Monday 30 May 2016

All the results from the 15th Mpumulanga Championships

Nadine Swart - Tekken Tag
The 15thMpumulanga Championships held  on 28 & 29 May 2016 went off without a hitch.

HTS Witbank once again proved to be a wonderful host, under the guidance of Louis Brown (the Provincial Director) and MSSA's umpires (Ryan Boyes, Morizane Boyes, and Ewan Retief).

Eleven clubs from three provinces participated in the event which enormously increased the level of competition and excitement.

With the Mpumulanga Championships being the last championship before the National Team Trials to be held on 4 June 2016 (at St John's College, Houghton, Johannesburg), some players were desperate to do there last minute preparations for such National Team Trials.

The National Team Trials are to select South Africa's official Protea eSports Team to attend IeSF's 8th World  Championships to be held in Jakarta in October 2016.

Needless to say, the Mpumulanga Championships were the most enjoyable championships held by MSSA this year.

Of course, certain players deserve special mention…

In Morabaraba, Nombulelo Gavin, of Fakkel School inn Sasolburg, continued with her winning ways. After having won the Fezile Dabi Regional Championships on 11 May 2016, Nombulelo romped home to take first place, and to earn Free State Provincial Colours for herself in the process.

There is no doubt that Nombelelo will go far.

In League of Legends, Team Vapour, from Sasolburg High, continued to stamp their authority on the game. Having won the North West Provincial Championships, the Online Schools Championships, as well as having finished third in the Online provincial Championships, the school team romped home to victory in Mpumulanga to take yet another title.

Team Vapour has thus become the first team in South Africa to take all three such titles.

In FIFA, Kyle Turnbull, of HTS Witbank, has again proven his worth. It seems as though Kyle just can not be beaten. Kyle remains unbeaten in Provincial and National Championships in South Africa for the successive third year in a row. Truly Kyle is setting the standard for FIFA.

Likewise, Baber Abbas, in Tekken Tag Tournament and Street Fighter V, is the man to beat. Baber too remains unbeaten in official events.

The winners are:

Title Name of player/team Club Colours awarded
Ancients (DBM) Colin Webster Old Edwardian Wargames Club Gauteng Provincial
Checkers (female) Tie: Sonja Brown & Lucille Brown All Stars Mpumalanga Provincial
Checkers Khahliso Malape Fakkel School Free State Provincial
CounterStrike: GO HGH Hoerskool Generaal Hertzog Mpumulanga Provincial
FIFA '16 Kyle Turnbull HTS Witbank Mpumalanga Provincial
League of Legends Team Vapour Sasolburg High School awarded at North West
Morabaraba (female) Nombulelo Gavin Fakkel School Free State Provincial
Morabaraba Mukhathutshelo Masheleni Fakkel School
Mortal Kombat X (female) Sune van de Merwe HTS Witbank Mpumalanga Provincial
Mortal Kombat X Jan-Hendrik van Aswegen Hoerskool Generaal Hertzog Mpumalanga Provincial
PES 2016 Tie: Tumi Mohosho & Richard Ferreira Fakkel School
StarCraft II Gideon Hefer Knights Mind Sports Club Gauteng Provincial
Street Fighter V Baber Abbas Tekken Guru awarded at Gauteng
Street Fighter (High School) Mpho Ntsala Fakkel School
Street Fighter V (female) Sune van de Merwe HTS Witbank Mpumulanga Provincial
Tekken Tag Tournament II Baber Abbas Tekken Guru awarded at Gauteng
Tekken Tag Tournament II (High School) Pieter Lourens Hoerskool Generaal Hertzog
Tekken Tag Tournament II (female) Nadine Swart Knights Mind Sports Club

Friday 27 May 2016

Last chance for players to qualify for the eSports National Team Trials - 4 June 2016

Please note that 15th Mpumulanga Championships is the last chance for players to qualify for the eSports National Team Trials to be held on 4 June 2016 at St John's College, Houghton.

The 15th Mpumulanga Championships is at HTS Witbank.

HTS WITBANK Hoof ingang
10 Beyers street
Die Heuwel
Witbank
1035
GPS (degrees & minutes) :
S25 52.058 E29 13.828

What does MSSA have to offer South African gamers?


MSSA offers a huge amount to South African competitive gamers.
It has taken years to get the government and older sports bodies to take gaming seriously. To give you an example, in 1987 when MSSA requested to become affiliated to the Confederation of South African Sport (COSAS), the request was initially denied. By sheer perseverance and determination (allied with strong arguments), COSAS finally acceded to the MSSA’s request and granted the MSSA membership into the greater body of sport. This was indeed a huge triumph as the Springbok Colours Board also accepted MSSA as a result thereof and granted Springbok Colours to the MSSA’s team. Through careful politicking, the MSSA also joined the anti-establishment National Olympic Committee of South Africa (NOCSA) and formed a firm friendship with the late Bill Jardim.
As a result of being an affiliate of both COSAS and NOCSA, the MSSA was able to contribute to the equalisation of sport in South Africa and has been an affiliate of every macro sport body in South Africa since then, such as:
The National Sports Council (1994 to 1999)
The South African Sports Commission (1999 to 2002), and
The South African Sports Confederation and Olympic Committee (SASCOC) 
With such recognition comes total accreditation of eSports as a sport. 
Protea Colours have been awarded since 1994 to deserving teams which represent South Africa in international events.
Some gamers may scoff at the fact that Protea Colours are now awarded, but they are those who have never experienced the joy and full benefits of being part of that select few that have officially represented South Africa overseas.
Apart from Protea Colours, there are National, Provincial, and Provincial School colours that can be earned. Allied to the colours awarded by the MSSA, there are the sporting colours that are awarded by both Universities and Schools alike. There too are the bursaries for which well deserving gamers can apply. The amounts differ from university to university, but such bursaries make a substantial difference to the costs of studying at university.
Other benefits include National Lottery Funding, the improved ability of obtaining sponsorship, local government support, and most importantly… having a voice to direct the future of eSports.
With MSSA being an Universitas all clubs that are fully-paid-up members have rights in voting on issues and have the right to propose issues. This means that the gamer actually takes control over the games which they play and love. MSSA is NOT a monolithic structure and has to comply with the wishes of the majority of its members.
Thus whatever MSSA does, it is because the majority of the membership wish it to be done so.
In this way MSSA is unique. MSSA is not driven by market forces and by pursuing profits at every turn, but is instead driven by what its membership wants.

Get your application in - ASAP!


The Wits Wargames Club can trace its origins back to 1979.

Back then a few avid gamers got together with their wargames figurines, board games, Ataris, and Sinclairs to found the Wits Wargames Club at the University of the Witwatersrand.

The club then proved to be the foundation for the creation of the Transvaal Wargames Association and ultimately for Mind Sports South Africa itself.

The club has over the  years produced many a player for the National Protea Teams, and, as a result, many a Witsie has earned their 'Blues' for representing the country.

Not only have Witsies represented the country with pride, but they too have participated in the management of eSports on a local, national and even international level.

Thus, it is once again time for top gamers to get their nominations in for a sports bursary.

Details for such bursary may be found on: https://www.wits.ac.za/media/wits-university/students/wits-sport/documents/2016%20Application%20Form.pdf

Thursday 26 May 2016

The state of South African eSports



Unbelievably there are gamers who would prefer to go  to the local event held at The Dome than would try out for the National Protea eSports Team because;

  1. The event is at the same time as the 8th IeSF World Championships - Jakarta, and
  2. Such players think that they can win and thereby earn a new computer. 

Both of the above two reasons show the real state of South African gaming.

The two reasons show that South African gaming is still in its infancy.

South Africans would rather  play among themselves than test  their metal against foreign competition. This may be due to players not having any faith in themselves, or that they, as yet, do not take gaming seriously enough to see if they are able to compete against players from other countries.

It also shows that South African  gamers choose the 'quick-and-easy' path over the more difficult road to international competition.

Why spend years developing players when you can take the short-cut and get instant gratification. Of course it is less rewarding, but at least you have a chance of winning it!

Then of course, there is  the lack of commitment.

In all other sports athletes commit a great deal of time and own resources in the pursuit of excellence.

Not so with many gamers, much must be free and paid for....

Gamers, to be truly competitive, must be single-minded in their approach, and tough - really tough, if they want to make it in competitive gaming.

Please read: http://esportscommentator.blogspot.co.za/2015/02/so-you-want-top-be-pro-gamer.html


Wednesday 25 May 2016

WCA 2016 promotes e-sports in China

South Africa's Thomas Brown opening the WCA2016
The World Cyber Arena 2016 (WCA2016) China and APAC Pro Qualifiers Season 1 (S1) finals took place at the China National Tennis Center in Beijing on May 21.

Fifty-seven players in teams from China, Australia, South Korea, Malaysia and Philippines won in the six official games, including CS:GO, Hearthstone, Dota II, StarCraftII, Warcraft 3, and COS, have advanced to WCA2016 global finals that will be held in Yinchuan, capital of northwestern China's Ningxia Hui autonomous region this December.

The event was opened by Thomas Brown (from All Stars Club, Witbank, South Africa) who is the first South African to referee an international eSports event on foreign soil.

The WCA, held by Yinchuan government and Yinchuan International Game Investment Co Ltd, is an international e-sports event that has been held thrice. Under the slogan "Hero's Arena, Player's Dreamland", it is committed to promoting the developments of e-sports events and the sector and attracting more people to participate in e-sports.

China's e-sports sector has boomed in recent years under positive policy and social environment. The number of e-sports users has reached 124 million and the output value of the e-sports sector has reached 27 billion yuan by the end of 2015, and the overall market of e-sports in China is expected to exceed 50 billion yuan in the future, according to the 2015 China e-sports Game Analysis Report released by iResearch, a Chinese consultancy company.

According to WCA spokesman Li Yanfei, the E-Sports industry has a large amount of enthusiastic young fans that should not be underestimated.

As the titled sponsor of WCA2016, Lesports of LeEco Holdings Co, enters the field to create an e-sport ecosystem, Lei Zhenjian, founder and Chief Executive said with the government's positive promotion and capital pouring into the sector, e-sports is rapidly rising in China.


"The standards and business model of e-sports still needs to mature. And as a young sector, e-sports has diverse possibilities in its profitability," said Lei.

Tuesday 24 May 2016

1st Fezile Dabi Regional Championship - a success!

Winners - one and all!
Mind Sports South Africa (MSSA) is dedicated to development.

Thus MSSA has a programme of hosting championships in as many of South Africa's regions as possible.

Clubs are encouraged to buy-into the programme by hosting the events and to profit from such events through earning entrance fees, obtaining press, and discovering new members.


The most recent of the Regional Championships was the 1st Fezile Dabi Regional Championship was hosted by Fakkel School, Sasolburg on 14 & 15 May 2016

Leonard Loftus of the club, Masters of eSport, excelled himself by running a top-class event.

The event had 61 contestants battle it out to see who would walk away with Regional  Colours and the eligibility to enter the National Team Trials.

The winners are:

Title Name of player/team Club Colours awarded
Checkers Khahliso Malape Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Regional
Checkers (female) Lucille Brown All Stars Fezile Dabi Schools
Morabaraba – Premier Kamohelo Tladi Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Regional
Morabaraba – High Schools Thabang Kumi Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Schools
Morabaraba (female) Nombulelo Gavin Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Regional
PES 2016 – Premier Tumi Mohosho Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Regional
PES 2016 – High School Sibusiso Nabilevo Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Schools
FIFA '16 – Premier Richard Ferrera Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Regional
FIFA '16 – High Schools Kamohelo Tladi Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Schools
Mortal Kombat X – Premier Joost Loftus Masters of eSport Fezile Dabi Regional
Mortal Kombat X – High School Mpho Ntsala Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Schools
Mortal Kombat X (female) Leoné Loftus Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Regional
Street Fighter V – Premier Joost Loftus Masters of eSport Fezile Dabi Regional
Street Fighter V – High School Sibusiso Nabilevo Fakkel School Fezile Dabi Schools

Sunday 22 May 2016

Changes to MSSA's Calendar of Events

Please note changes to the official Calendar of Events.

2016 Calendar of events

Date
Event
Discipline
Venue
6 FEB
SOUTH AFRICA vs GHANA
FIFA '16
On-line
13 & 14 FEB
OE Summer Championships
Ancients (600pts), Draughts, Morabaraba
Blue Room,
Old Edwardian Society, 11 Ninth Ave, Lower Houghton, Jhb
16 FEB
Closing date for On-line Inter-school Provincial Championships
CS:GO, DotA, FIFA, HearthStone, LOL, SC, TTT II
Admin
20 FEBRUARY
On-line Inter-school Provincial Championships
CS:GO, DotA, FIFA, HearthStone, LOL, SC, TTT II
On-line
5 & 6 MARCH
20th NORTH WEST Championships
All
St Conrad's College, Klerksdorp
26 & 27 MARCH
33rd GAUTENG Championships
All
Tuks, University of Pretoria
9 & 10 APRIL
Provincial School Championships
Board and Figure games
Gauteng:
Old Edwardian Society, Jhb
Mapumulanga:
HTS Witbank
16 APRIL
Provincial Online Championships
Dota 2,
CounterStrike GO,
League of Legends,
Street Fighter V
On-line
14 & 15 MAY
Fezile Dabi Regional Championships
All
Fakkel High School, Sasolburg
28 & 29 MAY
15th MPUMALANGA Championships
HTS Witbank, Witbank
28 MAY
FINANCIAL AGM
MeetingHTS Witbank, Witbank
HTS Witbank, Witbank
4 JUNE
CS:GO, DotA, FIFA, HearthStone, LOL, SC, TTT II
St John's College, Johannesburg
18 & 19 JUNE
Riverview Preparatory Wargames Club
Flames of War
Riverview Prep. Malelane.
25 & 26 JUNE
13th FREE STATE Championships
Fakkel School, Sasolburg
9 & 10 JULY
22nd KWAZULU NATAL Championships
Maritzburg College, Pietermaritzburg
23 JULY
* Ancients 200AP (DBM v3.2)
*
FIFA '16,
*
Morabaraba
*
Tekken Tag Tournament II
Blue Room,
Old Edwardian Society, 11 Ninth Ave, Lower Houghton, Jhb
30 & 31 JULY
Board, Figure and eSports
Parklands College, Cape Town
13 AUGUST
StarCraft II, Hearthstone
eSports (PC)
On-line
27 & 28 AUGUST
21st WESTERN CAPE Championships
Board games
eSports
Wargames
TBA
TBA
Indigenous Games
Morabaraba
To be determined by SRSA
24 & 25 SEPTEMBER
16th EASTERN CAPE Championships
Board games
eSports
Wargames
TBA
6 – 9 OCTOBER
CounterStrike: GO, League of Legends, Hearthstone
Ancol Beach Auditorium, Jakarta, Indonesia.
29 & 30 OCTOBER
6th LIMPOPO Championships
Board games
eSports
Wargames
TBA
3 & 4 DECEMBER
30th S A NATIONAL Championships
Board games
eSports
Wargames
TBA
4 DECEMBER
33rd NATIONAL CONVENTION
Annual General Meeting
As per 30th S A NATIONAL Championships
TBA
SRSA's S A Schools Championships
Morabaraba
To be determined by SRSA

Notes:
  1. International events still need to be included.
  2. Inter-Provincial events need to be included
  3. Inter-regional events need to be included
  4. Club events need to be included
  5. Regional Championships need to be included.
  6. Free State is moved to earlier in the year.
  7. National Team Trials still need to be included