In a move which marks Twitch's first step in the direction of taking the e-sports trend mainstream, Twitch - the world's biggest video platform and community for gamers - has worked out a partnership with Sony Online Entertainment (SOE) for the integration of live broadcasting functionality into SOE's forthcoming games.

According to a recent announcement, Twitch and SOE have joined forces to give the gamers the ability to stream their gaming sessions over the Internet; and the first title to feature the gameplay-streaming capability will bet the much-awaited free-to-play massively multiplayer online first-person shooter (MMOFPS) PlanetSide 2.

Unfolding a unique gaming experience, PlanetSide 2 - which is scheduled to hit the markets in North America and Europe on November 20, 2012 - will essentially have the players battling in colossal environments together with, as well as against, thousands of players; thereby underscoring a fierce air and ground warfare spanning the alien planet of Auraxis.

While the free-to-play PlanetSide 2 - with `paid' optional content also to be available in the market - will be the first game in the Twitch-SOE partnership, it has been revealed that the future relevant SOE games will also apparently slot in the Twitch integration.

Noting that Twitch is very ambitious about taking the e-sports trend mainstream, Matthew DiPietro - Twitch's VP of Marketing - said: "We really envision a future in which playing a game becomes the same thing as broadcasting a game."