Fortress Esports announce plans for largest esports venue in the southern hemisphere

The venue is set to be located at the Emporium Melbourne shopping complex, with the space planned to take up more than 2,700 square meters across two floors. There are also plans to include 160 gaming PCs, streaming areas, and RPG spaces.

The 200-seat custom-built esports arena, complete with production facilities for any and all tournaments to be hosted in the southern city, stands as the jewel of the plans. The Victorian capital has found success in hosting gaming events like the Melbourne Esports Open in recent years, and Fortress Melbourne is set to double-down on that rising popularity.

“Melbourne has become the epicenter for video gaming and esports culture, with major events like MEO and PAX Australia,” said Fortress Esports chief executive John Satterley. “We’re excited to be opening our first flagship venue in Melbourne, and offer Australians a video gaming entertainment space that they can enjoy all year round. We want to make Fortress Melbourne the ultimate ‘home away from home’ for everyone from casual gamers, competitive gamers, and esports fanatics, to families and after-work crowds.”

MELBOURNE ESPORTS OPEN

Fortress Esports’ announcement comes just days after the end of the 2019 MEO event, hosted in Melbourne’s Olympic Park. According to event organizers, more than 17,000 gaming and esports fans poured in to spectate and play League of Legends, Overwatch, Rainbow Six Siege, as well as a host of new titles like Borderlands 3 and Fifa 20. The finals for Riot Games’ Oceanic Pro League and Blizzard’s Overwatch Contenders Australia were played out at the historic Rod Laver Arena, while Melbourne Arena was turned into a convention hall full of gaming consoles and first-look stalls.

The news also comes soon after a statement from media company HT&E, which branded Australia as an “unsustainable market” for competitive gaming following its esports division Gfinity failing to find a foothold in Oceania. While Gfinity’s recent closure put a damper on the growth of Australian esports, the booming popularity of this year’s Melbourne Esports Open and confirmation of Fortress Melbourne opening in 2020 have both provided new life to the esports and gaming scene Down Under. Confirmation on what events will be hosted at the new custom-built gaming arena are expected by early 2020 as construction on the Melbourne venue continues.