London-based virtual reality developer Virtex wants to bring the excitement and atmosphere of esports at a live event to virtual reality headsets.
The esports industry has come a long way since its humble beginnings in 1972, when a handful of students from Stanford University took part in the first recorded video game tournament dedicated to the 1962 space combat game Spacewar! . However, what started out as a niche competition between college students has since turned into a multibillion-dollar industry. According to a recent Newzoo market report, by 2021 the esports industry is expected to grow to $ 1.084 billion this year; this is more than 14% more than last year.
With such projected growth, it is not surprising that more companies than ever are trying to position themselves in a fast-growing industry. This includes Virtex Entertainment, a company based in London, UK, which wants to revolutionize the way to enjoy live esports entertainment using its own 3D arenas based on VR technology.
The company announced Virtex Stadium, a virtual venue for major esports matches. Virtex claims that its stadium is designed for 200 people per server (the number of servers required for each event), which allows friends to meet and participate in the broadcast.
Inside the stadium, matches should be shown in the form of three-dimensional holograms in the center of the space. Imagine that you are watching, say, a match “Onward” not only on a two-dimensional screen, but also in some kind of isometric form, as if it really took place on the lower floor of the stadium. But Virtex has not yet provided an overview of this real-time system, and has not confirmed any names that will be compatible with this experience. All that ljcnfkjcm gives us is the first concept art (above) and the announcing trailer (below).
The press release also says that the audience will ” jump from their seat directly onto the game map while the match is unfolding around them.” Co-founder and chief operating officer Christoph Ortlepp also said that the team will offer various monetization options, including the sale of tickets to events.
This sounds ambitious, and we have yet to see how live VR events really develop at the speed that Virtex provides. The company plans to launch an open beta version later this year, when it also announces the first list of supported games. First it will appear in virtual reality headsets for PC, and in the future it plans to release a version of Oculus Quest. You can keep up to date with the latest news about the application on the official website.
