Gamers8 is a festival dedicated to entertainment and esports held over 8 weeks in Riyadh. You can find all the information you need to know about the festival right here.
As the world finally emerges from the wake of Covid most of us are looking around for something to do. Sadly, a great many locations were forced to close in the last couple of years due to the restrictions. But now things are changing; new businesses are opening, more and more events are happening in-person, and people are able to get into venues again. One such in-person event is Gamers8, and in this article, we're going to give you all the details you need to know to enjoy the festival. Let's get into the details!
Want to keep up to speed on all things Gamers8?
What Is Gamers8?
Gamers8 is a festival that combines esports tournaments with live music, it's held over 8-week in Riyadh and began on July 14. The esports won't just be for the pros though, there's also going to be a ton of community competitions with real-money at stake. And the event location, Boulevard City Riyadh features a host of other attractions and experiences. So this certainly isn't an event just for gamers.
The event is organized by the Saudi Esports Federation, and is funded by partners including Mastercard, SAVVY Gaming Group, ESL FACEIT Group, Spotify, and Aramco. And when we say funded, we aren't kidding — there's a record-breaking $15,000,000 prize pool up for grabs at the various tournaments. These esports tournaments will focus on a different game each weekend, including Rocket League, Rainbow Six: Siege, Dota 2, PUBG Mobile and Fortnite. And at each of these tournaments some of the region's local talent will be attending to show what they can do, and to represent the local fans.
How Can You Watch Gamers8 Events?
If you're close enough to Riyadh to enjoy the event in-person or not, there are ways to enjoy the event. You can simply go to Riyadh City Boulevard if you're close enough (entrance is free, but events are ticketed) or you could watch the esports online via their Twitch channels. Sadly, the live music events held in the NXT LVL won't be streamed, but then live-music rarely is.
Here are the official Twitch & YouTube channels for Gamers8, and their Twitter handle, so you can stay up-to-date:
- Gamers8 Main Twitch Stream
- Gamers8 Secondary Twitch Stream
- Gamers8 Official YouTube Channel
- Gamers8 Official Twitter*
*Schedules and results are shared via Twitter during each of the tournaments.
What Is The Current Schedule Of Events?
Here are the events for both esports and music that will be happening over the course of Gamers8.
Esports
| Game | Date | Winners |
| Rocket League | 14-17 July | Team FURIA |
Dota 2 | 20-24 July | PSG.LGD |
| Fortnite (Duos & Zero-Build Duos) | 28-31 July | EpikWhale & Malibuca / Anas & Pinq (Zero-Build) |
| Rainbow Six: Siege | 4-7 August | Team BDS |
| PUBG Mobile Invitational | 11-13 August | Vampire Esports |
| PUBG Mobile Invitational Afterparty* | 18-20 August | TBD |
*PUBG does indeed have two events. It's the most popular online game in Saudi Arabia.
Music
The music events will happen in the NXT LVL Stadium each Thursday.
| Date | Time | Artists |
| 14 July | 19:15-01:00 | J Balvin, Sebastian Ingrosso and Amr Diab |
| 21 July | 19:15-01:00 | Balquees, Axwell and Hamaki |
| 28 July | 19:15-01:00 | Lil Pump, Lost Frequencies, Ozuna, Emad and DJ Malkin |
| 4 August | 19:15-01:00 | R3hab |
| 11 August | 19:15-01:00 | Nanci Ajram, Marhmello |
| 18 August | 19:15-01:00 | Russ, Alan Walker |
| 25 August | 19:15-01:00 | Black Eyed Peas, DJ Snake |
FYI, NXT LVL Stadium is air-conditioned, thankfully.
What Else Can You Do At The Event Center?
Gamers8 celebrates esports and music, but the event center at Boulevard Riyadh City also houses a ton of other attractions. It's basically a theme park of sorts, with food courts, carnival games and futuristic experiences (for any fans of 90s British TV, there's a Crystal Maze experience which is as incredible as it sounds). Here are some of the biggest highlights to be enjoyed in Boulevard Riyadh City:
Sim Arena by Aramco
The Aramco SIM Arena features SIM racing, enabling you to feel the thrill of an actual F1 car, a history of motorsport section with some of the coolest cars from over the decades, a VR component, and a gaming area with Gran Turismo and the official F1 game.
Japamura by Saudi Airlines
Japamura is a themed village that tries to recreate the traditional architecture and surroundings of Japan. You can wear traditional Japanese dress at the Yukata experience, sip free Japanese tea at the Matcha tasting, and blast out your favorite tunes at the Japanese karaoke nights.
POWR VILLA
One of Saudi's most famous esports teams will have their own villa in the center, featuring 16 content creators. The villa will include an academy, workshops, plus an opportunity for fans to meet and greet their favorite content creators.
...and there's literally hundreds of other different experiences and restaurants in the Boulevard, but you'll need to come and see it for yourself. Oh, and if you're looking for something to watch on the plane, we got you:
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