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By GaryOPA
The next step in the growing eSports business
A true stadium is being built designed to showcase eSports at the highest level with a 15,000-seat 'Major League Gaming Arena' coming to Hengqin Island off the coast of Macau scheduled to open in 2017
eSports is growing fast, with more and more people wanting to watch the action of teams of skilled players battling it out to win a prize, and the current way of hosting these events in make-shift stages in large rooms, or trying to use existing stadiums just is not working out well, as such MLG (Major League Gaming) has come up a massive plan to build actual stadiums designed for better eSports viewing.
Major League Gaming announced plans this week to build the world's first "MLG Arena," a 15,000 seat stadium on Hengqin Island, which is off the coast of popular gambling hot-spot Macau.
MLG announced the news Thursday, in partnership with Lai Fung Holdings Limited and eSun Holdings Limited. The new MLG Arena, located in what the company is calling the "V-Zone," is planned as the centerpiece of an $18 billion "Creative Culture City" initiative for the Hengqin Island.
In addition to operating as the site of the first-ever MLG Arena, the V-Zone is going to include an expo area for game developers to feature new and upcoming games, as well as gaming-themed restaurants and retail shops. The MLG Arena is scheduled to open in 2017, though no images of the stadium have been released.
MLG says Hengqin is an ideal location for its first stadium because it's located just five minutes from Macau, 30 minutes from Hong Kong, and within 100km of five international and domestic airports. In addition, the Chinese gaming market is massive. The number of gamers in the country has now surpassed the total number of American citizens, according to data from research firm EEDAR.
And in a recent interview, with the MLG president Mike Sepso had this to say about their existing and future plans of more stadiums:
"This development on Hengquin Island is a true stadium and the first of its kind," Sepso told onGamers. "This is a massive development in one of the most visited tourist destinations in the world. Additionally, the China gaming market is enormous and the fastest growing on earth. The anticipated launch of the MLG Arena in 2017 will give MLG a very strong foothold in that market but also a marquis travel destination to showcase eSports at the highest level."
"In the US we have been working on partnerships with existing stadiums and arenas and we will be announcing those later this year."
You can read more of his interview at the links below, but what are your thoughts on the eSports craze? Do you think building stadiums just for gaming is the right idea? Plus, you have to remember a recent study on Internet Bandwidth from 'streaming sites' like Twitch found that #1 usage was watching other people play video games.
NEWS SOURCE #1: World's first video game stadium gets underway (via) GameSpot
NEWS SOURCE #2: MLG President Mike Sepso on building the first-ever MLG Arena in China (via) OnGamers
The next step in the growing eSports business
A true stadium is being built designed to showcase eSports at the highest level with a 15,000-seat 'Major League Gaming Arena' coming to Hengqin Island off the coast of Macau scheduled to open in 2017
eSports is growing fast, with more and more people wanting to watch the action of teams of skilled players battling it out to win a prize, and the current way of hosting these events in make-shift stages in large rooms, or trying to use existing stadiums just is not working out well, as such MLG (Major League Gaming) has come up a massive plan to build actual stadiums designed for better eSports viewing.
Major League Gaming announced plans this week to build the world's first "MLG Arena," a 15,000 seat stadium on Hengqin Island, which is off the coast of popular gambling hot-spot Macau.
MLG announced the news Thursday, in partnership with Lai Fung Holdings Limited and eSun Holdings Limited. The new MLG Arena, located in what the company is calling the "V-Zone," is planned as the centerpiece of an $18 billion "Creative Culture City" initiative for the Hengqin Island.
In addition to operating as the site of the first-ever MLG Arena, the V-Zone is going to include an expo area for game developers to feature new and upcoming games, as well as gaming-themed restaurants and retail shops. The MLG Arena is scheduled to open in 2017, though no images of the stadium have been released.
MLG says Hengqin is an ideal location for its first stadium because it's located just five minutes from Macau, 30 minutes from Hong Kong, and within 100km of five international and domestic airports. In addition, the Chinese gaming market is massive. The number of gamers in the country has now surpassed the total number of American citizens, according to data from research firm EEDAR.
And in a recent interview, with the MLG president Mike Sepso had this to say about their existing and future plans of more stadiums:
"This development on Hengquin Island is a true stadium and the first of its kind," Sepso told onGamers. "This is a massive development in one of the most visited tourist destinations in the world. Additionally, the China gaming market is enormous and the fastest growing on earth. The anticipated launch of the MLG Arena in 2017 will give MLG a very strong foothold in that market but also a marquis travel destination to showcase eSports at the highest level."
"In the US we have been working on partnerships with existing stadiums and arenas and we will be announcing those later this year."
You can read more of his interview at the links below, but what are your thoughts on the eSports craze? Do you think building stadiums just for gaming is the right idea? Plus, you have to remember a recent study on Internet Bandwidth from 'streaming sites' like Twitch found that #1 usage was watching other people play video games.
NEWS SOURCE #1: World's first video game stadium gets underway (via) GameSpot
NEWS SOURCE #2: MLG President Mike Sepso on building the first-ever MLG Arena in China (via) OnGamers