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The 22,000 Barclays Center fans who met at the end of July were like a sold-out crowd. But it was not a pop phenomenon or an NBA team that occupied the Brooklyn, New York area. It was the two electronic sports teams who faced each other in the final of the Overwatch League.
And the crowd of rowdy IRL was not the only one to be stuck in the action. Factor in viewers on Twitch and the national broadcast live on ESPN, and nearly 11 million people watched the players face each other.
Eve, a first-person shooter launched by Blizzard in 2016, quickly caused a sensation by racking up 30 million players in the first 12 months of the market (becoming the fastest-growing game in the company). And only a year later, Overwatch League changes the face of what can be a successful electronic sports organization. Overwatch is one of the first leagues in the industry run by its own developer and publisher. She also denied the trend of non-geographic teams, instead following the book of more traditional sports games by creating teams representing specific cities.
Perhaps it is not surprising to see the league create its own path – the game itself is an anomaly among its peers. Unlike other first person shooter games, like Call of Duty or Halo, Eve bypasses hyper realistic war games for a colorful and cartoon style. Rather than just playing as a soldier or assassin, players can choose from a frequently updated lineup of male and female heroes and animal characters – you can even play as a hamster. Despite the violence of gameplay, Overwatch League Commissioner Nate Nanzer describes it as "a game with a very promising vision of the future".
It seems to have stuck a rope for the players. "There are about 40 million people in the world playing this game," said Pete Vlastelica, president of Overwatch League and CEO of Activision leagues Blizzard Esports. "And the best of the best, the 130 best players in the world participate in our Overwatch League."
The league acted quickly to position itself as a legitimate place for players to have a career. London Spitfire, winner of the first final of the Overwatch League, won a prize pool of $ 1 million to be distributed in the team. The Philadelphia Fusion finalists received $ 400,000. All players, meanwhile, receive a minimum salary of $ 50,000, as well as a set of benefits including health insurance and a 401 (k). This is a radical change in the electronic sport economy.
"I still have not thought it would reach a level where you would have a city that would support you, all those potential investors, a lot of real money, and a salary that would allow you to make a living," said Overwatch. League player Andrej "Babybay" Francisty. "I thought making money on video games for a living would have been a thing only on YouTube."
Overwatch operates as a traditional sports league in terms of game definition and monetization of these games with broadcast and streaming rights, referrals, merchandise and ticket sales. And even though it has just completed its first season this summer, there is already a plan to make room for new talent. League superintendent Nanzer noted that Overwatch includes a beginner level open division where players of any level can compete and a counterpart of the "minor league", the competitors division.
A week after the July 28 finals, Overwatch announced it would be recruiting two more teams for its second season: Atlanta and Guangzhou, China. They will join the 12 existing teams already representing Dallas, New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco and Shanghai, among other cities. The league has also signed a multi-year agreement with Twitter to present highlights and content broadcast on the social media platform. In addition, Twitter will host a live weekly show called "Watchpoint". In the future, Nanzer and Vlastelica said the league hoped to develop by performing in local arenas in each home town of each team. They have only played at Blizzard Arena in Burbank, California, and at Barclays Center for the final.
After its inaugural season, Overwatch wins the year 2018 as a victory, not only for the Spitfire of London, but also for the league as a whole. Despite all the success of the game itself, the professional e-sports world is still in its infancy and a solid first year has not been a safe bet. The close with a match followed by 11 million fans – and a $ 1 million purse – has exceeded the hopes of the league organizers.
"We always expected him to grow up," says Vlastelica. "We did not expect things to grow so fast."
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