With E3 2017 becoming open to the public for the first time comes the event’s very own esports competition.
Top fighting game competitors will aim to take the attention away from the show floor in an all-out Twitch Esports Arena FGC tournament. Powered and sponsored by T-Mobile, the event plans to feature tournaments of different games throughout E3 week.
Tuesday, June 13 will serve as the first day of the tournament and will feature Street Fighter 5 matches from 12 to 8 PM. June 14 and 15 will feature Tekken 7 and Injustice 2 matches respectively, with the latter only lasting until 5 PM as opposed to 8PM like the others.
In an effort to promote fan interaction, T-Mobile will be running a Twitter and Twitch campaign where fans can vote for the MVP of each daily tournament using the #TMobileMVP hashtag. T-Mobile is also rewarding their customers by allowing them access to an exclusive, VIP seating area for a “portion of the action.”
Apart from EVO and CEO, two of the most popular FGC tournaments, TBS’s ELEAGUE also jumped into the fighting game fray with their first $250,000 (£193,625) tournament which was held in May of this year. Seeing as how ELEAGUE also signed an agreement with Twitch in May of last year, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the two esports giants join hands and create an FGC tournament together.
Those unable to attend the E3 event can watch the action from the comfort of their own home through the Twitch Esports channel. The event will take place from June 13-15th at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
Esports Insider says: E3 being open to the general public is definitely a unique event. Perhaps if this fighting game competition attract a large crowd, E3 will remain public and perhaps even become a hub for large-scale esports competitions in the future.