With eSports reaching broader and broader audiences, developers now need to consider developing competitive leagues to ensure longterm player engagement.
In the last year, collegiate eSport leagues and organizations have taken more and more of the spotlight as tournaments like Heroes of the Dorm are broadcast on ESPN, and UC Irvine announced a scholarship for League of Legends players. It’s a path for growth in eSports that creates new opportunities for young streamers and commentators, and helps the field expand by providing a new cycle of tournaments and players to follow, much as the way the NCAA augments coverage of traditional professional sports.
With more games like Overwatch attempting to muscle into the eSports industry and games like Rocket League parachuting in as spectator-friendly smash-hits, collegiate leagues may be a sector of growth for many companies trying to build competitive franchises out of its multiplayer games. Riot Games, which hosted the uLoL Campus Series finals at PAX East last month, has built its collegiate league out of a network of student-run school clubs, which have grown from local tournaments to an organized championship.
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