I Spent A Weekend At Intel Extreme Masters, The Disneyland Of PC Gaming & Competitive E-Sports

Close your eyes (maybe not literally). Imagine a stadium that can hold a crowd of 15,000, where the air¡¯s full of expectation. It's hard not to notice the electrically charged atmosphere inside, surging with excitement and energy. At the centre of the dimly lit arena, the stage is all set. Amidst a bevy of swivelling lights and a general carnival atmosphere, a rhythmic countdown begins on two huge screens.

The crowd starts chanting, as a wave of adrenaline courses through your body. The clock runs out of time, smoke and fire go off on the stage, just as the crowd erupts in one voice, acknowledging the incoming superstar they've all been waiting to get a glimpse of all this while. It's an intoxicating experience.

Now open your eyes. Nope, this isn't a Katy Perry or Justin Bieber concert. This is what happened at a professional gaming tournament, one of the biggest of its kind in the world, which took place in Australia earlier this month.

Inside the Disneyland of PC Gaming

On the hallowed grounds of the prestigious 2000 Olympic Games, one of the most popular electronic gaming tournaments of the world ¡ª the Intel Extreme Masters 2018 ¡ª took place with much fanfare. Attendees got to witness the best gaming talent in the world competing for bragging rights and quarter million dollars in prize money.

The pro-gaming matches featured everyone¡¯s favourite cybercafe shooting game, Counter Strike Global Offensive, as part of the Electronic Sports League or ESL ¡ª one of the biggest, most respectable professional gaming tournaments of the world.

faze clan - the winning team at intel extreme masters sydney 2018

I saw some of the world's best pro-gamers compete at Intel Extreme Masters -- teams like Fnatic, FaZe Clan, and Astralis. And their fans crowding the Qudos Bank Arena to the brim, thousands of them wearing their favourite team jerseys -- just like you'd see at a cricket or football match.

Only all of these passionate fans -- from Australia, New Zealand, United States, Poland, Singapore and other parts of the world -- were all assembled inside the stadium in celebration of their favourite games and pro-gaming idols. Shouting insults, angry slogans, singing words of praise and encouragement for their favourite teams battling it out in front of them. It was a carnival atmosphere inside the arena, a magnificent sight to behold!

Experiencing cutting edge PC and VR gaming

Not only that, fans who made their way to IEM Sydney 2018 also got a taste of the latest and greatest technology products and the absolute cutting edge of what PC gaming has to offer.

Thanks to Intel and its local partners, visitors of the three-day gaming extravaganza had an irresistible treat waiting for them as they entered the arena. In a multi-layered experience zone, Intel was showing off its eighth generation Core i9 based laptops and desktops, along with Intel Optane memory technology, to give gaming fans a firsthand experience what a high-performance gaming PC looks and feels like.

Chris Holst

I saw hundreds of desktop and laptop PCs busy entertaining gamers with their latest PUBG and Fortnite fix. If people were (dare I say) bored of gaming on a traditional PC gaming setup, they could take their gaming experience to a whole new (ahem, virtual) level.

Chris Holst

Intel had a lot of VR or virtual reality game demo zones, where gaming enthusiasts could try VR goggles and accompanying motion controllers to try their hand at games like skiing, shooting and even dancing to game with lightsabers -- yours truly had a lot of fun with that particular game, called Beat Saber.

Playing the #1 game on @steam_games right now. Beat Saber. Pretty cool #VR dance rhythm game ¡ª with lightsabers! What¡¯s not to love? #IEMSydney pic.twitter.com/E6SFl5rXKS

¡ª Jayesh Shinde (@jshinde) May 5, 2018

But easily one of the most exciting and unique VR demo setup at the Intel Experience Zone was that of a driving game like you've never experienced it before. Thanks to a custom designed driving rig, gamers could strap themselves in and take a spin around Australia¡¯s famous Mount Panorama racing circuit in virtual reality, steering their way in a force feedback cockpit that would tilt, swivel and jerk like how a real car would.

VR driving rig with force feedback

It provided a thoroughly immersive driving experience, showing everyone who tried their hand at the racing game the untapped potential of VR gaming. What was probably most interesting from a user perspective was how accessible different forms of VR gaming was for anyone who attended the Intel Gaming Zone. One would imagine that people were more interested about trying out VR gaming, after getting an exhilarating taste of it at the Intel Extreme Masters Sydney 2018.

There was also an exhibition hall where all sorts of gaming stations were being showcased -- more on that on a separate story going up very soon. I tried my hand at a drone flying arena, astutely named Game Of Drones, which was a lot of fun. PC modders had their game on, exhibiting PCs of various shapes and sizes, inspired by works of art. This gaming PC adorned by blinking LED lights which was made completely out of LEGO blocks was particularly fascinating.

The impressive Lego block PC

Intel partners really went all guns blazing in the exhibition halls, showcasing the best gaming PCs on offer. There were competitions held throughout the day in this section of the stadium were visitors were earning some amazing prizes -- gaming hardware and other wares. I also spotted a PC building station where anyone could build a PC in an hour and walk away with it at a huge discount -- there was a line of enthusiasts trying to compete in this section which was fun to see.

A gaming finale to remember

On the third and final day of Intel Extreme Masters Sydney 2018, it all came down to the final two teams to battle it out for the winning crown. The hugely popular Astralis took on the FaZe Clan, with a lot of excitement to match in the arena. As the sun went down over the Sydney harbour, and the stars started twinkling brightly, FaZe Clan defeated Astralis in the best of three game, earning a flawless 3-0 victory. It was amazing to see the arena still packed with people even as the clock chimed past 8:30 pm -- pretty late by suburban Sydney standards -- leaving me to think that Australians definitely love their e-sports.

tim hansen

As I exited the stadium, and walked with the throngs of people now heading towards their home, I was left with a happy and exciting feeling. Imagine something like this happening in India. Wouldn't that be something! If my three days spent at Sydney's Olympic Park was any reflection of the present state of competitive gaming, and a general indicator of people's interest in gaming as an entertainment medium, the future of Intel Extreme Masters and gaming at large seemed bright to say the least.