Tournaments
Esports tournaments are almost always physical events in which occur in front of a live audience. The tournament may be part of a larger gathering, such as Dreamhack, or the competition may be the entirety of the event, like the World Cyber Games. Competitions take several formats, but the most common are single or double elimination, sometimes hybridized with group stage. Competitions usually have referees or officials to monitor for cheating.
Although competitions involving video games have long existed, eSports underwent a significant transition in the late 1990s. Beginning with the Cyberathlete Professional League in 1997, tournaments became much larger, and corporate sponsorship became more common. Increasing viewership both in person and online brought eSports to a wider audience. Major tournaments include the World Cyber Games, the North American Major League Gaming league, the France based Electronic Sports World Cup, and the World e-Sports Games currently held in Hangzhou, China.
For well established games, total prize money can amount to millions of dollars a year. Often, game developers provide prize money for tournament competition directly, but sponsorship may also come from third parties, such as companies selling computer hardware, energy drinks, or computer software. Generally, hosting a large eSports event is not profitable as a stand alone venture. For example, Riot has stated that their headline League of Legends Championship series is "a significant investment that we're not making money from".
There is considerable variation and negotiation over the relationship between video game developers and tournament organizers and broadcasters. While the original StarCraft events emerged in South Korea largely independently of Blizzard, the company decided to require organizers and broadcasters to authorize events featuring the sequel StarCraft II. In the short term, this lead to a deadlock with the Korean e-Sports Association.Ultimately, an agreement was reached in 2012. Currently, Blizzard requires authorization for tournaments with more than $10,000 USD in prizes. Riot Games offers in-game rewards to authorized tournaments.
Esport competitions have also become a popular feature at gaming and multi-genre conventions. Riot games hosted their 2014 League of Legends European Regionals live at Gamescom, and hosted the North American counterpart at PAX.
Although competitions involving video games have long existed, eSports underwent a significant transition in the late 1990s. Beginning with the Cyberathlete Professional League in 1997, tournaments became much larger, and corporate sponsorship became more common. Increasing viewership both in person and online brought eSports to a wider audience. Major tournaments include the World Cyber Games, the North American Major League Gaming league, the France based Electronic Sports World Cup, and the World e-Sports Games currently held in Hangzhou, China.
For well established games, total prize money can amount to millions of dollars a year. Often, game developers provide prize money for tournament competition directly, but sponsorship may also come from third parties, such as companies selling computer hardware, energy drinks, or computer software. Generally, hosting a large eSports event is not profitable as a stand alone venture. For example, Riot has stated that their headline League of Legends Championship series is "a significant investment that we're not making money from".
There is considerable variation and negotiation over the relationship between video game developers and tournament organizers and broadcasters. While the original StarCraft events emerged in South Korea largely independently of Blizzard, the company decided to require organizers and broadcasters to authorize events featuring the sequel StarCraft II. In the short term, this lead to a deadlock with the Korean e-Sports Association.Ultimately, an agreement was reached in 2012. Currently, Blizzard requires authorization for tournaments with more than $10,000 USD in prizes. Riot Games offers in-game rewards to authorized tournaments.
Esport competitions have also become a popular feature at gaming and multi-genre conventions. Riot games hosted their 2014 League of Legends European Regionals live at Gamescom, and hosted the North American counterpart at PAX.