that:
It creates both timers as a textfile and you can customize them in some ways like the time format. Here's a screenshot of our tooltip for the time zone textfield:
You can also display a custom text after the countdown finished like "Starting soon(TM)" which I personally really like.
The uptime will start automatically when it detects that your stream went online and the "Max Sleep Timer" is a safety option when your stream disconnects, OBS crashes, etc. It will stop the uptime and continues if you reconnect within that sleep timer. If you go live after that period of time it will automatically resets the timer and assumes you do a new stream.
Note: If you don't like setting up the timer in these settings you can also do that per commands in chat. See "Set xx chat command" on the image above.
As the name tells it's a simple text-to-speech system which enables your viewers to let a voice say what they wrote in chat. It allows a lot of configuration like the "Min Power Level" which says who can use it (Everyone, Regulars, Subs or only Mods), the cost of it, cooldowns and supports a lot of languages.
Note: Since that also can lead to some trolling we also included a "Black List" so you can filter out words you definitely don't want to hear in your stream.
Here is an overview and the languages we support currently:
Receiving posts and messages from bugs and errors which are caused by using older versions was quite the normal. People didn't have a way to see if a new version is out unless they checked the discord server in a regular fashion.
Hence we created the script "Update Notifier": It's notifying you if a new version is out in currently four different ways which you can choose yourself and find your way to the publishing site (discord, website) and download the newest version. Extremely simple but useful in our opinion.
Since we think the betting system has a lot of potential and even casters could use that for showmatches we're working on a seperate script just for them.
Why? Because this would be different...
- ..Overlay graphics
- ..Overlay labels
- ..Chat messages
- ..no StarCraft 2 Accounts needed
- ..Animations?!
Those reasons are enough for us to say that we definitely want a seperate solution for this.
Another upcoming tool which allows you to track your games, wins/losses/win rates (in total and per matchup), MMR progress and you can decide what to display on your stream and maybe even with fancy graphics and more.
This feature is still “under construction” since we’re still not sure what people would really like to see and track. But we promise it will be awesome, helpful and fancy looking on your stream!
A new idea that we're currently working on is our so called "Replay Manager". It'll allow people to rename them in a format they want, move them into seperate folders and also set filters for replays you want to be deleted instantly (games under 1 minute in case someone left instantly).
That way streamers also have a way to easily set up replay packs when they let it organise per month as example.
If you got ideas, suggestions or wishes you want to see in such a script don’t hesitate to write it down below as a comment or directly in our discord.
True to the motto: From the SC-Community for the SC-Community.
You’re hooked and want to know how to get all that?
Step 1: Download SL Chatbot from their website: https://streamlabs.com/chatbot/
Step 2: You can download these scripts for free on following two places (currently the safest bet for the newest version is our discord since I'm working on a new version for the website):
- Our discord: Discord invitation
If you didn't download it from those two places or the Chatbot's official discord we won't guarantee for anything. We also don't allow sharing or offering it on other places!
Step 3: Get your stuff configured as you like and start streaming
There are also ReadMe files in every script with - we believe - simple and easy to follow instructions on how to get started.
Does it cost something?
Since AnkhBot joined the Streamlabs family we can confirm that it will stay free.
You have problems with the Chatbot itself?
We won't offer support for general problems but only for our scripts. If you need help/support for it you can check out the discord of them: Streamlabs Chatbot Discord
You want to report bugs or feedback/ideas?
If you want to report problems/bugs or want to share some ideas and suggestions for improvement please leave a comment on the TL thread here or at best join our discord and write it in the channel for it: Discord invitation
If you encounter problems please try to deliver as much information as possible so we can find the problem quickly. Reports like "It doesn't work anymore" won't help us a lot ^_^
With future releases we also integrate a more professional bug-tracking so you can just send us error-logs but that isn't the case right now, sorry.
You don't like our overlays or want to create/get your own??
You're free to create your overlays as you like (You need knowledge about HTML, CSS and JS).
Otherwise you can get some personalised versions made by us which will cost some depending on your needs and wishes.
We hope you like those tools and can upgrade your streaming experience. Not only for you streamers but also for the viewers who can have more informations and can get more interaction going with the Betting System.
~ Brain & Burny
Troubleshooting Q&A
+ Show Spoiler +
### TROUBLESHOOTING - Everything related to scripts
#My Chatbot has no scripts tab!
* Do you have Chatbot version 1.0.2.0 or newer installed?
* In the "Connections" menu of Chatbot (the icon in the bottom left), in "Connections -> Twitch Bot -> Channel" did you put YOUR channel name in the "channel" field and is it the same as the "Connections -> Twitch Streamer -> Username"?
#Why do my scripts not show up?
* In the Chatbot scripts tab, in the top right hit the cog / wheel icon and link your python 2.7.13 installation!
### TROUBLESHOOTING - SC2 Scene Switcher
# Why do my scenes not automatically change?
* In the Chatbot - Scripts tab, select scene switcher and enter the names of your scenes to exactly what they are called in your OBS studio (case sensitive!). Also in the same window, is your scene switcher enabled? Hit "save settings" to apply changes.
* Did you install OBS remote plugin for OBS studio (link in readme)? If yes, go into OBS studio, open "Tools" -> "Websocket server settings" and enter a password. Now, in Chatbot at the bottom left, hit the little human icon (shoulder+head), go to the "OBS Remote" tab and enter the same password, now hit "Connect" while having OBS studio running. You may have to do the "Connect" part each time you launch Chatbot.
# Why is there no field for when you are "tabbed out of Sc2"?
* This might be an upcoming feature if people actually want it.
### TROUBLESHOOTING - SC2 Title Updater
# Why does the script not detect me as player and use the caster title instead?
* In the "STARCRAFT II ACCOUNTS" tab, enter your in game nickname, e.g. "Burny" and NOT "Burny#2452".
# Why does my title not update?
* You didn't enter your client ID and oauth correctly in the "USER SETTINGS" tab of the script. Check the readme.txt on how to obtain a client ID and oauth.
# Why do my overlay files not get created / updated?
* Is the "ENABLE TEXT FILE CHANGES" checkbox active?
* This might be a admin right issue and Chatbot cannot create text files. You can find the overlay files in "(AnkhBotFolder)ChatbotFolder\Twitch\Files\SC2TitleUpdater_OverlayText1.txt".
# Why does the variable $mymmr$ not work?
* You didn't enter the (correct) rankedFTW URL. Go to http://www.rankedftw.com/ enter your account name e.g. "burny", select YOUR profile and then go on the ladder icon http://i.imgur.com/F6Nfij7.png and now copy the link you are on, it should be similar to http://www.rankedftw.com/ladder/lotv/1v1/mmr/?team=1372705
### TROUBLESHOOTING - SC2 Betting System
# I am testing the script by playing 1v1 against AI, why does it not work?
* The script will not work when playing against AI. Please test it against a friend of yours or by queueing in unranked 1v1.
# I am testing the script in custom game / unranked / ranked 1v1 games, why does it not send a message in twitch?
* The script has not detected you as a player, did you put your in game nickname in the "STARCRAFT II ACCOUNTS" field, e.g. "Burny" but NOT "Burny#52435"
# The bot sends messages in twitch now, but the overlay doesn't work!
* You have to insert the Chatbot API Key into the script so that the script and overlay can communicate. Rightclick the betting script in the script tab and click "Insert API Key". Now add the file
"(AnkhBotFolder)ChatbotFolder\Twitch\Scripts\SC2BetSystem\Overlays\index.html"
as browser source in OBS.
# I don't want certain response messages to appear (e.g. when user joined betting), how to disable them?
* Empty the text field and the bot will no longer send response messages.