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Tencent, China's largest online games developer among other things, is building an entire town dedicated to esports
The town will be located in Wuhu, east China, where Tencent has just signed a framework agreement with the local government. The planned esports town will have an esports theme park, esports university, cultural and creative park, animation industrial park, a creative neighbourhood, a Tencent technology entrepreneurship community, and even a Tencent cloud data center. Wuhu isn't the only city Tencent is investing in. The company is also planning to build a theme park in Chengdu built around the Chinese mobile fantasy role-playing game Honor of Kings, which reached 50 million users in January this year. It shows the lengths Tencent is willing to go to ensure it's at the forefront of China's esports industry. Over 47% of Tencent's 2016 revenue came from games, with Tencent's gaming unit posting revenues of nearly 70.84 billion yuan ($10.2 billion) last year, dwarfing that of rival NetEase, which posted revenues of 28 billion yuan ($4 billion).
The town will be located in Wuhu, east China, where Tencent has just signed a framework agreement with the local government. The planned esports town will have an esports theme park, esports university, cultural and creative park, animation industrial park, a creative neighbourhood, a Tencent technology entrepreneurship community, and even a Tencent cloud data center. Wuhu isn't the only city Tencent is investing in. The company is also planning to build a theme park in Chengdu built around the Chinese mobile fantasy role-playing game Honor of Kings, which reached 50 million users in January this year. It shows the lengths Tencent is willing to go to ensure it's at the forefront of China's esports industry. Over 47% of Tencent's 2016 revenue came from games, with Tencent's gaming unit posting revenues of nearly 70.84 billion yuan ($10.2 billion) last year, dwarfing that of rival NetEase, which posted revenues of 28 billion yuan ($4 billion).
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Competitive gaming will overtake mainstream sports ‘in a few years,’ says Momentum CEO
The popularity of competitive gaming — also known as eSports — continues to rise, and some predict that it may surpass traditional sports within the next few years. Global brand agency Momentum today released a new research study that asked gamers about their media consumption habits and thoughts on the future of gaming....Momentum CEO Chris Weil thinks that eSports will overtake mainstream sports within a “few years,” and brands should to watch out. His firm estimates global gaming revenue to reach $90 billion by 2020.
The popularity of competitive gaming — also known as eSports — continues to rise, and some predict that it may surpass traditional sports within the next few years. Global brand agency Momentum today released a new research study that asked gamers about their media consumption habits and thoughts on the future of gaming....Momentum CEO Chris Weil thinks that eSports will overtake mainstream sports within a “few years,” and brands should to watch out. His firm estimates global gaming revenue to reach $90 billion by 2020.
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The growth of esports
As esports have evolved over the years, global player representation has soared, prize money has fluctuated, and games have come and gone. Now we get to see exactly how everything has changed over the past 10 years as esports have grown into the global phenomena that they are today. A project called "The Champions of Esports" by Unibet gives us a glimpse at the shifting and growing world of esports by visualizing tons of data collected over the years, including player earnings, prize money for different games, and country participation. The project pulls data from all of the most popular esports titles and includes teams and players from all the countries that participate at the top level. "The Champions of Esports" graphics also show how much viewership has grown since live streaming on the web found its footing when Twitch launched in 2011 and YouTube kicked off its live streaming feature in 2012.
As esports have evolved over the years, global player representation has soared, prize money has fluctuated, and games have come and gone. Now we get to see exactly how everything has changed over the past 10 years as esports have grown into the global phenomena that they are today. A project called "The Champions of Esports" by Unibet gives us a glimpse at the shifting and growing world of esports by visualizing tons of data collected over the years, including player earnings, prize money for different games, and country participation. The project pulls data from all of the most popular esports titles and includes teams and players from all the countries that participate at the top level. "The Champions of Esports" graphics also show how much viewership has grown since live streaming on the web found its footing when Twitch launched in 2011 and YouTube kicked off its live streaming feature in 2012.
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Physical Therapists Are Helping Esports Pros Play More And Hurt Less
Clacking keys; mashing buttons; running joysticks up and down in precise, intricate patterns. The motions of playing a video game are mechanical—frequent and repetitive—and suggest a machine at work, which is of course not far off, especially with the best players in the world routinely spending 12 hours a day playing a game. Now, physical therapists are needed to keep the machines from breaking down. Dr. Caitlin McGee works a day job at a hospital, dealing with everything from postoperative recovery to patients who have suffered brain injuries and strokes. She’s spent the last two years as a specialist in the field of physical therapy, after completing her master’s and doctorate at the University of Delaware. She also, though, travels to esports tournaments around the nation, working with teams and organizations to help players deal with the physical ramifications of playing competitive games, which, if not as drastic as those faced by, say, boxers or football players, are nonetheless very real.
Clacking keys; mashing buttons; running joysticks up and down in precise, intricate patterns. The motions of playing a video game are mechanical—frequent and repetitive—and suggest a machine at work, which is of course not far off, especially with the best players in the world routinely spending 12 hours a day playing a game. Now, physical therapists are needed to keep the machines from breaking down. Dr. Caitlin McGee works a day job at a hospital, dealing with everything from postoperative recovery to patients who have suffered brain injuries and strokes. She’s spent the last two years as a specialist in the field of physical therapy, after completing her master’s and doctorate at the University of Delaware. She also, though, travels to esports tournaments around the nation, working with teams and organizations to help players deal with the physical ramifications of playing competitive games, which, if not as drastic as those faced by, say, boxers or football players, are nonetheless very real.
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World of Warcraft's gold rush has upended Blizzard’s economy
There has been an economic panic in World of Warcraft. On Feb. 6, Blizzard changed the rules, allowing players to exchange WoW Tokens for Battle.net balance. That means that gold you earn or buy in World of Warcraft can now be used in any Blizzard property. This has caused wild fluctuations in the value of the tokens, the value of WoW gold and, by extension, the time WoW players spend earning that gold.
There has been an economic panic in World of Warcraft. On Feb. 6, Blizzard changed the rules, allowing players to exchange WoW Tokens for Battle.net balance. That means that gold you earn or buy in World of Warcraft can now be used in any Blizzard property. This has caused wild fluctuations in the value of the tokens, the value of WoW gold and, by extension, the time WoW players spend earning that gold.
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The importance of streaming to e-sports
There are three key ingredients for a game or pastime to become a sport: playing, competing and viewing. From the first large-scale video game competition in the 1970s to the present day, e-sports have experienced a trajectory similar to offline sports. Indeed, the ability to play and compete are necessary steps in the transformation from game to sport. However, broadcasting and viewing are the crucial components to enable widespread adoption and popularity. Just as with offline sports, e-sports require these elements.
There are three key ingredients for a game or pastime to become a sport: playing, competing and viewing. From the first large-scale video game competition in the 1970s to the present day, e-sports have experienced a trajectory similar to offline sports. Indeed, the ability to play and compete are necessary steps in the transformation from game to sport. However, broadcasting and viewing are the crucial components to enable widespread adoption and popularity. Just as with offline sports, e-sports require these elements.
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The continued gold rush of virtual items in games
Since the acquisition of Twitch by Amazon for nearly $1 billion in late 2014, the broader public has been paying far more attention to the growing popularity of e-sports. Between advertising, sponsorships, media rights, merchandise and ticket sales, this market is expected to generate $463 million in revenue in 2016 alone. Beyond the obvious implications for virtual goods in gaming (i.e. players buying gear to improve their performance) is a secondary gray market that may be far larger — online gambling. Thus far, the most advanced of these markets has sprung up around the game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO for short). The reason is that the game’s developer, Valve, introduced decorative virtual weapons known as “skins,” which players can acquire in the game and sell for real money on third-party platforms (outside of the gaming environment). By 2015, this dynamic had given rise to an active gambling market comprising more than 3 million people wagering $2.3 billion worth of skins.
Since the acquisition of Twitch by Amazon for nearly $1 billion in late 2014, the broader public has been paying far more attention to the growing popularity of e-sports. Between advertising, sponsorships, media rights, merchandise and ticket sales, this market is expected to generate $463 million in revenue in 2016 alone. Beyond the obvious implications for virtual goods in gaming (i.e. players buying gear to improve their performance) is a secondary gray market that may be far larger — online gambling. Thus far, the most advanced of these markets has sprung up around the game Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO for short). The reason is that the game’s developer, Valve, introduced decorative virtual weapons known as “skins,” which players can acquire in the game and sell for real money on third-party platforms (outside of the gaming environment). By 2015, this dynamic had given rise to an active gambling market comprising more than 3 million people wagering $2.3 billion worth of skins.
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'WoW' in-game markets are going crazy after Blizzard changed this item
World of Warcraft's in-game markets are going insane after Blizzard changed how WoW Tokens work. Blizzard bridged the gap between some of its most popular games Monday, allowing players to use World of Warcraft's in-game currency to purchase WoW Tokens, convert them to Battle.net funds, and then purchase Overwatch lootboxes, Hearthstone card packs and other Blizzard game items on the Battle.net shop. The cost of WoW Tokens fluctuates with World of Warcraft's in-game economy, and increased demand for these Tokens has cause their prices to skyrocket. The market for WoW Tokens works like this: Players buy WoW Tokens from Blizzard for $20 and put them up for sale on the World of Warcraft auction house. World of Warcraft players then purchase WoW Tokens on the auction house with in-game gold. With a WoW Token, players choose to either add 30 days of WoW game time to their account or add $15 to their Battle.net balance.
World of Warcraft's in-game markets are going insane after Blizzard changed how WoW Tokens work. Blizzard bridged the gap between some of its most popular games Monday, allowing players to use World of Warcraft's in-game currency to purchase WoW Tokens, convert them to Battle.net funds, and then purchase Overwatch lootboxes, Hearthstone card packs and other Blizzard game items on the Battle.net shop. The cost of WoW Tokens fluctuates with World of Warcraft's in-game economy, and increased demand for these Tokens has cause their prices to skyrocket. The market for WoW Tokens works like this: Players buy WoW Tokens from Blizzard for $20 and put them up for sale on the World of Warcraft auction house. World of Warcraft players then purchase WoW Tokens on the auction house with in-game gold. With a WoW Token, players choose to either add 30 days of WoW game time to their account or add $15 to their Battle.net balance.
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'Civilization VI' as an eSport? One of the World's Top Teams Is Trying It
Were I to make a list of games that seemed ill-suited to the blossoming world of eSports, Sid Meier's Civilization series would probably rank near the top of the pile. It's certainly fun to play and critics (including Motherboard) are merrily shoveling accolades on the freshly released Civilization VI, but watching matches is a bit like watching civilizations advance through their various stages in real time. By the time the person I'm watching reaches the space age, I'm wondering if I'd be having more fun banging a club against the wall of a Neolithic cave. But Team Liquid, the influential eSports team best known for its successes in StarCraft 2 and League of Legends, begs to differ. Yesterday Team Liquid owner Steve "LiQuiD112" Arhancet announced the creation of a new eSports team for Firaxis Games' Civilization VI, filling a void in the eSports scene with all the surprise of a monolith materializing before squabbling primates. And just like that, a competitive eSports scene is born, although the big question is how many players will follow Liquid down this path.
Were I to make a list of games that seemed ill-suited to the blossoming world of eSports, Sid Meier's Civilization series would probably rank near the top of the pile. It's certainly fun to play and critics (including Motherboard) are merrily shoveling accolades on the freshly released Civilization VI, but watching matches is a bit like watching civilizations advance through their various stages in real time. By the time the person I'm watching reaches the space age, I'm wondering if I'd be having more fun banging a club against the wall of a Neolithic cave. But Team Liquid, the influential eSports team best known for its successes in StarCraft 2 and League of Legends, begs to differ. Yesterday Team Liquid owner Steve "LiQuiD112" Arhancet announced the creation of a new eSports team for Firaxis Games' Civilization VI, filling a void in the eSports scene with all the surprise of a monolith materializing before squabbling primates. And just like that, a competitive eSports scene is born, although the big question is how many players will follow Liquid down this path.
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Tech companies and the global rise of e-sports
Beyond advertisers and gamers, the real money up for grabs here is for the tech companies that can successfully bring these competitions to a worldwide audience in a mainstream media format. With the industry projected to generate more than $1.9 billion in revenue by 2018, there are various rising tech players to watch as this fierce competition heats up.
Beyond advertisers and gamers, the real money up for grabs here is for the tech companies that can successfully bring these competitions to a worldwide audience in a mainstream media format. With the industry projected to generate more than $1.9 billion in revenue by 2018, there are various rising tech players to watch as this fierce competition heats up.
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