260 gamers battled it out at Eden Esports Nova Series event  held last month at the InterContinental Arena Conference Centre in St Julian's, the fifth edition of the Nova Series, now considered Malta's largest local event for video-gaming fans.

Over 260 participants battled it out over the weekend in a variety of game tournaments, ranging from the ever-popular Fortnite to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. Over 1,000 attendees came to visit during the three days, enjoying activities such as virtual reality, tabletop and board games.

"Seeing such interest always spurs us to be better and do more for the local community," said Nicolai Gauci, director of Eden Esports. "We're working hard to bring up the next generation of gamers and cyber-athletes and provide as many opportunities as we can for the local esports ecosystem to flourish."

For the first time ever in a local event, winners of certain tournaments were given the opportunity to represent Malta and compete in the World Electronic Sports Games (also called WESG), a large international esports tournament that gave away over $2.5 million in prize money during its last edition. "It's a very big opportunity for our local youngsters," said David Busuttil Delbridge, community manager at Eden Esports. "When we were their age, we never even dreamt of having these kinds of openings."

Forming part of the esports industry, either through professional gameplay or other roles, is proving more and more lucrative as time progresses. Just a few weeks ago, some of the best Fortnite players in the world won a total of $30 million in the Fortnite World Cup. In another title, DOTA 2, contestants are currently competing for over $30 million - esports' largest single prize pool yet. 

 

The Nova Series was sponsored by SCAN Malta, GO, AutoFull Gaming Chairs and GamingMalta