As we look back at 2018, it comes as quite a surprise to us that it has surpassed 2017 on so many levels. That was not possible without the support of the communities, volunteers, staff, partners and sponsors. Can we continue to improve and grow in 2019? With the help of the aforementioned, we would really like to think so.

MINOR LANs

The Minor LAN series of events started our venue-based activities for 2018. The LANs were hosted in four cities on the same day. The series kicked off with Call of Duty and over the next few months saw FIFA, fighting and more played in Cape Town, Gauteng, Durban and Port Elizabeth.

As a conceptual test, the series proved to work and with 2019 knocking, you might be wondering if there will be a return of the multi-city LAN concept… We’ll cryptically suggest you will need to wait and see.

Photos: Album 1 | Album 2 | Album 3 | Album 4 | Album 5

AFRESPORTS 1

Our first large event of the year also marked our first move into operating our own fully standalone multi-gaming event. After years of assisting a variety of gaming expos and operating single-title events of our own, we decided it was time to take that all, chuck it into a pot and stir until ready.

What that brought up after the boil was Afresports. A weekend of gaming and esports at GrandWest featuring Call of Duty LAN with a R30,000 prize pool and a R10,000 FIFA tournament. Alongside those two were fighting tournaments, mini-tournaments, new game demos, vendors and more. It all went well enough that we decided we would do it again later in the year.

Photos: Album 1 | Album 2

RUSH 2018

The NAG esports initiative headed to a new venue in Pretoria for its second iteration, and we were tasked with operating the Vodacom 4U Fortnite and Football Cups. The Fortnite event marked the first South African, African and international outing of Fortnite at a venue on mobile, which meant plenty of new challenges for us.

The Fortnite and FIFA 19 tournaments proved to be a success, with the FIFA drawing around 280 players competing over the weekend. Meanwhile, Fortnite marked its place at future venue-based events as the title’s popularity continued to explode.

Photos: Album 1

EGE 2018

The Electronics and Gaming Expo hit year four and we continued to play a part by running all the competitive gaming on offer. Call of Duty, FIFA, fighting games and Fortnite made a showing over the weekend.

The action played out across a number of floor spaces and a three-sided stage. Alongside the aforementioned competitions, we joined forces with Computer Mania (and their various partners), MWEB and the ZA Gaming Alliance to offer a stage for all – a variety of mini-tournaments for CS:GO and Dota 2 set up for all attendees to experience the thrill of competing in front of an audience.

Photos: Album 1 | Album 2 | Album 3

AFRESPORTS 2

September saw us return to GrandWest for our second Afresports event of the year. While Call of Duty was originally part of the plans, sadly sign-ups were low and prompted a cancellation of the title.

However, Fortnite was again on hand, and this time we came bringing the first custom lobby event in Africa. The Fortnite Festival was the focus of the event which also saw FIFA 19, fighting titles and more competed over by the attendees.

Photos: Album 1 | Album 2

MATIES ESPORTS SERIES

2018 marked our second year of working with the Stellenbosch University’s (Maties) sports department as they looked into expanding esports at the institution. This year saw CS:GO and Dota 2 join the 2017 title of FIFA.

Over a series of online and offline qualifying events, the three titles concluded in mid-October at The Neelsie (FIFA 18) and MWEB’s Mcave (CS:GO and Dota 2). Plans are afoot to further expand in 2019 alongside the Maties administration team.

RAGE 2018

Early October saw rAge return for its 16th year. And we were tasked with overseeing the Xbox Fortnite Festival for the weekend. 40 Xbox One stations were permanently setup with event attendees having the opportunity to play in a custom lobby each day for the various prizes up for grabs.

In three days, over 1,800 participants sat and played in the Xbox Fortnite Festival.

Photos: Album 1

CANAL WALK GAMING EXPO 2018

Late October saw the return of the BT Games and Canal Walk Shopping Centre game expo. 2018 marked the event’s fourth edition and we were brought on board to facilitate the FIFA 19 tournament and a Fortnite activation.

The FIFA 19 tournament proved another success with 436 players competing in over 560 matches over the course of the event. Fortnite also confirmed its popularity with around 1,500 players sitting at the 20 Xbox stations set up.

As October closed, it had entertained over 3,000 Fortnite players in two cities. If it wasn’t already clear to the gaming industry around the country, the month proved Fortnite has a pretty large fan base.

Photos: Album 1

INJUSTICE 2 LEGENDARY SERIES

Unlike 2017’s Injustice 2 SA Cup, this year’s iteration was an online only tournament. However, thanks to the accessibility afforded by the internet, the series saw a number of players from the rest of Sub-Saharan Africa competing over the two months.

The grand final in late October saw two South Africans and two Zambian players facing off to an enthusiastic viewing audience, and the matches did not disappoint. The series highlighted the interest in fighting games in Africa – one that we are keen to fully embrace in 2019.

ONLINE

In 2018 we continued to work on the site and institute a number of improvements. This included the launch of our Android App which secured us the award for the MTN App of the Year in the gaming category.

As 2019 rolls around, we are preparing for one of our biggest site updates yet. On 7 January, we will lift the lid on the new and improved website which will bring a number of brand new features for our users.

As we draw in on the end of the year, the website has handled over 9,700 registered users, and seen over 11,000 matches across over 30 titles.

GENERAL

There was plenty more of course and to cover them all in-depth would keep us here for another year. Some of the other community driven events and other gaming activities and tournaments - either as ACGL or alongside Zombiegamer included:

AND FINALLY

A few things didn’t quite go according to plan this year unfortunately, and we would be wrong not to mention them. We launched a pay-to-play system using credits at the beginning of the year but found that players were not engaging with the system. We brought the concept to a close while we analysed a way forward. As 2019 looms, we are considering relaunching the concept with a more simplified approach.

We also felt that the Minor LAN program did not quite go the way we wanted, but as with so much we do, it’s a work in progress, and in 2019, we hope to make them the events we always wanted them to be.

We would like to end by thanking everyone that supported us throughout the year - without you all we would not have had the successes and opportunities we did. See you in 2019, and bring your ‘A’ game.

 

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