HITN TV and UBEAT.TV host end-of-school-year virtual bootcamp giving high school students in underrepresented communities access to resources and educational sessions from an impressive roster of top industry experts. Event to be live streamed globally on hitn.org
Brooklyn, NY – Video games are no longer just about aliens and monsters. Modern games range from sports to life simulation to educational games used as learning tools. They have made their way into classrooms and, most recently, with the COVID-19 pandemic seen record-breaking numbers in popularity among young people. Understanding the immense impact the esports movement is having among the younger demographics and the need for more accurate representation in both race and gender in this space, HITN-TV and UBEAT.TV have joined forces to bring a virtual Super Smash Bros competitive Bootcamp to high school students in Chicago’s most diverse communities.
Hosted over video conference, this immersive 2-day esports Bootcamp will use a combination of structured mock tournaments and sessions led by a diverse roster of top industry experts to give students the chance to refine their skills with hands-on experience as well as receive guidance, educational tips and valuable insights on what it takes to become a professional esports gamer.
Created with the objective of promoting inclusivity and giving female players and youth of color the tools to excel in competitive esports environments, this virtual event will feature the unique perspectives of leading female and minority voices in the space. Recent studies have shown a growing interest from the Latino market in both purchase and expansion of video game systems, a growth that the industry has begun to notice.
According to Simmons, Latinos are 32 percent more likely than non-Latinos to consider video games their main source of entertainment. In addition, Latinos are 54 percent more likely to buy a video game the day it’s released. Consequently, an emerging generation of millennial women of color are carving out a space for themselves in the world of esports. These Bootcamp events are providing gamers opportunities to build a network of support organizations that are also aimed at facilitating, encouraging, and training aspiring female gamers of color to reach new heights in the industry.
The Bootcamp will be hosted by TV host and gaming expert Adesina Sanchez, Danny Pena of Gamertag Radio, and Erin Simon of Cheddar Esports. Special educational sessions will be offered by recognized industry professionals including Alex Mendez, professional esports commentator of “The Titan Games”; Hector Sanchez, Head of Epic Games Publishing; esports host and reporter MalikForté, AidaMarquetti, Chief of Staff at 368 NYC; Claudia Rodriguez, League & Tournament Organizer for ASTROgaming; and Zane Bhansali, segment producer at Cheddar Esports and expert in Super Smash Bros.
Hector Sanchez comments on the opportunities that gaming has provided. “Growing up as a Puerto Rican in Humboldt Park, I would never have dreamed that gaming would be the vehicle that gave me an opportunity to see the world. I look forward to sharing a bit of that journey to hopefully inspire our most important natural resource, our youth.”
The six high schools participating in the Bootcamp include: Roberto Clemente Community Academy, Aspira, Inc of Illinois, Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos Puerto Rican High School, Von Steuben Metropolitan Science Center, Steinmetz College Prep and Albert G. Lane High School.
All the participating clubs will have the opportunity to put the skills they learned in the Bootcamp to the test in a final competition. Esports clubs of up to 20 students will represent each school.
The winning club will receive a complimentary dinner for their team.
To join the bootcamp live, please visit: https://www.hitn.org/hitn-live-streaming/
About UBEAT
UBEAT (Mediapro Group) is an eSports and entertainment multiplatform responsible for distributing LVP competitions and new entertainment formats to new audiences, including “Hoy No Se Sale”, “Todo Mal” and “Ubeat Crew”, among others. UBEAT is a 24/7 television channel with more than 4,000 hours of live national and international competitions and an OTT platform offering live and VOD content, tailoring user experience individually with personalized content and design as well as innovative and interactive functionalities, such as offline mode for viewing content without an Internet connection or the Picture-in-Picture (PiP) feature providing viewers with a second screen on their monitors. UBEAT is available online at (ubeat.tv), via mobile app and on all major pay TV operators in Spain (Movistar, Orange, beINCONNECT, Telecable, Euskatel and R) and Latin America (Sky and Movistar Play).
