The World Cyber Games competition final launched yesterday, with gamers from around the planet converging on San Francisco to show off their skills, and hopefully win one of the large cash prizes.
The contests start every year with a set of national preliminaries, then a series of national finals, with the winners of those earning a place in the Grand Final.
Check here for a list of participating countries, with links to the sites for each national contest.
The official games chosen are based on various factors such as popularity and gamer opinions - this year there are 6 PC games, and 2 console games:
Counter-Strike: Condition Zero
FIFA Soccer 2004
Need For Speed: Undergound
Starcraft: Broodwar
Unreal Tournament 2004
WarCraft III: Frozen Throne
Halo
Project Gotham Racing 2
The New York Times has an article about a lucky small group of gamers who actually get to make their living at playing games, and will be competing at the contest this year:
Mr. Leto, 20, of Allen, Tex., is no ordinary gamer. He is one of a relative handful of young people who make a living playing video games. Recognized by many as the world's greatest Halo player, he was in Long Beach, Calif., last month at the American finals of the World Cyber Games. He was hoping to qualify for a trip to the world finals this week in San Francisco, aiming to repeat his feat of last year, when he won a top prize of $20,000 in Seoul, South Korea.
Read on (reg. req.)
Info:
Int'l Game Tourney Takes Off
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