Everyone’s favorite gaming industry analyst Michael Pachter announced that his firm Wedbush is “skeptical that the Overwatch League will achieve much success,” noting that Blizzard’s multiplayer online shooter is “difficult to watch,” too expensive to buy, and unapproachable compared to other games. It gets worse: He also argues that “investors are overly optimistic” given the huge expense for running teams in a league like this one, the fact that Amazon got to Twitch first, and the likelihood that Blizzard will eventually collide with antitrust law (and the lack of relevant international law).
“The major sports leagues in the US are allowed to ‘collude’ with one another to some extent in order to limit player salaries; it is not clear that OWL will be subject to such an exemption, suggesting to us that a determined owner with a large pocketbook may be able to capture the world’s best players by guaranteeing large salaries.”
Indeed, it looks as if there’s already a trademark dispute underway; Major League Baseball is apparently contesting Overwatch League’s logo, which looks an awful lot like MLB’s.
Check out a few more online gaming business topics we’ve rounded up down below!
Dota 2 players are raising eyebrows at a new round of Immortal Treasure lootbox items, some of which are trading for over $60 apiece on the market, though some traders are counseling patience. (Thanks, Piero!)
Finally, today Blizzard will begin selling StarCraft II “war chests” stuffed with cosmetic loot. Proceeds go in part to the BlizzCon 2017 prize pool.
“Each War Chest begins with a single unit skin and an exclusive portrait. Additional skins are divided into three phases, and can be unlocked by playing Multiplayer or Co-op matches during or after the corresponding phase, until by the end of the challenge you have a full set. Your initial purchase also grants awesome rewards in other Blizzard titles.”
