Trading the Slots for Overwatch: The Rise of Vegas Video Gaming

Las Vegas has undoubtedly seen the impacts of social distancing. With the strip completely transformed, it’s been interesting to see how casinos, hotels, and other Vegas industries have covered their losses with new business ventures. One of the major routes that Vegas industries have taken during the pandemic has been esports and video game betting.

Despite threats of fixed matches and cheating gamers in the brief history of major league esports, there has been lots of buzz in Nevada around gaming. Investments in facilitating esports, managing betting, building gaming venues, and planning massive events has been a major focus of business in Las Vegas. The latest developments came as a result of COVID-19 impacts on Nevada’s businesses.

According to an article from the Washington Post, after social distancing transformed live sports and, in turn, sports gambling, the Nevada Gaming Control Board opened its options. The Nevada GCB approved betting for four different esports leagues, including an eNASCAR league, a League of Legends Tournament. However, the first-approved league for sports gambling, an Overwatch league, has special importance to the state of Nevada.

Overwatch, a two-team game where players choose heroes to complete missions against their competitors, is one of the biggest games in the country. In fact, according to a study from Insight Pest Solutions, Overwatch was the most popular game in Nevada during the first couple of months of socially-distanced quarantine.

For any major league to see success, impressive teams and players must be ready to play the games. Since the Nevada GCB approved the Overwatch League for sports betting, major teams based everywhere in the world from Seoul to Boston have drawn the eye of sports media. Teams have the opportunity to win thousands of dollars in different tournaments, even when tournaments can draw in spectators and venues lined with sponsored branding.

Although all of the games and betting is taking place online, the central positioning of Nevada as the facilitator of sports gambling positions the state as a leader for the future of esports and a hub for the video game entertainment industry when social distancing ends. Casinos will rise to meet this business opportunity, with some casinos like The Luxor already installing massive video game event spaces to host events in the future.

While Las Vegas will certainly always be known for its slots and cards, a new golden era of gaming in Nevada may become the newest part of the state’s legacy.