Most companies would be completely ecstatic if they were to have over one million people watching their world finals live stream at once. Riot seems to have taken the stance of “Yeah, that's cool, but let's go bigger, bring eSports to even more people.”
Can they do it? Can they even further legitimize eSports and single-handedly usher in a new era of competitive gaming? The answer is a resounding yes.
Did you see the studio they're building? This one right here. This is a snapshot from Saintvicious of Curse Gaming, and it looks to be Riot's broadcasting headquarters for Season 3. Guess why they need a broadcasting headquarters.
If you guessed it's because Riot will be streaming weekly League of Legends matches, you would be correct. It's called the League of Legends Championship Series (LCS), and Riot will be streaming it to your computer similar to how the NFL brings weekly football to your TV, complete with playoffs and a World Championship.
It works like this: Every week the top eight teams from both North America and Europe will be facing off. North America will be playing on Thursdays and Fridays while the Europeans will be playing on Saturday and Sunday. Divisional playoffs later in the year will determine which teams get to compete in the World Championships.
Three of those coveted eight spots are already taken in each division by qualifiers from last season. Counter Logic Gaming, Team SoloMid and Dignitas represent North America, while SK Gaming, Moscow 5, and CLG.eu take the top three European spots. Five more teams will be added to the mix, rounding out the top eight teams in each division.
If that wasn't exciting enough, a massive amount of new game content, items, and balancing has also been applied to League of Legends, positioning Season 3 to be the most dynamic and entertaining season yet. Have you ever wondered what Riot's fist logo is clenching? It's eSports, firmly in their grasp. Let the march to the LCS Season 3 World Championships begin!
To learn more about the LCS Season 3 announcement, check out their competitive site here, and their AMA on Reddit here.
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