E-sports is a form of competition using video games. E-sports often takes the form of organized, multiplayer video game competitions, particularly between professional players, individually or as teams. Organized games competitions have always been part of video game culture. The most common video game genres associated with E-sports are multi-player online battle arena (MOBA), first-person shooter (FPS), fighting, card, battle royale, and real-time strategy games.
Fawad
Chaudhry, Pakistan’s Minister of Information and Broadcasting, expressed his
satisfaction at Pakistan’s entry into the esports scene for the first time on
Monday. The announcement was made by Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry at the
signing ceremony of the MoU. “Garena is a
well-known company,” Fawad said, adding that “Freefire (a war royale game), in conjunction with Bigo, is hosting a
national tournament for the first time.”
The Minister further said that some 567 teams of Pakistan will participate in the gaming event. “The winners of the event will be awarded prizes of up to Rs 10 million. The winning team will also be able to compete in an international competition where the prizes are [collectively] up to $2 million.”
Fawad
called it an opportunity for gaming fans to prosper. “This is a big step towards e-sports and it will enable our youth to
participate. Over time, the world’s largest companies will become part of this
pool. This program will provide an important opportunity for Pakistani youth.”
E-sports
were declared regular sports in Pakistan on January 13 after a memorandum
signed between Pakistan Sports Board and Pakistan Science Foundation. Staying
true to his words, Fawad Chaudhry announced free fire league- the first
national E-sport initiative in Pakistan.
For
this purpose, the Ministry of Information has signed a memorandum of
understanding with Garena and Bigo who will sponsor the event. Free fire is a
game developed by Grena, a famous Singaporean game developing company. “Children, as young as 12-years-old, who are
interested in e-sports have a chance to become millionaires through e-sports,”
said the information minister.
“This is a great opportunity for the youth of
Pakistan and it will give the e-sports industry a boost, while other gaming
companies will also be able to enter the market,” he added.
“Special thanks to Fawad and
Ministry of Information Pakistan for setting up this great opportunity for
Bigo, Garena, and especially for the e-sports industry,”
“I think this is going to be a milestone for
the e-sports industry in Pakistan.”
The ministry will engage closely with esports titles in the nation through E-PAK to popularize E-sports among the general public and motivate adolescents to pursue careers as E-sports athletes. This is the next step in Minister Fawad Chaudhry’s exciting framework, which began with signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Pakistan Sports Board and the Pakistan Science Foundation in January 2021. According to Fawad, the global video gaming business has surpassed $200 billion.