Esports Arena is a curated weekly roundup of the biggest stories in the world of online competitive gaming.
The 2019 Capcom Cup season wrapped up in Los Angeles over the weekend, with Derek “iDom” Ruffin upsetting Victor “Punk” Woodley in a thrilling Street Fighter V Grand Finals. After losing to Woodley a few rounds earlier in the Winners Finals, Ruffin fought his way to the Grand Finals by taking out Norwegian pro Arman “Phenom” Hanjani in the Losers Finals before proceeding to best Woodley in straight sets 3-2 and 3-1 to win the $250,000 grand prize.
At the event, Capcom also announced a brand-new format for the 2020 Capcom Cup, increasing the amount of qualifiers for the final weekend from 32 to 40 players. Leaderboards will now be split, with eight players from each side qualifying for the Finals. Meanwhile, qualifying competitions will include 14 premier events around the world, while 22 local World Warrior tournament events will be held globally as well, with the winners rounding out the rest of the field.
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Finally, Capcom also announced that the first piece of its new Street Fighter V: Champion Edition content, which includes a brand-new patch of adjustments, and the Street Fighter III boss Gill are now available for those who have purchased the Street Fighter V Upgrade Kit.
The game’s 40th (and final) playable fighter to be added to the roster was also revealed to be Seth, the final boss from Street Fighter IV, but it is unknown if he will join the game before Champion Edition’s launch Feb. 14.
The 2020 Capcom Cup will kick off in Brussels in March 2020.
Elsewhere, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds Mobile’s Club Open 2019 Fall Split Global Finals came to a close this weekend, where the game celebrated two major milestones for the competitive season. The final match saw Indonesia’s Bigetron RA team fend off China’s Top Esports and Thailand’s Mega Esports to win the $180,000 grand prize, with the second- and third-place teams earning $90,000 and $45,000 respectively.
The 2019 Club Open saw 532 million total views and 57 million hours watched throughout the year, a gain of 11 and 15 percent, respectively, over 2018, while the PUBG Mobile app also celebrated 600 million global downloads. The game’s publisher Tencent recently announced the league’s plans for 2020, which include a $5 million prize pool.
Here’s what else is happening in the world of esports.
Vici Gaming’s League of Legends Team Finds Head Coach
Longtime T1 League of Legends coach Kim “KkOma” Jeong-gyun has found a new team for the 2020 season in China’s Vici Gaming. The team announced Jeong-gyun’s signing on Twitter on Tuesday, confirming a rumor from early November. Jeong-gyun parted ways with his former team T1 after finishing fourth in the 2019 League of Legends World Championships, joining Kim “Khan” Dong-ha and Kim “Clid” Tae-min in leaving the team for another opportunity. Jeong-gyun’s signing immediately bolsters Vici Gaming in the Chinese region, where it currently ranks at No. 15 overall.
Overwatch Team Signs Youngest Player in Pro Play
Professional Overwatch team Boston Uprising has signed 13-year-old Michael “RhynO” Willoughby to its Overwatch Contenders (a “high-level tournament series for pro players who dream of ascending to the Overwatch League”) team roster for the 2020 season. Willoughby’s signing comes after he recently competed in the NCS Overwatch LAN tournament in California, where his team finished fourth. By joining the Uprising Academy, Willoughby becomes the youngest current player in professional Overwatch and tied for the youngest to ever be signed to a professional Overwatch team, matching Kamden “Sugarfree” Hijada, who signed with ATL Academy at 13.
Brazilian Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Player Dies at 19
Matheus “bruttJ” Queiroz, a 19-year-old player for Brazilian Counter-Strike team Imperial, has died in a Rio de Janeiro hospital. The Imperial starter had complained of headaches, according to the team’s statement, forcing him to leave the team’s player house in Sao Paulo and admit himself into the Rio hospital. The young star won a tournament in July which caught the attention of Imperial, with whom he signed in October.
