Will Las Vegas Become the Mecca for Esports Competition?
The Las Vegas Strip could soon be home to an arena for competitive video games if one Chinese company gets its way. The Beijing-based Ourgame International Holdings Ltd, the parent company that owns the World Poker Tour, wants to build an arena for e-sports. They want to build them in many locations around the world, but they see Las Vegas as a prime location.Ourgame already runs an arena in Beijing, and officials said this week that the company was teaming up with other Chinese businesses to expand to other countries. Add that with the fact that Downtown Grand Las Vegas has opened their own e-sports lounge and the signs point to Las Vegas developing as an eSports city soon. Every Friday, the casino also runs eContests in which entrants pay around $15 to compete against other players in games ranging from Madden to Mortal Kombat for cash prizes. This events regularly draw as many as 50 players with an equal number of spectators. When Seth Schorr, the chairman of Downtown Grand, was asked about why he decide to implement the e-sports lounge, he said “It’s undeniable that the landscape of gaming is changing, along with every other industry because of advanced technology and consumer behavior… I feel it is my duty to my company and its investors to keep Nevada relevant by changing with the times and coming up with new ways to make the gambling experience more compelling.” This could lead to Las Vegas becoming the hub for all e-sports betting in the country.
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