eSports Spring 2023 Update
There’s been some pretty interesting developments on the local eSports landscape as this popular activity continues to grow in new and different ways.
On Thursday, May 4th at the LCTI Center in Schnecksville, a “soft” opening was held for the first ever official Lehigh Valley eSports tournament, featuring teams from Parkland, Dieruff, Jim Thorpe and LCTI.
Because of COVID, competition had been limited to students competing from their homes or isolated locations. Last fall we commented here on this very blog that the first time the championship team members got a chance to meet each other was at the medal ceremony itself held at Parkland High School.
The opening of this new facility takes a major step forward in allowing face-to-face interaction with both team members and competitors.
The May 4th event consisted of a series of pickup games and a mini-tournament featuring one or two different squads from the different participating school districts. Fresh off the success of the popular Super Mario Brothers hit film and the hot Super Smash Brothers video game, both Mario Kart and Super Smash Brothers gamers were options for the participants last week.
While previous eSports competitions were based on Rocket League competition, the local organization is looking at branching out and making more gaming options available for students to try to reach an even broader audience.
Another new aspect of the local eSports competition was the successful completion of a middle school gaming program this spring.
More and more local schools have organized eSports teams, but not all of them. If a child’s school doesn’t have any eSports team or an organized outlet to participate, they can contact the Lehigh Carbon Intermediate Unit. They can get you in touch with several independent groups now participating with the LCTI and also can help start the process to get that school district on the path to joining the local league. We’ve seen other, traditional sports like volleyball and lacrosse over the last 10-15 years start in a similar fashion, then, eventually, joining a formal local sports network and creating enough teams that a larger outlet like the PIAA can take steps to launch this activity to an even higher level.
The world of eSports continues to grow in many ways and more new innovations are in the works. Keep checking back to the “SportsTalk Shop” for more developments in the coming months and be on the lookout for news and information about the fall 2024 local eSports competitions!
The views expressed in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Astound Broadband or any other agency, organization, employer or company.
