Elevating your Esports event with virtual solutions 

Part of the magic of live events is that the audience doesn’t realize there is another show going on behind the scenes: A secret and carefully synchronized dance that brings the show on stage to life.  

The coordination required by the production crews is worthy of an audience itself. From the Technical Director and replay operators to the content managers, graphics playback teams, and broadcast engineers who bring it all together — the success of the show hinges on their perfectly synchronized teamwork. 

In the realm of Esports, the challenge is even more significant. The presentation of real-time statistics during a live event is critical to delivering a compelling story to fans. However, the lightning-fast pace of Esports is too quick for operators to provide integrated statistics and graphics in real time.  

So, what does the control room dance look like for a premier Esports event? Here’s how one of the most significant events in Esports fans’ calendars does it. 

Behind the Scenes of the Intel® Extreme Masters (IEM) Cologne 2023 

Last August, the Intel® Extreme Masters (IEM) returned to Cologne, Germany, and Esports fans descended upon the LANXESS Arena for the final three days of the competition, dubbed The Cathedral of Counter-Strike. This significant event in the Esports calendar draws a sizeable live audience and over 700,000 fans online to watch the world’s top Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) teams go head-to-head. 

IEM entrusted Rocket Surgery with adding Augmented Reality (AR) to enhance the production and immerse the audience and fans at home deeper into the action. 

Rocket Surgery accomplished this through a combination of cutting-edge Ross AR technology, including the Voyager Unreal-Based Render Platform, Ultrix routers, a Carbonite Ultra production switcher, and an OpenGear frame equipped with a range of signal processing cards. 

Complementing this array of production room technology was the use of the spidercam cable-based camera system to provide captivating and unique visuals and feed the tracking data required to power the AR visuals. 

A Unique Challenge: Presenting Real-Time Data for Esports 

In addition to the highly skilled operators working together effectively, Esports events require particularly powerful and flexible technology to handle the pace of the action.  

To address the challenge presented by the rapid pace of online gameplay, Ross introduced a tailored solution that combines DashBoard and Datalinq to seamlessly integrate all their video game APIs and devices directly into the production workflow.  

That allowed Rocket Surgery experts to program the custom DashBoard control panel using the RossTalk protocol to enable operators to manage the whole system efficiently and automatically merge inputs and data with AR graphics in real time. Automating the integration of real-time statistics into immersive AR graphics allows IEM to keep Esports fans well-informed and elevate the entertainment value of the show without additional operators. 

AR graphics, powered by state-of-the-art technology, continue to revolutionize Esports and live event productions. The Intel Extreme Masters Cologne event is just one example of how AR is being deployed to build a meaningful story and draw audiences of all live sports and events deeper into the action.  

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Ross Esports Venue Production Solutions 

Ross offers a comprehensive suite of Esports venue production solutions, ranging from extensive control room hardware to LED content management systems and venue control software. These products are tightly integrated to provide Esports producers with limitless control options for their arena or studio space. 

Learn more about how Augmented Reality solutions from Ross Video can enhance your Esports production at https://www.rossvideo.com/industries/esports