Over the weekend the Overwatch League held its first Tournament Final. The Kick-off Clash was the second live event for the Overwatch League this year and was held at the Esports Arena in Arlington, Texas. For fans that were unable to go to the arena live, the league arranged for select Cinemark theaters nationwide to air the games on one of their large screens. One fan decided to take them up on the offer and found their nearest theater to watch the best Overwatch 2 players and was treated to an experience more exclusive than they thought.
The Cinemark theater chain has a partnership with Activision Blizzard to host viewing parties for Overwatch League and Call of Duty League in select locations. The Call of Duty League's Major 3 Tournament took place at the same time on another screen. This Houston Outlaws fan took the opportunity to see a match on theater equipment. Being a movie theater, there is the possibility of running into other fans, but as this Overwatch fan found out, that's not always the case.
Reddit user mikelabsceo posted an image on the r/CompetitiveOverwatch subreddit of them as the only person that came to the theater to watch the games. The fan said their time in the theater wasn't completely solitary as other fans showed up for some earlier matches but didn't stay, leaving them as the only occupant for the Kick-Off Clash Grand Final that saw the Los Angeles Gladiator hand the host Dallas Fuel a resounding 4-0 defeat. They took the seclusion in stride, calling it their "private movie theater." Some commenters under the post were stunned that this was an option to watch the games. Others shared their own experiences with heading to their nearest Cinemark to watch the Tournament Final. Those fans told of there being more viewers than u/mikelabsceo and enjoyed sharing the moment with other Overwatch League fans.
As the esports scene recovers from the pandemic, leagues and tournament organizers want to offer interested fans to return to in-person events and enjoy their games with other fans. There have been broadcast shots of smaller watch parties hosted by the Overwatch League team Washington Justice and Toronto Defiant, while the Overwatch League hosted a live event for Opening Weekend that was also held in Dallas.
With the Overwatch League finishing its first tournament of the season, there will be other opportunities for fans who are willing to gather and celebrate their favorite esport. The issue seems to be that either the Cinemarks are too far out of the way for some fans or lack of awareness that a movie theater viewing party was an option. The engagement of Cinemark's tweet about hosting watch parties for both leagues is low. With a little more heads-up, fans will have more chances to gather with others and build excitement for the return of larger events.
Overwatch 2 is in development.
