YouTube Gaming is no longer a standalone entity. Instead, YouTube Gaming is being incorporated into YouTube itself, with the app and site disappearing. This is designed to bring the entire YouTube gaming community together in one place.
A Brief History of YouTube Gaming
In 2015, YouTube launched YouTube Gaming. This was a standalone site spun off from YouTube, and was dedicated to video games and gamers. YouTube Gaming was launched in response to the success of Twitch, which had turned gaming into a spectator sport.
In 2018, YouTube announced that YouTube Gaming was coming home, with plans in place to roll YouTube Gaming into the main YouTube app. And that's now happening, with the YouTube Gaming app and site shutting down completely on May 30, 2019.
YouTube Gaming Becomes Part of YouTube
The YouTube Gaming app has already been removed from the Google Play Store and Apple App Store. Any subscriptions you had on the YouTube Gaming app should also have been moved over to YouTube. If not, you should visit your Subscription Manager.
The final piece of the puzzle is being slotted into place on May 30, 2019. This is when the YouTube Gaming app and dedicated website will both be shut down completely. Which means you'll be directed to the new Gaming destination on YouTube itself.
If you're currently a member of any channels on YouTube Gaming your membership will transfer over. That is unless the channel or channels you're a member of no longer has Memberships enabled, in which case your membership will automatically be cancelled.
If you only use YouTube for gaming content there is, unfortunately, no way of making the Gaming homepage the default either on YouTube or in the app. Instead, you'll need to bookmark YouTube.com/Gaming in your web browser of choice.
YouTube Understands the Appeal of Gaming
The shutting down of YouTube Gaming should not be seen as a failure on YouTube's part. On the contrary, it shows how important gaming-related content is to YouTube. Which is why the company doesn't want the YouTube Gaming community split across two apps.
While it's difficult for older generations to understand the appeal of watching other people play video games, this hobby is here to stay. In fact, live-streaming is one of the best ways to make money playing video games, so it would be churlish to scoff.