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E-Sports gaming event? What is that?

E-Sports refers to competition through video games. It’s similar to regular sport in every way, bar running around in a field (for now…since XR (Extended Reality) isn’t too far away…)

Games are one of the fastest-growing industries in the world

Especially in New Zealand, and one that we at MDS are elated to be a part of. At MDS, we offer courses for Game Art and Game Programming, two halves of an opposing, yet necessary whole. Students work together to create complete games for their portfolio, that they can continue to develop to pitch to studios or submit to platforms such as Steam.

Our Bachelor of Creative Technologies and Bachelor of Software Engineering courses have produced amazing works for a variety of platforms such as

 

E-Sports is the next stage for Gaming

What many people don’t realise is that opportunities exist in tandem with creating games, and one such phenomenon is that of e-sports. Game streaming and viewership has surpassed any other entertainment industry, with more people watching gaming videos and streams than HBO, Netflix, ESPN, and Hulu combined. It’s so large in fact, that in March 2020, the New Zealand E-Sports Federation (NZESF) was formally recognised as national sport organisation by Sport NZ, and in July of the same year Auckland announced Eden Park, as NZ E-sports centre.

Often cited as the world's largest esport, League of Legends' (LoL) international competitive scene culminates in the annual League of Legends World Championship. The 2019 Worlds had over 100 million unique viewers, peaking at a concurrent viewership of 44 million. Domestic and international events have been broadcast on livestreaming websites such as TwitchYouTubeBilibili, as well as sports channel giant ESPN.

League of Legends?

Almost synonymous with e-sports, this game has captured the hearts and minds (and souls) of many. League of Legends, commonly referred to as just 'League', is a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) video game developed and published by Riot Games originally in October 2009 and was one of the early pioneers and major contributors to e-sports growth.

The game consists of two teams of five players battling to take control of their opponents' half of the map. Each player controls a character, or "champion", with unique abilities and play-styles. During a match, champions become more powerful by earning experience points and gold to purchase items to defeat the opposing team. In the game's main mode, Summoner's Rift, a team wins by reaching and destroying the "Nexus" located in the centre of the enemy base.

In 2019, the game regularly peaked at eight million concurrent players, and its popularity has led to tie-ins such as music videos, comic books, short stories, and an upcoming animated series. Its success has also spawned several spin-off video games, including a mobile version, an auto battler, and a digital collectible card game. A massively multiplayer online role-playing game is in development.

 

And what does all this have to do with MDS?

As e-sports becomes bigger and bigger, it only makes sense to get involved.

With assistance from The Shadownet and Victory Up, MDS will be hosting a series of exhibition matches, featuring the above game: League of Legends, for our Open Day on the 29th. We hope this will give you a taste of what a true e-sports experience feels like.

 

 

Virtual Spark
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