Games-China storm to first ever Asian Games esports gold

HANGZHOU, China : China won the first gold esports medal in Asian Games history in the Eastern Chinese city of Hangzhou on Tuesday by beating Malaysia in the smartphone multiplayer battle game “Arena of Valor”, to delight fans in the world’s biggest esports market.

Esports, which refers to video games played competitively and whose players can make millions in prize-money, is making its debut as a medal event in this edition of the Asian Games, as the gaming sector pushes its case for Olympic inclusion.

Teams and individuals are battling for a total of seven gold medals across a range of titles in the city hosting the Games, including online soccer and multi-player battle arena games.

Inside the recently built Esports venue, organisers used lights, ear-splitting loud music and live commentary to create something akin to a gameshow scene in a movie set in a dystopian future world.

Then the arena’s several thousand fans, many of whom waved multi-coloured light sticks, screamed their support when the stadium announcer introduced the Chinese team.

"China must win!" the Chinese players shouted in a huddle on the stage just before the match began, triggering another loud cheer from spectators, before taking their seats for the "Arena of Valor" final.

In the Asian Games version of "Arena of Valor", a smartphone game developed by a subsidiary of Chinese tech giant Tencent , teams of five players first pick characters, called "heroes", to operate in the virtual world of the game before working with team mates to destroy their opponent's base.

A destroyed base equates to a set won and two sets means a victory in the best-of-three contest.

Tapping furiously on their phones, and watched by millions of fans at home, the players communicated