Going for an economic touchdown

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This article was published 14/03/2023 (1121 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A group of Manitobans believe Winnipeg’s next economic touchdown is in esports, and they’re ready to coach.

“We would love to bolster Winnipeg’s community as one that is esports ready,” said Jehan Moorthy, co-founder of New Frontier Esports and Entertainment.

The company creates tournaments, advises on the industry, scouts gamers — it’s filling a Prairies-wide gap, Moorthy said.

His mission is to “help more people understand esports as much as an individual understands hockey or soccer or football.”

People across the globe participate in the multiplayer video game competitions. Such events fill stadiums and can attract millions online.

There are players, coaches and analysts. The industry amassed revenues of more than US$1.1 billion globally in 2021; it’s been a boon for advertising and tourism.

“We are… pressing the idea of esports as another form of entertainment that (can) come to our larger venues in the city,” Moorthy, 28, said.

He hopes to attract the attention of major video game developers, leading to giant competitions in Winnipeg.

For now, New Frontier is hosting smaller esport events and taking every opportunity to promote the industry.

They’ve erected booths at True North Square and the Manitoba Moose hockey club, corralling passersby to play NHL 23 and AHL video games before the professionals hit the ice.

New Frontier launched in 2020 after the pandemic began.

Around 23 million Canadians — or 61 per cent — were gaming in some capacity in 2020, according to a U.S. International Trade Administration market intelligence report.

Moorthy was already a seasoned video game competitor — he’d spent many nights in university battling peers on virtual soccer pitches and football fields.

“Video gaming was sort of… the common denominator for myself and (my peers),” he said.

After graduating, Moorthy worked on events for local sports and entertainment groups.

“I had always (thought)… the biggest gap in the market in Manitoba, in particular, is the lack of organization around esports and gaming events,” Moorthy said.

He decided to bridge the gap as Canadians hunkered down. He called up friends who also love esports, beginning New Frontier.

“It’s the greatest idea in the world,” Ethan Patrick, one of the co-founders, said enthusiastically. “The sky’s the limit.”

New Frontier plans to be the first of many things: the first to co-ordinate a postsecondary esport team in Manitoba, the first stop for esports advice in the Prairies. It’s the first of its kind to open an office in the province.

In 2020, New Frontier drew gamers to its competitions via social media, its website and word of mouth. It hosted tournaments online, from Nintendo-hit Super Smash Bros. to the popular Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.

People across the globe could open Twitch, a video game streaming platform, to watch the events unfold.

Moorthy estimates his team held 20 to 25 online competitions in the first year. Each early-days event drew less than 100 people, he said.

Soon, non-profits and corporations began contacting New Frontier: could the company set up an esports tournament for their staff?

“I guess some of these companies understood that people were at home… (and were) engaging in online competitive video gaming anyway,” Moorthy said.

The company has created esports competitions for local businesses and national non-profits.

Canada’s esports industry is expected to grow 14.5 per cent between 2018 and 2023, nearly doubling the worldwide growth rate, a U.S. International Trade Administration report states.

Last year, an event New Frontier partnered on with the Manitoba Esports Association drew 1,600 people to the Radisson Hotel, Moorthy said.

The two are launching an event at the West End Cultural Centre March 18 and 19. Players sit on stage with their computers; the game’s screen is projected for the masses.

“I think (New Frontier is) being really bold considering how the esports industry is shaping up,” said Melanie Penner, CEO of the Manitoba Esports Association.

The industry is rife with change and facing sustainability issues, she said. Esports companies 100 Thieves, OpTic Gaming and The Guard have reportedly laid off dozens of employees this year.

The industry needs esport education programs in schools, increased awareness on esport careers and government grants, Penner added.

Moorthy said New Frontier is “not remiss” to the issues the industry faces.

“We’re just doing our part to grow the awareness of esports,” Moorthy said.

The business plans to open its first office in Headingley this summer. There will be space for students and teams to practise esports skills, and a content creation studio for “newsroom coverage” and analysis of the industry.

“(New Frontier) is supporting the grassroots perspective,” Penner said. “It’s a smart and strategic move… to focus on local programs and groups.”

New Frontier owns Lotus 8, an esport team of roughly 30 players that compete globally.

gabrielle.piche@winnipegfreepress.com