Razer's software lineup consists of audio, peripheral and streaming platforms, but its latest product shows a new direction. Razer Arena is a new esports web platform that the company hopes will make matches easier to create as well as helping users create their own competitions.
At the top of Arena's features is Automatic Match Creation and Reporting. When a player checks into a match during a tournament, the system immediately finds opponents so the user doesn't have to sit in a lobby and find other players or servers. As for the reporting feature, each match's results, scores, screenshots and replays are automatically uploaded to the Arena system.
There is still downtime between matches, which puts players in lobbies. Razer implemented its Comms system in lobbies and during gameplay so users can easily chat through text or voice, removing the need for an external chat system. Even when there is a full roster of players, there's always one person who might forget to join or take too long to set up their character. Razor hopes to change that by adding match notifications that keeps all players informed of upcoming matches.
In its current state, Arena is still in beta, so tournament design is still very limited. For now, only the single-elimination format is available, but there is room for expansion.
Razer will break down the tournament development into two phases. The first phase is already available in the beta, where players complete daily challenges to get acquainted with the system as well as participate in tournaments produced by Razer's partners. The second phase will come in March, when users will be able to create and manage their own tournaments, whether it's a small group of friends or a big event. Additionally, the company will feature successful user tournaments alongside professional tournaments in Arena for some extra exposure.
Currently, Arena only supports Battlefield 4, Dota 2, or Counterstrike: Global Offensive players, but the company is trying to lure more developers to integrate Arena in their games. The current Arena-supported games are a big grab for Razer because they all have a large following, but it will be interesting to see if users will make the most out of creating their own tournaments in March and if Razer attracts other big games such as League of Legends or Starcraft II.
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