Esports News Articles Written By ESTNN Authors
The Demacia Cup, Demacia Championship, whatever you want to call it, is indeed the pinnacle of the Chinese League of Legends offseason. Following a tumultuous Day 1 – best-of-1 is always an anything-goes type of format – we find ourselves with some clear-cut favorites to stake a claim for the title here. Here’s just how […]
It’s been close to a month now since the last balance patch went live and players now have had some time to adjust to the new maps and design changes as we’re already half-way through the current season (2018 Season 4 is currently set to end on January 23, 2019). Now that it’s Dec, 20th, […]
We are proud to announce the start of our ESTNN Esports YouTube Channel. We have brought on members from Blitz Esports to help produce the best possible esports videos. The esports being covered will initially be Overwatch, League of Legends and CS:GO. If you are a fan of any of these games, please subscribe below. […]
Esports, just like any other rapidly growing business, relies heavily on the individuals and companies that are willing to invest money in them. Current projections show the entire esports field to be worth more than $1 billion by 2020, but this does not mean that teams and organizations are currently generating that amount of profit. […]
The KeSPA Cup Day One The KeSPA Cup. A League of Legends competition viewed as superfluous by some but entertaining by so many more. After all, who wouldn’t jump at the opportunity to see some fantastic roster moves from the off-season in full effect? Hanwha Life Esports Following their most significant signings ahead of 2019 […]
In the 19th spot of our Top 20 Team Countdown for Season 2 of the Overwatch League is the Washington Justice. The team is owned by Washington Esports Ventures, a company founded by serial investor and entrepreneur Mark Ein to promote Washington esports teams. Washington Justice is the first team acquired by the company, which […]
According to Yiska, an Overwatch writer, we can soon expect a ‘sizable amount of suspension’. News of possible Overwatch League suspensions can be seen in his tweet down below. Yiska is on to something. Before any player is officially signed to the OWL, teams must submit the players they offered a contract to for Blizzard […]
According to a new report from Nielsen, less than 40% of Twitch’s esports audience watch television during a typical week. Additionally, only half of the esports audience are said to own a paid TV subscription service. 70% of Twitch’s esports fans spend more time watching esports than traditional sports. Nielsen focused their study on Twitch […]
The NA LCS (North America League of Legends Championship Series) will be the focus of an episode on Netflix’s new documentary. The documentary series will be titled 7 Days Out and will begin airing on December 21st. The trailer below will give you a brief idea of the documentaries tone. 7 Days Out will show […]
Seagull’s infamous video is the gift that keeps on giving. One of his key points that generated a lot of controversies is his stance on the power level of Ultimate Abilities: he feels that ultimates are too powerful and reduce team fights to a simple “who has more ‘Q’s’” game. Unlike the other issues he […]
Overwatch League Official Schedule The complete Overwatch League 2019 regular season schedule is now live! Fans can visit OverwatchLeague.com/schedule to view matches and buy tickets for all regular season matches played at Blizzard Arena Los Angeles. Opening Day, which is February 14, features a rematch of defending champion London Spitfire vs. the Philadelphia Fusion. Homestand […]
Daniel “Dafran” Francesca has been spotted on a new Twitch account named “definetlynotdafran”. Dafran has been on an extended hiatus after melting down on Twitter and Stream. However, he was recently spotted playing solo que in the Oceanic region. Dafran tweeted out that he was in Australia visiting family and that he would be in […]
Earlier today, it was announced via Twitter that renowned football team and established LEC franchise FC Schalke 04 would be holding open tryouts for their secondary line-up heading into the 2019 season. The tryouts are open to any Europe West player that hit Challenger or Master during Season 8. The Academy lineup will compete in […]
Starting the list at #20, we have the Chengdu Hunters. One of the newest franchises to join the League, no player on this roster has any direct experience playing in the Overwatch League. This sets them at a severe disadvantage, as we have seen from season 1 how vital experience on the stage matters. However […]
The Chinese government’s new ‘Online Ethics Review Committee’ has banned Fortnite, PUBG, and seven other titles for “promoting incorrect values.” The main reasons were for how they depicted females, and for the use of blood and gore. Fortnite was likely banned due to the depiction of women, as the game doesn’t have blood or gore, but […]
Sad news today for esports fans, players and investors. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has stated that adding esports to the 2024 Paris Olympics is still “premature.” However, there is some potentially good news. Firstly, Tony Estanguet, Co-President of the Paris Olympic Committee, is advocating for esports to be included in the Olympics. Secondly, the […]
Day One The annual League of Legends All-Star event kicked off on December 6th. Riot Games has hosted the event for many years following the Worlds Championship finals. Taking place in the eSports Arena in Las Vegas, NV, USA, the favorite League of Legends players from across the globe gather once more to meet in […]
With a fun-filled opening to this year’s 2018 All-Stars event, day two finally came around and with it, a continuation of yesterday’s tournaments and more memories to be made. The day will feature the finale of the Charity 2v2 tournament, another Tandem, and Nexus Blitz match, as well as both the round of 32 and […]
With a fun-filled opening to this year’s 2018 All-Stars event, day two finally came around and with it, a continuation of yesterday’s tournaments and more memories to be made. The day will feature the finale of the Charity 2v2 tournament, another Tandem, and Nexus Blitz match, as well as both the round of 32 and […]
THE SQUAD dafran (Daniel Francesca) Nationality: Denmark Role: DPS Teams Streamer for NRG Esports Selfless Gaming Popular streamer and Torbjörn player Intentionally threw games in Competitive Season 5 to get out of professional play Erster (Joon Jeong) Nationality: South Korea Role: DPS Teams Lucky Future Zenith Ardeont Consistent and high-performing on the best Chinese Contenders […]
There is a new scam going around the Overwatch community. Here you can see a screenshot of a video that has been gaining traction on YouTube. This video has accumulated over 130,000 views in just two days since being posted. In the description of the video, you can see a link to a website claiming […]
What Is Boosting? Firstly, what is ‘Boosting’? Boosting is when a gamer logs into another gamer’s account to play a ranked game to increase their ranking. Boosting has become a serious issue throughout major esports such as Overwatch, LoL, Dota 2 and CS:GO. The South Korean ‘Act on the Punishment of Alternative Game Act’ The […]
The annual League of Legends All-Star event kicked off on December 6th. Riot Games has hosted the event for many years following the Worlds Championship finals. Taking place in the eSports Arena in Las Vegas, NV, USA, the favorite League of Legends players from across the globe gather once more to meet in a less […]
There have been some interesting rumors going around for the past few months about DreamKazper returning to Overwatch. The Overwatch League’s Boston Uprising cut DreamKazper during Season 1 for ‘allegations that arose on Twitter’. New developments have now come to light that likely proves DreamKazper is playing Overwatch again. The image below is from CarterOW’s Twitch […]
Esports Winners Best Esports Team: Cloud9 Best Esports Game: Overwatch Best Esports Event: League of Legends World Championship Best Esports Host: Eefje Depoortere Best Esports Coach: Reapered Best Esports Moment: Cloud9’s Comeback Against Faze at ELEAGUE 2018
Any team is only as good as the complete sum of all of its parts. The same goes for esports as much as any other collective competitive venture. Creating the ultimate rank in any such domain is exceedingly tricky, mainly because it is a process of measuring something that is continually evolving. Sure, esports have […]
Playing StarCraft II is never easy and it’s about to get even harder this Saturday. No Gamer Left Behind is supporting a star-studded AbleGamers StarCraft II tournament. No Gamer Left Behind is a charity tournament starring a line-up of popular streamers who will be playing with a handicap to help raise awareness and support for gamers with disabilities. The tournament […]
– Press Release – Budapest, 6th December 2018 – Hundreds of Overwatch gamers were waiting for the launch of the world’s first AI coach system, from which the first hundred packages were sold within 26 hours in a special pre-sale offer. Besides providing statistics, the unique coaching software also offers a complex training package for […]
OWL Season 2 – Day 1 Matchups Day 1 is very exciting, especially when the opener is a rematch of the Grand Finals! However, that will not be our match of the day as we have the LA Gladiators taking on Seoul Dynasty. This will be the first of their many grudge matches. It’s no […]
It’s been just a little over two weeks since StarCraft II’s 4.71 re-design, and it’s been a tough time for everyone as they learn to adjust to the new balance change. A lot’s happened during this time, starting with the beginning of a new ladder season, the hosting and conclusion of HomeStory Cup XVIII, and […]
Today a report from Kids Insight showed some promising information for esports overall growth. Their report stated that 15% of UK girls aged 13-15 now watch esports. Additionally, they added that more 13-15-year-old girls watch esports and take part in esports than boys aged 13-15. Lastly, they stated that 84% of female teens spend time […]
The old rivalry between the New York and Philadelphia Overwatch League teams continued to entertain fans this past weekend. Fans of both teams could watch them play in person in an exciting pre-season exhibition match, one of the first of its kind. The Philadelphia Fusion, who squared off against the London Spitfire in the playoffs […]
The polemic Seagull’s video about the current state of Overwatch touched on a very popular subject and, since then, reignited a discussion that is as old as the game itself: the lack of proper in-game statistics. The overall consensus is that the players would benefit from not only more detailed statistics but also from displaying […]
It’s no secret that Nam-joo “Striker” Gwon And Boston Uprising took Overwatch League season one by surprise. It’s also no secret that after multiple reports of internal issues between Striker and Boston Uprising GM Huk, that Striker would eventually be departing. Now it’s official; the San Francisco Shock have acquired Striker from the Boston Uprising. […]
LDLC and Complexity are not bad teams, but they are fragile. Both sides have earned their namesakes through big single tournament results; LDLC, at IEM Chicago; Complexity, at the FACEIT London Major. While these two events come months apart, the manner in which they both earned their victories is the same. They both found momentum […]
The Vancouver Overwatch League expansion team has finally announced their team logo and name. They will be called the Vancouver Titans. The team announced their branding during tonight’s Vancouver Canucks hockey game. The Vancouver Titans are owned by Aquilini Group, the owner of the NHL’s Vancouver Canucks. Both teams have a similar blue and green […]
With all eight new teams announced for the second season of the Overwatch League, we finally have a chance to look at the rosters for the newest contenders. One of the latest teams to reveal their roster was the Vancouver Titans, one of the two Canada-based teams now in the League. At first glance, some […]
Yesterday on Muma’s stream he accidentally opened his recent player tab in Overwatch leaking the unannounced Washington DC roster along with Dallas Fuel and Philadelphia Fusions rosters. Down below you can find screenshots of all these rosters: Washington DC Leaked Roster: DPS Corey Stratus Ado Off tank SanSam Main tank Janus Supports Hyeonu Gido These […]
We are happy to announce that Overwatch reporter and insider Michael “mykL” Padilla will be joining us here at ESTNN. He will be reporting on the Overwatch League, Overwatch Contenders, and other daily Overwatch news. Excited to announce I’ll be doing some reporting at @esportstvnews Go give them a follow! — mykL (@KING_mykL) December 1, […]
Overwatch League 2019, Season 2 Rosters Sorted By Team Note: View in landscape mode on mobile devices for best results. Role Team Country Nickname Name DPS ATL RUS NLaaeR Ilya Koppalov DPS ATL KOR Erster Jeong Joon DPS ATL DEN dafran Daniel Francesca TANK ATL KOR Pokpo Park Hyun-Jun TANK ATL USA Gator Blake Scott […]
League of Legends superstar Lee Sang-hyeok, known better as “Faker”, has been inducted into the ESL Esports Hall of Fame. He is the first League of Legends player to be inducted into the Esports Hall of Fame. Faker was inducted via the first fan vote in the Esports Hall of Fame’s history. Faker is arguably the […]
As the second season of the Overwatch League approaches, fans everywhere will be able to watch some of their favorite teams from the inaugural season face off once again. With updated team rosters and new talent all around, these matchups can be quite different than what they were in Season 1. In particular, the NYXL, […]
The November 26th Reader Survey, Teams and Leagues on Sports Business Daily had some interesting results. The readers voted Overwatch League (OWL) as the third hottest sports property of 2018. The NBA and NFL lead the list respectively. Some notable leagues that the OWL surpassed include the MLB, NHL, MLS, NCAA and UFC. The OWL […]
It feels like only yesterday that Counter Logic Gaming’s beloved (yet criticized) midlaner Jae-Hyun “Huhi” Choi put on some stellar (draconic?) performances on Aurelion Sol, one of the many driving forces behind CLG’s ascension through the 2016 Mid-Season Invitational that found them second only to future returning World Champions SK Telecom T1. It was that […]
The Summoner’s Cup Has a New Home! The atmosphere of a community-driven event like the League of Legends World Championship is nothing short of breathtaking. With such a wide variety of events occurring at the tournament, it was very easy for many to take their eyes off of a certain underdog team. With the full […]
When asked about about the methods used to get better at Overwatch, many professional players like xQc (Team Canada’s main tank) and Sinatraa (SF Shock’s DPS) respond with “I just played the game a lot”. While “just play the game” doesn’t sound like solid advice, it is undeniably true that in order to improve, one […]
There is no denying that accessing esports either as a viewer or as a potential competitor is exceedingly easy. With nothing more than a computer/smartphone and an internet connection, anyone can join the community of a particular game. For many esports, there is not even the initial barrier of having to buy the actual game. […]
OverActive Media, the owners of the Toronto Defiant, have purchased Splyce, the professional esports organization. OverActive Media is now the fourth company to own both a professional League of Legends and Overwatch franchise. Cloud9, Optic Gaming and Misfits are the other esports organizations to own teams in both popular esports. On Tuesday it was announced that […]
Goodbye EU LCS, hello LEC. After six years of the old name, a rebrand is bound to feel strange – and strange it does. After what was seen as the EU LCS’ most successful year since 2015 – having two teams in the Worlds semi-finals – was further accentuated by having an EU team actually […]
Riot Games has revealed their newest champion addition in Neeko: the curious chameleon, and with a kit loaded with creative outplay potential, she is here to shake up the rift. Neekos’ passive is Inherent Glamour, which allows here to become a clone of any allied champion regardless of their position on the map. This passive […]
The League of Legends offseason has started off with a bang. Cloud9’s starting mid laner Nicolaj Jensen has moved to Team Liquid. Jensen who has played LoL for Cloud9 since 2015, has been a key team member. Jensen helped Cloud9 reach the Worlds 2018 Semifinals, and the NA LCS 2018 Summer Split Finals. Jensen started […]
Considering joining the Overwatch Community? Well this week, you’ll be able to test drive Overwatch for free on all platforms. That’s right, Blizzard has announced that from November 20th-26th you’ll have access to almost all that Overwatch offers: 29 heroes—including Ashe—and 19 maps for you to play via Quick Play, Arcade or Custom Games. During […]
ECS Season 6 Finals begin on November 22 in Arlington Texas and will feature 8 of Counter-Strike’s top teams battling for a $660,000 prize pool. Here are some story lines to keep an eye on heading into the tournament. Team Liquid can’t beat Astralis Easily the most promising North American team, Liquid have been turning […]
THE SQUAD SoOn (Terence Tarlier) Nationality: France Role: DPS Teams Team France 2017-18 LA Valiant Rogue (Pre-OWL) Veteran DPS that has always been on top-tier teams ShaDowBurn (George Gushcha) Nationality: Russia Role: DPS Teams Team Russia 2016-18 Philadelphia Fusion FaZe Clan (Contenders) Former TF2 pro Considered one of the best Genji players in the world […]
A HISTORY: Ninjas In Pyjamas The story of the GOATS composition begins with Ninjas in Pyjamas (NiP), an EU team from the early days of competitive Overwatch. Half the players on this roster went on to join the Overwatch League and become commonly recognized players, namely Zappis and Zuppeh of Florida Mayhem’s season 1 roster […]
Just days after its announcement during the BlizzCon 2018, Blizzard made its new DPS hero available on Overwatch’s servers. This new character, Ashe, is the anti nemesis of the popular gunslinger Jesse McCree. Ashe is the 16th damage dealer in Overwatch, and benefits from various abilities allowing her to shoot down enemies from range while […]
It’s easy to be baited by FaZe. They are a team who show their strengths in the reflection of their trophies. From ESL One New York 2017, to EPICENTER 2018 over a year later, the ‘feel’ of a FaZe win is impossible to replicate. It’s as explosive as it is clinical; as overwhelming as it […]
Esports work as a domain because they have the intrinsic ability to attract people. They do this on both sides of the equation – they are able to appeal to players who gradually become so good at one or more game that this allows them to turn pro. On the other side are the viewers […]
Competitive Mode Backstory This is where pros proved themselves worthy to compete at the top level of play. Of course, other games factored into their skill such as TF2 (Team fortress two) as well as any first-person shooters or MOBA gave todays professionals and semi pros a leg up on the competition. I’m not saying […]
Preseason is well underway and so far there are two extremely exploitable changes I would like to discuss today. The first being the changes to the Kleptomancy rune, currently on the PBE klepto will proc twice after a spell cast, with this change I have been seeing a change in the top lane especially. Champions […]
Tuesday, November 13th, Overwatch patch 1.30 went live. This patch involved a full reinstall of the game client which meant players needed to download upwards 20GB of data. When reading the patch notes, it’s understandable why. Along with adding their newest hero Ashe, they made several changes to a few other heroes. This short video […]
The 2018 Esports Awards have just concluded. Here is a complete list of the winners: Unsung Hero of the Year Milos Nedeljkovic | FACEIT Videographer of the Year Davis “Hitch” Edwards | OpTic Gaming Streaming Platform of the Year Twitch Breakthrough Game of the Year Fortnite Console Rookie of the Year Kenny “Kenny” Williams | […]
Well folks, it’s finally almost upon us – balance changes and LOTS of them. Originally announced back in early September of this year, the upcoming balance patch to StarCraft II: Legacy of the Void expansion is set to go live on November 16, 2018 to coincide with the start of Season XXXVIII. Since the expansion […]
It’s in the game… if you own a PS4. EA Sports has announced a partnership with the UEFA Champions League. The partnership will feature a FIFA esports tournament that will hold a finals matchup in Madrid, one day before the Champions League finale. The UEFA Champions League finals take place on June 1, 2019, therefore […]
According to GitHyp.com, this past weekends LoL Worlds 2018 added 50k viewers (+5%) when compared to 2017. The 2018 Worlds also set a new peak of 1.14 million concurrent viewers on Twitch. They also add that there was a decline from Worlds 2015 to 2016 of 6%, so this increase is a much welcomed sign for the […]
According to Overwatch reporter Arran ‘Halo’ Brown, the Overwatch League logos have been leaked via the leagues mobile app. “The OWL league app seems to have once again accidentally leaked something. This time it’s the branding for 5 of the 6 we didn’t know about. Paris and Chengdu’s logos look pretty good, Washingtons, Guangzhou& Hangzhou […]
The French Powerhouse Team Vitality has come under the eye of players and admins due to a very shady looking play enacted during their match against Team Valiance at the Loot.Bet Cup 3. The team boasts popular players such as NBK-, apEX, and Happy, all known for having played with the best of the best […]
Every year the World Electronic Sports Games (WESG) tournament hosts teams from all around the globe to participate in an Olympics format tournament. Countries participate with their own players instead of the usual teams of players with different nationalities. Started originally by Alisports, the sports wing of the Alibaba Group, the third installment of this […]
Riot games has recently announced the location of their World Championships for the next three years. This is a step in a new direction for the company, as in the past the decision seems to have been made last minute to the dismay of the fans wishing to attend. But with this move towards a […]
NFL fans who play Fortnite will be able to dress their favorite characters in NFL jerseys. The jerseys will be available November 9 at 7PM EST. Fortnite players can purchase any of the 32 NFL teams jerseys and choose a number from 1-99. These can be bought in the Battle Royale store using virtual bucks. The […]
Toronto is about to get a 13,000-square-foot esports lounge. Waves Egaming is set to open as soon as next week after years of planning. The location will be at 2160 Steeles Ave W, Toronto. The new esports lounge will allow Canadians to have a professional venue to host Twitch streams, compete in local tournaments, and […]
Today I would like to guide you through my thoughts concerning the performances of the various toplaners at Worlds that made appearances in the quarterfinals and beyond. Before delving too far into this, please be aware that the meta did evolve somewhat between some of these series – for example, Aatrox and Urgot were pick/ban […]
With Worlds wrapped up we can now look ahead to the preseason and all the changes that accompany it. While there is plenty to dig through and discuss, I want to start with the new outer turret plating system and its potential effects on the bottom lane. Bear in mind that from here on out, […]
Inside of the spectator-filled amphitheater of Hall A, at long last, the StarCraft II 2018 WCS Global Finals reached its unbelievable conclusion. It was an awesome sight to behold – thousands of people had gathered together, packed densely inside of an enormous auditorium to celebrate the crowning of a new world champion. Yesterday had been […]
With their victory over Fnatic, Invictus has completed the LPLs’ sweep of international tournaments in 2018. All respects to Fnatic for making it to the finals, a feat which any other EULCS team has yet to accomplish in recent years, however they were absolutely dismantled in this 3-0 sweep. And other than just being outmatched […]
2018. What a year for League of Legends – emerging strategies, top lane champion reworks, a faster metagame… Season 8 has been a fiesta of firsts, and the World Championship has been no exception. The first time North America has seen the semifinals of a League of Legends World Championship since Season 1. The first […]
Broadcast straight from Anaheim, the excitement felt is palpable all around the world as Blizzcon 2018 kicks off with the quarter-final matches for StarCraft II 2018 World Champion Series! And what a day it was, full of ups and downs, as the world’s best collide in a best-of-five to find out who will be crowned […]
Blizzard Entertainment, the gaming goliath responsible for such games as Overwatch and Starcraft, held the opening ceremonies today for its annual gaming convention BlizzCon. BlizzCon is a two-day conference held at the Anaheim Convention Center in California. Historically, Blizzard has used BlizzCon as a platform to share upcoming features for their games, and the opening […]
The OWL expansion team Toronto Defiant has announced their initial roster via Twitter. They still have two more roster spots open, which should be announced shortly. “We’ve got two more slots to fill. More details will come soon. Stay tuned.” – Toronto Defiant Twitter. Toronto Defiant Roster Main Tank: @yakpung Main Support: @Aid_OW DPS: @owivy2, […]
With the Grand Finals for the League of Legends Championship coming up this weekend, now might be a good time to sit and reflect on this season and appreciate the journey we all took as players and fans. But something I noticed during my pondering was how very similar the two contenders for the Summoners […]
The world of esports is about to get rocked as Blizzcon 2018 begins on November 2nd and with it, the opening round of the highly anticipated quarter-finals of the StarCraft II 2018 World Champion Series. It’s been an incredible year for the world of StarCraft and there have been some truly astounding runs, but there […]
Last night the Trans-Atlantic war that is NA vs EU was waged in South Korea. However the battle was much more one sided than anyone anticipated. Game One This game was surreal to watch.It was like watching one of my solo queue teams trying to beat Fnatic. This term is over used, but Fnatic put […]
Day one of the League of Legends semi finals was a lesson that the best laid plans don’t always work, as G2 sought out to break the will and spirit of Ivictus’s youngest player, Theshy and Rookie proved that they are not threats to be ignored. At one point Theshy was averaging 1K damage per […]
Allow me to preface this article by saying that I expect the usual bans of Aatrox, Urgot, Alistar, Heimerdinger, and Tahm Kench to come through without further explanation required. The picks are either incredibly strong in and of themselves, or are well-known pocket picks for players in this series. I wanted to explain some […]
For the past several seasons Korea has been the king ruling over international League of Legends play. But this year the royal houses fell like dominoes, one after another, with the killing blow being dealt by North America’s Cloud9. And not since the Red Wedding has the death of a king been quite so jarring […]
NBA legend Michael Jordan and rap superstar Drake are the newest names to invest in the world of esports. Michael Jordan invested in aXiomatic, a large esports ownership group who are the owners of Team Liquid. Drake along with Scooter Braun and Dan Gilbert invested $25 million in the esports company 100 Thieves. They join celebrity investors […]
The Toronto franchise of the Overwatch League (OWL) unveiled their official branding during a launch party in Toronto last night. The team revealed their logo and team name for their OWL expansion franchise… Toronto Defiant! The Toronto Defiant previously announced their general manager (Jaesun “Jae” Won) and head coach (Beom-joon “Bishop” Lee), Their next big […]
After months of having only three players on their roster, Daenerys Targaryen birthed SIX new Shanghai Dragons in one night! The Shanghai Dragons posted the news on Twitter and released this video welcoming their new team members. The new Dragons are as follows: Min-seong “diem” Bae (Hitscan) Jin-hyeok “DDing” Yang (Projectile DPS) Young-jin ” YOUNGJIN” […]
Thinking about esports as a term for organized competitions was almost unheard of 20 years ago, even in video game crazed countries like South Korea. Back in 1998, StarCraft was published, while other franchises that had a strong competitive side, like Quake, were still mainly played during LAN parties. Two more years would need to […]
The tail-end of 2018 seems to be the time of stand-ins, first, we had Dendi play for Team Secret with past team-mate Puppey. Now Quinn “CCnC” Callahan will be playing mid-lane for EG due to delays in the visa of their current mid player Sumail “SumaiL” Hassan. Quinn had recently played The International 2018 with […]
Optic Gaming India is making rounds on the internet after a rather hilarious hacking scandal. They were competing in the eXTREMESLAND Asia tournament against the Vietnamese team Revolution. The game was heating up and it looked like the pressure got to team optic’s member Nikhil “forsaken” Kumawat as he turned on hacks mid game. The […]
I think that it’s safe to say that these were the most exciting, upset-rife, and overall chaotic group-stages we have ever had in a World Championship. Pleasant surprises accompanied bitter disappointment – many a heart aches for Vitality – and we’re left with the eight most formidable teams in the world right now. Four matches over […]
It all starts with a… win at the EU Masters. Caffeine and video game enthusiasts rejoice – an industry giant, Nestlé’s premier coffee brand Nescafé took the leap into the Spanish esports scene earlier this week, with a previously unheard-of sponsorship supporting legendary Madrid-based organisation MAD Lions E.C. A first for not only the esports […]
OVERWATCH WORLD CUP ROSTERS FRANCE France has a solid team, which proved itself during the Paris qualifier. First of their group, the French team relies on strong teamplay and individual skill to take down their opponents. Dylan “aKm” Bignet (Dallas Fuel) Benjamin “BenBest” Dieulafait Nicolas “NiCO” Moret Gael “Poko” Gouzerch (Philadelphia Fusion) Benjamin “uNKOE” Chevasson […]
To say that Afreeca Freecs‘ performance has been a disappointment so far wouldn’t be a far stretch – and I’m not just speaking on behalf of everyone’s Pick ’ems. The almost-star studded roster qualified for Worlds this year off of championship points; a second-place finish in Spring accompanied by a later third-place berth in Summer […]
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to state that China’s first seed and fan favourite team Royal Never Give Up are miles ahead of the other teams in this group – and any other group in this tournament for that matter. Whether you take this to mean individual player skill or superior macro decisionmaking, it would […]
The esports arena, like any competitive field, is one riddled with a basic paradox. On one hand, all those who are invested in this activity want to see the participants getting better at what they do. When this happens, the whole domain gets an upgrade – the activity evolves, regardless if it’s a traditional sport, […]
KT Korea’s only hope?!; it doesn’t seem so MAD to say that this group is close; RNG looking set to round out the perfect year; not sure which of Heimerdinger or Jiizuke is the more iconic face of the EULCS; C9 claiming one back for NA. KT Rolster‘s dominating performance over Team Liquid was a […]
The American esports organization Echo Fox added to the on-going Rostermania by announcing that they would be disbanding their CoD team in addition to their Gears of War roster as well as rosters from select fighting games as part of an organizational revamp. Their CoD run started on May 11, 2016, by signing Neslo, SinfuL, […]
In perhaps the biggest coincidence or planned play this side of the century, long time Na’Vi player Danil “Dendi” Ishutin will be going against the team with which he has had 8 long years of history with. Dendi, started Dota competitively after he joined net-cafés due to lack of a PC at home. He joined […]
ELEAGUE has joined forces with Riot Games to produce a one-hour League of Legends TBS special. The episode will air October 19th on TBS. The special is called Esports 101: League of Legends, and will help explain to the public how the game is played and discuss the esports scene. This will be the second special […]
The Overwatch League (OWL) has officially announced that Season 2 will begin on Valentines Day 2019. Blizzard Arena in Los Angeles will once again play host to all OWL regular season games. It is predicted that Season 3 will have teams travel worldwide and compete at home and away arenas. OWL Season 2 will take […]
The Toronto Maple Leafs have announced they will host ‘Leafs Gaming Day’ on October 21st with members of the esports organization FaZe Clan. The ‘Gaming Day’ will include competitions in both NHL 19 and Fortnite. NHL stars from the Maple Leafs, members of the Leafs Gaming League, and participating audience members will compete for various […]
All year long, major esport competitions flood our screens and fill arenas with avid supporters. With the expansion of esports as a whole, the amount of prize money that tournaments are offering continues to grow. That number has reached an estimated $111 million USD in 2018 alone, with three months left in the year. According […]
Through all of Overwatch Season 9, Blizzard kept track of the top players worldwide. They then went on to select the best 24 countries to compete in the Overwatch World Cup. Those top teams from around the globe then battled through 4 different Group Stages, hosted in France, South Korea, Thailand, and the United States. […]
Group Stage Predictions A: Flash Wolves (LMS1), Afreeca Freecs (LCK2), Phong V? Buffalo (VCS1), G2 Esports (EULCS3) B: Royal Never Give Up (LPL1), Gen.G (LCK3), Team Vitality (EULCS2), Cloud9 (NALCS3) C: KT Rolster (LCK1), MAD Team (LMS2), Team Liquid (NALCS1), Edward Gaming (LPL3) D: Fnatic (EULCS1), 100 Thieves (NALCS2), Invictus Gaming (LPL2), G-Rex (LMS3) Note: […]
The last tournament these teams attended together – barring last year’s Play-Ins – had both teams making the quarterfinals (Season 3 Worlds). It’s ironic that despite being essentially relegated to an apparently lesser region, Gambit Esports are the ones with more of their roster from their glory days intact. And yet, their performances this tournament […]
Here we are. The most important match in Japan’s League of Legends history so far, and just another notch in China’s belt. The winner of this series qualifies for the main stage of the League of Legends World Championship 2018. For a team that, in the past, choked in the Worlds Qualifier and had a […]
The official trailer unveiled at Ti8 by valve showed off two new heroes. One of those heroes was Grimstroke, who has seen his implementation into the game and already undergone the cycle of buffs and nerfs with changing patches. Alongside Grimstroke, Valve also teased Mars. But unlike the latter hero, Mars’ abilities are completely up […]
2018 has been quite the year for CoD. A year filled with drama, shattered dreams, and great new prospects. As the release of Black Ops 4 nears, Activision, Treyarch, and the CWL executives have taken the competitive scene by storm by recently declaring that the next season of competitive call of duty will be pitting […]
There’s no need to underline the fact that esports are in a state of spectacular growth. Organizations like the Overwatch League clearly show that the amount of money, effort and public interest in esports is quickly rising. As the market grows, many analysts are pointing towards the expansion taking place inside of the mobile esports […]
The League of Legends World Championship are underway in South Korea! The tournament will be played using a 24 team format consisting of three stages. The teams will be competing for a prize pool of $2,225,000. 1st place will take home 37.5 % of the total pot ($834,375). The three stages of the LoL World […]
Blizzard is a company that has proven time and time again that it can change the landscape of gaming. Even in their early years, the team gathered around the core members, some of which are still in the company, seemed destined to make gaming history. Today, that history includes another brand new accomplishment – an […]
Why are millions of dollars and piles of cold hard cash being thrown around for esports investments and prize-pools? One of the answers is the fanbase that continues to grow. Esports also provides experiences that you cannot get anywhere else. Here are a couple of reasons why people flock to the scene and get so […]
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (PUBG) is officially launching via FACEIT following the success of it’s beta. The official launch will take place tomorrow on September 28th in NA, EU and SA. The PUBG and FACEIT beta started August 17th. There have since been 200,000+ sign-ups. FACEIT’s analytics suggest that half of all CS:GO players on the platform […]
Staffordshire University, located in England, recently announced a new undergrad degree. The BA (Hons) Esports is a three-year program focused on the business of esports. The new program will teach students how to run and organize an esports team or franchise. “The degree covers not only the technical aspects of esports but also how to […]
At one point, PUBG seemed like the biggest competitive game in the world. With millions of active players, it looked like almost everyone was chasing that chicken dinner. The addition of PUBG mobile was also a success and the path of the game towards esports stardom seemed assured. However, more recently, the game’s popularity has […]
In the crowded and ever expanding esports landscape there are more events to attend than ever. This article will give you 4 types and examples of events and how they differ. The wins and losses under each event type will help you better understand what to expect when attending. 1. Local Community Tournaments and Meetups […]
What looked to be a one-sided map 1 on Mirage in favor of Team Liquid, started to turn towards Hell-Raisers as they started showing signs of life nearing the end of the first half with a score of 3-12. After taking the game to 6-12 and a nearly perfect clutch from woxic, the game tilted […]
The second game of the grand finals between Fnatic and TNC. Predator was expected to be a game to look out for. It was all that, and much more but not for the reasons one would be thinking. The game commenced with all players on TNC smoking and heading for mid to catch Fnatic off-guard. […]