cyberathlete-professional-league
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R.I.P. Championship Gaming Series
The Championship Gaming Series announced today it's calling it quits after realizing that "profitability was too far in the future." The organization has a farewell letter on its site stating the concept was "an idea whose time came too early." Clearly, gamers would rather play than watch others do it on TV.The big "game over" for the CGS follows the death of the Cyberathlete Professional League earlier this year. Guess that leaves Major League Gaming as the last (relevant) corporate-sponsored group standing?
R.I.P. CPL
We're feeling kinda guilty for just now noticing the rotting heap in our inbox. The Cyberathlete Professional League has been dead for five days, apparently, and the fist-pumping silhouette that has represented the CPL for so many years has become a ghostly reminder that competitive gaming is a long ways away from being oohed and awed by a mainstream market. Still, the CPL managed to stay on its feet for an impressive 10-year run, and perhaps, in some not-so-unimaginable future (okay, fine, it's a long shot!), the league will be immortalized in popular culture as an incubator for a great cyber-capitalist industry. So save those CPL tees if you've got 'em! Today's worthless rags could be tomorrow's vintage gold. We repeat, could be.[Thanks, Row Zee]
Frag Dolls pwn Rainbow Six CPL tourney, first pro win
The Frag Dolls won their first pro-circuit event last night, beating "The Unknown" to earn first place in the 4v4 Rainbow Six Vegas competition at Winter CPL. Aside from being the Frag Dolls' first big victory, it appears that this is also the first time an all-female team has won a (co-ed) pro-circuit tournament. Valkyrie, Seppuku, Calyber, and Psyche (all pictured) proved to be the winning combination for the Ubisoft-sponsored team.
Attention pro gamers: stop taking drugs
An interesting article on Tom's Hardware reveals that the Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) is preparing to introduce drug testing at all of its gaming competitions next year. Ignoring the kneejerk observation that gaming can be a drug all on its own (we frequently test positive for Lumines), there are two ways of looking at this development. The CPL having to test for drugs sends an unfortunate message about gamers we've known for quite a while -- some of them just like to cheat. On the other hand, such serious measures imply that professional gaming (or, sigh, "eSports") is being treated in the same manner as "real" sports, with all the rules and repercussions that accompany them.The founder and president of the league, Angel Munoz, is clearly concerned about dubious drug activities in league events. "The potential for [drugs] being an issue absolutely concerns me. It should concern anybody in eSports, because as the stakes get larger, as in any sport, people will look for an edge." In case you were wondering, some of the chemical concoctions under consideration are crystal methamphetamine and Ritalin, both of which could be used to enhance mental alertness and twitch reflexes. Luckily, Munoz rules out the banning of Red Bull and the like, mostly because it would prove too difficult to regulate. He must also be astutely aware that gathering a large group of gamers (apologies -- cyberathletes) and robbing them of caffeinated beverages is an invitation to unmitigated disaster. [Via CVG]See also: LAN parties meet drug parties
Pizza Hut to sponsor cyberathletes
Pizza Hut recently announced they will become the first fast food franchise to sponsor the Cyberathlete Professional League (CPL) and its affiliated tournaments. When engaged in league play, CPL professional and amateur members will be directed to special deals at Pizza Hut's web site, although there's no mention if this agreement also includes the Hut's Wing Street brand of chicken wings.According to Pizza Hut marketing exec Bill Ogle, "ordering a Pizza Hut pizza and having it delivered, without having to stop a game in progress, is a huge plus for this audience." While the marketing campaign makes more sense than McDonald's "feeding the world's Olympic athletes", you might want to keep a roll of paper towels handy, lest you defile that brand new 360 controller or Zboard with sauce and grease.Check out the CPL's Summer Championships schedule which includes tournaments for Quake 4, Halo 2, GRAW, and Project Gotham 3. And don't forget the breadsticks.
