Can it get any better for eSports fans? The fan-favorite games Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS: GO) and Dota 2 are set to return to the gaming roster of the 13th edition of the IESF World Championship, which is set to be held later this year, in the Israeli city of Eilat. Both the popular gaming titles last featured in the tournament, organized by the International Esports Federation, back in its 2018 edition.
Previously, after a long and hard contemplation period, the main organizer of the flagship international tournament, IESF, had decided upon the venue of the famed competition. Eilat was thought to be the best venue available at the moment for the tournament, which has been highly sought-after ever since its inception in 2009.
IESF made the announcement through a press release, where they addressed the whole situation. They stated in the release:
“DOTA 2, published by Valve, enjoys enormous global esports popularity. The DOTA Pro Circuit, with Valve’s ‘The International’ tournament, has seen crowdfunded prize pools in excess of $30 million (£21million/€25million), making DOTA 2 one of the most lucrative games in Esports.”
Currently, there is hardly any other game in the eSports market that could go toe-to-toe with the popularity of CS: GO, and eSports experts think that is going to be the case for a long time in the near future. Dota 2 is not lagging behind that much either. It has its own brand of collaborations, albeit with a different kind of audience and players.
The IESF release also stated:
“Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CSGO) is a multiplayer first-person shooter genre developed by Valve and Hidden Path Entertainment. It is the fourth edition in the long-standing Counter-Strike series, one of the biggest Esports titles in the world for two decades.”
IESF snubs FIFA for another year, making way for KONAMI’s PES franchise
One game that might be surprised more by its inclusion is KONAMI’s PES2021, especially after the boundless success of EA’s FIFA franchise year after year. It will now be entering the third consecutive year in the much-acclaimed competition as an official eFootball title.
On the eFootball situation, IESF added in its release:
“With its long history of international appeal, eFootball is a natural choice for international Esports competition. The game will be played on Playstation®4 during the IESF competition. IESF looks forward to continuing to engage the global PES community in making this game an exciting part of international Esports competitions into the future. The eFootball PES series tournaments were a centerpiece of the 11th and 12th Esports World Championship.”
It’s as if IESF were sympathetic after the cancellation of the world championships finals event last year, which was due to be held in Eilat. But the Israeli eSports capital has finally gotten its due event. And from the outset, it seems as though they are ready for the extravaganza.
IESF has also decided to keep the format of the tournament the same as the last year’s one, despite the mandatory restrictions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. The structure will be similar, with the Regional Games being held completely online and the Global Finals in Eilat being played out offline (on LAN) by the topmost players and rosters from all the different regions.