Ballarat eSport competitors to participate in global premiere of new virtual reality game

Ballarat’s rapidly growing reputation as a hub of leading edge technology, gaming and digital innovation will take another major leap forward this weekend when local gamers compete in the global premiere of a locally-developed virtual reality racing game.

Competitors will be the first to try Drone Legion before it officially hits Australia’s first Esports open event in Melbourne later this month.

The City of Ballarat, in conjunction with Federation University, Ballarat Tech School and Ballarat’s Dark Shadow Studios, is pleased to offer the region’s community members the opportunity to take part in this ground-breaking Esports tournament and virtual reality experience.

It’s all part of the Digital Innovation Festival, a Victorian Government program that showcases and celebrates excellence across the Victorian digital and tech ecosystem.

This is the first year the event has been so extensively extended to Ballarat, recognising the region’s rapidly growing reputation as a hub of tech and digital industries.

The free Ballarat Esports competition will take place at the Ballarat Tech School on Saturday 25 August between 11am-2pm.

Esports is defined as a competition with video games.

Interested community members can now register for one of the 30-minute sessions to compete for the best time in Dark Shadow Studios’ virtual reality game, Drone Legion.

This will be the first time the public will have a chance to play the game before it hits Australia’s first Esport Open at Rod Laver Arena later this month.

The competitor with the fastest time on the day will win a $100 GUF Games gift voucher.

Attendees will also have the chance to experience other virtual reality offerings, such as the City of Ballarat’s 3D Virtual Tours of the city’s heritage buildings and hidden spaces.

Anyone interested is encouraged to book one of the limited spaces at: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/esports-and-virtual-reality-experience-tickets-49028667063

The Digital Innovation Festival runs from Friday 24 August to Friday 7 September.

This year, GovHack events will open and close the Digital Innovation Festival in Ballarat.

The GovHack Ballarat Information and Connections Night will open the festival on 24 August from 5.30pm.

Designed as a networking event and dinner, coders, designers, story tellers, activists, analysts and journalists are encouraged to sign up for the two-hour event at the Ballarat Tech School for a chance to learn more about GovHack and how to get involved.

Then from Friday 7 September through to Sunday 9 September the festival will wrap up with GovHack Ballarat at the new Ballarat Tech School.

GovHack is an open data hackathon, run annually by volunteers which is focussed on unlocking the value in open data published by government.

Now in its fifth year, GovHack Ballarat celebrates technical and creative capacity, opens the door to collaboration with governments, and has helped to advance the cause of open data to drive social and economic value.

For more information about GovHack, or to register for one of the events visit: govhack.org

The City of Ballarat also supports and partners a number of other events available during this year’s Digital Innovation Festival, including the Ballarat Hackerspace Workshops.

This community-run organisation supports and encourages Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Mathematics (STEAM) culture in the Ballarat and surrounding regions.

The City of Ballarat is proud to support the event, which also aligns with the city’s Creative City Strategy.

The Creative City Strategy will specifically examine how the creative sectors, including gaming and digital services, can play an integral part in Ballarat’s overall economy and culture.

For more information visit about the Digital Innovation Festival, or to register for one of the many Ballarat events visit: vic.gov.au/dif or follow @difvic #DIFvic on Twitter.

Quotes attributable to Ballarat Mayor Samantha McIntosh:

“Esports is a major emerging industry, with huge potential for new gaming related jobs, investments and visitors to Ballarat.

More than 10,000 people are expected to attend the upcoming Esports Open over each day it is held in Melbourne, and that one event alone is estimated to bring more than $25 million to the Victorian economy over five years.

Ballarat is ahead of the pack as the next major Eports hub outside Melbourne, and this tournament is a great showcase of our local game development industry.”