Top eSports competition kicks off in Putuo
The ESP ESports Experiencing Center in the Changfeng business district.
China's "Honor of Kings” competition, one of the world's most profitable mobile games, was launched in Putuo District on Thursday.
The East China postseason contest of the King Pro League (KPL) is being held at the newly unveiled ESP ESports Experiencing Center in the Changfeng business district along Suzhou Creek.
The ESP (Electronics Sports Park) center is expected to host over 350 games a year. It mainly caters for people between the age of 12 and 30 with eSports, animation, new retail and cultural innovation businesses.
Ten teams will compete for victory in the KPL postseason contest at the center over two weeks.
Due to COVID-19, the center will be closed to spectators, but the games will be broadcast on livestream platforms such as Bilibili, Kuaishou and Douyu. Putuo’s WeChat account (shputuo) will publish the latest match results.
Putuo has made eSports one of its key industries, the district’s culture and tourism bureau said, to serve the city’s ambition to become the global eSports capital. Over 20 eSports companies are based in Putuo.
Several key eSports venues have been developed in downtown Putuo, such as the IMBA eSports center at Global Harbor Mall, the biggest downtown shopping mall, and an eSports Internet bar at Huxi Worker’s Cultural Palace.
