The time has come for the Tonight Show studios to enter the 21st century. Blizzard has bought the historic studio and will be renaming it Blizzard Arena Los Angeles. The space will be fully dedicated to esports.
"We're at a tipping point for esports," said Mike Morhaime, CEO of Blizzard Entertainment, in a press statement. "As we open the doors of Blizzard Arena Los Angeles and welcome fans from around the world, we're honored to bring the best in Blizzard esports to the same stage that some of the biggest names in entertainment have called home."
Along with upgrading the studio to host esports competitions, Blizzard will also be opening a retail store at the location, filled with a revolving stock of items based on the different competitions that to be held at the venue.
The first planned event, the Overwatch Contenders Season One Playoffs, will take place the weekend of Oct. 7. Right after that on Oct. 13, Blizzard will host the Hearthstone Championship Tour’s Summer Championship, with a prize pool of $250,000.
Later in October, Blizzard will host early rounds of competition for both Heroes of the Storm and World of Warcraft Arena Championship in the studio. These competitors will go on to compete at the championship at this year’s BlizzCon in early November.
To end the year, Blizzard will host the inaugural event of the Overwatch League out of the Blizzard Arena. No dates for this event have been confirmed yet.
Blizzard Arena Los Angeles is equipped to host a live audience as well as broadcast events to the rest of the world. The Hollywood Reporter lists the arena as seating 450 attendees, so ticketing might prove to be a bit of a challenge depending on how fast they sell out. Tickets are already available for both the Overwatch Contenders Series Playoffs as well as the Hearthstone Championship Tour.
So what do you think? Will Blizzard’s plans for a central location for competition help the company gain traction in the esports scene? Will you be watching any of the planned competitions either in person or online? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
