It was early Friday, Nov. 24, when I entered the Elmia Congress Center for DreamHack Winter. People were still gathering in long lines in front of the main entrance, and most of the halls were slowly filling with people.
The audiences in front of every tournament were also, naturally, quiet and without a living soul as the day had only just begun—every tournament except the Brawl Stars World Cup 2023, that is.
The 2023 edition of DreamHack Winter featured numerous tournaments and activities from Nov. 24 to 26. The 2023 Brawl Stars World Cup was one of them and, frankly speaking, it was also the most exciting part of the whole event—at least in my eyes. That isn’t meant to take away from other gaming beats attendees could dive into last weekend, it’s just that the Brawl Stars tournament turned me into a mobile games believer.
From heathen to believer
DreamHack Winter, now in its 29th year, is known for gathering gamers from all around the world. Enthusiasts of many different video games gather in Jönköping, Sweden each November to celebrate their passion for gaming—including mobile titles.
Mobile games have been around for quite some time. I remember the early days of 2018 when the surrounding buzz started getting loud. With a lot of wind in its sails, the hype quickly went through the roof, and many companies, players, and so on were promoting mobile titles as the future of gaming. As an old-school player who couldn’t ever get into them for more than a few hours, I was skeptical. But at DreamHack Winter 2023, I finally realized the mobile games scene’s power, and more importantly, witnessed its heartwarming community.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to be fanboying here. But the stage for Brawl Stars had the most electrifying atmosphere, the most people watching each and every game with enthusiasm, casters broadcasting in 10 different languages, and a simple yet innovative and eye-catching setup. You couldn’t just walk by and not check out what was going on.
A gargantuan market already
Mobile gaming has become a massive industry. Its content market value is estimated at $122.6 billion, according to Statista.com. Revenue is twice that, with the number reaching a gargantuan $286.5 billion. Additionally, if you ever played a game on your mobile phone, you’re already a part of an astonishing 1.93 billion mobile players around the world—that’s one in four people.
Its esports side is also another living proof of that sentiment. The aforementioned 2023 Brawl Stars World Finals had a prize pool of $750,000. It’s nearing the prize pools of other major tournaments in the most popular games across the globe. This year’s IEM Katowice Counter-Strike tournament, for comparison, had a million-dollar prize pool. While Brawl Stars World Cup celebrated its fifth edition this year, the three previous editions also matched Katowice’s prize pool.
New genre, same goals of connecting generations
But, besides the money and astonishing numbers, mobile titles like Brawl Stars show another pivotal side of gaming. Games are meant to build bridges between generations, not divide them. During the Brawl Stars tournament, I saw dozens of parents enjoying some pro mobile game action along with their kids. The sight of adults sharing their passions with children has long been a symbol of DreamHack Winter, and it’s well on its way to becoming one of mobile games, too.
I remember leaving the ESL Challenger Jönköping area for a while, only to stumble across the grand final, where the Polish roster of Zeta Division won the trophy and became world champions. Seeing so much excitement over a mobile game was a surprise to me, but a good one. Just as Zeta Division is bringing their Brawl Stars World Cup win home to Poland, I also returned home with fond memories and respect for the mobile games genre.
Disclaimer: Dot Esports were flown to Jönköping, Sweden at the expense of Monster Energy.
