Esports player Yota Kachi, aka Pekos, plays Bandai Namco Holdings Inc.'s video game Tekken, at an arcade in Tokyo, Japan, on Feb. 6, 2018. Japan will begin the process of legalizing paid esports with a tournament near Tokyo that kicks off on Feb. 10. Hundreds of players, including Kachi, will face off in a two-day competition for more than $300,000 in prizes from game makers including Sony Corp. and Mixi Inc. Photographer: Kentaro Takahashi/Bloomberg
A skinny chain smoker with pale skin, Yota Kachi doesn’t look much like a professional athlete. But this weekend, the 31-year-old will get a chance to become one by playing videogames.
Japan will begin the process of legalizing paid esports with a tournament near Tokyo that kicks off Feb 10. Hundreds of players, including Kachi, will face off in a two-day competition for more than US$300,000 (RM1.18mil) in prizes from game makers including Sony Corp and Mixi Inc. But the true stakes are even higher: The top few dozen players will get licenses to play in paid videogame competitions in the future.
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