So over the weekend, the team I manage, kaiju corp kngc, went out to Midlane Esports in Chicago to compete at the Will English Friends and Family Overwatch LAN tournament! This was our first LAN together as a team and it was a lot of fun!
So just as a quick update, kaiju corp kngc was once the Chicago’s Forge Academy team which was previously kaiju corp kngc. We’ve gone full circle. In terms of the players, it’s pretty much the same team just that we went back to playing with kaiju corp.
Anyways, as a team, it was our first LAN together, minus a couple of players. We ended up having to pick up two subs but figured it was better than not showing up. Overall, we ended up in 4th place. Honestly, we expected to get at least 3rd but it is what it is. What I really wanted to focus on with this post is the overall experience.
The LAN was held a newer gaming center called Midlane Esports. This is located in Logan Square in Chicago. It’s actually located at a pretty convenient spot for us. We just hopped on the Blue line and the train drops you off right across the street from the place. The center itself is on the smaller end when it comes to the LAN centers I’ve personally been to, but for one man trying to start up his own center it makes it easier for the staff to manage. For a small LAN event, it was a good size. Any bigger than what we had would probably make it difficult for the tournament organizer.
Speaking of tournament organizer, this event was put together by Will English. He’s hosted lots of other Overwatch events in the past and part of LANs for other games in the Chicago area. I can’t praise Will enough for the amount of work and dedication he’s done for the gaming and Chicago community. Without Will, there wouldn’t be as many tournaments and events. Overall, he and his crew did an amazing job putting the tournament together. From the production to the experience, my overall comment is that it was a good tournament. The only downside was that it did start later than expected. I haven’t been to a lot of LANs to say that it’s a common occurrence but that is probably the one thing I’d like to see improved.
It was also really awesome to see everyone on kngc in person as a team and watch them play. I loved cheering them on every time they did a good play or a team kill. In addition to watching the team play, it was so cool hearing all the call outs happening throughout the gaming center. There was just so much energy going on with all the teams.
Unfortunately, we did only get 4th place so after kngc lost, my husband and I had to leave to catch the next train back to the suburbs. I can’t wait for the next LAN event! You can find the Twitch VoD of the event here: https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1090713874
I hope you enjoyed the read and I will see you all next week!
