For decades, Japan has boasted one of the most vibrant and diverse ecosystems when it comes to digital transformation, gaming, and pop culture. It’s a market leader where video games are concerned.
In 2022, it was reported that Japan’s competitive video game market alone was worth some $116 million. However, the Japan esports scene has a lot of development to do.
There are several legal blockers that restrict a full and rapid expansion of esports within Japan, but times are changing. For instance, esports betting is currently illegal in Japan, which locks down a huge portion of the industry. For years, the biggest esports earners in Japan have been focused on fighting games and multiplayer online trading card games, like Shadowverse.
At an exceptional esports event in the Saitama Super Arena in Japan, all eyes were drawn to an unexpectedly electric crowd. This arena was home to the Valorant Champions Tour: Japan Stage 2 Challengers Playoff event, between the 25th and the 26th of June.
By the end of the show, more than 13,000 fans had piled into the arena, eager to support their favourite team. It was a remarkable crowd, even with the arena operating at half-capacity. However, this crowd size wasn’t limited to the venue itself, as online, on Twitch, a peak viewership count of more than 86,000 users showed up to check out the gameplay. This number was taken from the records of the Japanese Valorant profile, showing even further the rapidly-growing popularity of Valorant amongst Japanese fans.
The Japanese esports team Northeption won the Valorant Champions Tour: Japan Stage 2 Challengers Playoff event, and will compete in the VCT 2022 Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen representing Japan.
VCT 2022 Stage 2 Masters Copenhagen will take place from the 10th to the 24th of July, and will host a live audience during the final three days of the tournament. 12 teams from around the world will compete to determine the next Masters champion. The teams hail from the following regions: Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA), North America (NA), Korea, Japan, Asia Pacific (APAC), Brazil, Latin America (LATAM) and one team from either Brazil or LATAM.
