In an effort to expand to Europe and South America, Major League Gaming has announced that they have struck a partnership with IMG, a global leader in sports, fashion and media. As one of the terms of the partnership, revenue between the two organizations will be split down the middle.

Under the terms of the agreement, IMG, utilizing the expertise of its IMG Media Group, will help build international brand awareness of MLG through distribution, programming and marketing agreements with select broadcast and broadband partners.  IMG will work to increase traffic, convert users and drive media consumption across all MLG platforms especially in the gameplay area.  The partners will work together to host regional championship events around the globe, identify new talent and expand the brand partnership platform to establish competitive gaming as a preeminent sport worldwide.
 
“Video gaming is the #1 activity among the 18-24 male demographic and global video game sales exceeded $50 billion in 2009,” said Michel Masquelier, President of IMG Media.  “Gaming is truly a global phenomenon and we are very proud to partner with the market leader in the competitive gaming industry to elevate the sport to a new level.”

IMG Press Release

An expansion by MLG would mean that, for the first time, gaming has a true global league. How the “global factor” will be handled is yet to be known, however.

EGIdrA is withdrawing from the GSL, and moving back to the United States.

Greg “EGIdrA” Fields just announced on SOTG (State Of The Game) that he will be moving back to the United States. He does not yet know if he will be moving back to South Korea after making the journey to the United States. He also says he wants to play in more of the “foreign” tourneys in the United States.

I think Korea doesn’t have to be the focus of esports anymore.

Idra

IdrA also told SoTG that scheduling around the GSL has become cumbersome and tiring, briefly talking about how he misses the team aspect of the game, such as competing in clan wars with EG.

This is going to be the year of esports in the USA, and I want to be a part of it.

Idra

Anyone who follows E sports knows who SlayerS_BoxeR is, his name is legendary across the world, and his influence over professional E Sports and the game of Starcraft has been the central key in really expanding the potential of professional gaming.

Lim Yo Hwang the “Terran Emperor” has over 500,000 registered fans in South Korea, over 500 televised wins, he’s had a DVD released on his most prestigious games, he’s won two World Cyber Games, multiple Starleagues, and his pure skills brings shock and awe to those who watch him play. Even at the wise age of 30 he continues to play, not for his own sake but for the sake of his fans who wish to see him once more in action.

With his return in the GSL Open Season 2, Razer has decided to sponsor him, and his upcoming journey on once again becoming a champion in Starcraft 2 as he did back in Brood War.

I am happy to finally represent Razer in the gaming community. StarCraft 2 is tough, it already hosts a lot of competitive players from Korea and Europe. I’ve been using Razer products since to hone my StarCraft Gaming. It will be difficult, but with Razer, never impossible.

razerzone.com

The official press release can be viewed here http://press.razerzone.com/press/detail/press-releases/highest-earning-starcraft-2-pro-gamer-lim-slayers_boxer-yo-hwan-joins-team-razer

During the recent Global Starcraft 2 Team League, four new maps were introduced into the map pool to encourage more longer and macro oriented games rather then short “cheese” games that were destroying the GSL entertainment value for some.

The four new maps that were introduced were:

Crevasse

CrossFire SE

Terminus Re

Tal’Darim Altar

These maps were used in full effect during the team league, and were met with applause from the GSL global community for promoting much more entertaining games, and in a recent press release made by Gom TV, it was announced that these four maps will remain in the map pool for the upcoming GSL in March.

New maps will be used in GSL Mar. Crevasses, Crossfire SE, Terminus, and Tal’Darim Altar from GSTL (Global StarCraft® II Team League) Feb. will be used in GSL Mar. in answer to the requests of eSports fans.

GOMtv.net

The first Code A matches will being on February 21, and the first Code S matches featuring foreign power houses Johnathon “Jinro” Walsh and Greg “IdrA” Fields will begin on February 22.

After much anticipation, Marvel vs Capcom 3: Fate of Two Worlds has finally been released to an eager public. The game, which features 19 characters from each of the Capcom and Marvel worlds, will give players the ability to play as any one of their favorite characters. MvC3 is available for both the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 consoles.

Character List

Marvel

• Captain America
• Deadpool
• Dormammu
• Dr. Doom
• Hulk
• Iron Man
• Magneto
• MODOK
• Phoenix
• Sentinel
• She Hulk
• Spider-Man
• Shuma Gorath
• Storm
• Super-Skrull
• Taskmaster
• Thor
• Wolverine
• X-23

Capcom

• Akuma
• Amaterasu
• Arthur
• C. Viper
• Chris
• Chun Li
• Dante
• Felicia
• Haggar
• Hsien Ko
• Jill
• Morrigan
• Ryu
• Spencer
• Trish
• Tron Bonne
• Viewtiful Joe
• Wesker
• Zero

The official game trailer can be found below:

China’s Ministry of Culture has approved StarCraft2 for sale. Sales could start as soon as March. The Chinese gamers will experiance no game delay.

The CEVO-Professional division playoffs are set to begin today. The Professional Division will consist of the top Ten (10) teams ranked by CPI. The playoffs will run every Monday and Thursday. Below are the official brackets by CEVO.

More information on the CEVO playoffs can be found by clicking here.

CEVO, via their website, has announced registration for season 14 of the Counter-Strike 1.6 division. According to CEVO, the teams will be competing for $3,000 in “guaranteed cash.” The league has also chosen to go without the Professional division of the past, which instead will be replaced by the Main division.

Below is their official press release:

CEVO is pleased to announce the opening of registration for the next season of Counter-Strike 1.6. Season 14 features $3,000 in guaranteed cash and prizes for teams competing across the various skill divisions.

**Registration will open on Thursday, February 10th and close on Sunday, March 20th.

For the first time in CEVO history, the Counter-Strike 1.6 divisions will have an entry fee of only $5.00USD per player!! This excellent deal will not only last during registration, but will remain during the season for late signups. Due to the registration fee, we will be able to offer a cash prize for both the Intermediate and Main divisions.

Event Details

-Teams will compete in three skill divisions: Open, Intermediate, and Main division.
-The Open Division is FREE to play in, but does not include the benefits of server reservations as the Intermediate and Main divisions do.
-Teams competing in the Intermediate and Main divisions may reserve servers from CEVO for their matches.
-The Intermediate and Main divisions have a price of $5.00USD per player and offer up to $3,000.00 in cash prizes.
-A new conference system on East and West has been implemented in the Open and Intermediate Divisions.

Divisions & Structure

Open Division:
As with tradition, the Open Division will be free to join and will consist of two conferences, Eastern and Western. Teams will compete for eight weeks with one match per week followed by playoffs. There is no prize for this division.

Intermediate Division:
The Intermediate Division is available to any team wishing to compete at a higher skill level then the Open Division. The Intermediate Division will require a $5.00 per player entry fee and teams will compete for a $1,000.00 Cash Prize. Teams will compete for eight weeks with one match per week on followed by playoffs. The conferences for this division will be split in two, an Eastern and Western conference.

Main Division:
The Main Division is an invite only division which will highlight the top competition for Counter-Strike 1.6. The Main Division will require a $5.00 per player entry fee and teams will compete for a $2,000.00 Cash Prize. Teams will compete for eight weeks with two matches per week on Mondays and Thursdays followed by playoffs. Teams which earned an 8-8 record or better from Season 13 will automatically be invited back to the Main Division along with the top teams from the Season 13 Intermediate Division Playoffs. All other slots will be open to applications.

CEVO

For more information on how to register, click here.

GGvision brings us another intresting interview, this time with “The Gorilla Terran” himself Jonathan “Jinro” Walsh. Jinro talks about the March GSL as well as the different way they picked the groups this coming season.

Today, Assembly Winter 2011 kicks off today in Kaapelitehdas, Helsinki at the The Cable Factory. With this event, the Steelseries Challenge plays host to 64 of some of the top SC2 talent in a single elimination bracket, first beginning with a group stage. Players will be competing for a prize purse of $5000 plus gear from Steelseries.

Day one features a round-roubin group stage with sixteen groups of four. Each player will face each of his/her group-mates in a best of three series. The top two from each group will move on to a 32-player, single-elimination bracket, beginning Saturday.

Coverage of the event can be found by clicking here.