The Center for Virtual Learning joined in the celebration of the Festival of the Arts allowing the public to tour the building and watch an esports tournament last week.
On Wednesday, Feb. 21, esports held individual competitions, facing DeSales University in the game VALORANT and Lawrence Tech in Call of Duty. The Festival of Arts tour watched the teams in amazement as they walked through CVL.
Esports focuses on multiplayer video games, each game has a team assigned to it. Some esports games include VALORANT, League of Legends, Rocket League, Super Smash Bros., Call of Duty and more. The final score for Call of Duty was 250 to 202 and for VALORANT, the final score was 13 to 6.
Co-interim Director of Esports Kyle Wilkowski explained the process of esports and how it is run.
“As far as our weekly competitions, it’s anything, we have 14 different games that we stream on a regular basis,” Wilkowski said. “Tournaments will be run sort of like a track meet where you get points for winning each game and then there will be an overall winner as well as individual competitions.”
Some of the tournaments have division titles and focus on the esports team itself as it competes in different games. Individual competitions are focused on the individual players as they compete against other schools in their usual teams, focusing on player stats and improvement. Esports has been a steadily increasing club, with other colleges developing their teams.
“Every college in the nation either wants an esports program or has an esports program right now every Michigan school has an esports program,” Wilkowski said. “I think that it will be just as popular as traditional sports. If it isn’t popular now, there are still schools that are building stadiums for just their esports teams. There are schools with just esports teams and non-athletic teams, so it really depends on what the goals of the university are.”
Like regular registered student organizations, it can be an interactive way to meet new people on campus all while learning something new or gaining a new skill. Providing a social environment and a variety of games, esports involves a team aspect and a competitive outlet for those who are not in traditional outdoor sports. Any student can feel free to play for fun or compete at any time.
Digital animation and game development junior Henry Kauffman provided some feedback on how esports has gained student interest.
“It’s been very easy to market esports to a lot of students because it’s very popular, especially the college-age range,” Kauffman said. “And getting more people to join the club for that reason wasn’t the biggest challenge. I think there’s a lot of value in doing clubs and activities and for a lot of people.”
The Esports Arena provides a welcoming, laid-back approach to accessibility to games and equipment. With multiple PCs and game titles that allow for cross-platforming, gamers and students alike can play and connect with teammates or friends to play or compete.
Criminal justice junior Michael Corrie commented on the gaming environment.
“I think it’s really accessible,” Corrie said. “It doesn’t require you to go outside and practice for hours during the day. You can just come in, chill, hang with your friends, play with your friends and, if you really enjoy it, you could make a team and compete.”
Meetings are held in the Esports Arena every Thursday at 11:00 a.m. For more information on esports visit Bulldog Connect.
CE – AM / CF