Who wants to gamble when you can watch professionals show off their Dota 2 skills?
Ultimate Media Ventures, LLC, an esports and media company, announced that it is partnering with Faceit to bring competitive gaming events to the Las Vegas Strip. Faceit is an esports tool specializing in automated tournament management and matchmaking technology, which Turner recently used for its Eleague competition. Now the company is helping to bring competitive gaming to one of the most popular tourist destinations in the country. This gives us another example of the growing popularity of esports, and industry that intelligence firm Newzoo projects will earn $1.1 billion in revenues by 2019.
[aditude-amp id="flyingcarpet" targeting='{"env":"staging","page_type":"article","post_id":2076950,"post_type":"story","post_chan":"none","tags":null,"ai":false,"category":"none","all_categories":"esports,games,pc-gaming,","session":"B"}']The event is called Battle on the Strip, and it’ll take place from October to December. Each month will feature a different game, starting with the multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) Dota 2. That Valve game is one of the most popular competitive titles out there, with its last major championships featuring a $20,770,460 prize pool. The monthly live finals will take place at the SLS Las Vegas Hotel and Casino, starting with the Dota 2 finals on October 16, where teams will compete $25,000 in cash and prizes.
“We are not creating a new league with Battle on the Strip, but a community-first event by fans of esports for fans of esports,” said UMV chief executive officer, Jon Bukosky, in a press release sent to GamesBeat. “UMV is all about lifestyle and creating a premium experience for gamers, both amateur and pro alike. The SLS Las Vegas is an international entertainment destination, and we’re bringing Battle on the Strip there for a premier experience aspirational esports competitors can enjoy.”
We’ve seen celebrities and professional sports teams try to get into the esports game. Now we have an example of combining the appeal of competitive gaming with a tourism hotspot like Las Vegas.