It’s no secret the pandemic limited much of the industry. However, Kwantlen Polytechnic University (KPU) decided to use that limitation to introduce esports and online tournaments.
“The Sport and Recreation department believes in innovative programming. Esports is something we have wanted to explore for a while,” said Shalini Vanan, the manager of Sport and Recreation at KPU. “With the pandemic and the department being limited in what we could offer, we felt it was the right time to explore this new programming opportunity.”
As such, KPU is hosting three online tournaments from May to July:
- A Fortnite tournament will run from May 27-28.
- The Rocket League tournament will run from June 17-18.
- A FIFA ’21 tournament will run from July 8-9.
A Deeper Look at KPU’s Online Tournaments
The two-day online tournaments will score participants based on points earned during the set number of games played.
“Esports and video games have permeated mainstream culture for a while now. This is an opportunity for gamers to bring something they enjoy onto campus and for others to participate in a different type of recreational activity,” said Vanan. “It allows the department to engage more students.”
The games include as many students as possible from anywhere. Vanan shared they opted for some of the most popular games that were also cross-platform. This means participants can play via their PC, X-Box or a PlayStation.
“We wanted to remove as many barriers to entry as possible and provide inclusive programming to our KPU community,” said Vanan.
All in all, the hope is to reconnect people after a challenging year in the COVID-19 pandemic. Vanan wanted to use the esports tournaments to help those feeling a lack of social connection.
“While we might not be able to facilitate on campus activities, we hope these online tournaments will provide students with an opportunity to connect and create a sense of community,” said Vanan.
Main image courtesy of Shutterstock. Graphic courtesy of KPU.
