Arc System Works is hosting its grand competition, the culmination of months of gaming, in Long Beach in two weeks.
In two weeks, video game players from around the world will congregate in Long Beach to compete in the Arc System Works World Tour Finals gaming competition.
The three-day event will take place at Thunder Studios from March 21-23, featuring competitions, vendors, an art gallery, an arcade area, plenty of free swag and a concert. Players have been competing around the world at a dozen events since June 2023, as the competition grows more fierce every round.
Previous rounds have taken place worldwide, with Chicago, Brazil, Paris, South Korea, Philippines, Japan and Australia among the video game venues. Arc System Works Esports Manager Bron Mitchel said that over 10,000 participants flocked to a previous open circuit (open to anyone who pays the entry fee) round in August. Last year’s final round drew 2,481 players and attendees.
“This is probably one of the better opportunities to go to if you’re interested in fighting games,” Mitchel said. “If you like anime, our games’ characters are the pinnacle of anime fighters. There are plenty of people who engage in our content and our worlds who don’t even get into the games.”
Though the competition is now closed to the public, esports enthusiasts and curious onlookers are invited to attend the finals in Long Beach and see the world-class gamers in action.
All games played during the finals are from Arc System Works: “Guilty Gear -Strive-,” “Granblue Fantasy: Versus Rising,” and “Under Night In-Birth [Sys:Celes].” “Guilty Gear -Strive-” is the main event of the weekend, as the competition for that game will begin March 21 with the last chance qualifier round, continue March 22 with the first round of elimination and culminate March 23 in the grand finals.
The first place winner of the “Guilty Gear -Strive-” competition will win $50,000, while second place will win $20,000 and third place will win $10,000. All players who place in the top 13 will walk away with prize money.
“Granblue Fantasy: Versus Rising” will see two days of competition, and “Under Night In-Birth” will be condensed to a one-day tournament as the newest game of the bunch.
All of the games are 1v1 fighting games, the kind that Mitchel likened to “Street Fighter” and “Tekken Tag.” Arc System Works games are compatible with PlayStation, Xbox and PC consoles. “Guilty Gear -Strive-” has a reputation of being a simple, fun to learn version of popular fighting style games with a high ceiling for those who commit to learning all the skills, making it popular with newcomers and veteran gamers alike.
“GG is probably the easiest series to learn, but getting good at it takes a long time,” reads a review on Steam Community.
Celebrating the 30th anniversary of Arc System Works, the competition will double as a “mini-convention,” Mitchel said. Attendees are invited to bring their own console and set up in the arcade area, shop from gaming companies and independent artist vendors, meet voice actors from the game and play with an unreleased character from “Guilty Gear -Strive-.”
On March 23, tickets come with a rock concert from a surprise artist who will be playing music from “Guilty Gear -Strive-.”
The Arc World Tour Finals will take place at Thunder Studios in Long Beach at 20434 Santa Fe Ave. from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. from March 21-23. Residents can purchase tickets for the Arc World Tour Finals on Eventbrite, either for single days or the entire weekend.
This article was updated on March 13 to correct the title and spelling of Esports Manager Bron Mitchel.
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