The month of February was a busy one for me esports broadcast wise but it was also a really busy one with rad stories for us to follow and narratives being woven as the competitive season in South Africa and the world picks up. I’ve put together some of my favourite esports and gaming stories from the month of March for you to take a look at. Most of these I had the privilege of being able to tell, hopefully you find something here you like:
Yvng Savage says the best is yet to come
I’ve been following Thabo “YvngSavage” Moloi’s journey since he broke on to the esports scene in South Africa as an unknown, claiming a R400 000 prize at a VS Gaming competition. Since then I’ve had the chance to document his story, travel with him to Dubai and get to know an extraordinary young man. He’s gone from young and shy to a confident person finding his own. My time with him as also awarded me the privilege of seeing behind the veneer of social media. I knew he had had a rough 2020 and asked if I could share that part of his story, the one we tend not to tell. He allowed me to sit down with him and talk about some of the struggles that come with “making it”. You can read the full interview on Red Bull.
Sharon “Shaz” Waison retires from CSGO
Way before Tech Girl was a thing I freelance wrote for a few tech sites and other places. My first rAge article actually appeared on one of those sites and it included chatting to Shaz, who was competing in a Telkom Gaming Battlefield tournament at the time. When I actively entered South African esports and started my broadcast career she was one of the first to give me a chance and befriend me. We’ve been great friends ever since and Shaz is a constant source of joy and support for me. She is one of the few people I count as a close friend. When she decided to retire from competitive CSGO I really wanted to try honour her and give a history of what she has accomplished for women in Esports. She allowed me to do that. I wrote her retirement piece on Red Bull, which you can click here to read.
Project Blerd – for township gamers
Goliath Gaming ran a content creator search a few months ago and I remember one of their reps reaching out to me about someone who had applied. Xolani was a games writer and had started an online magazine called Project Blerd during lockdown. He wanted to create a voice for township gamers and I was sent a few issues. I was hooked by his writing, his ideas and his passion. I wanted to share that with as many people as I could and so had a chance to write up a bit more about Xolani for Red Bull. You can read that article here.
Esports in Africa – a feature by Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera, the international news network, put together a show focusing on esports in Africa – from the struggles faced by African players to the various unique aspects the continent offers for competitive gaming. This is a good watch if you’ve ever wanted to understand esports in developing markets and not just the big stages and bright lights of Europe, Asia and America.
Some great South African FIFA Players to pay attention to
I absolutely love the South African FIFA scene because I find the players involved have such rich stories and narratives for us to follow and enjoy, which is really where my love for esports was born. This piece highlights some players who have obtained international success is 2021 and documents their journeys as they wait for COVID travel bans to lift so they can compete overseas. You can read the article by clicking here.
South African Valorant – what you need to know
Valorant is the FPS game from Riot that has turned shooting game fans a bit crazy. It’s a mash up between CSGO and Overwatch and really interesting as a competitive game. I chatted to a South African shoutcaster about where Valorant is going and how South African players are faring competitively. The interview is on Red Bull.
