In a historical moment for eSports, Riot Games announced the biggest prize pool ever. Coming off of an extremely successful season one finale, Riot decided to up the ante significantly in their second season by posting a prize pool worth $5,000,000.
DUBLIN, IRELAND – August 15, 2011 – Riot Games today announced the first details surrounding the second competitive season for its hit multiplayer online battle arena game, League of Legends. With a record-setting five million dollar prize pool, League of Legends Season Two will mark the next step in what has already become one of the biggest eSports titles in history.
League of Legends has been selected by the top eSports organizers in the world as an official title: Major League Gaming, the Electronic Sports League (where League of Legends is an official title of the Intel Extreme Masters Series), and the World Cyber Games. Set to kick off this fall, Season Two will feature a spectrum of ongoing competitions, from massive pro-level tournaments to weekly open registration events, giving players countless opportunities to vie for their share of the unprecedented five million dollar prize pool.
“Season One of League of Legends was a resounding success, with over 1.7 million viewers tuning in to our first-ever championships,” said Marc Merrill, president of Riot Games and executive producer on League of Legends. “The competitive scene in League of Legends has grown like wildfire, and the five million dollars in prize money on the line is a testament to how massive the scene has become and is just the first glimpse of what our players have in store for the upcoming season!”
“Competitive gaming is hard-coded in Riot’s DNA. It’s been thrilling to watch the level of competitive play that evolved in Season One!” said Brandon Beck, CEO of Riot Games. “Players will certainly step up their game in Season Two – so it’s only fair that we step up ours.”
League of Legends, Riot Games’ debut title, celebrated its first anniversary on Oct. 27, 2010. Since its launch in North America and Europe, over 15 million players have downloaded the game to engage in session-based, multiplayer battles against rival teams, with more than 1.4 million players enjoying League of Legends every day. Built by a veteran development team, League of Legends combines elements of both strategy and competitive action genres. With plans to launch in China, Korea and other regions in 2011, the League of Legends community continues to grow.
About Riot Games, Inc.
Riot Games is a direct-to-consumer video game developer and publisher of premium, competitive online games. The company was established in 2006 and has quickly become a leading global developer and publisher of premium free-to-play online video games for hardcore gamers, launching their debut title, League of Legends, in October 2009. To date, more than one million gamers play League of Legends every day. For more information, please visit www.riotgames.com and eu.leagueoflegends.com.
Source: Riot Games