A Nuzlocke is at its best with an audience: viewers name your Pokémon, hold their breath at every critical hit and mourn every loss with you. A live team overlay makes that easy — your chat always sees your party, levels and the next level cap without you ever alt-tabbing.
The PokéRuns Nuzlocke and SoulLink trackers include an OBS overlay that updates live while you play. Here’s how to set it up.
What the overlay shows
- Your team — or, in a Soul Link, the linked teams of every player you select
- Nicknames and levels
- The current level cap and your progress through the game’s milestones
- Animated sprites, if you like them moving
- A horizontal layout for the top or bottom of the screen, or a vertical one for the side
The overlay has a transparent background, so it sits directly on top of your gameplay — no chroma key needed.
Step 1: Put your run online
The overlay reads your run from the PokéRuns server. Guest runs and account runs are already online. If you started a local run in your browser, open it and choose Move online first.
Step 2: Create the overlay link
- Open your run and go to Sharing & overlay.
- In the OBS overlay section, choose the players to show (in a Soul Link, you can show everyone or just yourself).
- Pick the layout — horizontal or vertical — and toggle nicknames, levels, caps and progress.
- Click Open preview to check the result in your browser.
- Copy the overlay link.
The overlay link is read-only. It never contains full spoiler data, and you can revoke it at any time from the same menu.
Step 3: Add it to OBS
- In OBS Studio, open the scene you use for gameplay.
- In Sources, click + and choose Browser.
- Name it, for example “PokéRuns team”, and paste the overlay link into URL.
- Set Width and Height. A horizontal overlay fits well at around 1920 × 300 at the bottom of a 1080p canvas; a vertical one at around 420 × 1080 at the side.
- Confirm, then drag and resize the source in the preview until it sits where you want it.
Because the background is transparent, you don’t need a chroma key. If you want to fine-tune the look, the browser source has a Custom CSS field.
Step 4: Play
Every change you make in the tracker — a new catch, a level-up, a fainted Pokémon, the next cap — appears on stream automatically. In a Soul Link, your partners’ updates appear too, so viewers can follow both games from one overlay.
Tips for streamers
- Let chat name your Pokémon. Nicknames create attachment — for you and your viewers.
- Show the next cap. It builds tension before every boss and explains why you’re grinding.
- Keep the graveyard visible between fights. A quick look at the fallen before the Elite Four is a moment your audience will remember.
- Use a separate scene for boss previews. Every PokéRuns game guide lists the next boss’s team — perfect for a “here’s what we’re up against” segment.
- Refresh the source if it stops updating. OBS browser sources occasionally need a refresh after long sessions. The Refresh browser when scene becomes active option in the source properties can help.
Frequently asked questions
Does the overlay work with Streamlabs or other software?
Yes. Any streaming software that supports browser sources can display it. The steps are the same: add a browser source and paste the overlay link.
Can viewers change my run through the overlay link?
No. Overlay links are read-only. Only players with an edit link or a seat in the run can change it.
Can I show both teams in a Soul Link?
Yes. Choose which players appear in the overlay. You can show everyone in one overlay or create separate overlays for each player.
