Melbourne Set To Welcome Largest Esports Venue In Southern Hemisphere
Melbourne is set to welcome the largest video gaming and esports entertainment venue in the Southern Hemisphere next year, with Fortress Esports Pty Ltd announcing plans for the development today.
Fortress Esports Pty Ltd, co-founded by Jon Satterley who was previously the Chief Digital Officer of Village Roadshow in Australia, is planning to build ‘Fortress Melbourne’ in the heart of the CBD, which will span 2,700+ square metres across two floors and is set to open its doors in early 2020.
The venue will offer a new kind of entertainment experience with over 160 gaming PCs, console gaming suites, dedicated streamer pods, RPG and tabletop gameplay area, function rooms, a full-service restaurant, two bars, and a 200 seat purpose-built esports arena with production facilities, all under one roof.
“Melbourne has become the epicentre for video gaming and esports culture with major events like Melbourne Esports Open and PAX Australia, so we’re excited to be opening our first flagship venue in Melbourne and offer Australians a unique entertainment space that they can enjoy all year round,“ CEO at Fortress Esports, Jon Satterley, said.
“We want to make Fortress Melbourne the ultimate ‘home away from home’ for everyone, from casual gamers, competitive gamers and esports fanatics, to families and after-work crowds.
“Fortress Melbourne will offer the best video gaming experiences and entertainment, with the newest tech, fastest internet, comfortable decor, great food and drinks, and a rich calendar of events and tournaments, plus more.”
For the development, Fortress Esports Pty Ltd has partnered exclusively with US-based Allied Esports, the world’s leading network of esports venues and production facilities and operators of the famed HyperX Esports Arena at the Luxor in Las Vegas, to deliver a world-class esports experience and venue.
Allied Esports will be lending its expertise in global event programming, development and operation so Fortress will be a ready-to-go championship destination for tournaments.
Fortress Esports is also working with global architectural design firm Populous, the designers of ANZ Stadium and the new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, to transform the current basement and lower ground space, which will have a separate entry from Caledonian Lane, in Emporium Melbourne.
According to Interactive Games and Entertainment Association’s Digital Australia 2020 Report, co-authored with Bond University, 2 in 3 Australians play video games and Fortress Esports plans to capitalise on these figures by building additional Fortress locations in Australia and New Zealand in the coming years.
