There’s a new $400,000 pro league in esports, but it isn’t for the game you’d expect.
ArenaNet revealed plans today for a Guild Wars 2 league featuring international competition and a hefty prize pool. The league will be held in conjunction with
The ESL Guild Wars 2 Pro League will pit eight teams in each of two regions, North America and Europe, in a seven-week season culminating in a Season Finals where the top two finishers from each region battle. All 16 teams competing are guaranteed part of the $200,000 allotted for each season. But that isn’t all.
At the conclusion of both Pro League seasons, the Guild Wars 2 World Championships will crown a victor who’s the biggest part of “our largest tournament prize pool to date,” according to ArenaNet.
The format mirrors popular pro leagues in games like League of Legends and Smite, which run multiple league seasons that culminate in a World Championship.
Teams in the pro league will be decided through invites and a qualification process. Four spots go to teams that have already competed in last year’s World Tournament Series Finals or rank at the top of the monthly Go4GuildWars2 cup. The other four must be earned in an open qualifier event where any team can participate, kicking off in the middle of November.
Also similar to the pro leagues from other games, the Guild Wars 2 model will relegate the bottom performing teams after each season, pitting them against top performers in a Challenger Cup to decide who participates in the next pro league split.
All in all, it’s a big announcement for fans of esports in Guild Wars. ArenaNet is no stranger to competition. Even back in 2006, with the first iteration of their game, they hosted international tournaments worth over $100,000. But the esports revolution of recent years has in some ways left Guild Wars 2 behind as other companies have better taken advantage of the available tools and business models to build esports platforms. The Pro League is a big step for Guild Wars 2 as an esport, and a great way for fans of the game to enjoy its PvP experience.
You’ll be able to catch matches and all the action at the Guild Wars Twitch channel.
