Breaking things down we saw 38 teams registered for Call Of Duty 4, 20 teams for Dota 2, 9 teams for League of Legends, 7 teams for Special Forces 2, 5 teams for Overwatch and 5 teams for CS:GO.

Previous years saw one team on its own dominating each individual bracket but this year with all the effort that had been put in, we saw almost all teams on equal footing.

Counter Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO)CS:GO

Kicking things off with the CS:GO finals we saw the British  College of Applied Studies (BCAS) team OUTLAWS going up against the reigning champs from last year from the International College of Business and Technology (ICBT) Team HRBBM. With ICBT going in as the favourites once again everyone expected the outcome to be one-sided with ICBT dominating the finals as usual, but what we received was nothing short of the best CS:GO finals witnessed at a university event thus far, with BCAS actually taking map one which was Iinferno from the reigning champs which threw the

crowd into a spin. Having taken their opponents lightly, we saw ICBT pick up the pace and communication in game number 2 and 3 swinging things back into their favor to close out the final 2-1 crowning them the champions once again.

League of Legends

The next final was for League of Legends which saw Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT) team Inters in the finals which came as no big surprise since their performances over the years have been stellar. Rising up to challenge the throne this time was Team EaGlE EyEz from the Java Institute for Advanced Technology. During the initial part of the games everything seemed to be even with no truly large advantage going over to any team. That was until SLIIIT’s carry started racking up the gold and items which changed the game in an almost forceful and brutal manner bringing things in favor of SLIIT and helping them hold on to their number 1 spot.

Women’s League

Shortly after the conclusion of the League finals the Women’s Lleague titles began.Taking on Need for Speed as the game of interest we saw some extremely talented individuals gearing up to take the number one spot for their university. From the University of Colombo School of Computing we saw Tikiri ‘Stardust’ Diasena and watched her unbeaten run during the upper bracket qualifiers which made it seem as if no one could match her. Even after losing to Stardust in the upper bracket finals Sureshi Zusy-Casper Siriwardena did not succumb to the pressure, clawing her way from the lower bracket and entering the grand finals once again to take on rival Stardust. Things started out the same until one specific hairpin turn gave Stardust a bit of trouble which was unusual of her. With nerves taking over the confidence displayed by Stardust we saw Zusy Casper take the lead and keep her composure allowing her to come out on top at the grand finals which was a major comeback story in itself.

Day 2 was filled with even more excitement and grandeur than Day 1. With some major titles still up for grabs any university at this point could have come out on top to claim the trophy.

With the Geek Avurudu Festival happening early in the morning and the games for Dota 2 as well as the first ever Overwatch tournament at the Inter University eSports Championship, things seemed to get heated pretty fast.

Overwatch

Every team that had taken part for Overwatch seemed to be on equal footing with each and every game coming down to the wire going 1:1 creating quite the tension in the air. That was until Team No SR from Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT) took center stage. Showcasing their immense experience as well as talent, SLIIT blew the competition away and seemed to be on their way to claiming the first ever Overwatch title. That was until team CrackWatch from Asia Pacific Institute of Information Technology (APIIT) met them in the finals. The finals started out slowly with both teams showcasing a lot of talent and effort in the first map. APIIT with a lot of experience on their back were pulling together a lot of team plays which seemed to work for them in the initial standpoint of the game. That was until Team no SR found their stride and started dominating every single map be it the controlling of the point or pushing the payload they were on another level and seemed to close out the final without much stress going on to become the first ever Overwatch champions at the Inter University eSports Championship.

Special Force 2, a game that has been gaining popularity in the local gaming scene had taken a special place at the Inter University eSports championship. We saw team BCAS show a lot of maturity and patience coming into this year’s tournament and besting Tema APIIT in the finals with better aim, better teamwork as well as a better grasp over the objectives of the game.

Call Of Duty 4

Call Of Duty 4 which is always a crowd pulling title in any Sri Lankan eSports tournament once again did not disappoint as we saw 38 Call of Duty teams had already registered and were ready to go during the 1st and 2nd day of the Inter University eSports Championship. With many experienced teams already registered it was anyone’s guess as to who may come out on top during the games. As team by team got eliminated we were left with the 2 best teams at the Inter University level, the teams being General Sir John Kothalawala Defence University team Blank vs Sri Lanka Institute of Information Technology (SLIIT) team SLIIT ftw. It was an intense back and forth game with both teams on equal footing, there seemed to be no distinct winner. That was until SLIIT kicked it up one more gear and found their pace leaving nothing more for team KDU to say in response taking the title for Call of Duty 4.

DOTA 2

To close things out we had the DOTA 2 finals which was one of the most anticipated title matches during the tournament. With old rivals clashing heads we saw team APIIT’s DoyouhaveaDeathwish go up against Team NSBM’s BeaverBois. The tension was high as the first game dragged on for an hour and twenty minutes with everyone’s eyes glued to the giant LED screen. Plays were made by both teams besting each other at individual standpoint of the game until the Sniper on the side of NSBM overextended his positioning just a little too much, giving APIIT the opening they needed to close out game 1.

After a short break and both teams getting a better grasp of the opposing team, the second game showed no holds barred as NSBM came flying through the gates demolishing APIIT in the second game. It seemed as if NSBM had found the answer to take away the title from the two time reigning champs APIIT finishing the second game off in 26 mins.

Almost everyone expected NSBM with their dominant showing to finish things off in game number 3 but APIIT had not given up. With amazing initiation coming out from Shauban ‘Batman” Rushdi and amazing experience and leadership coming from Munthazir “ToadBoss” Shiraz in an 80 min blazer of a game, where there was no clear way to victory, APIIT overcame the hurdle. With some friendly trash- talking going a little overboard, the joyous moments of victory for APIIT seemed very well deserved but NSBM will be back with a vengeance.

Tekken

• Winner – Diyon Wijetunga from SLIIT
• Runner-up – Adil ur Rahman from IIT

Project Cars

• Winner – Angelo Tennakoon from University of Peradeniya
• Runner-up – Vihaga Ranasinghe from ESOFT

FIFA 18

• Winner – Rasim Naseer from APIIT
• Runner-up – Ijaz Mafahir from APIIT

Clash Royale

• Winner – Chamod Viduranga from University of Colombo
• Runner-up – Gayan Kaushalya from University of Colombo

Injustice 2

• Winner – Rashad Ameer
• Runner-up – Danuka Samarakoon

Sri Lanka’s Fastest eRacer is a brand new concept by Gamer.LK where eRacers from around the island are put in Racing Simulation settings.The racing setup includes  Red Bull Racing Seats, Racing wheels and pedals, Large screen TVs – 2 of each side by side.This concept is different from the usual eSports tournaments as we equip racers with near-real life scenarios with seats, wheels and pedals, and not keyboards. The featured game is Project Cars.The event was a Tryout session where racers are able to register for the main qualifiers through this system rather than having to use a traditional keyboard and mouse. It was definitely a sight to behold as individuals who had no issue taking on the road in real life had a much more challenging task when behind the wheels of this event. It was a sight to behold as challengers old and young took on this new and unique experience and some even making top spot for the Project cars with the real life setup and besting a few players on pc.

Revolutionary Gamers recruited by Maximum eSports

Revolutionary Gamers are a group of CS players competing together since the CS 1.6 era. Their latest achievement was reaching the semi-finals of the Sri Lanka Cyber Games ‘17 – Sri Lanka’s largest and most competitive eSports championship.

The team line-up is as follows:

• Musafer “Zippa” Muzin
• Muaath “Hotnews” Muzin
• Athahur “Hero” Rahman
• Gayan “Fallin” Hasanka
• Yohan “Maiya”
• Mufeed “Master” Muzin

In a recent  post on their facebook page Maximum e-Sports Announced that Revolutionary Gamers have now become part of the blue army.This has a lot of people buzzing with curiosity as to why they joined after remaining an independant team for so many years. We caught up with clan admins from Maximum e-Sports where they shared what their expectations for the team was:

As the clan admin, all I wish is to see our players get to maximum level at local and International standard tournaments. In order to achieve those myself and all the clan members are there to support them. So Good luck boys! Let’s make Maximum great again! -Shihan “Davy” Morais

For the past  3 years Maximum was silent and wasn’t able to participate or win any tournament. In 2017 we were only focusing on the COD4 title. But I can assure you that in future we will be participating in all the game titles and do our best for the clan – Mohamed “Dagaya” Aqeel

Team ZeGg ends their search for a new home with Xiphos eSports

Team ZeGg consists of a mix of pro-players with alot of experience. A self-made “national team” comprising of the best hand-picked players the team could find, with the common goal of representing Sri Lanka in the International scene.

ZeGg came out on top at the ROG Masters Sri Lanka Qualifier for CS:GO and represented the country in India.=They finished third, a proud moment for Sri Lankan eSports. SLCG 2017 is another title under their belt, finishing in the top spot with ease given the roster for their lineup being filled with immensely talented individuals. They also won the title at SLT eSports Championship 2017. Speaking to a representative from Xiphos e-Sports this is what they had to say:

As a clan we want to support them and let them play their game and give them the freedom to take their own initiative to achieve their own goals. Build something different with a unique style down the line coming from team ZeGg in the foreseeable future.

Catching up with the captain of team ZeGg Omal “Roach” Prabuddha, this is what he had to say regarding what made them choose Xiphos eSports after being an independent team since their inception:

As a standalone team our main goal was to represent Sri Lanka in the international arena. But all the dedicated players were in different clans and teams. because of that we formed a Standalone team and we went to achieve our main goal without joining any clan. And when we were forming the team we didn’t expect any help from anyone

When Sri Lankan clans saw our achievements, many clans invited us to join them. When many clans requested us to join their clans we felt for them it was getting another title to their side. But for us we had a different plan and a different vision.

What we wanted was not only to win SL tournaments, but also to represent Sri Lanka in other international tournaments.

But for us to go beyond Sri Lanka with our experience we figured we wanted more support from others and we wanted a clan who would support us for any decision we make as a team and who would give us the flexibility to work on our own goals rather than setting goals for us to win tournaments in Sri Lanka. So we approached Xiphos eSports to join them because we saw Xiphos eSports had different vision. 

Our main plan for the future with Xiphos eSports is to bring an international title to Sri Lanka. And other plans we like to reveal in due time. Like our FB page (https://www.facebook.com/ZeGgEsports ) and keep in touch with us, you will see and hear those soon. And we also want to build the path to the next generation who will take the baton from us.

And finally you can expect many Surprises from us in the future

The community wishes both teams and clans the best of luck in their journey together, and we look forward to bringing you more coverage and shed light on the local eSports scene.

With a new calendar for eSports starting in 2018 we have seen many roster changes as well as top players moving from one team to another. This time we follow the move of Sanjeewa “Peace” Abeykoon from Tech Morph team EnvyUS to Noob Alliance team Spite.

Sanjeewa has been apart of eSports for as long as it was around. Being one of the top players to have taken a spot in the roster of Tech Morph team EnvyUS and taking on challenge after challenge, growing rapidly and learning the game. Few of the achievements he has achieved over the years are

SLCG 2011 – 1st place – Team Outlaws

SLCG 2012 – 1st place – Team Outlaws

SLCG 2016 – 1st place – Team EnvyUS

Get Nailed 2012 – 1st place -Team Outlaws

Get Nailed 2016 – 1st place – Team EnvyUs

In his eyes these were the championship victories that he cherished over the past few years Having become the runners up at SLCG 2017 held last December, just falling short of another achievement under his belt, Sanjeewa had decided it was time to move forward onto new goals and is now currently working with Team Spite from Noob Alliance to further showcase his skills and talent along with grooming upcoming talent as well.

Speaking to Sanjeewa he had this message to share with everyone.

“Hello, first I would like to give a shoutout to TM. Although I have left TM I still remain good friends with them and wish nothing but the best for them. It has been a few months since I joined nA and I already have made good friends there as well. Everyone has been super welcoming. I am now part of nA Spite for Cod4 and nA Tempest for Dota 2. I thank my teammates for working around my limited availability due to  work to make time for practicing. I hope that we will be soon able start winning events for nA as I feel we have greatly improved during the last few months! Cheers! See you all at LAN!”

With their recent performance at GCWL we followed progression on Sanjeewa’s new team Noob Alliance team Spite. The new experience in the team was evident as they, toppled numerous teams to make it to the Grand Finals of GCWL Season 10.Donning the new colors of yellow and black, Sanjeewa has breathed new life into team Spite.

Noob Alliance is a clan with nothing less than the best cyber athletes when it come to Call of Duty 4 and didn’t  hesitate in inviting Sanjeewa ”Peace” Abeykoon into their ranks with expectations of nothing less than victory and he brings with him a wealth of experience to guide the upcoming generation of Call of Duty players to share his wisdom and knowledge of the game that he loves and has shown immense commitment to.

Catching up with a representative from Noob Alliance this is what he had to say regarding Sanjeeva and his entrance into the clan.

“Peace has been in the scene for many years and has proved that he is one of the best cod players. Peace is known for his guidance and leadership. Peace Joining nA has strengthened the COD wing and noob alliance hopes to continue the dominant performance by Phase and Spite last year. Peace will play a key role in that.”

Getting in touch with a teammate who has had the privilege of playing with him, this is what he had to share with us.

“When talking about Peace, one of the most experienced players in Call Of Duty 4, he can read the game and adjust according to the situation very fast and now he is playing alongside none other than one of the deadliest SMG players SV[TuE].I believe this combination can achieve so many great things in the future .

Peace is new to nA but now he is already playing Dota for team Tempest and Special Force for Team Spite. I think Peace can achieve so many things in the future and i wish him good luck for his gaming career  in the future.” – Ruvin “Ghost” Kularathna

Can Sanjeewa “Peace” Abeykoon bring forth more glory with his new alliance with Noob Alliance? WIll Noob Alliance be able to retain their title as the undisputed Call of Duty champions in the upcoming tournaments? Will the inclusion of “Peace” further grow the already existing talent at Noob Alliance? Only time will tell.

Leave a comment and tell us what you think about the move Sanjeewa made.

Sri Lanka Telecom took its regional eSports challenge to Kandy and it was a resounding success with over 200 competitors participating in the single player titles which were FIFA 18, Injustice 2, Tekken 7, Project Cars, and Clash Royale (on mobile). The event was very well organized and setup with the PCs and SLT branded TV screens which stood out on the 4th floor of the  Kandy City Center.

With the platform for gamers in Kandy to shine being set, the gamers rose to the challenge being up bright and early at the Kandy City Center by 10 a.m. and ready to battle their way to the top spot. Gamers had everything on the line as this was the golden ticket into the Main Event which would be held later this year in Colombo with the winner of the regional tournament automatically earning a place in the final bracket of their respective gaming title.

Kicking things off at the event was Project Cars, which saw participants of varying ages ranging from young contestants just starting out their eSports careers to veterans such as Angelo Tennakoon and Tharindu Rajapakse who have spent years on the game. It may seem like just a casual racing game until you get behind the controls and realize just how difficult it is to navigate the vehicles as well as all the hairpin turns in the map itself that can cause you to pretty easily lose control of your vehicle and make you end up in last place. The Finals as expected were between Angelo and his rival Tharindu. The initial race had to be restarted after Angelo took the lead against Tharindu due to a small issue which took place during the first match. Moving onto the second match the race started pretty evenly, Tharindu having won the toss took the lead position but not until the 2nd hairpin where he entered the turn a bit too fast and skid his vehicle onto the sand allowing Angelo to take the lead from where he never conceded it giving him the top spot for Project Cars.

Meanwhile, Injustice 2 had spectators lined up in the allocated spectator area where it seemed like things were heating up. With no second chance being given, challengers had to bring their A-game to be successful in this knockout bracket. The initial stages saw very comfortable gameplay having each player outmatching their opponent with ease. However, As the event progressed into the latter stages of the tournament, things changed entering the quarter finals seeing some struggles and great comebacks coming out from some experienced players even though their backs were against the wall.

In Tekken 7, the qualifying rounds saw extremely talented individuals with 2 standout players who were fated to meet in the finals and that they did.

Roshan Jurampathy and Isura Madusanka,  two friends that had spent some time together training and getting better at the game, faced each other in the grand finals. Eventually,t Roshan having over 12 years of experience in Tekken was able to beat his opponent and claim the top spot for Tekken 7 in the tournament

FIFA 18 turned out to be the most intense and exciting title as the knockout bracket forced players to make sure that they play to their level best in each match they faced.. Mohamed Shaklin took the number one spot for FIFA 18 incidentally beating his oldest brother Fazik Fawzan in the grand finals in an exciting match which ended up with a 2-1 lead for Mohamed Shaklin who was ecstatic on his victory and showed a lot of confidence going into the Main Event to be held in Colombo.

Finally we saw the Clash Royale title taking to the stage with some experienced talent and new talent as well every single game seemed to be like a life or death situation as if players made 1 mistake that was it for them, The high level play and conduct of the players was a sight to behold giving it their utmost best till the final seconds in overtime. Malith Rajakaruna seemed to be in top form as he stood out from the rest of the pack taking the number one spot for Clash Royale beating his friend and longtime rival from the north sachintha Sahan with the secured upper bracket victory which gave him and additional 1 game advantage going into the finals.

The day was filled with a lot of excitement and competition, with every participant giving it their best to overcome the hurdles that they faced and secure their prize as well as the advantage they will gain moving into the main event held in Colombo. Kandy City Centre, a beautiful location set in the heart of Kandy produced an atmosphere that truly created the best setting for a competitive eSports tournament with scores of spectators cheering the gamers to victory.

Sri Lanka Telecom having brought the regional challenge to Kandy for the second time since 2016 had nothing but appreciation from the competitors as well as the spectators who turned up, who all felt that they have an event to look forward to in Kandy now and improve their gaming towards. Sri Lanka Telecom has continued to stay true to its commitment of taking eSports and the online gaming experience to the masses over the last few years and has played a major role in improving eSports in the country by continuing to organize top-tier gaming tournaments in the country. The months ahead promises to be exciting with more regional events to be held, with Galle being the next on the road map leading up to the Main Event in Colombo later in the year.

Sri Lanka Telecom has yet again taken the initiative to take SLT eSports to other parts of the country and is organizing the SLT eSports Regional Challenge – Kandy 2018, which will take place at the Kandy City Center on Sunday the 8th of April. Featuring the most popular single player titles currently in the country – FIFA 18, Injustice 2, Tekken 7, Project Cars, and Clash Royale (on mobile), the event promises to bring back the hype and excitement of eSports to the hill capital.

Sri Lanka Telecom first stepped into the limelight back in 2015, when they introduced the SLT eSports Championship, which became an instant success as they offered the largest prize pool up for grabs with many competitors taking part in the game titles with crowd favourites such as Dota 2 and League of Legends taking center stage. The event which was recognized as a ranked tournament by the Sri Lanka eSports Association (SLeSA), was a smash hit as it created fresh rivalries and set a new standard for tournament formats in the country.

Staying true to its commitment of taking eSports and the online gaming experience to the masses, in 2016 the SLT eSports Championship was taken outside Colombo with three regional events in Kandy, Galle and Jaffna. Popular games like Overwatch were introduced whilst an international gaming event featuring a live Dota 2 match between foreign players also took place at the main event in Colombo.

The 2017 edition brought out the biggest crowd of cyber-athletes ever seen at an SLT eSports event with the inclusion of Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare – a community favorite title, in addition to the previously played titles as well. Year on year, the SLT eSports Championship has been a resounding success and a tournament that many in the local gaming scene look forward to annually.

Sri Lanka Telecom, featuring SLT Broadband, famous for its low latency, dedicated and reliable broadband connectivity which is compulsory for competitive gaming, has continued to organise top-tier gaming tournaments in the country, with intense and adrenaline filled excitement. The SLT eSports Championships challenges all hard-core gamers, both individuals and clans, to take part in their mega events and go head to head in a test of skill and strategy.

Continuing their vision of expanding into regions outside Colombo, the SLT eSports Regional Challenge series of events kicks off with the first being in Kandy, with much more exciting tournaments to come. Be a part of the action and find out more details at http://www.slt.lk/esports/.

Micro Star International (MSI), one of the world’s leading gaming brands has partnered with Gamer.LK to strengthen their efforts in driving eSports and digital entertainment initiatives in the country. Over the past decade, Gamer.LK has continued to empower young cyber athletes in Sri Lanka through the introduction of various tournaments, both international as well as local and other events.

Starting out their campaign alongside Gamer.LK as sponsors for SLCG 2013, MSI took the first steps towards contributing to the growth of the eSports industry. Seeing the potential in Sri Lankan cyber athletes, MSI even took it on themselves to help support some of the local clans. Since their initial involvement, MSI has continued to play a major role in supporting the growth of local eSports by organizing their own events as well as working with Gamer.LK in their efforts to take eSports and digital entertainment to the masses.

Dedicated to gamer-driven innovation, MSI is the most trusted name in gaming and eSports. They have dedicated countless hours and committed numerous resources to the eSports community to support the world’s most aspiring and best gamers and use their knowledge and expertise in their products in return. MSI integrated all gamers’ aspirational functions in its gaming rigs, eliminating the tedious trial and error by themselves and pushing the performance beyond limits. The determination to surpass past achievements has made MSI a ‘True Gaming’ brand with gaming spirit throughout the industry!.

Through this partnership, MSI becomes the exclusive technology partner powering the three major events – Inter-University, Mercantile and Inter-School eSports Championships, as well as the online leagues organized by Gamer.LK. Furthermore MSI continues to support local clans, and the 2018 partnership comes with benefits for Maximum e-Sports, Noob Alliance and Wolfgang e-Sports. Gamer.LK has taken steps to empower clans by finding sponsors with a share of the funds going to SLeSA. MSI will also be a technology partner at Play Expo 2018 – Sri Lanka’s Digital Entertainment and Technology Exhibition, which features the Sri Lanka Cyber Games and Colombo Comic Expo.

Backed by MSI, the year ahead promises to be an exciting one with the first major event coming up in a few weeks – the Inter-University eSports Championship, on the 21st and 22nd of April 2018 happening at Trace-Expert City. Make sure to be a part of history as Gamer.LK and MSI take steps to break through the barrier and guide eSports to newer heights!.