MIDLAND, Texas — Professional gaming, better known as e-sports, has been making waves across the country.
Gaming fever has caught on with West Texans as well, with its popularity reaching the schools of both counties.
“I think 2023 was e-sports’ big debut in Midland, Texas. Previously there hasn’t been a lot going on," said Andrew Latham, an associate English professor with Midland College. "Ever since April with the [Super] Smash [Bros] tournament at the [Al G Langford] Chap[arral] Center and the July tournament at the Bush Center, I'm seeing a whole lot of interest in the community in terms of students who want to come and play e-sports.”
Midland College's Nova Club has seen a surge in popularity, with them now planning to take part in e-sports tournaments.
But they aren't the only ones. Midland Christian has begun their own e-sports program while UTPB gave a bit of a level up to their e-sports program that has been around for nearly 10 years.
“We just got a brand new e-sports arena on campus and our library, so going into this year, this fall. it's expected to open here pretty quickly," said Alexa Dunson, the Director of Strategic Communications with UTPB. "Our PCs were just installed over the past few weeks, so we're just waiting for the games to be installed there so that will be done relatively soon.”
E-sports programs feeds into the student's desire for professional gaming while giving some of them a shot of professionally competing at the collegiate level.
“I talk to a lot of students, and the look in their eyes when they think to themselves, 'this is my chance to be a student athlete', for a lot of kids, that never would've happened without e-sports," Latham said.
Perhaps most importantly, e-sports clubs lets kids escape from life for a little bit and have a good time with friends.
“I think it allows students the chance to really connect with each other," Dunson said. "The students in the gaming club all have a common interest. Getting together to game really provides a break in life, a break in studying, and it provides a great community for people to come together.”
Meanwhile, the hype has led to the creation of the Texas Battle Bowl, a gaming tournament and expo held at the Horseshoe Complex in Midland.
Players can compete in separate tournaments for games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, Warhammer 40K, and Mortal Kombat.
One of the organizers of the Battle Bowl, Shane Bell, organized the event to give West Texas gamers the chance to compete professionally and save money on travel.
“We don’t get it out here. You got to go to Dallas, you got to go to Austin or San Antonio to have these big events and to have fun," Bell said. West Texas doesn’t have that, El Paso doesn’t have that. We wanted to give West Texas the opportunity to have their own e-sports expo like this.”
The Battle Bowl is expected to draw professional e-sports players from across Texas.
More information on the Texas Battle Bowl and ticket prices are available at the Battle Bowl's website.