Bathed in blue and red lighting while seated onstage at high-end PCs, celebrity gamers are immersed in “Fortnite,” a popular online video game. Their every move is captured on video feeds being watched by fans as the action is described by announcers in a broadcast booth.
If it sounds a little like a pro sporting event, that’s because it is. The gamers are competitors in a two-day tournament — with $30,000 up for grabs — at ESIX Gaming powered by Coca-Cola. It’s a first-of-its-kind facility and one the operators of Six Flags Fiesta Texas hope will give youthful visitors and their families a new reason to visit and stay longer at the park.
It was working that way during the recent tournament. In front of the stage, young people wearing headsets at rows of computers were also playing “Fortnite.” As they navigated the game and discussed strategies with friends, family members were a few feet away munching on snacks, charging phones and browsing gaming equipment and clothes for sale by Six Flags.
RELATED: ‘Cutting-edge gaming arena’ to open at Six Flags Fiesta Texas
San Antonio Spurs player Tre Jones — a gaming fan who had a spot on stage with the pros — appeared to be as excited to be there as a Spurs fan might be to sit courtside at a basketball game.
“I watch a lot of them,” he said of the pro gamers. “To play with them was a dream come true.”
Other fans got a chance to meet the pros during breaks in the tournament, when star gamers known by stage names such as as Bugha, Sommerset, Kaz and Zemie mingled and posed for photos.
Robin Jerstad
Robin Jerstad
Robin Jerstad
Players from across the country watch their screens during E6’s recent gaming tournament at Six Flags Fiesta Texas’ new e-gaming facility. Kyle Rapozo, (bottom right) better known in gaming circles as Kazify, was one of those players vying for a piece of the $30,000 in prize money.
Why gaming?
Housing what Fiesta Texas’ operators say is the latest high-tech equipment