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Xbox Live Tournaments Program: Microsoft Releases SDK for E-Sports Tournaments Run by Game Developers

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-powered virtual gaming tournaments, supported by FaceIt and the Electronic Sports League, are coming to and PC.

Playing video games for a living is a dream of many — and when it comes to competing against other players for a trophy, whether in the real world or in a virtual set up, you'd be surprised at how popular it has become. E-sports tournaments, as they are commonly called, are a lucrative business not only for players, but also organizers. Taking the popularity to a possible new height is the new “Xbox Live Tournaments Program”.

Jason Ronald, who heads the Xbox Advanced Technology Group, made the announcement today at the Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Ronald said that will be working with veterans in the booming industry, as FaceIt and the Electronic Sports League have been introduced as partners. The company will work closely with the two groups and expect “deep integration” in running the competitive tournaments.

The Xbox Live service plays an important role in the e-tournaments program, as that's what they will run on. It also means that the service will allow gamers to take part in the quest for fame and glory, provided the games utilize the Universal Windows Platform.

As a quick refresher, the cross-platform play initiative, which allows Xbox games on machines running Windows 10, was just introduced a few weeks ago, with Forza Motorsport 6: Apex named as the “launch title” and given away free for Windows 10 users.

Back to the e-sports tournaments program, Microsoft has released the SDK preview of the “Xbox Live Tournaments Program” for game developers to get things going. Supported games with “easy to integrate tournaments” are expected to come later in the year. And though it's not announced, it's interesting to see if the program will allow PlayStation 4 gamers to take part as well — not outside the realm of possibility given Sony's recent statement.

Source: The Verge

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