Contents
The ESL Gaming brand DreamHack, the immersive, gaming lifestyle company that has organised some of the largest events, LAN parties, and fan meetups in esports, has announced DreamHack Beyond.
The event
DreamHack Beyond is an all-digital, at-home, interactive free hybrid festival and online multiplayer game. It begins Saturday, July 24th, and will continue through Saturday, July 31st, 2021. They are definitely expanding their reach beyond the classic esports tournaments of the past.
They have partnered with Super Crowd Entertainment to provide a browser-based, multiplayer experience that they are planning to integrate into the online festival. It looks like a pretty crazy experience that could rival some of the biggest DreamHack Esports Events. The event offers plenty of different attractions from virtual cosplay competitions, amateur, and professional esports tournaments, and game demos, to the expo, panels, speedrunning, live streamed music and screenings, community tournaments, and more.
What the attendees can do
- Complete the DreamHack Beyond adventure game narrative.
- Create and customize their own game characters.
- Collect limited edition items.
- Look for side quests to build their XP.
- Cheer on favorite teams with gear and custom animations.
- Visit dynamically themed halls with their own lore.
- Visit an interactive station for a personalized, one-of-a-kind experience, including seeing the latest and greatest from DreamHack partners.
- Watch student, community, and professional esports games tournaments (including Hearthstone and Rocket League)
- Attend panels.
- Play game demos.
- Enjoy live streamed music and screenings.
- Participate in the beloved Cosplay Championship.
- And take part in the event through the other more traditional DreamHack festival activities.
Comments from the organisers
Marcus Lindmark, President of DreamHack and SVP Project and Event Operations at ESL Gaming wrote in their press release:
“The goal for all of us at DreamHack is to provide great experiences for our fans, which have traditionally thrived by bringing communities together for these shared and beloved festivals all around the globe. This last year has been an extraordinary time for so many, but now we are ready to bring our community back together for this innovative and uniquely-engaging occasion — we are super excited to share DreamHack Beyond with our fans.”
Justin Burnham, Vice President, and Creative at DreamHack also added:
“DreamHack Beyond is part of evolving DreamHack into a year-round gaming lifestyle brand for the community. To us, there is nothing better than developing a hybrid multi-player event and game that unites us during these times and brings our community together in a way we understand and love. DreamHack is more than an event — it creates an arena where you can come to connect, explore, win, play a part, and be yourself through a gaming lifestyle experience.”
Should you check it out?
This is definitely a major experiment from the team at DreamHack, they are clearly trying to find new and interesting ways to combat the lack of live and in-person events that has plagued the industry for the past year. It remains to be seen if they will be successful or not but what they have already announced definitely sounds promising.
