How ‘Duelyst’ Brings New Life To Collectible Card Strategy

With games like Hearthstone, Magic: The Gathering and Pokémon (just to name a few), enthusiasm for collectible card games (CCGs) are at an all-time high. CCG elements have even been included in recent hits like Clash Royale, which makes it the perfect time for a game like Duelyst to come along to take the genre a step further. Developed by Counterplay Games, a studio comprised of designers who have worked on games like Diablo III, Ratchet & Clank and Rogue Legacy, Duelyst is a free-to-play title that combines collectible cards with squad-based tactical strategy elements that you would normally find in turn-based role-playing games.

The game hit Kickstarter in 2014, reached its $68,000 goal in six days, and concluded its campaign with $137,707 in funding. Creative director, Keith Lee, then set to work over the next two years, writing lore that covers 30,000 years of in-game history, which is the equivalent of three novels. This attention to story gives Duelyst its unique personality and a sense of cohesion between its characters and creatures, whereas other CCGs may seem to throw a variety of creatures together without much rhyme or reason to them.

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Players choose a General from among six different factions, each with unique spells, creatures and styles, and get to work collecting cards, building custom decks and becoming more powerful. Cards transform into pixel-art animated creatures once they’re placed on the battlefield, where they can be directed like pieces on a living chess board. This level of gameplay gives Duelyst a layer of strategy that isn’t found in other CCGs.

The gameplay itself focuses on 1v1 match-ups, where players can battle each other to progress in monthly ranked ladder seasons, or they can play against the computer in practice mode or solo challenges. One stand-out mode is called The Gauntlet, where players are challenged to survive as long as possible for increasingly better rewards. The game is currently in open beta, which boasts over two million games played so far, and will release for PC and Mac on April 27th before coming to mobile devices sometime in the future.

Keith Lee, CEO of Counterplay, talked to [a]listdaily about the grass-roots promotion of the game and how the emphasis on a deep and evolving story, tactical strategy, and the company’s dedication to supporting the game with new features, could make Duelyst a major player among CCGs.

Kieth LeeWhat inspired the creation of Duelyst?

A fervent love for classic turn-based strategy games such as Final Fantasy Tactics, Advance Wars and Fire Emblem. However, all these titles are primarily solo oriented, with single-player campaigns and multiplayer generally tacked on as an afterthought.

Instead, we wanted to build a deeply strategic game with a singular focus on multiplayer head-to-head online play. And we wanted to create a game where matches last less than 10 minutes rather than spanning endless hours or days. We’re getting to the point where we as developers can’t simply sit down to play a game uninterrupted for an hour.

How have you been getting the word out about Duelyst?

Primarily through word-of-mouth and organic traffic on Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube. Even in our open beta, we’ve achieved two million matches played from organic growth.

With so many CCGs around now, how will a game like Duelyst stand out?

First, Duelyst isn’t just a traditional card sequence game. We have a top-down tactical battlefield where your battle units actually move around and fight. Think holo-chess [Dejarik] from Star Wars.

Second, Duelyst isn’t just a CCG with story tacked on later. Duelyst contains an immersive living storyline that spans 30,000 years, epochs, with individual lore cards that intertwine to create a logical, cohesive world. As a result, players can also impact the story, so you’ll see the world evolve and develop through time based on our players decisions.

Third, we plan to release deeply integrated in-game tournament tools to support and reduce friction for tournament organizers. This is something not commonly supported in CCGs.

Do you hope that Duelyst will be adopted as an eSport?

We don’t consider ourselves an eSport, since that’s a very top-down approach and mentality that we don’t believe in. We take a bottom-up approach by nurturing, growing, and supporting the needs and aspirations for all types of players in our community. If competitive participation grows month-to-month, then we’re already successful.

What features are you looking to include in the future?

Our next-biggest feature will be a new play mode that will allow players to work cooperatively to achieve common goals. That way, our game isn’t just a purely adversarial 1v1 game, but it also offers brand-new ways to play Duelyst together with your friends.

How do you feel about the tremendous popularity of CCGs right now?

As the popularity of CCGs grows, all CCGs will also grow in new users, like all boats rising with the tide. As it moves to the mainstream, it’s much easier for players to understand card game fundamentals such as card advantage, tempo, and card value across all titles.

We also look at complementary sectors. CCGs like ours that last only 10 minutes are perfect games for waiting or queuing for other games, such as MOBAs where players might need to wait 20+ minutes between queues. So that’s a great thing!

Excedrin Uses Augmented Reality To Simulate Migraine Symptoms

Although over 36 million people in the U.S. suffer from migraine headaches, those who don’t have a hard time understanding what it’s like. Migraines include severe head pain but can also include sensitivity to light, sound, odors and optical anomalies known as auras. Excedrin, manufacturer of over-the-counter pain relievers, is spreading awareness of migraines—and their brand—through a unique application of Augmented Reality. AR uses cameras and software to combine elements of both reality and virtual reality to create a hybrid experience. This technique has been made popular through video games, particularly the upcoming title, Pokémon GO.

Dubbed the Migraine Experience, Excedrin created an immersive AR program that replicates the symptoms of a migraine, utilizing both audio and visual elements. The company then recruited four migraine sufferers and custom-tailored the augmented reality to match their symptoms as closely as possible.

“People don’t understand what migraines feel like because the symptoms are also hard to imitate,” Jessica, one of the volunteers told Excedrin. She describes her personal migraine symptoms as “like ambulance sirens going off in your head, but 1,000 decibels louder.”

The four volunteers chose someone in their life who thought that migraines were “just headaches” or an excuse to cancel plans or work. The result of the experiment resulted in a new-found understanding and empathy from those who agreed to try the augmented reality program. Excedrin shared their findings through a number of TV spots in addition to posting a video on YouTube:

Augmented reality is often used to market a video game or engage students in the classroom, but Excedrin has taken the unique approach of marketing empathy through suffering. This development opens up the possibility of using AR or VR to simulate other neurological ailments for study and awareness campaigns.

Excedrin’s Migraine Experience isn’t open to the public, but those interested can learn more on the official website.

Newzoo: ‘Clash Royale’ Becomes World’s Top-Grossing Mobile Game

Supercell, developers of the popular free-to-play game Clash of Clans, has had a splendid 2015. It brought in $2.3 billion in revenue last year — a 35 percent increase year-over-year, and the game’s success isn’t showing any signs of slowing down anytime soon, especially with last month’s release of Clash Royale.

Newzoo recently published a report detailing Clash Royale‘s tremendous success, and even named it as the top-grossing mobile game in the world for March. The game amassed $80 million in revenue across both iOS and Android platforms last month, with a total revenue of $110 million worldwide before both Apple and Google took their respective 30-percent cuts.

iOS appears to be the most popular platform for the game, and the numbers are expected to rise even further when Clash Royale releases for Android in China sometime in the near future. What’s surprising is how much business has kept up for Clash of Clans, even with Royale‘s release. The game only saw a single-digit decline for the month of March.

The reason for Clash Royale‘s success is easy to spot, as the game includes both multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) titles and card collecting (à la Hearthstone) elements to create a unique gameplay experience that’s easy for everyone to pick up. It’s also a free-to-play title, meaning players don’t need to make an investment to be involved. However, gold and chests are available for purchase for those that want to maximize their performance and gain certain advantages. Purchasing gold enables players to unlock new cards, as well as upgrade current ones already in their hand.

Royale‘s biggest fans come from North America, where 33 percent of the game’s overall revenue comes from. Close behind is Asia Pacific with 31 percent and Europe with 23 percent.

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Keep in mind that this is all before the Android version hits China, where it’s likely to gain even more revenues. Newzoo should have a follow-up on its debut and sales in the weeks ahead.

The release of Royale continues to show Supercell’s strength in the mobile market, indicating that it can adapt to popular trends quickly and deliver gaming experiences that will keep players coming back.

BrightLocker CEO Details Crowdpublishing Business Model

BrightLocker hopes to change the development game. The startup, which is led by an executive team with experience from major game companies such as Electronic Arts, Blizzard, Sony, and BioWare, has introduced the concept of “crowdpublishing” to the game industry.

The company has launched a platform for gamers to imagine new games, pick which should be made, invest in these games, and then earn rewards, achievements and cash from playing them. BrightLocker has already launched its first game, the iOS title LightEaters.

BrightLocker CEO, Ruben Cortez, explains how his company differs from Fig, Gambitious, and other entrants in the crowdfunding market and what impact it could have on the video game industry.

rubencortezHow does BrightLocker differ from Fig, Gambitious, and other companies in this space?

Fig and Gambitious are simply crowdfunding platforms for games. BrightLocker goes well beyond this, encouraging gamers not just to fund development, but to be instrumental in the creation and selection of games to be developed, and to earn rewards and cash once games are launched. For the first time ever, gamers have an opportunity to earn a share of revenue from game ideas they themselves generate and our community helps fund. BrightLocker provides the professional game development resources to make the games our community wants to see made.

What’s the difference between crowdfunding and crowdpublishing?

Existing crowdfunding simply asks participants to provide cash in exchange for an end product that may never happen. Crowdpublishing instead encourages gamer involvement across the whole process, from submitting original concepts and selecting which get made through to the actual development and launch. Unlike other game-funding services, BrightLocker directly uses professional development teams, so gamers know funded games will get made.

What opportunities are you providing for investors?

The original game creator is rewarded with a share of revenue. Funding participants receive rewards they can use across the platform and for game unlocks. We have plans to expand participant rewards beyond just digital and physical goods and experiences, to possibly include financial rewards. BrightLocker will announce more details about equity investment opportunities in the future.

What opportunities are there for gamers?

Gamers have an opportunity to see their game created by a professional development team and published for all the world to play. Best of all, we pay the original game creator a royalty out of all revenue generated from game sales, including in-game transactions. There is no cap on the amount of revenue share a creator can earn. The better the game sales, the more the idea creator can make. The creator also gets credit in the game and on the platform for being the creator of the game.

What kind of structure is there, and what exactly are people “owning” through this business model?

Gamers own a continued share of revenue for both first-party and third-party distribution rights. Gamers who submit game ideas, yet don’t win, retain all rights to their game, including any professional services purchased.

At this time, we are not announcing details of our equity crowdfunding plans, but will release those in coming months.

How does this operate around the JOBS Act framework?

Reg A+ of the JOBS Act means that “non-accredited” investors can join in and potentially receive financial benefits from equity investments made into companies. This is certainly a development we welcome. With this in mind, we do have plans to include our own opportunities for gamers and other investors to investment in games. We will outline this in future releases.

Can you detail the first game that’s gone through this process?

LightEaters was created as an internal project designed to help us prove concepts we had created on how to truly innovate the crowdfunding-player experience. We eventually realized we had a fun game and extended our production to fully polish the game for distribution. We built the game using the same principles we will use to crowdpublish games once we are live. LightEaters gives players a glimpse of the integration plans we have for future games.

Why did you choose this title for this model?

LightEaters was selected as a game of sufficient scope to test our game pipeline and platform integration. While we do intend to offer cross-platform games in the future, iOS offered a short enough development timeline to complete our platform integration quickly. And also because it’s a fun title we think gamers will enjoy.

What are you looking for when it comes to additional games to fund?
BrightLocker’s unique crowd selection process allows gamers to vote on which game ideas they want to see created by our professional development teams. So gamers will help us choose those games they would most like to play. Additionally, BrightLocker is considering and will continue to consider established video game IP to be placed on the platform for funding and development as well.

How are you connecting with gamers and investors once there is an opportunity?

Gamer communication happens exclusively through the platform and our social media channels. We’ve built the platform to provide gamers with a rich experience throughout the whole game creation process, as well as through the playing of our games. When we offer equity investing opportunities, the platform will help facilitate investor communication and those investment transactions as well.

 

Two Bit Circus Transforms Classic Entertainment With Modern Technology

Eric Gradman is the co-founder and chief technology officer of the Two Bit Circus, a high-tech spectacle that has a fine eye on old-school showbiz paired with contemporary immersive experiences.

The experiential company is carrying the momentum from a strong 2015 highlighted by $6.5 in funding, being named as a top startup to watch, as well as an installation of their live-action, social immersion game Story Room at Dave & Busters.

Gradman will be speaking at the [a]list summit on April 20 in Seattle to give the audience a taste of what makes Two Bit Circus a trendsetter in entertainment. (Spoiler alert: He’s also beta testing a new way to give highly interactive presentations.)

The interactive artist joined [a]listdaily to discuss how they’re bringing novel forms of entertainment to the world, and innovating at the time.

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Can you tell us a little about what you do?

We’re a high-tech circus! What Ringling Bros. did with animals, and Cirque du Soleil did with human performers, we’re doing with technology. For over the last few decades, technology has transformed almost every aspect of our lives. But when you want to go out and have fun with friends on a Saturday night, you’re stuck with the same few options you’ve had for 50 years. We’re revolutionizing out-of-home entertainment with modern technology.

Story Room is an immersive in-real-life-installation that brings six-to-eight players together to experience something that’s a TV episode, video game and interactive theater experience all rolled together. There are plot twists, puzzles to solve and you’ll leave with the satisfaction of having saved the world.

Steam Carnival is a traveling carnival complete with high-tech games, engaging workshops for kids and mind-expanding stage performances. We get to blow the minds of people twice—once when they see classic carnival games reimagined with technology, and then again when we pull back the curtain and show them how we design and build those games. We also recognized early on that virtual is transforming the media landscape, and we’ve pioneered VR activations for top sports brands combining 360-degree video and haptic platforms for total immersion.

What is it like to be a venture-backed circus?

Running a high-tech circus is hard work, but a challenge we’re excited to take on. We’re glad to have funding and investors who believe in our vision. Our venture investment is allowing us to bring some truly novel forms of entertainment to the world while continuing to develop and innovate in immersive entertainment.

You guys are building a content studio for VR. Can you tell us more about that?

We’ve added an extreme sports director to the roster, Bo Bridges, to take what we’ve done so far with live-action sports to the next level. We’ve built out two new cameras that are highly cinematic, and polished. We’re shooting with them right now on projects we can’t yet disclose, but we’re excited about future consumer-focused projects, too. We are building considerable tech to support social interaction and activation within VR, including accompanying haptics and motion platforms. We have also expanded on our VR syncbox capabilities for clients to command a variety of playback sync functions.

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How have you worked with brands in the past?

Story Room, VR and Steam Carnival are all entertainment platforms, and we’ve never had trouble finding meaningful brand partnerships and integrations. For example, we built a Story Room to help the CW Network launch their show The Flash. This was a travelling, immersive experience full of interactive that gave every visitor The Flash’s superhuman speed, all stitched into a story and summed up with a social media takeaway. We built our VR studio by creating incredibly memorable activations for major sports brands like the NBA, NFL, the Olympics, Indycar, and more. We’ve become a leader in action-sports VR, and are excited to continue evolving within VR, augmented reality and mixed reality by creating unique storytelling content that reaches new genres and audiences. Our Steam Carnival is made possible with help from incredible sponsors and partners. For our most recent Carnival, we worked with title sponsors—Cisco and Cartoon Network—to create an amazing three-day experience for over 16,000 attendees. We love working with brands who’re as excited as we are about inspiring the next generation of inventors.

Branded entertainment is bound to be on the minds of attendees at the summit. What advice do you have for brands on engaging an audience?

Even when working with big brands, we always try to focus on what’s going to be fun for the customer. We’re limitless in our ability to craft game-changing experiences, so those that know our brands have come to understand that if it’s a Two Bit Circus production, it’s going to likely be something they’ve never seen. We’ve found that when we create products and experiences that keep customers engaged and excited, that we’re able to deliver a successful activation for both the brand and the user.

Follow Manouk Akopyan on Twitter @Manouk_Akopyan.

Mike Sepso Talks About Activision Blizzard’s Huge Success In ESports

Ever since Activision purchased Major League Gaming, many have wondered if the investment would pay off. The publisher recently put all speculation to rest with a decisive “yes,” as it reported that the Counter-Strike: Global Offensive Major Championship (also known as CS:GO Major), held at the Nationwide Arena, has set a new record for viewership. The broadcast, which aired earlier this month, has managed to generate 71 million video views, with fans tuning in to a record-breaking 45 million hours of live broadcast. It also maintained a steady amount of concurrent viewers, with 1.6 million watching the proceedings.

These numbers break the previous CS:GO Major record of 34 million hours viewed and 1.3 million concurrent viewers gained last year.

“Last year, more than 225 million people watched competitive gaming, and the passion, engagement and size of this audience only continues to grow,” said Mike Sepso, senior vice president of Activision Blizzard Media Networks and Major League Gaming, in a press statement. “As this year’s CS:GO Major numbers show, Activision Blizzard Media Networks’ commitment to broadcasting premium content and creating incredible events is resonating with players and fans around the world.”

This could be the beginning of big things for Activision’s eSports division. To gain more insight, [a]listdaily spoke with Sepso regarding the results of the Major tournament, as well as what fans can expect next.

Mike_SepsoWhat do these numbers say about Activision Blizzard’s investment in Major League Gaming and the company’s prospects for its eSports division?

We’re incredibly proud of the record-breaking numbers from the CS:GO Major in Columbus, and I think it reinforces that the investment was an important step toward our goal of bringing eSports into the mainstream through premium broadcasts, organizing world class events, and expanding our distribution platforms. The eSports audience is estimated to be bigger than audiences for many professional sports leagues in a few years, and I think the Media Networks division is uniquely positioned to strengthen Activision Blizzard’s leadership in the space.

What do you think the biggest draw was regarding the CS:GO Major championship? 

There were a number of great storylines leading up to this specific event. It was the first North American Major, it had the most North American teams to ever qualify going up against eight legendary teams, and it wound up being won by an underdog in Luminosity Gaming from Brazil. I think a lot of the continued success CS has seen over the years is also a testament to Valve creating a great game for eSports, and driving community interaction via unique souvenir drops and skins for the events.

What factors do you think will tie in with the future of eSports? Will Activision Blizzard Media Networks be following these every step of the way?

Activision Blizzard has a rich history in eSports, and now we’ve added the additional support of Major League Gaming’s experts and technology to help guide the way forward with the ultimate goal of making eSports more mainstream. I think there will be shifts in the way broadcasts are presented, the organization of global league play, and how that data is organized and used to create the best-in-class fan experiences. Social media created a seismic shift in the industry, and in some respects, it’s made our jobs easier because we can quickly and transparently communicate with the community as events are happening to make adjustments to the broadcast or the schedule that better the experience.

Snapchat Enhancing Its Video With 3D Stickers

The idea of playing around with augmented reality is still a fresh one, with more companies looking to integrate the technology with their products. The latest to do so is Snapchat, which recently added new 3D stickers for its millions of users to put into their videos, according to TechCrunch.

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As you can see in the photo above, there are many great ways for these stickers to be put into video, whether it’s putting an emoji over the face of a cat, or putting a fake plane into a drawn skyline. These stickers can be put onto objects within a video and they will stay throughout, no matter what’s happening in it. This opens up a wealth of new opportunities for content creators and casual users alike.

What’s more, the process is quite painless. Snapchat fans simply record a video, tap the sticker button located at the top of the screen, put it in place over the object of choice, and hold it down to apply it.

Although Snapchat didn’t say much in regards to who put together the feature, TechCrunch found out that the team recently hired Eitan Pilipski, vice president of engineering from Vuforia, a company that specializes in augmented reality technology with “the power to connect experiences to specific things in the environment.” Its demonstration video below showcases just what it could do with AR, and you can see some of those elements in play with Snapchat’s stickers.

This is the latest addition to Snapchat’s video services, following the debut of an animated lens to further push creativity in user-created content. The 3D sticker update is available now on Android, and coming soon to iOS devices.

 

5 Ways The ‘Battleborn’ Promotion Proved It Was Badass

The Battleborn open beta began on the PlayStation 4 last week, and today, it expands to include Xbox One and PC players. With 25 unique characters to choose from, a variety of competitive multiplayer modes, and a cooperative campaign, there’s a tremendous amount of content for fans to look forward to when the game releases in May. It is certainly earning its reputation as the most ambitious game Gearbox Software has ever developed.

Promoting the game since its announcement in 2014 has been strong, and designed to appeal to both Gearbox’s existing fan base and new ones. This is how Battleborn went from being a new, unknown IP to being the shooter for every kind of badass.

Becoming Badass

Still riding on the immense success of the Borderlands franchise, Gearbox and 2K Games announced Battleborn in July 2014 and generated huge interest by describing it as the developer’s most ambitious game to date. Not content with dropping a teaser trailer and leaving the game shrouded in mystery, Gearbox kept the momentum going in the fall with the reveal of a cooperative campaign, which was surely meant to appeal to Borderlands fans, but the announcement went a step further. There was an 18-minute gameplay video that demonstrated what the campaign would look like. Not only did this give audiences a first-look at what to expect from the game, but it let them know that the game was fairly far into its development. This sense of transparency would be seen throughout Battleborn’s promotion.

However, it wasn’t until about a year later that Battleborn‘s promotion campaign solidified its sense of identity. Some of the game’s story and gameplay elements were shown at E3 2015, and its trailer proclaimed that this was a shooter “for every kind of badass.” This set the tone for game, and paved the way for the competitive multiplayer features to be revealed in October at PlayStation’s Paris Games Week.

Bringing Fans To The Game

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The annual San Diego Comic Con (SDCC) is a massive event where comic book and video game fans converge. Gearbox made the event extra special for at least two of the attendees with a contest. Two winners were flown out to San Diego, where they could attend the convention, completely geek out for four days, and play a lot of Battleborn.

More surprises were in store at the convention. Gearbox partnered with Nerdist to host a massive four-day laser tag event at Petco Park. The event was open to the public, so anyone could come in for some laser tag and Battleborn time and win prizes. Celebrities including Felicia Day, Wil Wheaton, Nathan Fillion, Alan Tudyk, and Daniel Radliffe made guest appearances.

The trip to SDCC was soon followed by another contest called the Battleborn Badass Vacation Giveaway. In it, two lucky winners were flown to Seattle to attend PAX Prime, complete with a four-night stay in a “swanky” hotel room. They also got special VIP access to the Battleborn demo, so they could play without having to wait on line, and got front-row seats at the Gearbox panel. As if that weren’t enough, the two winners also got some sweet swag to show off.

Fans Prove They’re Battleborn

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2k announced the #IAmBattleborn contest in September last year, and it was a chance one fan to become immortalized in the game. Contestants were asked to submit a short video of themselves doing an original taunt for any of the revealed Battleborn characters. The winning taunt would be included in the game.

The only downside is, there’s a better than average chance the winner will eventually be taunted by his or her own taunt. But that’s the cost of immortality!

Battleborn‘s Big Splash At PlayStation Experience

Although Battleborn is releasing on multiple platforms, the game has had an especially close relationship with Sony. Gearbox Software CEO, Randy Pitchford, took to the stage during December’s PlayStation Experience’s keynote presentation to reveal Battleborn‘s 16th (out of 25) playable hero—a penguin named Toby. Although Toby might seem unassuming at first, he actually turns out to be an engineering genius with anger management issues, and he drives a powerful battle-mech.

Furthermore, Gearbox announced that the Battleborn open beta would come to PlayStation 4 players first. The PS4’s “Badass Weekend” began on April 8th, and participants will receive a special 26th hero when the game launches on May 3rd.

Post Launch Vision Revealed

Unlike how Borderlands post-launch content was generally kept a secret until they were revealed at special events like PAX East or E3, Gearbox has been pretty upfront with Battleborn. The developer detailed content plans in a blog post, which includes five new heroes that will be available for free, and what the cost of the of the premium packs will be. While Gearbox hinted at what the premium packs will include, it didn’t go into specific detail, so there’s still some mystery.

Furthermore, Gearbox views Battleborn‘s launch as similar to the start of a TV series. While that statement is in reference to how the game’s arching story spans eight episodes (and a prologue), which changes slightly according to the character you’re playing, there could be more to it. With a “TV-style story,” we could see the beginning of  a number of cross-media opportunities for the game. In fact, Battleborn has already started telling stories from its expanded universe with motion comics that can be seen on the game’s official YouTube channel.

[a]listdaily Weekly: Instagram Panic Sets In; The Trials and Triumphs Of Native Advertising

If the marketing industry had an office water cooler, the [a]listdaily Weekly would be it. Every Wednesday, tune in for a rundown of the most crucial topics du jour.

This week, we’re tackling the evolving conversation around Instagram’s algorithm, how the FTC is getting brands to comply with rules surrounding native ads and why ad blocking is just a symptom of a larger problem.

Have a topic in mind you’d like for us to address? Send your intel to @alistdaily.

ESPN Brings Drone Racing To TV, Signs Deal With IDRA

Drone racing is coming to mainstream television.

The International Drone Racing Association has signed a multi-year, international media distribution deal with ESPN, Dr. Scot Refsland, chairman of the IDRA, told [a]listdaily on Wednesday.

Racing’s newest phenomenon, which features remote-controlled drones that can travel designed courses faster than 70 miles per hour, will debut on ESPN with the U.S. National Drone Racing Championships beginning August 5 in New York. Set to take place in Governors Island, it’s already shaping up to be a made-for-TV spectacle by offering views of both lower Manhattan and the Statue of Liberty. The races will be streamed live on ESPN3; following each event they’ll be televised as one-hour specials on an ESPN network.

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“IDRA is focused on creating live drone racing events on a global scale that drives a sustainable drone racing eco-system,” Refsland told [a]listdaily. “With our partnership with ESPN, IDRA is moving drone racing to tens of millions of spectators globally.”

Drone racing is currently seeing an unprecedented rise in popularity and is poised to become the next behemoth racing sport alongside NASCAR and Formula 1, ESPN said in a statement announcing deal. “We look forward to providing drone racing fans a larger platform to access this exciting world,” said Matthew Volk, ESPN’s director of programming and acquisitions. “Drone racing is an opportunity to reach and connect with a growing and passionate audience.”

In recent months, drone racing has gone from a cool hobby mirroring video games on steroids to becoming a scintillating racing sport—long gone are the days of drones being a novel Christmas gift. Earlier this month, Showtime’s 60 Minutes Sports covered the rising popularity of the virtual reality experience for pilots around the world. Even Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross sees potential for a new sport. Last year, he invested $1 million into the space. Pilots making money off their passion is no longer a pipedream.

The Berkeley, California-based IDRA, which prides itself on groundbreaking drone technology, racecourse design and advancing safety standards, will be producing the content for ESPN.

Refsland, a trailblazer in the sport who has a Ph.D. from Japan’s Gifu University in virtual reality and is also the CEO of RotorSports, considers himself “a serial entrepreneur who loves to be at the spear tip of any new and emerging technology.”

He joined [a]listdaily to talk about what could be very well be the next sports craze. Refsland will be discussing drone racing in detail at the [a]list summit on April 20.

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Drone racing is a relatively new sport—how is the landscape beginning to take shape? What’s it like being on the forefront of an entirely new sport?

Drone racing is the fastest sport and technology I’ve ever seen with an acceleration behind it that is currently unmeasurable. As an example, most sports take years to go from the backyard to major broadcast. It took drone racing eight months, and IDRA is the first company to sign a major, multi-year international distribution deal with ESPN.

What makes drone racing the next big thing?

Drone racing is the next-generation sport that takes the thrill and drama of human competition that we love about the NFL, Formula 1 and NASCAR, mixes it with eSports, and delivers it through next generation broadcast via virtual reality and augmented reality.

What is the culture of drone racing like? What are the demographics of the people going to the events?

Up to this point it’s been pretty much a bunch of nerds standing in a field racing each other. But what’s interesting is that almost everyone who puts on a pair of VR goggles and goes for a ride with a drone racer gets that immediate sensation that they’re really flying in the drone. Humans have embedded deep into their DNA the ‘dream of free flight’ and this is the first time that ‘free flying’ is accessible to just about everyone. So, while currently the sport is being driven by the early nerd and tech pioneers, mostly male 20-somethings, the IDRA’s plan is to move the sport into a highly entertaining and thrilling sport akin to any professional, large-scale extreme sporting event. And because the natural adrenalin, speed and ‘thrill of human competition’ mix is so intense with drone racing, it’s going to move the demographics quickly into a 15-to-30-year-old international audience and consumer base.

What kind of sponsorship opportunities do you envision happening in drone racing?

DN16_DroneRacers

Drone racing is opening up several big opportunities for new, compelling interactions between fans and brands. For example, because drone racing is perfect for a multi-screen experience, persistent broadcasts are now a very typical experience where there are a minimum of 30 commercial breaks. It also moves past the ‘on-screen product placement’ model and pushes brands into a highly contextual position. For example, we’re experimenting with ‘Racing Changing Moments’ where a brand would be associated with a very compelling event that happens at some point in the race.

What is your personal vision for drone racing? Where do you see this all going?

Drone racing is not only the sport of the future, but the precursor industry that will lead and educate our next generation of professionals who will live in a brave new world that utilize autonomous vehicles, intelligent machines, and the like.

How do you apply your experience to drone racing?

Like most original VR pioneers, I’ve been carrying around suitcases of technology and concepts for about 20 years searching for that right convergence moment. The barriers to VR have been incredibly high, including lack of computing power, consumer adoption and almost no compelling content. When I bumped into drone racing in early 2014, I instantly realized that it could be the very catalyst to drive both VR and eSports together to create a highly competitive and addictive new sport. It has all the ingredients for a recipe of explosive, yet sustainable growth.

Follow Manouk Akopyan on Twitter @Manouk_Akopyan.