While the rest of the country started winding down for the holidays, it felt like South African esports players levelled up in a big way this month. There were so many successes and new stories to tell. I tried to share a few on Red Bull Gaming. I’ve shared all my favourite stories from the month below and also included a little behind the scenes insight and tidbits into how these stories came to be. You can click on the image to be taken to the full article. Happy reading!

Meet the Kenyan law student making a name for herself in gaming

A few months ago, QueenArrow started following me on social media and I was immediately interested in her profile. She mentioned in her bio she played Tekken competitively. I didn’t know a lot about Kenya’s esports community so I decided to follow her back. From there I became obsessed with her… in a good way I swear. She was also studying law and just had some really interesting commentary. I really wanted to tell her story because it interested me and I thought it would do the same for others. Red Bull let me tell it on their platform and it is a goodie.

South African gamers weigh in on the new generation of consoles

With all the new consoles dropping in November I was curious to find out what some of South Africa’s gamers – both casual and competitive – thought about the consoles and how they might impact our country. We have a much smaller gaming player base than the likes of the UK and exorbitantly high data costs. I wondered what gamers in the country were thinking, when all that new console hype was going on. I chatted to some top esports players, shoutcasters, tournament organisers and well known streamers to get their insight:

Who to watch in the Red Bull Hit the Streets FINALS

Last year I had the honour of desk hosting the first ever Red Bull Hit the Streets competition in Cape Town. We shut down an entire street and put on this awesome show with guys competing for a spot at Red Bull Kumite in Japan. JabhiM won the competition and I’d been telling his story that year – how he started without a console – and it was such a privilege to be able to watch him win. This year it didn’t look like Hit the Streets would happen because of Covid, but the Red Bull team figured out how to pull it off. I wrote this piece leading up to the final:

Meet South Africa’s best Tekken 7 Player

After Hit the Streets 2020 took place, I had a chance to interview and chat to the Tekken 7 winner. Iggy is one of the brightest lights I’ve met. Not only that but he is so incredibly humble about his achievements and the work he is doing to uplift young South Africans. Being able to hopefully give more light to his story as his adventure to travelling and competing overseas begins, was something special:

How Street Fighter V is growing in South Africa

I end up my recap of stories with an insightful interview from JabhiM, South African Street Fighter V legend. I was one of the first to interview him, I believe, back in early 2019. Watching this young man grow into the competitor he is and sharing in his journey has been so incredibly special for me. I spoke to him about the future and it looks so bright for him. I can’t wait to share more of his journey in 2021: