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No underdog: Time to acknowledge great force of Indonesian e-sports
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Competing: The BOOM Esports team plays in the Gamers Galaxy tournament in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates. (Courtesy of BOOM Esports) (Personal collection/Courtesy of BOOM Esport)
T
he world has seen Indonesian e-sports players win championships. The only thing left is for other Indonesians to see its greatness as they do other sports.
In recent months, e-sports has taken Indonesians on social media by storm. Just earlier this month, an Indonesian e-sports team surprised many by winning an international competition against the holding champions. Twitter trending topics bearing the team’s name then started popping out left and right.
That team was BOOM (Beast on Our Mind) Esports, a multinational e-sports organization from Indonesia established in 2016. They just won the Gamers Galaxy series in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates on March 7, effectively becoming Southeast Asia’s current biggest team, even ranking second worldwide just below the Chinese giant PSG.LGD.
Speaking to The Jakarta Post on Mar. 11, the team’s CEO and founder Gary Ongko Putera was beaming with joy.
“Very happy, of course,” Gary said about BOOM’s success. “To be honest, I was a bit moved.”
That feeling was shared by those who follow Dota 2, the biggest e-sports game in the world with a prize of more than US$40 million.
“I do feel proud, but I feel happier because at least Indonesians can finally show off [their talents] in big international tournaments,” 22-year-old e-sports enthusiast Fernanda Dimas said.
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