Macau’s first-ever esports venue was officially opened Tuesday at an inauguration event at the Studio City integrated resort.
Dubbed the “Macau EStadium”, the venue is located inside Melco Resorts’ Studio City and is described by company representatives as a “high performance event space […] equipped with cutting-edge advanced technology.”
The gaming operator wants the “stadium”, which, at a maximum of capacity of 274 guests, more closely resembles a repurposed theater, to cater to top-tier e-sport tournaments and virtual gaming leagues.
The venue features high-performance virtual gaming facilities which are expected to attract multiplayer tournaments from around the region. According to the resort operator, the venue is already booked to host an array of top competitions in the coming year.
The electronic tournaments may then be broadcast to local audiences with both Mandarin and Cantonese narration, as well as streamed internationally.
Melco also sees the venue as a way of attracting a new generation of customers to its resorts and of elevating Macau into a multifaceted tourist destination in Asia.
“Esports is a fast-growing market segment that is constantly innovating and evolving, and Melco is confident that this venue will allow us to further cater to younger patrons while continuing to bring fresh and novel experiences to all our guests,” said Geoff Andres, property president of Studio City.
“The Macau EStadium is the first of its kind here in Macau and we are honored […] to launch such an exciting new event space that will stage some of the most electrifying e-sport events around the world,” he added.
Esports comprise multiplayer video game tournaments played by professional gamers and spectated by fans who may follow the competition as a live audience or via internet or television broadcasting.
It has become a global phenomenon that particularly appeals to younger players and viewers, with the majority being less than 30 years old. Moreover, Chinese players account for over half of the global esports audience and virtual gaming is growing in popularity around Asia.
Proponents of esports argue that it should be put on par with other non-physical sports like snooker or darts. They say that the experience and atmosphere at such competitions mimics that of watching a more traditional sporting event. DB
C2 magazine features esports development
PUBLISHED BY the Cultural Affairs Bureau (IC), the 28th edition of C2 Magazine discusses the development of Macau’s e-sports market. In a statement issued on Tuesday by the IC, the bureau asserts that e-sports is “booming in Macau.” The feature section of this edition of C2 will interview a local esports competitor, as well as representatives of the Macau E-Sports Federation and the 178 competitors, who were invited to share their views on the development of the sector.
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