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With the advent of higher internet speeds coming into play and India  making a digital push, industry biggies are betting that 2017 will be the game changer for eSports and are making large investments.  What’s luring them is the fast expanding $892 million eSports global market and the fact that 2016 saw over Rs 75 lakh being plonked down in prize money in India.

Manish Agarwal

Amongst the first to announce its intentions was  serial media investor Ronnie Screwval’s Usports which rolled out UCypher, a Rs. 100 crore eSports tournament. Now another mega player in the game publishing space, the Rs 220 crore  Nazara Games,  has unveiled a plan to invest around $20 million over the next few years. Included in this is its own eSports league.

“We wanted to target a specific segment which comprises of hardcore gamers. Nazara Games did not have an offering in the segment of hardcore gamers and we saw a gap in the market where there  are no organised, large scale players which would really create an ecosystem, building activity and this is why we decided an offering here in a meaningful manner so that as the gamers start from bottom to top, we are having a community in each segment and we are going with a very relevant proposition to them,” says  Nazara Games, CEO, Manish Agarwal in a conversation with AnimationXpress.

The relative paucity of awareness about eSports in India – which is emerging as a digital first nation – is not deterring Agarwal at all.  Says Agarwal: “We are not looking at masses or someone who has just started playing games. Like, we are not targeting people who are playing our Chhota Bheem Jungle Run. We are only looking at four to five million people who understand eSports. Either they are players or spectators or both.”

For now, only two of the more traditional (read: popular) titles have been named for the tournament, Dota: 2 and Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO). More games will be  revealed going forward. Agarwal confirms that mobile game/games would be a part of this tournament; however the titles have  yet to be decided.

The mobile sector is spearheading the gaming industry, popularity and revenue-wise. Hence, its inclusion in eSports events will not be surprising, which is traditionally dominated by PC games and consoles sometimes. To testify this fact, one of the world’s leading eSports organisations, Fnatic has recently launched its mobile eSports team as well.

So, what mobile games would be played in Nazara Games’ tournament?

Nothing has been revealed as of yet, but our best bet would include the likes of Clash Royale.

UCypher, which also plans to begin operations in 2017 like Nazara Games’ tournament is picking the first batch of participants manually.  More precisely, UCypher will be inviting the best local teams/individuals for its first edition.

Nazara Games, on its part, plans to hold an open online qualifier for the tournament, wherein anyone can participate and make his or her  way into the top and claim their spot in the event. For the future editions of the event however, both the events will adhere to the leader-board system wherein participants  can track their progress and that of others as well.

“We are very clear on that. We do not want to handpick anyone. There will be an open, transparent selection process which will be happening on the platform. Everybody would start at an equal level and based on their skills, they will make the cut,” informs Agarwal.

Representational image

The publishing company would be creating a completely new company which will handle the event and will be completely dedicated to it.

As Agarwal asserts: “The new company would be a 100 per cent subsidiary of Nazara Games, with a new consumer brand name for this venture which is more in line with the target audience which we are looking at and the whole investment which we are doing will predominantly go in four areas in my opinion.”

Among these he reveals will be “marketing which is to build the consumer brand. But marketing can only happen when you have a product ready. So we are looking at a very strong content plus community platform where you can have live content as well as on-the-go content. Then we are looking at investing a lot of time and money on training the teams. We are very simply committed to say that this whole ecosystem will be managed by professionals of eSports for creating professionals of eSports. The last but not the least thing would be to invest on the league itself, making it a spectator’s delight with global production values. We would be leaning heavily to bring in a lot of international experts to help us.”

He adds: “Our approach is very simple. As I said, the selection process will let you get into the six teams, but there are a lot of people who will not be in the team and for them there would be continuous tournaments happening on the platform so that they can continue to hone their skills and get into the next season of the league. So, this is a platform for the community, where they are constantly interacting, honing their skills, watching others playing and improving themselves and tracking the progress of people.”

The games would be web-casted live on the upcoming website and it is from there that players can register and track the progress of the tournament.

With two mega eSports ventures going online in the same year, will they get into a head on collision and impact each other’s propsects?

“eSports is going to be very big, so the more  the players that invest in eSports, the better it is for the overall participation,” says Agarwal. “So I really don’t see it as a competition or clash. I think whatever we are going to do will help UCypher and vice versa because both of us would like to create something which is a great experience and market it. Then, if you see the history of any sports in India, first there is a lot of awareness creation and then the money comes in;  the talent pool emerges and the quality rises.”

E-loquently stated, we might state.

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While many argue that there’s no specific day to display love and affection for their counterparts, Valentine’s Day definitely has its charm. Love is not an exception bound to reality, we’ve found it time and again over various virtual worlds of video games, which goes on to show, it is without any doubt, one of the strongest emotion we live by.

Here’s a look at five love stories from videogames:

Nathan and Elena

Uncharted: Nathan Drake and Elena Fisher: This is one of those relationships which has02 seen its fair share of highs and lows. In the final part, they are shown married and as Nathan leaves for one last adventure, Elena understands and does not stop him. Although, the protagonist had a brief moment with Chloe, Elena has always been the special one.

Tracer (Lena) and Emily

Overwatch: Tracer (Lena) and Emily: Blizzard’s character-based shooter did not only manage to reach 25 million player-base but also provided its players with an amazing universe with diverse characters from every corner and numerous walks of life. During the holiday edition of Overwatch comics, it was revealed that one of the most prominent character of the game, Lena ‘Tracer’ Oxton was queer and had a supposed partner by the name of Emily. the comic showcased how the couple spent their Christmas together with their gorilla-buddy, Winston. Though the tale was pretty brief, it definitely broke barriers.

Prince and Elika

Price of Persia: Elika and Prince: Ubisoft’s short-lived game might not have been the greatest hit with players, but it displayed a pretty sweet companionship between Elika and the Prince. In the end, the choice is yours on what to choose, Elika’s life or an end to the malicious Dark God, Ahriman. Things people do for love.

Tidus and Yuna

Final Fantasy: Tidus and Yuna:  Love is definitely one of the predominant elements in this game. We know, this is not the couple that you were looking on this list from Final Fantasy, but there’s no denying that they had an amazing chemistry. Although there are other, budding love stories in the game as well, Yuna and Tidus are one of a kind, because both of them harbour love for each other and Tidus proves it with a sacrifice.

Dom and Maria

Gears of War 2: Dom and Maria: While gear soldier Dominic Santiago loses both of his children on emergence day, his wife, Maria sinks into depression and leaves. The battle-hardened soldier tirelessly looks for her beloved, but once he finds her, he finds her in a state so bad from relentless torture that she can’t even recognise him. He takes a tough call to put her out of her misery, because it pained him to see her in that condition. The ending, however sad it is, goes on to testify Dom’s endless love for Maria and the fact that he would always keep Maria’s best interest in mind.

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International film sales company Studio 100 Film has signed an agreement with Cinema Republic for the rights to the second and third “Maya the Bee” CGI feature films and also to “Princess Emmy – The Movie”. Cinema Republic has acquired the theatrical, TV and home video rights to all three movies for South Korea. Maya the Bee 2 – The Honey Games will be completed by end of 2017; the third Maya movie is planned for end of 2019 and Princess Emmy – The Movie is set for delivery in May 2018.

“We are excited about this first collaboration with Cinema Republic that allows three of our movies to travel to South Korea.  We all look forward to the new movies and hope that Maya’s brand-new adventures and Emmy’s captivating story will entertain children and families in South Korea,” says Studio 100 Film, director of business operations, Thorsten Wegener.

Maya the Bee 2 – The Honey Games is produced by Studio 100 Media, in co-production with Australian animation company Studio B Animation and in association with Flying Bark Productions. Munich-based Studio 100 Film is the worldwide sales agent. When an overenthusiastic Maya accidentally embarrasses the Empress of Buzztropolis she is forced to unite with a team of misfit bugs and compete in the Honey Games for a chance to save her hive.  Fortunately, her best friend Willy, the loveable but clumsy ants Arnie and Barney and her trustworthy advisor, Flip the grasshopper will be by her side.

Studio 100 Media is also producing Princess Emmy – The Movie together with its parent company Studio 100 NV (Belgium) and Red Kite Animation as co-producer. Munich-based Studio 100 Film acts as sales agent for the worldwide rights to ‘Emmy’. The movie directed by Piet de Rycker (Laura’s Star, Little Polar Bear) tells the story of a young princess who is severely put to the test and risks everything in order to win the right to possess a truly remarkable gift.

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Fast and Furious franchise producer Neal Moritz is all set to adapt the comic thriller ‘Talent’ into a full-fledged movie in association with Boom! Studios.

The comic’s story tells the tale of a professor who becomes the sole survivor of a plane crash and eventually comes to discover that he has been infused with the abilities of each and everyone who died in the crash. As he comes in terms and learns his new abilities, he is relentlessly pursued by the members of a shadowy clan and he must evade them to survive.

The original project was created and written by Tom Sniegoski (Fallen) and Christopher Golden (Baltimore) and and illustrated by Paul Azaceta (Outcast).

Moritz and Original Films banner has picked up Talent and producing with Moritz will be Toby Jaffe from Original. From Boom!’s side, its CEO and founder Ross Richie and president of development, Stephen Christy. Boom!, VP, Adam Yoelin will be taking up the role of executive producer.

Nothing regarding casting or dates has been revealed for the movie.

Moritz’ last project was Passengers and he also acted as a producer for The Fate of the Furious, the latest addition to the Fast and Furious franchise.

A Page from ‘Talent’ comic

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