The eSports revolution in Australia- Gear up for Melbourne Esports Open Championship 2018 0 Likes

Esports has brought a gaming revolution since past few years. The global gaming market of epsorts is said to be worth US$655 million annually where legions of fans which are over 650 million globally who watch video game competitions. Industry figures show that around 82% of this audience is aged 18-34, a demographic that wields high disposable incomes. The entire premise is built on spectators watching professional gamers playing highly-popular games like any other sports that is watched in a stadium.

With new tech development gamers can watch their favourite gamers in real-time while tracking their each and every move via social media within an omnipresent WiFi that’s connecting more people and more gaming devices every year.

ESports in Australia

The Melbourne & Olympic Parks precinct is set to host the ‘Melbourne Esports Open’ this month now in September.

Few months back the very first dedicated esports arena was opened in Sydney and Australia's first ever city-based club esports league event of Elite Series was hosted. This complex which was a move theatre was transformed into esports arena. The theatre's screen, was removed and in its place now sits a large elevated stage on which two huge LED screens stand.

Melbourne is set to host a major live esports event across some of the city's biggest sporting arenas, as the Victorian government pushes to solidify the state's place as Australia's home of video games.

The Melbourne Esports Open taking place in September, during a bye week ahead of the AFL finals. Taking place at Melbourne & Olympic Park, the weekend-long event is being produced in conjunction with TEG Live and international esports juggernaut ESL. The esports event will be the biggest in the country, attracting talent and fans from around the world. It expects 10,000 people to attend each day.

"The Melbourne Esports Open is a massive scalp for Victoria, tapping into one of the world’s most popular sectors of the sports and entertainment industry," said Minister for Tourism and Major Events John Eren in a release announcing the event.

No specific games have been announced for the Melbourne Esports Open. It's set to take place over multiple days and in multiple arenas (including Rod Laver, Margaret Court and the Melbourne Park Function Centre), which would seem to indicate multiple tournaments.

League of Legends would seem to be a likely fit — with the Oceanic Pro League potentially utilising the event to stage its finals — and CS:GO is also a possibility as one of Australia's most popular esports. The organisers would also likely look at Overwatch — which is played at an international level in a league controlled by the game's developer Blizzard — and perhaps more viewer-friendly games like Rocket League.

It is estimated that Melbourne Esports Open is set to generate "up to $25 million" for the Victorian economy over five years. Its partnership with TEG Live and ESL lasts until 2022.

This year has already seen substantial growth in local esports tournaments and events held in Australia. The Gfinity Elite Series which sees city-based teams play CS:GO, Rocket League and Street Fighter V on a weekly schedule — is currently getting underway and has partnered with Hoyts cinemas to turn movie theatres into live esports arenas. The matches are also broadcast live on Twitch, with the Rocket League matches also appearing live on Network Ten.

Currently Australia's biggest annual esports event is IEM Sydney, which fills Qudos Bank Arena and has at its centre a Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournament with a $310,000 prize pool. Sydney also hosted its first international esports tournament as League of Legends teams from Southeast Asia and Japan visit the city to take on Australia’s best in the second instalment of Rift Rivals.

Following this event there were six clubs that competed in the league and tested their mettle in three of the sport's most popular games: Street Fighter, Counter Strike, Global Offensive and Rocket League.

Aimed at a millennial audience and shown primarily on Twitch TV, where fans engage with gamers, make micro donations and comment on the action, the rise in esports has been viewed with a degree of suspicion, even condescension by some more traditional sports fans.

Esports games in Australia are broadcast online at twitch.tv/gfinityau and on free to air TV channel One.