It’s that time of year again, March madness for gamers kicks off on March 18 with the college Heroes of the Storm tournament and the game creators, Blizzard, are giving away free stuff to anyone and everyone who fills out a bracket. If you have a Blizzard account I highly recommend taking the 2 minutes to fill out one of these March madness brackets before March 18 as the grand prize is a generous $10,000 and Blizzard says that everyone who creates a bracket will at least get something (likely in-game digital goodies for most of us.) Heroes of the Dorm is also a great opportunity for the winning team as all five team members will earn tuition for their college career.
Cox Pavilion Heroes of the Dorm Grand Finals
The semi-finals and the grand finals of Heroes of the Dorm will be held at the Cox Pavilion at UNLV in Las Vegas on April 8. A lot of fans will be flying in to view this college event that is moving esports further and further into the spotlight of premier mainstream sporting entertainment. If you live in Las Vegas I encourage you to consider buying tickets and supporting the growth of esports and create stories you can tell to your grandchildren about how you were there for the beginnings of esports history.
Heroes of the Dorm Las Vegas 2017
Trailer for the 2017 Las Vegas college Heroes of the Storm Tournament - Heroes of the Dorm
Blizzard Pioneers Esports
Large scale college esports tournaments like Heroes of the Dorm are just one of the many ways that Blizzard is fast tracking esports to the similar formats of competition that we see in traditional sports. In countries like Korea esports is already accepted and viewed by a large percentage of the population and it isn’t uncommon for parents to push their children to excel at competitive video games just as parents in the US might compel their children to work hard in sports for a chance at college scholarships or even professional careers. For last year’s Heroes of the Dorm championship the final matches were broadcast live on ESPN2, an occurrence that will likely seem less and less unusual over time.
One of the biggest landmarks in the growth of esports will begin later this year when Blizzard commences the OverWatch League, a league system for the game OverWatch that will have regional teams similar to how professional sports are currently organized. It will be much easier for you as a fan to get behind a specific team once there is a team that represents your city.
Blizzard has been going above and beyond to gain momentum for esports and Las Vegas looks to be the esports capital of the US and possibly the world in the coming years. So get hyped and get ready to be part of the fast growing esports community March 18 – 26. It’s march madness for gamers during the exciting Heroes of the Dorm tournament capped by an exciting Cox Pavilion grand finals here in Las Vegas.