eSports league Gfinity Australia to run in Hoyts cinemas 0 Likes

Recently UK-based e-sports company Gfinity has signed a deal with cinema chain Hoyts to create a chain of e-sports arenas around Australia. With that Australia's first city-based professional eSports league has taken another step toward reality with the announcement of a Hoyts cinemas partnership to create arenas in cinemas around Australia.

Gfinity Australia is a multisport eSports league scheduled to launch in April with a 2018 prize pool of $450,000. Teams will compete on car-soccer game Rocket League, fighting game Street Fighter V, and team-based first person shooter Counter Strike: Global Offensive.

Dominic Remond, incoming chief executive of Gfinity Esports Australia concluding his term as general manager of the Sydney Sixers Big Bash League team is all excited with gamers for inaugural Gfinity Elite Series which will be the first event to be staged at the new arena. It'll be a state-of-the-art experience for fans to come and watch and also for streaming and live broadcast.

The entire first season will be based in the first eSports arena to be built at the Hoyts Entertainment Quarter complex at Moore Park in Sydney.

While eSports arenas and live stadium events have been taking off around the world, the Australian market has been slower to make the leap due to a smaller market size and a difficult competitive gaming landscape due to inconsistent internet infrastructure.

Despite this Blizzard Entertainment's Overwatch, Riot Games' League of Legends, and an Intel Extreme Masters tournament have all held successful live audience events in large Australian theatres and arenas in the past year.

Global online audience

eSports events are most typically broadcast online in formats that are easily viewable in the homes of fans, but the success of live events locally and overseas shows that, like any traditional sport, fans do enjoy coming together in person to have the shared experience only live venues can deliver.

Australian cinemas are also no strangers to the potential of live eSports. Event Cinemas and Hoyts have held ticketed live viewing events for major local and international eSports tournaments.

Also as E-sport is moving to a much more community-, fan-based feel and away from the old idea of kids at home playing at a desk in the bedroom. Cinema going is a social activity so eSports and the way that it's headed just works perfectly in that sense. As well as viewing, venues will be built to accommodate high-end gaming facilities, as well as the required arrangements for production and broadcasting for fans watching elsewhere online.

The first Gfinity Australia Elite Series season is scheduled to launch in April, and the entire first season will be based in the first eSports arena to be built at the Hoyts Entertainment Quarter complex at Moore Park in Sydney. The opening season will take place on weekends over a seven week season, with two seasons scheduled for 2018.

Plans to go nationwide

The partnership between Hoyts and Gfinity Australia gives Gfinity exclusivity to host professional eSports events. Along with its Hoyts partnership, Gfinity Australia has also announced a branding partnership with Dell. The Challenger Series features a naming partnership with the Dell Gaming brand, while the Elite Series is presented by Dell's Alienware brand.

While the first season will be based at the Entertainment Quarter venue, Hoyts confirmed these events will be streaming live to other Hoyts cinema locations for fans in other cities.

Gfinity Australia aims to create a league, with teams representing different cities around the country. Longer-term, the planned partnership extends to building a chain of eSports arenas around Australia at Hoyts locations around the country.