5 video games chosen as official e-sport events in S. Korea

June 26, 2015
Over 40,000 spectators attend the final match of the fourth League of Legends' World Championship at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Oct. 19, 2014.  (Courtesy of Riot Games)

Over 40,000 spectators attend the final match of the fourth League of Legends’ World Championship at the Seoul World Cup Stadium on Oct. 19, 2014.
(Courtesy of Riot Games)

By Baek Byung-yeul

Five popular video games in Korea have been listed as official events for professional gaming competitions, according to the Korea e-Sports Association (KeSpa), video gaming’s governing body.

The five games are “League of Legends,” “FIFA Online 3,” “Sudden Attack,” “Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft” and “Special Force.”

“We have evaluated video games played in professional competitions and amateur events organized by the provincial governments, including the President’s Cup, and chose those five video games as the official events,” an official from the KeSpa said Friday.

The KeSpa, which was recognized as an official organization by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism in February, launched a deliberation committee comprised of members from different backgrounds. The committee has gone through a review in a bid to expand e-sport in Korea.

The official said the five video games will be placed in two categories ― a regular event and a demonstration event. All except “Special Force” were given regular-event status. Those chosen as regular events can be funded by the government agencies supporting e-sport.

“Those five video games will also have a priority to be chosen as events for e-sports competitions organized by the KeSpa,” the official said.

Excluding first-person shooter (FPS) games “Special Force” and “Sudden Attack,” developed and published by local companies, the other three video games ― “League of Legends” (an online strategy game developed by Riot Games), “Hearthstone: Heroes of Warcraft” (an online card game developed by Blizzard Entertainment) and online football game “FIFA Online 3,” which is a product of the Electronic Arts ― were all developed by the U.S.-based companies.

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