ICYMI: CheckpointXP On Campus Roundup – October 17, 2019
Written By Kevin Kelly
It’s been a busy week in the world of collegiate esports and we’ve got you covered with the latest news and notes! Check out these quick hits and then tune in to Checkpoint XP: On Campus for the full stories…
ACTIVISION SUSPENDS BLITZCHUNG FOR HONG KONG SUPPORT, COLLEGIATE RESPONSE AND FALLOUT
Last week, Hearthstone player Ng Wai Chung, aka Blitzchung, was participating in an interview after winning his Hearthstone Grandmasters match in which he wore a mask similar to that of the Hong Kong protestors. During the protest, Blitzchung removed the mask and said “Liberate Hong Kong. Revolution of our age!” Afterwards, the stream very quickly cut to break. For the remainder of the broadcast, player webcams were not shown, and player interviews were not conducted.
The fallout was severe, with Activision/Blizzard banning Blitzchung from competitive play for one year, combined with withholding all his prize winnings from all previous play. This sparked an incredible amount of backlash that resulted in Activision reducing the suspension from one year down to six months, and restoring his prize winnings.
The response to this event from the college esports community has been strong. Casey Chambers, a student at American University who plays for the school’s Collegiate Hearthstone Championship team, held up a sign during a match that read “Free Hong Kong, Boycott Blizzard”. Chambers expected Tespa, the leading college esports organizer, to remove American University from their spot in the Collegiate Hearthstone league. Subsequently, the team’s information disappeared from Tespa’s website, and the three college students from American University have since received a six month ban from competitive Hearthstone, compliments of Blizzard.
For more on this complex situation, tune into the new episode of Checkpoint XP: On Campus!
LEAGUE OF LEGENDS WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP RECAP
The biggest tournament in all of esports is officially underway in Berlin with the League of Legends World Championships. This year is gearing up to be one of the most competitive World’s in history, with many top teams finishing the first stage of group play with a 2-1 record.
For a more comprehensive recap, and to see if Norris, Jacob and Daniel think this is the year for North America to finally take home the crown, check out the latest episode of Checkpoint XP: On Campus!
HARRISBURG UNIVERSITY FORMS PARTNERSHIP WITH GLOBAL ESPORTS
A potentially groundbreaking partnership has been announced between Asia-based organization Global Esports and Harrisburg University. The goal of the alliance is to help bridge the gap and create a pathway from college esports to professional esports. The partnership will begin with India’s Overwatch World Cup team travelling to Harrisburg for a bootcamp at the school’s robust, state-of-the-art esports training facility.
For an in-depth discussion on whether this could be the start of the bridging between collegiate and professional esports, watch Checkpoint XP: On Campus!
OVERWATCH VARSITY SERIES WEEK 2 RECAP (WRITTEN BY JACOB BROTHERS)
Week Two of the Overwatch Varsity Invitational has come and gone. Both the east and the west have a new team in their respective top fours, being Boise State and Harrisburg. The top western teams are North Texas (4-0), UC Irvine (2-1). Dallas (2-1) and Boise State (2-1). Academy of Art University lost both of their games this week, thus no longer being in a playoff spot. The top eastern teams are Maryville (4-0), Missouri (4-0), my darling Winthrop (3-1) and Harrisburg (3-1). While Harrisburg won both of their games this week, it was against the bottom teams in the group. Central Florida currently isn’t in the top 4, but still holds on to 5th place. In preview, North Texas plays the bottom teams of the west, so expect them to have a 6-0 record. Maryville has stayed on top but they play both Harrisburg and Missouri this week, so the titans are already clashing.
Jacob offers more insight into Overwatch every week for Checkpoint XP: On Campus!
INTERVIEW WITH UCI OVERWATCH PLAYER ANDREI GO
This week, Andrei Go, Overwatch player for the University of California – Irvine, joined the show to detail what life is like when you attend school on an esports scholarship, balancing his commitments to the team with schoolwork and more.
Watch the full interview with Andrei on the new episode of Checkpoint XP: On Campus!
FORTNITE BLACK HOLE SPARKS PANDEMONIUM
In their latest attempt to captivate the attention of the public and dominate the gaming conversation, publisher Epic Games literally blew up Fortnite. The scheduled event saw the the entire Fortnite map, as well as the menu screens, sucked up into a vortex, leaving nothing but a small black hole in the middle of the screen. Streamers, Fortnite fans, and gamers alike all spent hours collectively staring at this black hole waiting for something to happen. The ensuing panic and fear that Epic had just ended one of the most popular games of all time was however short lived. A few days later a cinematic trailer for “Fortnite Chapter 2” was released, detailing that the black hole led to a brand new map, with brand new game mechanics.
To see the guys discuss all the hilarity, check out the final segment on this week’s Checkpoint XP: On Campus!
We’ll be back next Thursday with a brand new episode, and continue to watch this space for more coverage of college esports from Checkpoint XP: On Campus!