While Counter-Strike: Global Offensive has been in the market for several years and is now one of the premium eSports titles, it was not only until recently that the competitive shooter game got approved in China. The Chinese publisher for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, Perfect World (or Wanmei), held a media conference today in Beijing to make several announcements regarding the game’s status.
So spruce up the occasion, the event hall was draped in colors and props mimicking the environment of the classic map, Dust 2. The first limited Closed Beta phase is starting next week on 18 April, and apparently Chinese players on the global server can get to keep all their progression when entering the China server too! Perfect World also announced an eSports tournament for the game.
Starting this autumn, the first qualifying matches for Counter-Strike: Global Offensive will begin in local internet cafes, followed by city level competition, and then into region vs region. Hundreds of cities will take part, with the whole of China segmented into 8 distinct regions. It is unknown how many teams will eventually be converted to professional status, but the champion is definitely guaranteed a spot.
