Landmark eSports venue for West Bund
A landmark electronic sports venue is planned for the West Bund waterfront in Xuhui as part of Shanghai's ambition to become a global eSports capital.
The new arena along the Huangpu River will host the world's top games as well as develop local events and clubs, while training teams and players.
Shanghai West Bund Development Group signed an agreement with three partners, including the city's online game industry association, on Tuesday to develop the site.
Shanghai has been building eSports venues and introducing preferential policies for industry practitioners.
The city accounts for a third of the domestic game market income. In 2018, the city’s eSports industry revenue hit 14.6 billion yuan (US$2 billion).
As part of the World Artificial Intelligence Conference, an eSports championship challenge between amateur players from domestic universities and professional players was launched at the West Bund Art Center on Tuesday.
Eight teams from seven universities, including Shanghai University, Shanghai University of Finance and Economics and East China University of Science and Technology, competed against award-winning Chinese teams in Dota 2 and Honor of Kings.
The West Bund aims to become an eSports landmark featuring a 5G network, artificial intelligence and virtual reality, according to the group.
AI has increasingly been combined with eSports in the development and operation of games, score predication, data analysis as well as commentary and training, Dai Yanmiao, deputy professor at the Shanghai University of Sport, said on the sidelines of the competition.
Elsewhere in the city, the IMBA eSports center, the city's first facility of its kind in a shopping complex, has opened for both top-level competitions and amateurs at the Global Harbor Mall.
An eSports theme park, covering 28,000 square meters, will be built in the Changfeng business district for games, training and broadcasts.
In another key project, an eSports complex covering 80,000 square meters both above and below ground will be developed on the site of the city's former Caojiadu Flower Market in Putuo District.
The complex will feature game and training centers as well as eSports-themed hotels and offices.
