Trends in the Esports industry: Gaming University×Pokemon Unite Interview
“Gamers don’t fear tragedies, we’ve seen it many times before.” With this quote, we conducted our 6th Tournatalks episode just like every week on the Instagram channel of Tournafest on 28th February 2022. Tournatalks is a live conversational show hosted by Tournafest every Sunday. We invite Gamers, Organizers & more such eminent people from the Gaming industry to spread awareness on various issues related to Gaming, E-sports and also to gain some valuable points of wisdom from the hustlers!
This week, we invited some very special guests to our show, Mr. Ankur, owner of gaming University Mr. Shubham, admin at Pokemon Unite with Khushi from Tournafest as the host. They talked about the changing trends in the gaming industry and how all games have evolved in recent times apart from the already famous ones. Here’s a snippet of the live session.
“How do you introduce yourselves from the perspective of Gaming University and Pokemon United?”
Ankur said, “Gaming University as an organization focuses on conducting scrims for different games and helping the underdog teams to showcase their talents and make a future in Esports. Pokemon Unite is a new game which has got a very good response from the audience, we’re looking forward to expanding our platform in that too.”
Shubham responded, “We were just a group of 4 friends who started doing it for fun but the response we got from the audience was overwhelming. There was less attention given to MOBA games, so we thought of doing something in that field and that’s our story.”
“Garena FreeFire was recently banned in India. How did it affect the gaming and Esports Industry?”
“What we’ve seen is that, even though FreeFire is taken down from Playstore and App Store, people could still play it. The server is not down in India. FreeFire Max is now available for downloading and it has gotten a good community following the ban of FreeFire. Initially, banning the game was a big setback for the community but now everything is getting better”, Ankur said.
According to Shubham, “FreeFire got a huge following in India in the past year. It became a go-to option for gamers because of its easy accessibility. FreeFire played a huge role in giving the Esports Industry the recognition it needed. Now, FreeFire Max is there in the market. So, it’s not that much of a worry for the gamers.”
“Do you think the original version of FreeFire which was banned will come back?”
Ankur answered, “I don’t think it matters that much. Now that FreeFire Max has replaced the previous version, people are shifting to that. Earlier it was the same with PubG and BGMI. So, I don’t think its return will create that much of an impact on the gaming industry.”
Shubham agreed by saying, “FreeFire Max is also getting the same amount of hype as the original version. It is also giving people a chance to explore a different game. New fields are opening at a very fast rate. Gamers can grow in so many fields these days.”
“Subham, what are some special features of Pokemon Unite that will make players shift towards this game?”
Shubham responded, “Most importantly, it is very easy to understand and play games. If we compare it to games in the MOBA range, other games require a lot of strategized learning but here, it would be easy for players to adapt. The second plus point is the time feature of Pokemon Unite. It doesn’t require too much time for a single match. This could be completed within 10 minutes. So, these features make it unique.”
“How do you see Pokemon Unite growing in the future and will it excel FreeFire and BGMI?”
Ankur and Shubham agreed on the same thing, “We cannot say that it will surpass BGMI and FreeFire at such an early stage because these games have an established name but if the ban system continues, there’s a possibility that the audience will shift towards newer games and that will give Pokemon Unite a wider audience. This game has got some really exciting features and that will definitely help in its growth in the future.”
“How has Esports helped the gamers to grow?”
Ankur answered, “COVID played a big role in the growth and expansion of the Esports community because, during these turbulent times, even little kids got their hands on smartphones. So, everyone is playing tournaments these days. It gave a big spike to the Esports Industry as compared to times before the COVID period. And as it grew, the organizers also started bringing good tournaments for the players which definitely played a big role in the growth of Esports players. The underdogs have also started getting the recognition they deserve.”
Shubham said, “Esports has given people a chance to not only play games but also to earn a livelihood through it and that is a big plus point in its growth. Organizers, investors, and sponsors all have played a significant role in the growth of Esports as an industry. In the future, people will not just be dreaming of becoming a pro cricket player but also a pro gamer.”
“Will gaming be considered as a profession like other professions in India?”
Shubham and Ankur both agreed on the same point by saying, “Esports has already become a career for so many people. Society has started considering gaming as a profession, maybe not like doctors and engineers but it’ll soon reach that level. A gamer is not just a gamer, they can take it up as a profession too. The comparison going on between different professionals is an old on-going activity which should be stopped. Gaming is evolving into a genuine profession with time.”
That was a brief summary of the live session with Gaming University and Pokemon Unite. Our guests gave us a great insight into the world of Esports and all the trending topics of the gaming Industry. To watch the full live show, you can visit Tournafest’s official Instagram handle.
Until next session, #liveitforgaming
