Simona catches up with Ultimate Gamer CEO, Steve Suarez, to find out what inspired the world’s first and only multi-genre esports and gaming proving ground, and where its going.

Ultimate Gamer is unique in that it is a building the world’s largest community of gamers, of all skill levels and walks of life, across multiple genres and titles, while on a mission to find the world’s Best Gamer™.

Join the Ultimate Gamer community at ultimategamer.com

Staying with Ultimate Gamer, yesterday the company announced a partnership with global gaming marketplace Kinguin, which will give its community of over 1.6M esports and gaming fans access to more than 45K gaming titles, and provide opportunities for players to compete in the Ultimate Gamer Arena for discounts on Kinguin products.

Spacestation Gaming has announced a partnership with FPS performance and training platform Aim Lab. 

The US-based esports organisation, which currently fields rosters in two FPS titles, Rainbow Six and Valorant, will use Aim Lab to improve its player development structure, and equip its coaches, players and community with data and analytics to maximise performance. 

Aim Lab uses cognitive science and artificial intelligence to help players improve, and was developed by neuroscientists at Statespace – which just last week announced it had secured $29M USD in a Series B funding round led by Khosla Ventures. 

Commenting on the news Esports GM and Co-Founder of Spacestation, Shawn Pellerin, said:

“Our players are the foundation of the Spacestation org. Therefore, their development and performance are core to what we do. Aim Lab is a natural partner to help us take an even more targeted, data-driven approach to coaching, training and progression.”

While Founder and CEO of Statespace, Dr. Wayne Mackey, added:

“We built Aim Lab to help all players improve across skill levels and titles. It’s exciting to team up with two of the best R6 and Valorant teams in the world to not only provide tools for their players, but to share their training and insights with the rest of the gaming community.”

Spacestation says it will be sharing its Aim Lab performance routines and insights through its YouTube channel and Aim Lab’s video section in-game. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Though Aim Lab is already widely used by many professional players, with Statespace continually developing and improving the platform (helped by its recent significant injection of capital), we think it’s fair to assume it will be increasingly adopted by esports organisations. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Esports and gaming talent agency, Prodigy Agency, has entered a strategic partnership with Gscience. 

Talent on Prodigy’s books include ZywOo, mixwell, apEX, ScreaM, NBK, and sOAZ, and the agency is known for its ‘Players First’ initiative. In keeping with this, it has become the first esports talent agency to announce an official health and performance partner. 

The agreement will see Northern Ireland-based Gscience provide bespoke performance coaching and workshops to Prodigy’s growing roster of talent, with the aim of improving performance and optimising health and wellness. Both companies will also be championing mental health awareness and support across the esports and gaming industry. 

Discussing the partnership Founder & CEO of Prodigy Agency, Jérôme Coupez, said:

“Our main mission with Prodigy Agency is to take care and support our players from all angles. Health, wellness and performance is obviously one of the most important verticals for esports players, especially with the current global situation, and it was important for us to find the right partners. 

“Gscience are pioneers in esports health and performance and I’m really looking forward to developing and building the best support on that regards for our players around the world.”

While Co-Founder & CEO of Gscience, Ryan Scollan, added:

“After speaking with Jérôme and learning more about his reason for starting Prodigy Agency, I knew immediately that we were a great fit for one another. 

“Both companies believe in and understand the importance of taking care of the players and building a healthy and sustainable ecosystem for all gamers. We are excited to work with and share our knowledge through the world class talent that prodigy has on their roster.”

And, Jamie Kiff, Co-Founder & CSO of Gscience, commented:

“With COVID-19 restrictions in place worldwide we have seen a rise in the number of gamers reporting physical and mental health issues. As such, this partnership with a leading esports talent agency couldn’t come at a better time. We want to ensure that athletes are given the support they need during this difficult time and throughout their career.“

AYO.NEWS says:

There’s no doubt about it, 2020 has been challenging for most people in terms of mental health, with the COVID-19 crisis putting unprecedented pressures on people in many aspects of their lives. 

For esports talent, maintaining focus and perspective, while under pressure to perform, and lacking the normal physical events and interactions, it’s crucial to have professional support right now, so it’s great to see Prodigy Agency and Gscience stepping up. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

Ultimate Gamer, the world’s first and only multi-genre esports and gaming proving ground, has announced a multi-year partnership with global gaming marketplace Kinguin. 

The deal will see Kinguin power Ultimate Gamer’s online store, giving its community of over 1.6M esports and gaming fans access to more than 45K gaming titles, and providing opportunities for players to compete in the Ultimate Gamer Arena for discounts on Kinguin products. 

On-location activations at Kinguin’s Esports Performance Center and Kinguin Esports Lounge in Europe, and at Ultimate Gamer’s Florida headquarters, are also planned. Additionally, Ultimate Gamer and Kinguin will collaborate on content focused around putting the everyday gamer in the spotlight, providing improvement tips, while following the journey of who will be crowned The Best Gamer on Earth™.

Discussing the partnership Ultimate Gamer CEO, Steve Suarez, said:

“The entire Ultimate Gamer team was blown away by Kinguin Esports Lounge and training center. Kinguin has done an incredible job fostering community and improving the quality of gaming for those who play games. In addition to powering Ultimate Gamer’s store, we plan to partner with Kinguin on physical events post COVID and unique content collaboration geared towards our shared audience of gamers.”

While Kinguin Founder and CEO, Viktor Romaniuk Wanli, added:

“Ultimate Gamer, with its fan base of 1.6 million gamers, has done a tremendous job in providing value to its audience, and we couldn’t be more excited for this strategic collaboration with UG. Our combined efforts will introduce our 60m+ fans to unique experiences and a lot of special giveaways and discount deals on the latest blockbuster games out there.”

AYO.NEWS says:

Yet another great initiative from two of the most proactive forces in the video gaming and esports communities! With headlines always dominated by the huge esports deals and top teams, its projects like Ultimate Gamer that really keep the community grounded and bind everything together – like the cheese on a pizza. 

Find out more about the visionary behind Ultimate Gamer, Steve Suarez, in an AYO.NEWS exclusive interview tomorrow. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

French esports organisation Team Vitality has said it will be using three key SAP solutions to support financial management. 

According to the organisation, using the three SAP products will enable it to optimise all its processes, including monitoring of contracts, data management, automation of tasks, and monitoring financial flows. In the long-term, Team Vitality intends to push its use of SAP solutions even further, impacting all the company’s branches, and supporting its continued international growth. 

Team Vitality is set leverage:

•   SAP Business By Design®, a cloud-based ERP for optimising finance, purchases, and inventory management.
• SAP Cloud Platform®, an integration and extension platform for simplifying exchanges with the company’s ecosystem.
• SAP Analytics Cloud®, an augmented and multi-source analytics solution for optimising and accelerating decision-making.

Discussing the partnership CFO at Team Vitality, Sonia Manueco, said:

“We operate more than one business model at a time: we make retail sales via our website, we develop marketing contracts with different brands and we also generate content. It was, therefore, necessary to have several tools grouped together in a single, easy-to-access interface to be able to manage all these activities.”

While COO at Team Vitality, Franck Boniface, added:

“Thanks to SAP, we have all the components we need to go even further: we want to continue improving our operations by automating all of our legal, quality, and logistics processes. The long-term objective is also to use all the data we retrieve from our platforms, such as Twitch and Twitter, to be able to make the connection between interactions with our fans and purchases on our webshop.”

SAP provides data analytics and innovations to several professional sports and esports organisations, including the WTA, NBA, Team Liquid, and FC Bayern. It is currently intensifying the scope of its ERP offering in esports, and in addition to player performance management, is seeking to engage fans with its innovative technologies. 

Staying with Team Vitality, last month the organisation made the first move in its planned expansion to India, launching dedicated Indian-facing social media channels. 

AYO.NEWS says:

It might not be the most exciting news on the planet, but this partnership does demonstrate that as esports organisations evolve into complex, multi-faceted businesses, it’s absolutely critical to put efficient, robust infrastructure in place to minimise waste and maximise opportunities. 

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.

PUBG Corporation has announced an 8-week esports festival, featuring a $3.5M USD prize pool, and PUBG MOBILE Esports has revealed details of its 2021 program.

PUBG GLOBAL INVITATIONAL.S

Scheduled to take place from 2 February to 28 March, the PUBG GLOBAL INVITATIONAL.S (PGI.S), will be held in South Korea and feature 32 global teams from South Korea, North America, Europe, Latin America, China, Japan, South East Asia, and Taiwan. 

Unusually, given the current circumstances, the event will be an in-person affair, though it will be fully compliant with government COVID-19 guidelines, and go even further by introducing its own rules, including a two-week quarantine for all players and staff. 

The format will see teams compete in 16 weekly “Survival” matches, during which they will attempt to earn money and a spot in the “Final” matches. Final matches will feature larger prizes, which will be awarded based on performance. When all matches are completed, the team that has amassed the largest pot of prize cash will be named Global Champions. 

An upgraded Pick’Em Challenge, featuring an increased 30% revenue share, will also be part of the PGI.S. 

PUBG MOBILE 2021 Esports program

Details of the 2021 PUBG MOBILE Esports program have also been confirmed by James Yang, Director of PUBG MOBILE GLobal Esports. 

2021 will see seven new PMPL (PUBG Mobile Professional League) regions; CIS, Turkey, Western Europe, Arabia, North America, Latin America, and Brazil. They will complement the existing PMPLs in South Asia and Southeast Asia. The PMCO (PUBG Mobile Club Open) will also see additional regions added, including the UK, France, UAE, Africa, Bangladesh, Nepal, and Mexico, with more to be revealed. 

Similar to 2020, the PMCOs and PMPLs will be split into two seasons, with the PMGC at the end of the year. Registration for the PMCO Spring Split will be open from 1-24 January 2021. New PUBG MOBILE Invitationals will be introduced in summer, hosted by pro teams.

The PMGC starts at 11am UTC on 24 November 2020, and will see 24 pro teams from around the world compete for a $2M prize pool, and the glory of being crowned the best team in the world at the PMGC Finals. 

AYO.NEWS says:

Both PUBG and PUBG MOBILE have exploded in popularity through 2020, and they look set to continue on the same stratospheric trajectory into 2021. Fans and players alike will also no doubt be thrilled at the prospect of the in-person 8-week festival in February – though, given the state of the COVID-19 crisis, with its frequently changing lockdowns, travel bans and quarantine rules, it’s probably best to take the schedule with a pinch of salt at this point.

‘AYO.NEWS says’ features the opinion of the author and does not necessarily reflect the views of Pentagon Digital Limited or its affiliates or associates. 

All original content featured on this site is © Pentagon Digital Limited, 2020.