World’s best gamers face others in U.S.

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World’s best gamers face others in U.S.

SAN FRANCISCO ― The World Cyber Games had its first showing outside Korea yesterday, drawing 7,000 players from 63 countries vying for the more than $400,000 in cash prizes. Hosted by International Cyber Marketing, a Korean company, the event has eight tournaments in which players square off in a variety of popular PC-based games such as Counter-Strike, FIFA Soccer, and Starcraft. Console games include Halo on Xbox. Since 2000, the World Cyber Games have been held in Korea, where expert players can earn a good living off video games. In the first Cyber Games outside Korea, winners will also have opportunities for professional gaming careers. “We hope that by hosting the World Cyber Games in San Francisco, the event will become a global one, like the Olympics of computer games. San Francisco is located near Silicon Valley, which is the mecca of information technology,” said Jung Heung-seop, president of International Cyber Marketing. The scale of the event was beefed up to meet international standards. In the first year, only 17 countries participated, but was increased to 37 in 2001, 45 in 2002, and 55 last year. In the preliminary matches that began in each country in August, about 1 million played. Government organizations of 22 countries, including Russia and Singapore, sponsored preliminary tournaments in their countries. In China, where video game is acknowledged as a sport, its public television station CCTV broadcast the weekly matches live. Unfortunately, the Chinese players were unable to participate in the finals because of visa problems. In the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium, the floor is covered with 750 networked computers, said Michael Olmstead, president of E2K, a Palo Alto-based sports-show producer. The company helped San Francisco land the bid to host the games, beating Milan and London, and organized side events such as art exhibits, band performances and skateboard demos that will take place outside the auditorium. Spectators can view the games on large screens, with professional commentators describing the play. The competition will be televised by various media outlets, such as CNN. Korea is one of the most active countries in promoting computer games as a sport. It has two broadcasting stations exclusively for games, and it is the only country in the world to have professional teams. Samsung Electronics, which initiated the World Cyber Games, is a major sponsor for the event in San Francisco, among other big tech firms such as Nvidia. “Games are an important rising industry, but most game-related software and hardware are in the hands of foreign companies. The concept of e-sports, however, is far advanced in Korea,” said Samsung vice chairman Yun Jong-yong. by Yoon Chang-hee, Wohn Dong-hee
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