Video game leagues are nothing new, but they're so unknown by the majority of the population that their existence is generally only spread by word of mouth. Only those that monitor such news channels or are very much into their gaming will know of such leagues, their titles and the sorts of games they include in their lineups. In actual fact, gaming leagues are extremely lucrative, both for the industry and for the competitors, with prizes worth up to half a million dollars being offered every year by certain leagues, such as the PS3 league Major League Gaming. The only requirement is that the player pays the entry fee and then they are given a chance to qualify.
The Primary Video Gaming League
Major League Gaming has become one of the biggest leagues for console and personal computer gaming. It provides annual tournaments for up to half a dozen games with the lineup changing to accommodate the latest releases. It was founded in 2002 and has grown to be popular amongst many gamers, both with those who compete, but also with those who just wish to watch the live events and online shows. With both new and old competitors joining the fray regularly, the fans always have someone to root for. To provide some level of standardization for players, Major League Gaming focuses on the Playstation 3 as their console of choice. For games that are exclusive to other consoles, their native machines are used. For example Gears of War is only on the Xbox 360 and, hence, would be played on Xbox 360s. Live events see that the participants are provided with all the equipment the player needs.
The Game Lineup
The Halo series made its debut back with Halo: Combat Evolved, which was used in the earliest MLG tournaments. Today, both Halo 3 and Halo: Reach have their own tournaments featuring four versus four team battles on varying maps. It provides high-intensity, twitch-based gameplay in a first-person shooter (FPS) format. Joining these two games comes the venerable Call of Duty series. Starting off with Modern Warfare, Modern Warfare 2 is the current Call of Duty game on show. It features similar gameplay to Halo, but in a more realistic setting and somewhat more depth. Fighting games have long been the focus of many gaming tournaments and with Tekken 6's debut on MLG this year, this is going to be no exception. Joining Tekken 6 is Super Smash Bros. Brawl, providing only slightly differing gameplay, but consistent rules. Unlike most of the other present games, Tekken 6 has never had any of its iterations present on MLG.
Starcraft 2's release saw booming sales, especially in Korea, where it's become a favorite pastime of the nation. Its own debut in the MLG tournament makes it the first real-time strategy game and a solidly backed one at that. It provides excellent support for competitions and is updated regularly.
Major League Gaming has provided tournaments for many different games, but also many of the earlier mentioned games' iterations. For example, Halo: Combat Evolved and Halo 2 were also part of the MLG tournaments. As was Call of Duty Modern Warfare and Super Smash Bros. Melee. Blizzard's first MLG game, World of Warcraft, was also part of the lineup. Other games part of the MLG circuit was Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Vegas and the sequel, Gears of War and Shadowrun. Next year is likely to see further sequels, such as Call of Duty Black Ops.
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