ESL Gaming announced this afternoon that following two last e-sports cups next week, its Guild Wars 2 division will close.
“It’s the end of an era – sadly, the GW2 section of ESL will be closed as of next week,” the group writes. “From all of us here at ESLGW2, we thank you for the last few years.”
What exactly that means for the future of Guild Wars 2 e-sports on the whole is currently unclear. ESL has been partnered with ArenaNet to run its World Championship series for the last couple of years; in 2016, the prize pool reached $200,000.
Prior to his departure from the company last year, former Lead Developer Colin Johanson argued that e-sports programs are “extremely successful” and crucial to the growth of the game. “Rooting against programs like pro league is basically rooting against GW2 growing,” he told Reddit at the time.
We’ve reached out to the studio and PR for clarity and will update when we have it.
Sadly, ESL's GW2 section will be closed next week. We thank you for the last few years, enjoy our last two cups!https://t.co/U0D6aMpNTh
— ESL Guild Wars 2 (@ESLGW2) April 4, 2017
