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The UK PC gaming esports scene will continue to grow in prominence in 2015, believes pro gamer Seb ‘numlocked’ Barton.
Barton is a part of League of Legends esports team Choke Gaming, which won the 4 Nations (no, not the rugby one) last weekend, picking up €5,000 and becoming the best team in the UK and Ireland in the process.
Millions of viewers watch competitive PC gaming tournaments online across the world (some 11.2 million viewed this year’s League of Legends world final which took place in South Korea), and while many PC vendors including HyperX, Gigabyte, Intel, BenQ sponsor tournaments and teams, esports has yet to truly explode in the UK.
The 4 Nations is the first time League of Legends developer Riot Games has organised a tournament of this kind specifically for the UK and Ireland – which Barton believes is an important step in making the UK more of a force in the growing global esports scene.
"It was great taking part," Barton told PCR. "It’s definitely the biggest thing happening in the UK right now in terms of esports and I didn’t want to miss out on it, even better to be the champions of it. All that hard work paying off was great.
"I think this was just the beginning of it all. I can only imagine it getting bigger from here. Riot, ESL, GiffGaff, Gfinity and plenty more I’m sure have big plans for the UK next year. It’s an understatement to say that I’m excited.
"Next year’s looking to be a big one and I’m really excited to be part of it all."
You can read more in this interview with numlocked here.
