The UK could be gearing up to take a harsher stance on skin gambling, with research exposing the magnitude of the problem and its particular impact on younger players. The recently published comprehensive report from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has raised significant alarm, finding that a substantial number of underage players regularly engage in what is essentially full-fledged gambling.
Skins Gambling Could Expose Underage Users to Harm
The study’s authors hope its findings will motivate the UK government to bring the unregulated skin markets under formal regulation. According to the report, over 50 skin-gambling sites are currently accessible from the UK, attracting millions of visits every month. Traffic data and academic studies reveal that adolescent boys constitute the largest segment of participants, being about twice as likely as young adults to participate.
The easy accessibility of these platforms is pivotal to their popularity. Many sites operate without age checks or consumer protection mechanisms, allowing minors to bet skins won or purchased in games such as Counter-Strike or Dota 2. Skins can be traded, sold, or converted into cash via secondary markets, blurring the line between play and profit.
“There are clear similarities between skins gambling and traditional online gambling. Both involve risk, the possibility of financial loss, the use of websites to place bets, and the potential for addiction.“
DCMS report
Researchers warn that such a fusion of gaming and gambling mechanics risks exposing underage players to harmful habits. The UK Gambling Commission has announced its intentions to close regulatory loopholes. Skin gambling operators could soon face tightened licensing requirements, with mandatory age verification and fairness standards similar to those imposed on conventional betting firms.
Comprehensive Reforms Are a Necessity
UK regulators have also reached out to developers, urging them to take greater responsibility for how their in-game economies are used. Policy experts suggest that game publishers could also take a more proactive role, including shutting down unofficial APIs that enable wagering markets. Education and prevention campaigns could be another vital tool, helping schools and parents teach young people about the risks involved.
However, industry stakeholders have cautioned against sweeping or overly restrictive regulations, warning that a harsh crackdown could hurt legitimate trading communities and stifle creativity in digital economies. Furthermore, any new legislation may face significant challenges, as it should be flexible enough to account for the rapidly shifting digital landscape.
“By addressing these concerns through comprehensive legislative reform and coordinated preventive measures, society can protect young people from the harmful effects of gambling.”
DCMS report
According to the DCMS, gaming industry stakeholders must join forces to protect and support players, especially those under 18. Researchers urged the UK government and other international bodies to recognize skin gambling as a separate form of gambling and subject it to appropriate regulation. Such measures would not only enhance consumer protection but also hold operators accountable for protecting young and vulnerable players.
By Stacy Brown Black Press USA Senior National Correspondent
As Trump Attempts to Minimize Slavery, Book Details the Consequences of the Transatlantic Slave Trade
New York, NY—Civil Rights icon and National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) President and CEO Dr. Benjamin F. Chavis Jr. and renowned journalist and NNPA Senior National Correspondent Stacy M. Brown collaborated on the groundbreaking book The Transatlantic Slave Trade: Overcoming the 500-Year Legacy, which is now available from Select Books (ISBN 978-1-59079-569-9). Released on October 8, 2024, this work explores the brutal legacy of the transatlantic slave trade and its ongoing impact on African people throughout the world.
This searing book offers an unflinching account of the 500-year legacy of the transatlantic slave trade, beginning in 1500 with the abduction of millions of Africans and following the historical arc through centuries of oppression, Jim Crow-era terror, and modern systemic racism. The book is an unapologetic examination of how the horrors of the past—rooted in slavery—continue to manifest in present-day America through police brutality, mass incarceration, economic disparities, and educational inequality.
Chavis, a central figure in the civil rights movement, draws on his decades of activism and personal experiences in the fight for equal justice. As a young activist with the Southern Christian Leadership Conference (SCLC), Dr. Chavis worked under Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and later became a prominent leader within the United Church of Christ Commission for Racial Justice, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), and the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA). His wrongful imprisonment as the leader of the Wilmington Ten in 1971—a group of political prisoners falsely convicted and imprisoned for untruthful allegations of arson during the civil rights movement in North Carolina—serves as a vivid reminder of the institutionalization of racial discrimination in America that continues to suppress the human rights of communities of color.
“This book does not simply chronicle history; it challenges readers to face the lasting consequences of the transatlantic slave trade,” says Dr. Chavis. “The blood, sweat, and tears of enslaved Africans laid the very foundation for the American experiment in democracy, yet their descendants are still fighting for equality and justice in every facet of American life.”
Isiah Thomas, a legend in the NBA, highlights the importance of this work in his stirring words, which support Dr. Chavis’s call to action:
“Dr. Ben Chavis must continue to fight and tell this story, not just for our generation, but for future generations who must understand the truth about our history if they are to finish righting the wrongs that began over 400 years ago,” Thomas emphasizes that this book is a vital tool in paving the way for future generations, ensuring that they are armed with the unvarnished truth.
Arikana Chihombori-Quao, African Union Ambassador to the United States, underscores the importance of the book’s message:
“Dr. Chavis connects the dots from the slave ports of West Africa to the present-day struggles of Black Americans. The transatlantic slave trade was not just a historical event—it laid the groundwork for centuries of racial oppression. The fight against that legacy is still ongoing.”
The Transatlantic Slave Trade: Overcoming the 500-Year Legacy digs deep into the trauma of the Middle Passage, where millions of Africans were stripped of their dignity, crammed into ships like cargo, and forced into lives of unimaginable brutality. Yet, as Chavis and Brown remind us, the legacy of slavery is not confined to the past. The authors draw powerful connections between historical atrocities and modern-day issues such as redlining, environmental racism, economic injustice, and mass incarceration.
The book pulls no punches in confronting America’s hypocrisy: while African slaves built the economic foundation of the nation, their descendants are still treated as second-class citizens. From the auction blocks of the 1700s to the prison industrial complex of the 21st century, The Transatlantic Slave Trade unveils the continued systemic structures designed to oppress Black communities.
As legendary hip-hop icon, Chuck D of Public Enemy passionately states in the foreword, “The chains of slavery may have been broken, but the shackles of systemic racism are still very much intact. If you’re not angry, you’re not paying attention.” His call to action resonates throughout the book, echoing the urgent need to confront this history and dismantle the systems of oppression that have evolved from it.
Public Enemy’s track “Can’t Truss It” is a thematic thread in the book, with its unfiltered depiction of the slave trade’s legacy. The song’s haunting lyrics—“Ninety damn days on a slave ship / Count ’em fallin’ off two, three, four hun’ed at a time”—capture the rage and pain of an entire people. This visceral connection to history is what makes The Transatlantic Slave Trade a powerful rallying cry for justice and equity.
Brown, an award-winning journalist and Senior National Correspondent for the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA), brings his keen insight into this exploration of history. Brown has relentlessly advocated for justice and equity, using his platform to shed light on systemic injustices nationwide.
In The Transatlantic Slave Trade, Chavis and Brown challenge readers to reckon with the uncomfortable truths of America’s past—and to acknowledge how those truths continue to shape the realities of today. The authors highlight how the scars of slavery persist in police violence, economic disparity, and the underfunding of Black communities. They demand we face this history head-on without sugarcoating or sanitizing the truth.
This book is a must-read for anyone seeking to understand the historical roots of modern-day racism and the enduring fight for equal justice. As Public Enemy famously said, “Fight the Power.”The Transatlantic Slave Trade is a potent weapon in the ongoing battle for racial equity and justice, reminding us that the struggle continues—and so must our resistance.
The Transatlantic Slave Trade: Overcoming the 500-Year Legacy will be available at major book retailers and online platforms beginning October 8, 2024.
About the Authors
Dr. Benjamin Chavis is a civil rights leader, author, and former Executive Director and CEO of the NAACP. Known for his relentless fight against oppression and his leadership in environmental justice and economic empowerment, Dr. Chavis is a lifelong warrior for social justice. Currently, Chavis is the President and CEO of the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA).
Stacy M. Brown is the Senior National Correspondent for the National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) and an acclaimed journalist renowned for his in-depth reporting on racial and social justice issues.
For review copies or to schedule an interview with the authors, please contact: Kenichi Sugihara, Select Books, http://www.kenichi@selectbooks.com.
Lenovo Legion has teamed up with JAR Systems to make esports accessible with mobile cart solutions.
LAKEWOOD RANCH, Fla., September 17, 2024 (Newswire.com)
– Lenovo Legion announced a strategic partnership with JAR Systems, the creator of USB-C PD charging carts used widely in schools nationwide. Legion has supported many schools’ efforts to launch or expand their esports programs and harness students’ passion for gaming. This joint venture provides new solutions to accelerate those programs including the initial release of a cobranded charging cart engineered for gaming devices.
Esports programs have been recognized as effective for inspiring students and bolstering their engagement. Schools have reported improved attendance, higher scores, and an increased sense of community among their students. Many administrators wish to emulate these successes in their school districts but face challenges.
The Legion PowerPro Esports Cart, spawned by the partnership between the two companies, is an affordable tool for aspiring esports programs limited by space. The new charging cart is a secure solution for Lenovo gaming laptops and their peripheral devices. It is powered by state-of-the-art Quick-Sense USB-C PD 3.1 Charging technology and does not need to be wired with expensive AC adapters. This stand-out feature—truly AC adapter-free charging, greatly reduces maintenance requirements saving time and money.
JAR Systems is well-known in the education space for its problem-solving charging products. The company’s CEO, Axel Zimmermann, praised the partnership stating, “With our combined expertise, we can deliver smarter technology solutions that help school leaders champion student success.” The new cart exemplifies ease of use with clever features that streamline setup so gamers can get started faster.
For more information, please contact: Email: Sales@JAR-Systems.com Phone: (941) 870-4493
About Lenovo Legion
Lenovo Legion, the world’s leading Gaming Ecosystem brand, crafts smarter gaming hardware, software, and services, empowering gamers from across the world to band together and reach their impossible.
About JAR Systems
JAR Systems is a pioneer in charging solutions with more than 20 years of experience offering innovative products that address the unique needs of educational institutions. With a focus on efficiency and reliability, JAR Systems helps schools maximize their technology investments and support student success.
According to a Barron investigation completed with the help of web traffic analytics firm Similarweb, in the past three years, a whopping number of 27 overseas gambling platforms have spent around $28 million on Google Search ads alone to attract 56 million visitors in total.
The problem is most of these operators that recruited customers using paid ads on Facebook, Google, and Amazon-owned Twitch did not have a license and were in violation of Big Tech regulations, putting minors at risk while allegedly violating the terms of service for each of these platforms.
Skin Gambling Ads
The platforms promoted skin gambling, a form of gambling in the legal gray area that allows players to use virtual goods (in-game items known as “skins”) as virtual currency to bet on the outcome of games of chance.
The sites relied on the iconic Counter-Strike (CS) game to allow players to use skins as gambling currency.
Since the skins won as prizes can bring thousands of dollars in marketplaces from third parties, the stakes and the associated risks are as real as possible, especially when it comes to minors.
Minors, More Vulnerable to the Effects of Gambling & Ads
According to the International Gaming Research Unit at Nottingham Trent University’s director and professor of behavioral addiction, Mark Griffiths, minors “are more vulnerable to the effects of both gambling and gambling advertising.”
As explained by Rob Minnick, a gambling counselor who makes popular gambling addiction videos on TikTok, some of today’s social media ads introduce children to gambling “years ahead of where they otherwise would have found it if it wasn’t advertised to them.”
Minnick reinforced his statement saying that simply “being an adolescent in and of itself is a risk factor” of developing a gambling problem.
Big Tech Platforms’ Rules for Skin Gambling
In the US, Google does not allow “advertising for internet-based games where money or other items of value are paid or wagered to win a greater sum of money or other item of value.”
Once online “activities involved constitute gambling, including when they involve skins, our gambling policies apply,” said a Google spokesperson.
Meta Platforms regulations say ads promoting online gambling and gaming are only allowed with their “prior written permission.”
Twitch explained skin gambling based on the CS game as well as “any promotion or sponsorship of skins gambling—is not allowed.”
Despite these strict policies, skin gambling ads continue to expand. While Barron offered examples found during the investigation at Google and Amazon’s request, most of the respective gambling platforms continue to actively advertise there.
While Meta Platforms decided to disable several ads following the same inquiries, it only took a few days for them to be brought back to the library.
Big Money Involved
One explanation could be the large amount of money pumped into these ads. For example, Singapore-based online casino Hellcase used a series of Facebook and Instagram ads, pumped millions in Google Search campaigns and spent a lot of money on YouTube influencers to reach millions of potential customers.
Google alone has accepted around $5 million from the online casino in exchange for an estimated eight million users reaching the platform.
Hellcase’s main problem is that it does not provide the mandatory age verification procedure for users needed when advertising gambling-like activity.
Similar issues are reported in other parts of the world.
CSGORoll Ads in Australia
According to the Australian Communications and Media Authority’s (ACMA) chair Nerida O’Loughlin, “Skins gambling services are particularly concerning as they tap into a youth market and have the potential to convert gamers into gamblers.”
In May 2023, ACMA acted against skin gambling site CSGORoll, punishing it for “contravening” the country’s gambling laws by enabling users to deposit CS skins “in exchange for in-game coins” available for gambling on “casino-style games.”
In the year that followed the regulatory decision, Google kept serving ads for CSGORoll to Australians, as per the company’s Ads Transparency Center, a tool that showcases active and past ads published via Google.
In June, a Google spokesperson informed Barron’s that the ad account for CSGORoll’s parent company was “no longer active” with them as a result of the “appropriate enforcement action” taken earlier.
Nonetheless, the ads transparency tool keeps showing active ads for CSGORoll in the country.
In early July, the CSGORoll ads vanished from Australia. However, ads that are directing users to CSGORoll’s platform are still active for US users.
Similarweb estimates the site spent $2.4 million on Google Search ads at a global level in the first half of the current year.
Google explains gambling ads are allowed in Australia and other countries “as long as the advertiser is a licensed operator” that can provide a valid license.
CSGORoll does not display any proof of license on its site. In fact, of the 27 assessed operators advertising via Google, only four provided proof of a gambling license issued by their governments.
Neither of them has issued warnings regarding the dangers of gambling, which is another mandatory requirement to be allowed to advertise gambling on Google’s platforms.
In June, the Swedish Gaming Authority banned four online gambling operators for providing games without a license. Two of them were skin gambling operators.
At the start of the year, we reported on data from a study exploring the functioning of three popular Chinese skin gambling companies that kept flourishing despite legal constraints.
PROVIDENCE, R.I., June 22, 2024 (Newswire.com)
– AVID Products, a Rhode Island-based audio company, is thrilled to unveil their latest innovation in headset technology—the AVIGA™ gaming headset. Designed to deliver high-quality sound, performance, and comfort at an accessible price point, AVIGA aims to amplify the esports experience for gamers of all levels.
The AVIGA gaming headset made its debut at DreamHack in Dallas, a globally renowned gaming festival held from May 31st to June 2nd, 2024, bringing together over 45,000 gamers from around the world. This premier event set the stage to showcase AVIGA’s high-quality audio and gamer-focused features to an enthusiastic audience.
Additionally, AVIGA will be presented to the education community at ISTE in Denver from June 23rd to 26th, 2024. As a reliable and affordable audio solution for school esports teams, this headset is poised to support educational institutions in creating optimal competitive gaming environments.
“We are beyond thrilled to introduce AVIGA to the gaming community,” says Mike Logan, Chief Commercial Officer at AVID Products, “Throughout the development of this headset our goal was clear—to provide gamers superior performance at an incredible value.”
More than just a gaming accessory, AVIGA also reflects AVID Products’ commitment to providing mindful, innovative, and accessible solutions for listeners of all kinds. As a 100% employee-owned for-impact company, AVID Products is dedicated to making a difference for future generations.
At the heart of AVIGA is a mission to empower gamers and elevate their gameplay experience at an intentionally affordable price point, without compromising on quality. With simple packaging and a sleek, minimalist style, AVIGA is designed to be a gaming headset for every gamer—regardless of background, budget, or level of experience—with all the features gamers require.
Logan affirms, “With the launch of AVIGA, we provide gamers with the audio solution they need to achieve their gaming goals, all while ensuring maximum comfort and uncompromised audio quality.”
Key features of the AVIGA gaming headset include:
Audio clarity – Experience every sound with crisp clarity, giving you a competitive edge in the game, while also accommodating audio of all types –including music, movies, and podcasts.
Durability and long-lasting comfort – Built to withstand extended gaming sessions, the AVIGA is durable and reliable with plush cushioning for maximum comfort.
Clear voice pick-up and swivel to mute boom mic – Ensure clear communication with the boom microphone, capturing your voice with precision. Then easily mute your microphone by swiveling up the boom arm.
The AVIGA gaming headset is offered at an MSRP of $59.95 with either a 3.5mm TRRS or USB-A connection. It is available now at shop.avidproducts.com and through select reseller partners. For more information and to join the AVID Community, visit avidproducts.com and connect with AVID Products on social media platforms including LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and X.
Infinix, a trendy tech brand crafted for young consumers, announced its ultimate dual-chip gaming phone, the Infinix GT 20 Pro. Being the only smartphone to offer a dedicated gaming display chip at its price point, it delivers esports-level performance, redefining the mobile gaming experience across hardware and software.
Weiqi Nie, head of product at Infinix, excitedly shares, “Innovation knows no bounds when passion meets technology. The success of the Infinix GT 10 Pro was just the beginning. With the Infinix GT 20 Pro, we have raised the bar higher, introducing a symphony of hardware, software, cooling systems, and cyber-mecha design. It’s not just a phone; it’s a game-changer for professional esports tournaments.”
Furthermore, the introduction of the Infinix GT VERSE elevates gaming, creating a range of products including a laptop, earphones, a smartwatch, and a cooling fan.
Outplay The Rest
The Infinix GT 20 Pro sets itself apart in its price segment with dual chips that bring its performance on par with competitive flagship processors, delivering an unmatched high-performance gaming experience. Featuring the Dimensity 8200 Ultimate 4nm 5G Processor and Pixelworks X5 Turbo Dedicated Gaming Display Chip, it offers esports-level performance and visually stunning experiences, pushing frame rates from 60FPS to 120FPS. As the first IRX-certified smartphone launched by Infinix, players can expect a distinctly more immersive gaming experience.
Perform Like A Gaming Beast
The gaming performance of the Infinix GT 20 Pro is underpinned by a Stable Frame-rate Engine that optimizes gameplay by balancing temperature and power consumption, ensuring smooth performance with minimal power usage. It includes Xboost for sustained performance management and employs vertical synchronization to prevent screen tearing. The engine prioritizes gaming resources, guaranteeing a seamless and efficient gaming experience.
A meticulously engineered cooling system employs a 68% larger Phase Change Material (PCM) graphite sheet and a 73% larger VC Liquid Cooling system to improve cooling and heat dissipation efficiency. Additionally, more than 66% of the thermal paste is applied to the primary heat source area for targeted cooling.
The Infinix GT Series is a newcomer in the gaming flagship arena but has quickly become a shining star in the esports field within just one year. Infinix aims to provide users with an esports-level gaming experience, so after three rounds of rigorous professional testing, the Infinix GT 20 Pro has met the standards for tournament-level use and has become the Official Gaming Phone of the PUBG Mobile Super League (PMSL).
The Infinix GT 20 Pro demonstrates exceptional performance and efficiency when handling popular games, including MLBB, PUBG, COD, Genshin Impact, and Honkai: Star Rail. Notably, it can upscale Genshin Impact refresh rates to 120Hz through interpolation for super-smooth gameplay.
Designed For Gaming Master
The Infinix GT 20 Pro showcases the Cyber Mecha Design, capturing the Infinix GT spirit of Metal, Power, and Speed with a unique Turbine Blade Pattern for dynamic, high-performance aesthetics. Its Mecha Loop LED Interface offers extensive customization, with eight color combinations and four lighting effects, allowing gamers to personalize their device extensively. Inspired by the intricate structure of beehives, the exterior design aligns with the vibrant aesthetics of modern gaming, making it a standout choice for gamers seeking both performance and style.
Key Features
Bezel-Less 6.78-inch 144Hz FHD+ AMOLED Display
Clean & Pure OS 2.0 with 2 Major Android Upgrades and 3-year Security Patch Updates
Dual Speakers with Sound by JBL
Hyper Charge Mode – 5000mAh Battery & 45W Fast Charge
Cyber Mecha Design with Customizable & Interactive Mecha Loop Mini LED
Mecha Loop Game Lighting Effects
108MP OIS Triple Rear Camera
Vision Toward A Holistic Gaming Universe
The Infinix GT series was created to satisfy the multifaceted desires of gamers, from gameplay to enabling self-expression and beyond. The Infinix GT 20 Pro builds upon this rich heritage as part of a wider portfolio, introducing the Infinix GT VERSE, Infinix’s gaming ecosystem for all gaming enthusiasts. It features a laptop, earphones, a smartwatch, and a cooling fan, providing a full suite of tools to level up gaming.
Infinix also announces the Infinix GTBOOK, created in collaboration with Nvidia. It boasts top-tier CPU and GPU technology, advanced cooling solutions, and a high refresh rate display. These features are encompassed within a sleek design that reflects the Infinix GT series’ commitment to cutting-edge, gamer-centric aesthetics.
Official Gaming Phone for Mobile Legends: Bang Bang Professional League (MPL) Season 13
The Infinix GT 20 Pro, the official tournament phone for MPL Season 13, is poised to revolutionize the Mobile Legends: Bang Bang (MLBB) gaming experience. As the Philippine market eagerly awaits its debut, gamers can anticipate a new level of gaming excellence with its advanced features and capabilities. With the possibility of the GT 20 Pro stepping into the spotlight, the gaming community buzzes with excitement, anticipating an exhilarating future for esports competitions.
Pricing & Availability
The Infinix GT 20 Pro will be available in Mecha Blue, Mecha Orange, and Mecha Silver, with 12+256GB and 8+256GB memory configurations. Pricing will vary by region, with details to be announced at launch.
The gaming market is huge these days, with a value exceeding the music and movie industries. Interestingly, eSports is now considered a real sport, with live tournaments. We will watch some popular games at the next Olympics.
And while the main reason so many people are into video games is pure entertainment, you could turn it into income. This article explores the different ways how you can earn money by playing video games.
Streaming Platforms
This one makes it simple for anyone to start. You can create a page on YouTube, X, or Twitch. The best detail is that you can earn through different ways, such as:
Ad revenue
Donations
Paid sponsorships
Subscriptions
Considering the wide range of games in different genres, you don’t need to worry about the audience. Besides the typical video games, we saw a rise in channels that stream online slots. This option is attractive because a lot of online casinos are interested in sponsoring a channel that will promote them.
But before you start with this one, it is recommended to explore the games and learn more about their features. Using a demo version is the best way for that since you don’t have to spend real money. In that matter, check out free-slots-no-download.com.
Share Tutorials and Insights
Even though this one is quite similar to the first model, the approach is different. You will need more than just showing your exceptional gaming skills. The goal here is to provide your followers with instructions and help on how they can become better in the same game.
One of the best examples is Kripparrian. He has channels on YouTube and Twitch and a combined 2.5 million followers on these platforms.
So, his approach is quite simple. He is known as a Hearthstone player. Most of his videos are interesting combinations of tutorials but made in a fun way. You can watch him play and learn a lot about different combinations and strategies to use and rank higher in this game.
You can do the same, just pick your favorite game, and determine a proper structure in which you will aim to inform others about winning strategies, updates, and other insights.
Create a Blog
This one may seem a bit old-school. Many people would rather choose the video, right? Well, not always. You can do a lot with a blog in this niche. For example, to share articles with instructions, information about the most recent changes, and more.
The important part is that you must integrate multimedia in your posts, such as pictures, videos, and links to streams and other content. The whole point is that you don’t need to stick to only one model.
I mean, why would you only share a live stream, when you can do so much with additional tutorials on YouTube, and written format shared on your blog? That can significantly improve your channel, it’s called branding.
Once you become a more recognizable face in the niche, you can expect a lot of people to be interested in paying you to sponsor them, share their platforms, and more.
For example, I already mentioned the streaming of slot games. Add a blog, and you will multiply the available income sources. However, starting a blog will require skills and experience, the essentials are:
To determine a niche
To write high-quality and engine content
To be unique
Game Testing
It might seem less common. But most companies that are making video games will go through this process. So, they will hire a team of testers, and then consider their reviews and experience.
You can look for such opportunities on the official websites of companies. My tip – don’t just aim at those large names like Activision, Ubisoft, or Sony. Keep in mind that many smaller companies would need a tester even more, and might pay even more for testing.
You can find everything from indie games, and mobile games, to some more complex ones. Moreover, it could become an introduction to getting a job in some big company. The average salary for this position is over $30k annually.
Tournaments
I left this one to be the last for a reason. First of all, it is not as simple as it sounds. You can’t just go out there, become a member of a team, and start paying official tournaments. In most cases, it demands years of practice, dedication, and hundreds of hours spent while playing a particular video game.
The interesting fact is that the most popular tournaments are for the games that have been around for over 20 years, like Dota and Counter-Strike. But these players are on a whole new level. If you think that you are good enough, the first step is to find a team. And that can be challenging.
The most important features of a good team are:
clear communication
proper strategy
preparation
ability to work together and resolve various challenges
For example, if you are playing Dota 2. There are 124 heroes, each one with a unique abilities. Some may have a serious advantage over another one. For instance, a carry would easily deal with a support hero. However, that all changes in a 5vs5 game where the right strategy will prevail.
The reason why I am so focused on Dota 2 is because it has the biggest tournaments at the moment. When we look at the top 10 list of highest-paid events, the first 7 places are Dota 2, 8th is Fortnite, and then we have Dota 2 again. The biggest prize pool is over $40 million, while all of those in the top 10 are over $15 million.
I also have to mention Player Unknown Battlegrounds, Arena of Valor, Overwatch, Call of Duty, and Rainbow Six Siege as the games known for high prize-pool tournaments, all exceeding $3 million.
The Bottom Line
As you can see, the models I mentioned provide a lot of flexibility, and you can easily adjust according to your skills and experience.
And for the first 4, the essential part is to focus on building a brand. That is the only way to retain followers and create a group of loyal ones. So, just pick your favorite game, and start sharing interesting content.
Respawn, the EA-owned studio behind Apex Legends has postponed the North American Finals tournament after hackers broke into matches and equipped players with cheats. The developer posted to X, formerly Twitter, that the delay has been caused due to the “competitive integrity of the series being compromised.” Footage of the hacks, available available on Twitch, gave players the ability to see their opponent’s location while notable player ImperialHal was handed an aimbot which artificially improves their aim while playing.
Due to the competitive integrity of this series being compromised, we have made the decision to postpone the NA finals at this time. We will share more information soon.
— Apex Legends Esports (@PlayApexEsports) March 18, 2024
Cheating has been a continual issue for EA — and one that players claim the company is doing little to mitigate. Frustrated posts on EA’s general discussion page include statements like “If EA gonna ban all the cheaters it wouldn’t be enough players to play the game,” and “The real issue lies in the process of banning/suspending players.” Other grievances include a focus on profits over experience, such as bumping up the price of skins.
Furthermore, EA laid off five percent of its workforce — about 650 people — at the end of February. Respawn’s in-progress Star Wars first-person shooter game was canceled alongside the terminations. At the time CEO Andrew Wilson told employees that EA was “streamlining our company operations to deliver deeper, more connected experiences for fans everywhere.”
A new time for the North American Finals of Apex Legends hasn’t been announced, but the X post stated that it would “share more information soon.” In the meantime, EA and Respawn have to determine how to block the hacker’s current access and how to reopen qualifications without risking further hacks.
Bowie State University’s esports facility opened Feb. 8 and includes 12 gaming stations, streaming capabilities and a racing simulator.
Students at Prince George’s County, Maryland’s Bowie State University interested in gaming now have a place to compete professionally, earn money or just blow off some steam.
The university’s esports facility opened Feb. 8 and includes 12 gaming stations, streaming capabilities and a racing simulator. The $575,000 space will serve as the official training space for Bowie State’s esports team participating in the CIAA and national competitions.
“We actually started during the pandemic, when, of course, there was no physical contact allowed, because we were all teaching and learning from our respective homes,” said Maurice Tyler, Bowie State’s vice president for information technology and chief information officer. “During that time, esports was the only thing that we could do,”
But, Tyler said students participating in esports didn’t have a place to practice or compete.
“Over the last year and a half, we started putting together a space for our students on campus to actively participate in practice and compete in tournaments for our new esports program,” Tyler said.
Through the program, the athletes can compete professionally, earn scholarship money and even receive brand deals for their likeness. The university hopes the growing space will also increase students’ interest in STEM careers, and encourage students already pursuing STEM careers to take up gaming.
“We also have what we call casual gaming,” Tyler said. “These are students that just want to relax and release and play games, not necessarily in this professional, competitive setting, but more of a casual, fun, you know, laid-back type of feel.”
Other students are playing esports as part of their academics.
“We’re actually creating a game design curriculum, all focused on game design, because it really touches on just about every profession,” Tyler said.
The facility sits on the ground floor of the James E. Proctor Building.
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Riot Games has announced that they will introduce a League of Legends Hall of Fame in Season 14. Plenty of names deserve to be in it, some more worthy than others. So, here is our list of top 20 best players who deserve to be in the League of Legends Hall of Fame.
10 Retired Pro Players Who Deserve the League of Legends Hall of Fame
Smeb
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Of all the top laners in the world, both retired and active, Smeb is the only one we’ve included on our list. He is ahead of some of the greatest players the League has ever seen, such as Khan, MaRin, and TheShy. The main reason for that is his consistency and ability to 1v2 or even 1v3 on the island that is the top lane.
However, he never won a World Championship or an MSI title. He had a good chance for that when he had Score, Deft, Mata, and PawN on his team. Yet, they always ended up eliminated by the eventual winners of that season’s worlds.
Still, he is one of the most underrated top laners ever and the one who deserves to be in the League of Legends Hall of Fame the most.
Mata
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Before he got on the same team as Smeb, Mata had already made a name for himself. He was a prolific Thresh player who often got compared to MadLife, and so far, he was the only support player ever to be awarded the MVP of a World Championship. This led many to regard him as the best support ever to pick up a mouse.
Moreover, his prowess extended beyond the bot lane. He is known for having multiple accounts in KR Challenger, maining a different role on each one. You probably don’t know this, but he even beat Faker in a 1v1 All-Stars Tournament back in 2016. Not too shabby for a support main, eh?
Ambition
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Before swapping to the jungle, Ambition was regarded as the most consistent mid-laner in Korea. He was even selected to represent Korea at All-Star Shanghai 2013 in mid. However, his greatest achievements came after he role-swapped to the jungle.
The champions with whom he was especially dominant were Lee Sin, Jarvan IV, Nidalee, and Zac. Also, he was noted for his aggressive playstyle, invading, tower diving, playmaking, and team fighting. Ultimately, if there is one jungler on this list deserving of the League of Legends Hall of Fame, it’s Ambition.
Bengi
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Bengi is the only player besides Faker to win three or more World Championships, achieving that in 2013, 2015, and 2016 with SKT T1. He also popularized champions like Vi and Zac in combination with mid-lane assassins. Enemy teams would often ban either Vi or Ahri to stop him and Faker from executing their obnoxious tower dives.
However, being on a team with Faker shouldn’t diminish his own accomplishments. He won almost every major tournament he competed in as a player and even helped T1 as a coach after retiring. Not that many junglers can compete with that kind of resume.
Bang
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
One of the first players to reach 1,000 kills in the LCK, Bang is still regarded by many as a prime example of what an ADC should look like. Mechanically gifted, especially on Ezreal and Kalista, Bang was unfortunately often overshadowed by the rest of his T1 squad.
Nevertheless, I still remember that moment during the 2015 Worlds when he had an insane 70+ KDA as they reached the quarterfinals. It really showed how consistent and methodical he was in the bot lane. The only ones who could match him at that time were Uzi and Deft.
Finally, count in a couple of World Championships, MSI, and LCK wins, and you won’t have any doubt that Bang deserves a spot in the League of Legends Hall of Fame.
inSec
Image Source: Riot Games via LoL Fandom
Even though he never won a Worlds title, inSec will forever be remembered as the flashiest jungler the pro scene had ever seen. Solely because of him, there are probably more Lee Sin montages on YouTube than for any other champion in the game.
Furthermore, he remains an inspiration for every other jungle player in the game and represents what god-like micro looks like. He was also a prolific Zed and Shaco player, capable of pulling off combos even Faker himself would be jealous of.
Doublelift
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Players from Korea and China have dominated the pro scene since the earliest days of LoL. Nevertheless, a few names from the EU and NA deserve mention, the first one being Doublelift.
Doublelift is one of the players who has been around the pro scene since its inception and has always delivered for his team. He also became the first player to achieve 1,500 kills in the LCS. If it wasn’t for his face-checking addiction, he might have been even greater.
Ultimately, even though he had never won a Worlds or an MSI title, Doublelift has been a great ambassador for League of Legends and Esports in general, deserving a spot on our list of Hall of Famers.
xPeke
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
xPeke is the only Western player on this list to claim the title of a World Champion. He did it with Fnatic in the first season of League’s pro play. Additionally, he is the reason why everyone yells “xPeke!” while backdooring due to his outstanding Kassadin play at IEM Katowice.
Besides Kassadin, his champion pool included Katarina, Fizz, Diana, and Kha’Zix (when he was still a popular mid-pick). He was also one of the first players to run unconventional picks, such as Caitlyn on mid-lane, inspiring many others to do the same afterward.
MadLife
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Ming, Missing, and Mata are all great supports, but no one yells their name when throwing a Thresh Q in League. The reason for that is MadLife. He is the OG support player even the most casual LoL fans know about.
His most famous trait was predicting enemy flashes and hitting hooks perfectly. These montages are some of the most watched of any pro player in League history. However, he never won a top-tier tournament, with his team hurting his legacy quite a bit.
Another thing he is known for is pioneering full AP support champions and promoting strong micro-skills as something that a good support player must possess. But even without all that, he is still one of the GOATs of League of Legends and deserving of a place in the Hall of Fame.
Dopa
Image Source: Twinfinite via Official Dopa YouTube
Dopa is the most controversial pick on our list and my personal favorite. His pro career was very short-lived, but he got to play on the Rebels Anarchy, which was eventually rebranded and is now known as Kwangdong Freecs (he is still good friends with the KF coach cvMax and was just a couple of months away from playing on the same team as TheShy).
Nonetheless, he impacted the League’s community so much that many consider him a better mid-laner than Faker. His greatest achievements are hitting rank 1 with multiple accounts almost every season that he has played on both the Korean and Chinese servers.
His signature picks are Orianna, Twisted Fate, and Viktor. Most of the tactics and concepts used when playing these champions were invented or popularized by him. Currently, he is doing his mandatory military service, and it’s questionable whether we will ever see him streaming League again.
10 Active Pro Players Who Deserve the League of Legends Hall of Fame
Faker
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Just like S1mple is the GOAT of CS:GO, N0tail of Dota 2, and Flash of StarCraft, Faker is the undisputed GOAT of League of Legends. Dubbed The Unkillable Demon King by OMG Cool, he is the personification of the ultimate League of Legends pro player. His achievements speak for themselves:
The only player to win four World Championships.
Two MSI wins.
Numerous MVP and Finals MVP titles.
Ten LCK split wins, most of any other player.
Player who has competed at the highest level for the longest time out of all pro players.
And the list just keeps going. Whatever you say about Faker wouldn’t do him justice. His legacy and fame are so great in the gaming community that almost any gamer in the world would recognize his name. Ultimately, if there is a single player from this list who will get his name immortalized in the League of Legends Hall of Fame, it’s Faker.
Uzi
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Ask any ADC main who their idols are, and Uzi is sure to pop up among those names. Regarded by many as the strongest player ever mechanically, Uzi paved the way for all other great ADCs from China, most notably GALA and JackeyLove.
Even though he never won the League of Legends World Championship, his individual accolades are more than enough to make him a Hall of Famer:
First ever player to reach 2,000 kills in pro play and the first to get 500/1,000/1,500/2,000/2,500 kills in the LPL.
He has the most CS/M in every LPL season he has played in since 2015.
Unfortunately, injuries plagued his later career, and many fans still wonder what more he could’ve achieved. Hopefully, his great solo queue form indicates a return to a competitive squad in the near future, where he can show us why even Ruler considered winning lane against him an unsolvable puzzle.
Rookie
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Rookie is an LPL legend and probably the second-best mid-laner ever. In 2018, he broke a streak of six consecutive Korean World Championship victories and took it away with Invictus Gaming. This was also the first Worlds win by an LPL team.
Unfortunately, we didn’t see him and Faker face each other off more throughout the years, partly due to the lack of international tournaments and partly because the League’s tournament formats almost never had them in the same group or bracket.
However, they did end up in the same group during MSI 2019 when IG beat SKT in under 16 minutes and set the record for the fastest MSI game ever. If you count all the other records he has set in the LPL and the international scene throughout the years, there is no doubt that Rookie will one day end up being a League of Legends Hall of Famer.
Ruler
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Even though he is one of the youngest players on our list, Ruler has an esports resume that few can compare to. He won the World Championship, MSI, LCK, LPL, Worlds MVP, LCK MVP, an Asian Games Gold Medal, and multiple All-Pro team appearances.
Ruler is also regarded as the best ADC in the world for years now, and he is probably still early in his prime. Attesting to this is the fact that he has won or reached the semi-finals/finals of all major tournaments but one in the last four years.
Finally, we can all hope that this is just the start of Ruler’s dynasty, with many more fruitful years to come. Even now, though, his legacy as a micro god and penta-kill machine worthy of a Hall of Fame status is undisputed.
Caps
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
We might have seen more LEC talents here if the competition wasn’t so tight. In the end, the one that deserves the status of a League of Legends Hall of Famer the most is Caps.
Even though fans call him Craps sometimes, he has won an MSI, LEC splits ten times, Rift Rivals, innumerable MVP and All-Pro rewards, and made multiple Worlds finals appearances. This all makes him by far the most accomplished LEC player ever.
Moreover, he is the only Western mid-laner besides Perkz capable of matching Chinese and Korean players. He even scored a penta against SKT T1 with Akali in the semi-finals of the 2019 MSI. Only he, Rain, OnFleek, and Ruler managed to do that.
Doinb
Image Source: LoL Esports via Twitter/X
You might consider that too many mid-laners are already on this list, but we couldn’t leave out Doinb. Very few LPL pros can come close to his record in terms of accomplishments, both as a pro and as a solo queue player.
He possesses a deep champion pool and concept knowledge similar to Faker. Furthermore, he pioneered many of the off-meta picks now played on mid, such as Nautilus, Pantheon, and Kled, successfully using them in pro play.
What he’s most famous for is his farming and lane dominance, especially with Ryze and Viktor. He managed to even get 400 cs in 24 minutes in a solo queue game. However, not playing Azir, Akali, and other meta picks as much as the others lowered his chances of getting more titles considerably.
Meiko
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Meiko is the player with the most played games in the LPL and one of the most loyal ones at that. He was the main support of EDG for nine years and 26 days before joining Top Esports.
Furthermore, he is the first LPL player to win every major tournament he participated in (Worlds, Demacia Cup, LPL, MSI, Rift Rivals, Asian Games). All these titles make him the most internationally accomplished support besides T1 Wolf.
However, his regional achievements shouldn’t be disregarded either. He achieved and still holds almost every win, games played, and assist record in the LPL. Not bad for someone who is only 25 years old right now and still in his prime.
Scout
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
Besides Meiko, Scout is the youngest on our list of players deserving to be in the League of Legends Hall of Fame. At only 25 years of age, his accolades are already comparable to those of his veteran LPL rivals, such as Rookie and Doinb. Here are a few:
World Champion and Finals MVP 2021.
Three LPL titles and two LPL MVPs.
He made the LPL All-Pro team in almost every season he has played in.
Two Demacia Cups victories.
Two Rift Rivals titles.
Ultimately, he still has his best career years ahead of him, and whether or not he will win another World Championship and further facilitate his legacy as one of the best mid-laners ever is uncertain.
Deft
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
China has Uzi, and Korea has Deft. Arguably, he is the only bot-laner who could match Uzi in his prime in terms of mechanics and ADC knowledge. However, SKT dominated the scene at the time of his prime, limiting his international success.
All that changed in 2022. After ten years of play and eight World Championship appearances with six different teams, he finally won it in an upset five-game victory over T1. There were even speculations that he would retire if he didn’t win it, but thankfully, they never came true.
His most noteworthy titles besides Worlds are:
MSI Champion.
Two-time LCK split winner.
Two-time LPL split winner.
Four Demacia Cup titles.
Ultimately, even if he were to retire tomorrow, Deft would undeniably be Korea’s most influential player besides Faker and worthy of being immortalized in the League of Legends Hall of Fame.
CoreJJ
Image Source: LoL Esports Photos via Flickr
We had to include at least one LCS legend, and that is none other than CoreJJ. Even though he never won an international title with an LCS team (he won it with SSG in 2017), he still remains at the top of the support food chain after ten years of professional play.
Furthermore, he has raked up numerous MVPs, All-Pro Team appearances, and LCS titles throughout the years. But even without all that, his love of the game, sportsmanship, and being one of the best ambassadors of League of Legends would earn him a spot on our list.
What Is the League of Legends Hall of Fame?
In Season 14, League of Legends will induct the first generation of players into the Hall of Legends (very creative naming). They announced this, along with many other things, in a blog post explaining their plans for the future.
A panel of industry veterans and experts from every region will vote on who the inductees will be. Riot hasn’t revealed how many players will be inducted into the Hall of Fame or when, as a matter of fact. Still, we will update this post once there is more information.
That concludes our list of 20 players who deserve to be in the League of Legends Hall of Fame. If you want to read more League of Legends stories and guides, see the links we included below. There is even one on player distribution, which might be useful, especially if you play a lot of ranked.
About the author
Aleksa Stojković
Aleksa is a passionate gamer with an extraordinary ability to solve puzzles in video games, which is not surprising considering his sudoku addiction. He also has a love-hate relationship with League of Legends and Counter-Strike 2.
MIDDLETOWN, R.I., August 22, 2023 (Newswire.com)
– The Network of Academic and Scholastic Esports Federations (NASEF) today announces a valuable partnership with AVID Products as its new headset partner. Through this partnership, AVID will provide support and donate quality gaming headsets to members of the education-focused NASEF as well as its professional international competitive arm, the United States Esports Federation.
As a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, NASEF is always looking for opportunities to enhance the clubs under its banner. With the support of generous organizations like AVID, NASEF will continue to create useful content and offer free support to schools and out-of-school time organizations looking to leverage scholastic esports for meaningful education on life and career skills. Scholastic esports is proving to be a significant tool to develop STEAM-based skills among students while keeping them happy and engaged.
The United States Esports Federation is managed by NASEF and incorporates NASEF’s vision to develop athletes who are game changers in the esports world, emphasizing core values of learning, opportunity, community, diversity, and respect. The World Esports Championships will be hosted by the International Esports Federation in Iasi, Romania, beginning August 25, 2023. The U.S. Esports Federation is sending six teams to represent the United States of America as they compete for world titles and prizes in the tens of thousands of dollars. AVID is one of a select group of sponsors that are helping to provide opportunities for these elite esports athletes who will represent the U.S.
“It’s always exciting when two purpose-driven organizations come together to promote positive change and awareness,” said Michael Logan, Chief Commercial Officer for AVID Products. “Scholastic esports participation is all-inclusive and benefits everyone, from athletes to scholars to those with varying needs. AVID is proud to partner with NASEF to provide opportunities for all players to maximize the benefits and positive impact esports can have in their lives.”
Through this partnership, AVID and NASEF will collaboratively develop educational content highlighting the importance of audio technology to esports and other pursuits, and helping youths understand and consider related career pathways.
“NASEF is continually seeking experts in the field for partnerships that will benefit students,” said Gerald Solomon, NASEF’s executive director. “AVID engineers and professional staff will help NASEF build a growing body of content related to various roles in the esports ecosystem. In addition to its industry expertise, AVID is well-aligned in its mission to improve equity and access for students, as demonstrated by its existing work to eliminate the digital divide.”
AVID’s preferred offering for scholastic esports is its 70 Series Headsets. Giving gamers features they expect in a headset at an affordable price point, it outperforms others within its price class and those at much higher price points, making it an unbeatable choice. TheAE-75 comes with a 3.5mm connection, and the AE-79 provides a USB connection with inline volume and mute control. The speakers bring sound to the next level with a perfect blend of rich deep bass with clear mid tones and highs, creating an immersive experience. Over-the-ear styling provides passive noise reduction to improve focus. Deluxe ear padding, coupled with a padded adjustable headband, gives everyone exceptional comfort for extended use. The ultra-flexible and adjustable noise-canceling boom-style microphone cancels out ambient background noise and enables crystal-clear communication.
About AVID: More than just an audio company, AVID is a team of employee-owners delivering and advocating for mindful, innovative, and accessible solutions for learners of all kinds. Founded in 1953, AVID Products is a 100% employee-owned for-impact company headquartered in Rhode Island. Connecting listeners and like-minded partners for success, no matter who they are or where they’re at on their life-long journey, is the heart of the AVID brand.
About NASEF: The Network of Academic and Scholastic Esports Federations (NASEF) aims to provide opportunities for all students to use esports as a platform to develop STEM/STEAM-based skills and social-emotional attributes such as communication, collaboration and problem-solving abilities needed to thrive in work and in life. Its vision is to ensure that all students possess the knowledge and skills needed to be society’s game changers: educated, productive, and empathetic individuals. Through the United States Esports Federation (USEF.gg), NASEF provides opportunities for elite esports athletes to represent the U.S. in international tournaments. Find NASEF at NASEF.org and on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
Streaming megasite Twitch has updated its community guidelines, and now prohibits streamers from promoting or being sponsored by Counter-Strike: Global Offensive skin gambling sites. This new ban could impact many CS:GO streamers who have lucrative deals with these controversial websites.
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In CS:GO, trading and gambling of skins and other cosmetics has long been big business, with some rare, sought-after skins selling for hundreds or even thousands of dollars online. This has led to many players spending money on CS:GO skin gambling sites, effectively turning the in-game cosmetics and Steam’s trading system into a slot machine they can pull over and over again for a fee, rewarding players with items that can (sometimes) be very valuable. These skin gambling sites—which some players condemn due to accusations they prey on minors—often pay or sponsor streamers to promote their sites, with some players even streaming themselves spinning for rare cosmetics on Twitch itself. But now, it seems that might be coming to an end.
Is sponsorship of skins gambling, such as for CS:GO skins, allowed on Twitch?
No, promotion or sponsorship of skins gambling is prohibited under our policy.
This is bad news for streamers who have deals with any of these cosmetic gambling sites. One big-name example that might be impacted by this new ban is G2 Esports, a large-scale organization that employs numerous players and content creators.
In May, the group announced a big partnership with CSGORoll, a site that calls itself a “CS:GO skins trading market” but also lets players win skins and other in-game items by placing bets and making rolls. It’s likely CSGORoll would be considered a skin gambling site by Twitch, which would—if the Amazon-owned service enforces this new rule—likely mean G2 Esports won’t be able to promote CSGORoll during its streams. Awkward, as the site’s logo is on G2 Esports’ jerseys, and its players appear on the CSGORoll homepage.
Unanswered questions about Twitch’s new rule
Beyond G2, many other streamers might be affected by the new ban, as pointed out in a popular video condemning skin gambling published in July 2023 by YouTuber HOUNGOUNGAGNE. In their video they report that an estimated 75 percent of the top 300 CS:GO Twitch streamers have skin-gambling sponsors. If this new guideline is enforced, all of these players would have to quickly cut ties with these sites and the lucrative sponsorship deals they offer or face a possible Twitch ban.
Of course, there are still some questions. Does this new rule ban streamers from streaming themselves using CS:GO skin gambling and trading sites? The wording is a bit vague and only specifies promotions and sponsorship deals. Another question some have is if this new rule takes effect immediately, and what that means for folks who might have signed deals with sites and have certain obligations to uphold.
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Saudi Arabia, the new home of some of soccer’s biggest stars and a co-owner of professional golf, is proving to be no less ambitious when it comes to another global pastime – the $180 billion-a-year video game industry.
Last September, the Saudi sovereign wealth fund earmarked nearly $40 billion for a new conglomerate aimed at transforming the kingdom into the “ultimate global hub” for games and esports by 2030. In February, the Saudi fund became the biggest outside investor in Nintendo, and just this month the kingdom hosted a major gaming tournament with a record $45 million prize pool.
That’s made Saudi Arabia an increasingly important player in the industry and contributed to its breakneck transformation from an insular kingdom best known for oil and ultraconservative Islam into an emerging sports and entertainment powerhouse.
The move into gaming has sparked the same kind of backlash seen in soccer and golf, where critics accuse the Saudis of “sportswashing” human rights abuses, including the 2018 killing of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi dissident.
With gaming, a kingdom that sentences people to decades in prison over a few tweets is joining a worldwide community dominated by the young and very online.
“It’s the Romans and the Colosseum all over again, and you have countries at the top layer using sports as a theater to display their wealth and their power,” said Joost van Dreunen, a professor at New York University who has written a book about the business of video games.
“You have to ask the question: Who is the architect behind this, and what are the intentions of these architects?” he said.
Saudi Arabia’s 37-year-old Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, reportedly an avid gamer himself, sees the foray into gaming as part of Vision 2030, his ambitious plan to overhaul the kingdom’s economy, reduce its reliance on oil and provide jobs and entertainment for its youthful population.
“We are harnessing the untapped potential across the esports and games sector to diversify our economy,” he said last September, when he announced the establishment of the Savvy Games Group.
Owned by Saudi Arabia’s $700 billion Public Investment Fund and led by CEO Brian Ward, an industry veteran, Savvy aims to invest $39 billion in the gaming industry. It hopes to establish 250 local companies and create 39,000 jobs in the next seven years.
Earlier this month, it completed the $4.9 billion purchase of Scopely, the creator of “Monopoly Go,” “Star Trek Fleet Command” and “Marvel Strike Force.”
Gaming is a massive and fast-growing industry. Market research firm Newzoo says an estimated 3.2 billion people play games on PCs, consoles, mobile devices or cloud gaming services, with the industry generating $184.4 billion in revenues in 2022. Gaming brings in more money than the combined earnings of the global box office, music streaming and album sales, and the top five wealthiest sports leagues, according to a 2021 report by the Boston Consulting Group.
The kingdom is also breaking into the world of esports, competitions pitting the world’s top players against one another in games ranging from battle royales and first-person shooters to “FIFA” soccer and “Madden NFL.”
To the uninitiated, the prospect of watching other people play video games may seem unappealing, but it’s a huge business with millions of fans, celebrity players and corporate sponsors. A 2021 esports tournament in Singapore drew 5.4 million concurrent viewers.
“When you invest in esports you are getting prime advertising opportunities, and of course, you are promoting the brand of your country as a cool, forward-thinking, interesting place to go on holiday,” said Christopher Davidson, a Gulf expert at the European Center for International Affairs, a Brussels-based think tank.
“(Esports) is far younger and more global than any other sport,” he added. “English soccer is popular everywhere in the West, but not really in an average-sized Chinese city. But these esports are.”
Last summer, Saudi Arabia hosted Gamers8, a weekslong tournament with a $15 million prize pool. The event returned this month with a prize pool three times as large.
Saudi Arabia’s wealthy Gulf neighbors are also looking to get in on the action. Dubai, in the United Arab Emirates, hosted a five-day esports festival last month. The Qatar Investment Authority recently purchased a minority stake in Monument Sports & Entertainment, which owns the Washington Wizards and Capitals, as well as esport holdings.
The growing involvement of autocratic Gulf states has sparked debate within the gaming community.
Riot Games, the developer of the popular “League of Legends,” a multiplayer battle game, and Danish tournament organizer Blast Premier both canceled partnerships with Saudi Arabia in 2020 following an outcry from fans. Blast went on to hold its world finals in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the UAE, where it faced similar criticism.
Team Liquid, an esports organization that represents 60 champion players across 14 games, announced in December that it would donate half its winnings from recent competitions in Saudi Arabia and the UAE to an organization that helps LGBTQ+ individuals escape violence and persecution.
Homosexuality is considered taboo in most of the Middle East and is criminalized in Saudi Arabia and the UAE, though prosecutions are rare. Both countries also outlaw any form of LGBTQ+ advocacy.
The Team Liquid statement acknowledged the financial and ethical trade-offs of accepting sponsorship from such countries.
“These events present real opportunities for our players, many of whom may have short careers with few guarantees,” it said. “An outright boycott might not only end careers, it could end our involvement in some esports entirely.”
Stanis Elsborg, a senior analyst at Play the Game, an international initiative that aims to promote ethics in sports, and who has written extensively on the intersection of esports and the Gulf’s ambitions, says it’s a dilemma that is likely to recur.
“Money talks,” he said. “I think the esports scene will be following the same trajectory as we have seen in other sports, forming significant partnerships with state-owned companies from autocratic states.”
I started regularly playing competitive online games in 2007, with the launch of Halo 3. Back then, participating in in-game voice chat was harrowing for a 17-year-old girl whose voice betrayed her gender and her youth. I was subjected to such frequent and horrific hostility (rape threats, misogynistic remarks, sexually inappropriate comments, you name it) that I eventually started screaming back, a behavior my parents still bring up today. And yet, voice chat is essential in competitive online games, especially modern ones like Call of Duty: Warzone, Apex Legends, Fortnite, Valorant, and Overwatch.
All of these popular games require extensive amounts of teamwork to succeed, which is bolstered by being able to chat with your teammates. But in-game voice chat remains a scary, toxic place—especially for women.
Unfortunately, despite efforts from developers to crack down on toxicity in voice and text chat, it still feels, at times, like I’m stuck in the same world as that 17-year-old girl just trying to compete in peace. And I’m not alone in that feeling. I spoke to several women about their voice chat experiences, as well as reps from some of today’s biggest online games, to get a better understanding of the current landscape.
A 17-year-old me playing Halo 3 circa 2007.Photo: Alyssa Mercante / Kotaku
Voice-chatting as a woman
Competitive online games are intense, but doubly so if you’re identifiable as outside the industry’s so-called core playerbase for the last 35 years: white, straight, and male. “Marginalized users, especially women, non-binary people, and trans folks, are more likely to experience harassment in voice and video chats,” game researcher PS Berge told Kotaku’s Ashley Bardhan last year.
The moment a woman or woman-presenting person speaks in voice chat, they run the risk of being identified as an “other” and thus deserving of ridicule, ire, or sexual harassment. For many, that fear of being othered and how it could (and often does) lead to harassment directly affects their willingness to speak in competitive game settings.
“I usually wait for someone else to speak first so I know what the vibe will be,” video game level designer Nat Clayton, who regularly plays Apex Legends, told Kotaku via email. “Though I feel more comfortable chatting in Apex than I do going back to older PC games like Team Fortress 2 or Counter-Strike—games where the expectation of bigotry seems absolutely set in stone, where you feel like you cannot turn on voice chat without immediately experiencing a flood of slurs.” Both Team Fortress 2 and Counter-Strike came out in the early 2000s and still attract an older, male-leaning playerbase, many of whom can be hostile to women.
This problem has been long-standing, but companies are doing more to dissuade people from being toxic or abusive in in-game voice and text chat now than they were 10 years ago—though it often doesn’t feel like it.
Microsoft recently announced a new voice reporting feature that will let players save and submit a clip of someone violating the Xbox Community Standards, which a team will then review to determine the next course of action. “Reactive voice reporting on Xbox is designed to be quick and easy to use with minimal impact to gameplay,” reads the press release announcing the new feature. This means that Xbox players can report toxic voice chat no matter what game they’re playing, which adds another layer of protection on top of the ones set up by individual developers.
Those protections include ones laid out In the uber-popular battle royale game Fortnite. If a player is found in violation of Epic’s community rules (which have guidelines against hate speech, inappropriate content, harassment, and discrimination), they could lose access to in-game voice chat—a newer approach to punishment that the company introduced in 2022—or have their account permanently banned. Epic wouldn’t share specific numbers on bans, but did tell Kotaku that its team is “planning to introduce a new feature for voice chat soon.”
But Fortnite “[relies] on player reports to address violations of our voice and text chats,” which places the onus squarely on those who are on the receiving end of such violations. And for games that don’t record or store voice and text chat, reports can feel especially useless. When asked if she has reported people in Apex Legends, Clatyon replied, “Many, and often, but unfortunately the current Apex reporting system doesn’t monitor/record voice interactions and so doesn’t take action based on voice chat.”
Image: Microsoft
New ways games are combatting toxicity
Companies don’t always rely on players, though. Activision, Blizzard, and Riot Games all use a mix of automation and human moderation for multiplayer modes in Call of Duty, Overwatch 2,and Valorant.
As detailed in an official Call of Duty blog post from last year, an automated filtering system flags inappropriate gamertags, while human moderation of text chat helps identify bad actors. The aforementioned post (which is from September 13, 2022) boasts 500,000 accounts banned and 300,000 renamed thanks to enforcement and anti-toxicity teams. We don’t have more recent data from the Call of Duty publisher.
After the launch of Overwatch 2, Blizzard announced its Defense Matrix Initiative which includes a “machine-learning algorithms to transcribe and identify disruptive voice chat in-game.” Though Blizzard did say what it considers “disruptive voice chat” or what the algorithms entail, the company did say the team is “happy with the results of this new tech” and has plans to deploy it to more regions and in more languages.
But women still often find themselves deploying strategies to deal with the toxicity that isn’t caught by these systems. Anna, a UI/UX researcher who regularly plays competitive games like Overwatch 2 and CS:GO, told Kotaku over email that she also waits to see what the vibe of the chat is before diving in. She’s “more inclined to speak up if I hear another woman too because there’s potentially more safety in numbers then,” she explained. Others, myself included, play solely with friends or offer to group up with women they meet in matches to avoid encountering agitated players.
Toxicity persists, which is likely why companies continue to try new methods and approaches. When Kotaku reached out to Riot Games for details on its efforts combating disruptive behavior and toxicity in Valorant, executive producer Anna Donlon said via email that:
In addition to the player reporting tools, automatic detection system, and our Muted Words List, we’re currently beta testing our voice moderation system in North America, enabling Riot to record and evaluate in-game voice comms. Riot’s fully-dedicated Central Player Dynamics team is leveraging brand new moderation technology, training multi-language models to collect and record evidence-based violations of our behavioral policies.
While companies struggle to find a solution to an admittedly complicated problem, some women have been discouraged from trying altogether. Felicia, a PhD candidate at the University of Montana and full-time content creator, told Kotaku that she used to say hello at the start of every game (she mainly plays Fortnite and Apex Legends) but that willingness eventually “turned into waiting to speak, then not speaking at all.” The shift came as a direct result of her experience using Overwatch’s in-game voice chat function. “It got so bad I’d only talk in Xbox parties,” she said of the feature which allows you to group up and voice chat with friends.
Jessica Wells, group editor at Network N Media, speaks up in her CS:GO matches despite the threat of toxicity. “I say hello, give information, and see how it goes. If my team is toxic to me, I’ll either mute individuals or mute all using the command,” she said via email. “I used to fight it—and I mean really fight the toxicity online—but I find toxicity breeds more toxicity and the game goes to shit as a result.”
Image: Blizzard
Toxicity persists and worsens in highly competitive games
If you’ve played ranked matches in games like Overwatch or Valorant, you’ve experienced this direct correlation: Verbal harassment increases when competition levels increase. And no one experiences this phenomenon more acutely than women.
Alice, a former Grandmaster Overwatch1 player, told Kotaku over email that her experience with the original game “changed how [she] interacted with online multiplayer.” She was ranked higher than her friends, so would have to queue for competitive matches alone, and said she’d get “the usual ‘go make me a sandwich’” remarks or requests to “let your boyfriend back on” in more than half of her games.
Overwatch is a curious case when it comes to harassment and toxicity. Despite a cartoonish visual design that suggests a more approachable game and a diverse cast of characters, competition is at the heart of the team shooter’s identity. Over time, patches and updates have focused on balancing competitive play, and its popular esports league encourages highly competitive gameplay. Overwatch players who regularly watch Overwatch League may be more prone to “backseating” (telling other players what to do) or be more judgmental of the way people play certain characters. And the more extreme ire is often directed towards women—especially those who play support or the few playing Overwatch at a professional level.
“Sometimes someone else on the team would stick up for me, but most of the time the other players would stay silent or join in.” Alice’s experience may not be surprising when you consider the one study that tracked over 20,000 players and found that men played more aggressively when their opponents or their characters were women. “Through our research, we found that women did perform better when they actively concealed their gender identities in online video games,” the study said.
Me, likely playing Call of Duty: Black Ops or Modern Warfare III circa 2011.Photo: Alyssa Mercante / Kotaku
Because of her consistently negative experiences in Overwatch voice chat, Alice plays Valorant now—just not ranked. She chooses not to play at a higher level because competitive Valorant (which also has its own, uber popular esports league) is a cesspool of toxic masculinity.
Anna, who regularly plays Riot Games’ 5v5 hero shooter, told Kotaku over email that she’s “encountered increasing amounts of toxicity in Valorant…which can include anything from sexual assault threats, threats of general violence or death threats, to social media stalking.” Male players have told her to “get on [her] knees and beg for gun drops, and proceed to use their character to teabag or simulate a blowjob.”
Anna says she changed her Riot ID to a “common household object” to try and prevent harassment from male players.
Stacy, a full-time streamer, told Kotaku via email that the harassment has bled into the real world, too. “Threats of DDOS, stalking, assault, murder and other crimes – a lot of which ended up on my live stream…I’ve had people ask me for my personal connections and accounts like Snapchat…as well as my phone number, and have even had people use my PSN account name to find me on social media like Instagram for non-gaming related reasons. [They even found] my email address to try to either harass me, send me unsolicited photos or attempt to bully and berate me beyond the console.”
The future of competitive games for women
It’s clear that even with automated moderation systems, extensive reporting options, and loud declarations against toxicity from publishers and developers, women who play competitive online shooters still regularly experience harassment.
“I have reported people in the past and it was an easy report button but with all the toxicity I encountered it made it feel like reporting them wouldn’t make a difference,” Felicia said. “I stopped reporting for the most part unless they come into my stream or in my comment section being toxic.”
Overwatch has a feature that will show you a pop-up upon login if the team has taken action against someone you’ve reported, but many players rarely (if ever) see that login. I’ve only ever seen it once.
Jessica finds that reporting players in CS:GO is virtually useless. “I can’t think of a single case where it felt like Valve directly took action,” she said.
Image: Alpha Intel / Respawn
The same can be said for Valorant, which has a similar reporting feature as Overwatch. “I think I’ve only seen [the report was actioned on] screen three or four times since it was implemented,” Anna said.
And though the process of reporting is simple, it requires women to retread traumatic territory. “With the particularly nasty people, it always feels gross having to recount the words someone used to explain how they’d like to assault me, or typing (partly censored) slurs that I’d never dream of using myself, but it feels like if my report is not water-tight, it won’t get dealt with,” said Anna.
Unfortunately, eliminating toxic game chat, like so many other problematic things in the gaming industry, requires changing the perspectives of people perpetuating the problem. We need a holistic approach, not one that’s centered solely on automated monitoring or the reports of victims.
“I think more than anything it is a cultural problem,” said Alice. “FPS games are ‘for boys’ and until we change that perception, I think people will continue to be rude in them, especially when there are minimal consequences.”
Game studios can and should center more women and marginalized creators, players, and developers in marketing materials, streams, and esports events—and they should make it explicitly clear that a toxic culture has no place in their games. Instead of shying away from providing details on banned or otherwise penalized players as a result of toxic behavior, studios should wear them like a badge of honor, presenting them proudly as a way of saying “you have no place here.”
FPS games like Splatoon 3 are a great example of how competitive games can be less toxic. Nintendo’s ink-based shooter has minimal communication tools and a diverse character creator that allows for some more gender fluidity, allowing it to feel less like a “boys game.” The perceived casual nature of a Switch player stands in stark contrast to the console warriors and PC try-hards, which begs the question: Can competitive games exist without toxicity?
Nat Clayton has some suggestions: “You need to visibly and publicly create a culture where this kind of behavior isn’t tolerated, to make your community aware that being a hateful wee shit to other players has consequences.”
Update 07/24/23 at 12:00 p.m. EST: The original story included a Jessica Wells quote about Overwatch, but Wells was referring to CS:GO’s reporting system, which is calledOverwatch. The quote has been adjusted to reflect that.
This week on How Success Happens, I spoke with Craig Levine, co-CEO of ESL FACEIT Group. He’s had a two-decade-long career in esports, and I was curious to find out about his path into competitive gaming, lessons learned from helping to build a nascent industry into a global phenomenon, the challenges of capturing the attention of young fans and where he thinks esports is headed. You can listen to the full conversation below, and I’ve pulled out three key takeaways. I hope you’re as inspired as I am by Levine and his career advice.
1. Make your passions work for you
Levine’s life is rooted in video games, from playing Nintendo as a kid in Long Island, New York, to playing games competitively and, today, running one of the world’s leading esports and video game entertainment companies. His interests set the stage for his career, even at a time when the esports business didn’t exist in the U.S.
The lesson? Find ways to bring your passions into your business. This allows you to target like-minded employees and bring enthusiasm to the workplace — and will inspire you to always search for ways to improve your industry and your company.
Timestamp — :30-4:55
2. “Revenue follows relevancy”
Levine wasn’t just starting a company; he was pioneering an industry. However, he and his team saw the beginnings of fandom around competitive gaming and a market opportunity as the audience grew.
Levine and colleagues at ESL coined a phrase that would remain their North Star: “Revenue follows relevancy.” To turn the corner, both in esports and traditional industries, you need to establish your brand as a first-mover and a market leader. That brand awareness drives growth and, eventually, success.
Timestamp — 14:55-16:00
3. Play the long game
Levine admittedly didn’t have much of a plan when he stepped into entrepreneurship as the owner of Team 3D in his freshman year of college. As time went on, though, his ambitions grew, and in 2013, ESL filled a sports arena for the first time during a tournament in Katowice, Poland.
Vision and a commitment to what the industry could look like allowed him, about 11 years after founding Team 3D, to cement his place in the pantheon of game-changers in esports. Conceptualizing your business’ future is just as important as in-the-moment decision-making and reflection on success and mistakes.
Earlier this week League of Legends players voted “overwhelmingly” to strike over plans to make rule changes that would cut the North American Challenger’s League—which only launched last year—from 16 teams to seven.
The Week In Games: System Shock, Street Fighter 6, And More
The LCS Players Association, the body representing the region’s professional players, say the plans will see an estimated 70 people—players, coaches, etc—lose their jobs. Riot, meanwhile, say the cuts were necessary to ensure the North American leagues remain “sustainable [and] economically viable”.
Tensions escalated a day later when news emerged that pro teams had been actively looking “to field scab players”, a move that the LCSPA rightly say would “put all players’ futures at risk”, as “crossing the line undermines player negotiating power”.
The LCSPA met with Riot earlier today, and not long after, Riot published a long statement on their site addressing the walkout. You don’t have to read far to see that the company has decided to play hardball.
A large part of the post is dedicated to telling North American players that, hey, other regions can make their leagues profitable, why can’t you. The most stinging example is this line, where Riot outright rejects the LCSPA’s demands that the company “commit to a revenue pool for player salaries of $300,000 per NACL team, per year”:
That simply isn’t sustainable – and to be brutally honest, it shouldn’t be necessary. We have other Tier 2 leagues around the world which thrive on their own, and we believe the NACL can get to that place too.
The harshest language, however, is reserved for Riot’s comments on the league’s upcoming scheduling, where the company essentially says that if a deal can’t be reached in the next two weeks not only will the entire LCS summer season be called off, but LCS teams won’t be able to qualify for the 2023 Worlds either:
Hopefully, this two-week window will give us time for productive dialogue between the LSCPA, teams, and the league and then resume LCS competition this summer. The LCS will not be penalizing the teams for not fielding their rosters during this two-week period to allow everyone space to focus on constructive dialogue. We are doing our best to ensure LCS employees, contractors, and others supporting the LCS are not negatively impacted by the delay.
Delaying beyond the two-week window would make it nearly impossible to run a legitimate competition, and in that case, we would be prepared to cancel the entire LCS summer season. Carrying this forward, if the LCS summer season is canceled, this will also eliminate LCS teams qualifying for 2023 Worlds. I want to be clear: That is not an outcome we’d want, but it’s unfortunately the reality of ensuring we run a fair, competitive global system.
Crucially, despite the length of the post and the number of points it addresses, Riot doesn’t once comment on the possibility of teams using “scab” players. The LCSPA has yet to issue their own comment after the meeting; we’ve contacted them but at time of publishing have yet to hear back.
UPDATE 11:55pm ET: The LCSPA has now responded, saying in a statement:
Tonight, one thing is back in clear focus: players are the LCS. Without players, there is no league, and there is no esport. From day one, exclusion from the decision-making process drove the LCSPA players to vote to walk out. The future of the NACL and the LCS is too big to decide overnight and without player consideration.
We met with Riot Games today to ask for daily meetings or more, if needed – to reach a resolution. Starting tomorrow, we plan to begin discussions that result in meaningful collaborative action to get our players back where they want to be: competing for fans on the LCS stage.
We also want to say thank you; we remain deeply grateful to the LCS community for the incredible show of solidarity for our players – our fight is possible because of your support.
Hot 97, the world’s biggest and most well-known cultural brand and radio station, has joined forces with Metro to create exciting new content at the intersection of music, gaming, culture and the metaverse.
NEW YORK, May 16, 2023 (Newswire.com)
– The Metro Sports & Entertainment Group, dba Metro Esports, a leading multicultural content, media, and production agency featuring esports as a primary vertical, and Hot 97, New York City’s premiere hip-hop radio and media brand, is excited to announce a new partnership that will integrate hip-hop into the world of gaming.
“As the culture evolves and our audience seeks out new experiences, it is our job to meet them where they are”, said Rahsan-Rahsan Lindsay, CEO of MediaCo, parent company of Hot 97. “The gaming environment offers an immersive, wraparound experience for people who love gaming and hip-hop”.
With the delivery of customized, engaging content on a multi-platform basis, Metro Esports and Hot 97 will further connect the world of esports and hip-hop through this unique partnership. Hot 97 will co-produce and promote Metro Esports’ events and tournaments, both virtually and live in person. Additionally, Hot 97 will shine a light on the exploding esports community, with its unique position and credibility in hip-hop, through exclusive interviews with esports players, influencers and creators.
“Esports is the fastest growing sport in the world, and we are thrilled to partner with Hot 97 as we further maximize and penetrate the culturally relevant intersectionality between hip-hop and gaming,” said Shaon Berry, CEO of The Metro Sports & Entertainment Group.
“Hot 97 has always been at the forefront of advancing and promoting the hip-hop culture, and this is a natural next step for the brand, given the ever-expanding overlap between esports and the hip-hop community,” said Brad Tobin, President, COO and General Counsel at MediaCo. “We look forward to collaborating with Metro Esports to bring the vision to life.”
Additional partnership for the platform include Dell, EA Sports, The NBA2K League, Warner Bros. Games, RIOT and Verizon.
About The Metro Sports and Entertainment Group:Metro Sports and Entertainment Group’s leading division, Metro Esports, features several Gaming & Technology labs throughout the northeast with plans to open a new Gaming Lab on-campus at Lincoln University, as well as a new Digital Sports & Tech. Entertainment arena in the heart of Washington, D.C. this summer. Metro was founded in 2017 with the mission to attract, educate, and entertain a broad and diverse audience of gaming and technology enthusiasts. For more information, visit www.metroesports.gg.
ABOUT HOT 97: (WQHT 97.1FM) HOT 97 is the world’s first all hip-hop station and has held the dominant position in New York for over 20 years. HOT 97 is best known for its celebrity on-air talent, such as Ebro in the Morning with Laura Stylez & Rosenberg, Nessa and Funk Flex, as well as being a premier source for Hip-Hop music and culture. The redesigned HOT 97 website and the new HOT 97 app are go-to destinations for original web series, celebrity content, concerts, and music videos. For more information, please visit www.HOT97.com, and follow us on facebook.com/HOT97official, twitter.com/HOT97, instagram.com/HOT97 and youtube.com/HOT97.
ABOUT MEDIACO: MediaCo Holding Inc. is a publicly listed media company that serves communities throughout the country. MediaCo owns and operates two of the top urban radio stations in New York City, HOT 97 (WQHT-FM) and WBLS-FM. The company primarily generates revenue from advertising sales, sponsorships, licensing and events.
SAN DIEGO, March 15, 2023 (Newswire.com)
– MegaFans, the world’s first esports gaming platform, bridging Web2 and Web3, announces the release and launch of their first, initial non-fungible token offering (INO) with pre-mint orders opening on March 15, which will feature a new art collection themed after the esports characters called Gamer Girlz, that will earn in-game currency through a smart contract, from esports tournament player entries. The company also released a new website and revamped social media channels on Twitter and Discord to announce the INO and pre-mint orders.
The new and improved website, Megafans.io, will feature information regarding the company’s upcoming initial non-fungible token (NFT) offering, scheduled to open for pre-minting on March 15, this year. People will be able to see sample previews of the artwork, navigate MegaFans social media channels, learn about the unique utility and functions offered by the NFT collection, and eventually be able to stake and trade the NFTs for rewards on the website, including cryptocurrencies, merchandise, events and tournament entries and more.
The NFT collection features 5,000 manga-style art pieces, representing Gamer Girlz characters as profile pictures (AKA picture for proof or PFPs) from their multi-platform esports space called the MegaFans MegaVerse. The NFTs have a unique, smart contract utility that automatically earns the owners in-game currency called MFANS, based on a percentage of the rake from entries into their play-to-win esports tournaments. More information can be found at the MegaFans website (https://megafans.io).
MegaFans has been building and publishing esports-based casual games since 2019. They successfully integrated their esports tournament system into five game titles and published them on the largest app stores in the world – Apple, Google, Huawei and Samsung.
Megafans is an infrastructure platform for game and metaverse developers, offering customized software as a service (SaaS) with their esports software development kit that spawns live tournaments inside games and generates revenue, increases retention and player lifetime value (LTV), the ultimate key performance indicator of gaming.
MegaFans is building the world’s first mobile esports community using blockchain, crypto, and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) in a play-to-win environment for gamers, collectors, and developers. To learn more, visit www.Megafans.io. To download games, visit https://linktr.ee/megafans_esports.
MegaFans (Massive Esports Gaming Fanatics) is building the world’s first esports community using blockchain products, cryptocurrency and NFTs in a play-to-win environment for gamers, collectors and developers, where 3.2 billion daily active users can play, compete, win rewards and share their interests. MegaFans offers turnkey solutions for game publishers that increase monetization and retention by enriching the players’ experience and their communities. MegaFans’ mantra is “Esports for All!”, which focuses on underserved and emerging markets and people around the world. They use a leaderboard format that features multiple tournaments simultaneously, to an infinite number of players globally, no matter what skill level or geo-location. Links to MegaFans’ social media and company channels can be found at https://linktr.ee/megafans_esports.
What would you do if a random stranger asked to see your feet? Probably chuckle awkwardly and start walking faster. Streamer Nyy did neither. She had a better idea, and her Twitch chat will never be the same again.
“Feet please,” asked Twitch user sissy6668. It’s a common refrain in online chats, but one that’s rarely answered. Internet DJ Nyy, formerly known as Nyykage, shockingly obliged mid-way through a set on yesterday’s livestream. The next thing the chat knew, Nyy had thrown a leg up on her desk with a foam lobster flip-flop on her foot. “This what you’re looking for?” she asked right before the beat dropped.
The Twitch chat went wild, and folks on Twitter did too once Nyy clipped the moment and set it loose into the briny waters of the internet. The nicknames quickly proliferated—lobster floppers, flopsters, crustacean 3000s—as did people’s amazement. “THIS WAS A MASTERPIECE!” responded one person. “The absolute definition of never let them know your next move, a plo[t] twist at every turn! IT SENT ME LMAO.”
Vivid colors and deep blacks It’s Oscar season which means it’s time to binge all the nominations before the big day. Why not enjoy these pieces of art on a new TV from our friends at Samsung?
What can I say, people are weird about feet. Especially on Twitch. Searches for “Streamers’ feet” have a combined 73 billion views on TikTok. There are YouTube videos entirely about rating different streamers’ feet. Some streamers have even gotten banned for showing their feet.
That’s allegedly what happened to Thai Twitch streamer JustKethJustKeth. She claimed Twitch banned her for three days earlier this month for flashing her foot. She was letting viewers pay to spin a wheel that would make her do certain things, including show off her stumps. “It’s just a meme bruh,” she tweeted at the time.
Though as Dexerto points out, Twitch does have strict rules against things like “fetishizing behavior” and selling sexual content on the platform, which is vague as hell but, well, welcome to Twitch.
Nyy, on the other hand, managed to turn the entire thing on its head. “The Lobster Floppers gifted from my mod were not always loved but in the short span of one whole day they have become family,” she told Kotaku in an email. “Warding off bad vibes, feet inquiries, and most importantly, providing effortless fashion.”
No doubt the flopster fan cams won’t be far behind. “Everyone needs a pair of Crustacean 3000’s in their closet come 2024,” Nyy wrote. “Lukewarm trolls can not thrive when you already possess the weirder arsenal.”
Partnership will expand opportunities for participation in esports with Snap! Raise, Snap! Mobile’s fundraising solution
Press Release –
Jan 6, 2023 09:00 EST
SEATTLE, January 6, 2023 (Newswire.com)
– Snap! Mobile, Inc., the parent company of the leading group-based fundraising solution, Snap! Raise, today announced a strategic partnership between its group-based fundraising solution, Snap! Raise, and Vanta, a youth esports platform.
Vanta works with schools to provide a digital esports platform, competitive and club esports leagues and camps, and expert coaching and programming for elementary, middle, and high school programs. The partnership will enable Snap! Mobile to expand its reach to even more high school programs and offers Vanta customers a secure and efficient way to fundraise, track, manage, and report on their program funds. Together, Snap! and Vanta will work to create more opportunities for schools to leverage the power of esports and foster student growth.
“Esports have quickly evolved into a mainstream sport, and the resources required to start a program can be expensive, resulting in many schools being unable to find sufficient funding,” said Cole Morgan, Snap! Mobile, Inc.’s CEO, Founder, and Chairman. “Our partnership with Vanta provides a way to offset the cost of coaching, technology, and development camps to make esports opportunities more accessible for kids.”
“We are thrilled to partner with Snap! Mobile to help our customers raise the funding they need,” said James Roche, Co-Founder and CMO of Vanta. “Snap! Raise makes it easier for esports teams to build strong esports programs, and we’re looking forward to expanding opportunities for even more kids to get involved.”
Morgan is excited about empowering students playing esports. According to the Entertainment Software Association’s report, 2022 Essential Facts about the Video Game Industry, 71% of American children (under the age of 18) play video games. The study also found that 97% of Americans view video games as beneficial in some way, as they foster connection in person and online, and help build new skills and ways of thinking.
About Snap! Mobile, Inc.
Snap! Mobile has been proudly supporting programs around the country with simple and dependable services since 2014. Snap! Raise has raised more than $700 million dollars for over 100,000 groups and teams through over 12.5 million participants and donors. In addition to the Snap! Raise fundraising solution, Snap! Mobile further supports schools, groups, and teams with its other brands: Snap! Spend (transparent money management solution), Snap! Store (spirit wear), Snap! Connect (secure multilingual communication), and Snap! Manage (integrated scheduling, communication, and registration solution). To see how Snap! Mobile can support your program, visit snapraise.com.
About Vanta
Vanta is a youth esports development platform that works with organizations to provide a kid-safe digital esports platform, competitive esports leagues, and expert coaching and holistic programming to kids ages 8-18. To learn more, visit the Vanta homepage, and to read more about Vanta’s coaching offering, check out their coaching and development page. To keep up with their latest news, follow Vanta on Twitter or Facebook.
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