MCV/DEVELOP News, events, research and jobs from the games industry
Following in the footsteps of fellow Call of Duty rival brand OpTic Gaming, FaZe Clan has joined the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive circuit by acquiring team G2 Esports. The European squad, captained by Mikail "Maikelele" Bill, had been in talks with FaZe for some weeks before the news was revealed yesterday. …
Read More »Splatoon makes a splash in Japanese eSports
Japanese players embraced Nintendo’s colorful, team-based squid shooterSplatoonwith open arms (or tentacles) in 2015. Featuring half-squid, half-human creatures who can swim through the ink that blasts from their guns,Splatoonis a fast paced and accessible game making a mark on Japanese esports. Following its release in May, the game moved over …
Read More »ESL-Riot partnership gives UK teams shot at the big leagues
The ESL UK Premiership will now offer League of Legends teams from the United Kingdom and Ireland the chance to progress into the Challenger Series. The winner of ESL’s Premiership, which hosts teams from all over the country in a season-long league, will be invited to the European Summer Challenge …
Read More »Blizzard pumping $4m into Heroes of the Storm eSports circuit
Blizzard are fronting $4m in total across this year’s spring, summer and fall seasons of MOBA Heroes of the Storm. The money will be split across the three seasons leading up to BlizzCon’s Global Championship in autumn, and shared among the seven regions of localised competition around the world. Joining …
Read More »Ex-TSM Counter-Strike players form Astralis, become co-owners
A Danish Counter-Strike: Global Offensive team has become the latest eSports squad to self-organise and determine their own future. Since leaving Team SoloMid at the end of last year – citing the complexities of living in Europe while being managed from the US West Coast – the Danish team has …
Read More »Final Dota 2 Major to be held in Manila
The last of three new Valve-hosted Dota 2 Major events is to be held this June in Manila, in the Philippines. With a few weeks still until the second Major begins in Shanghai, Valve made the announcement that the final event will be held in the South-East Asian region. The …
Read More »OpTic Gaming signs ‘six-figure’ book deal with Harper Collins
OpTic Gaming, one of the most popular eSports brands, has signed a book deal with publishers Harper Collins reportedly worth ‘six figures’. The book, titled ‘OpTic Gaming: The Making of eSports Champions’ is set to release on April 26 for $17.99 in Paperback or $12.99 as an e-book. The team …
Read More »Titan shuts down when sponsors back out after CS:GO hacking scandal
Titan, one of the most well-known new multi-discipline eSports franchises of the last two years has shuttered its doors. The team, which began with a Malaysian Dota team who placed in the top 10 at Valve’s The International in 2013, expanded to cover Quake, CS:GO and most recently, Smite. However, …
Read More »DreamHack announces $250,000 Masters tournament series
DreamHack have announced two $250,000 Counter-Strike: Global Offensive tournaments for 2016 under the name DreamHack Masters. The events will join the Swedish Modern Times Group-owned company’s five other Open events throughout the year, and bring the total prizepool for CS:GO at DreamHack events in 2016 up to $1m. The first …
Read More »Fantasy sports dropped by Vulcun
Vulcun has announced they are dropping the fantasy sports section of their eSports entertainment venture from January 14th. The site originally began as a way to offer regulated fantasy drafting competitions across international borders, however recent litigation efforts by several US states have made such ventures risky. Last month, New …
Read More »