Many have heard about how much fun events can be, especially Dreamhack Winter 2017, with the full experience of professionals as well as amateurs alike bringing their rig to Dreamhack, and having a whole weekend of Esports under one roof.
Dreamhack Winter 2017 Opening
Dreamhack Winter 2017 Main Stage Hall PC Area
From days before, for those who get the chance to see the event shape up during its initial organizing stages, one can see the dedication that organizers and crew alike have towards delivering the utmost quality.
The event starts out with organizers, booth owners as well as tournament creators alike, setting up their stages ahead of time, in advance of the massive crowd that would then flood in through the gates in the coming days.
The gates would then see tens of thousands of players and visitors alike rushing through, some with just their hands in their pockets as they go to their favorite game’s main stage to watch top teams clash in epic battles. Others carrying a full gaming set up to then spend a good three days of full blast gaming at one of the halls.
The first day is more of an orientation visit, with booths finishing off their set ups, some smaller events taking it to the stage, and some big ones making preparations for the following days.
Amongst these set ups, is the main stage. Although not main for some big events as those feature custom stages of their own, the main stage is used for the bigger activities, one of which is the opening show, and this year’s show was as amazing as ever.
Booths
These served for many multiple purposes at the event, not only were some an experience to be in, such as some of the racing ones which featured full car simulators as well as actual cars modified to be used on gaming, but others also featured small stages for BYOP tournaments to be run all day long for all the weekend, where anyone could walk up and compete for awesome prizes.
Other booths featured their newest products, some not even fully released to the market such as the newest widescreen curved monitor by Samsung as one can see below.
49 inch Samsung QLED Curved Gaming Monitor Back View
49 inch Samsung QLED Curved Gaming Monitor Front View
Or custom-built Rigs by parts manufacturers such as these amazing ones at the MSI Overwatch Booth.
MSI Overwatch Booth Custom Rig
Dreamhack’s Main Events
Alas, the one thing that surely pulled everyone to Dreamhack was the events, and this year it was packed. From Frontline Battle Royal Open tournaments, to Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds to CS:GO, Dota 2, H1Z1, Quake, Arena of Valor and more!
Dreamhack Winter 2017 Team France ready to accept the NPT Trophy
Some exciting ones included the Arena of Valor NPT Finals, which featured four countries fighting it out for their share of $100,000. For such a new game the prize pool is incredible, and we got to see one of the most exciting AoV matches ever with the Germany-Spain Semi-Final going to a full five-game series, ending 3-2 to the Germans after a quick thought backdoor strategy that broke a long lasting stalemate in the final game. The French on the other hand had little difficulty as they breezed through the semi-final against Italy with a 3-0 score. They then shocked everyone as they also 3-0’d in the final, making decisive draft picks and securing their spot as NPT Champions.
Dreamhack Winter 2017 Casters
PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds
PUBG also saw some exciting play with the likes of Team Liquid and other organizations having fielded players for this event. All players were closely ranked in terms of skill, with no-one really shining too far ahead of the rest. However, in the duo event Avnqr and Balloc showed up big time, winning the event with an incredible lead over the second-place finishers.
Dreamhack Winter 2017 Stage – Gambit Esports vs mousEsports
CS:GO
CS:GO also saw some exciting action, with mousesports, Na’Vi, Team EnVyUs and Gambit Gaming going through groups with little difficulty as EnVyUs and Gambit didnt drop a single map in groups, Na’Vi and mousesports had to take the lower bracket final, where only Na’Vi dropped a map in the best of three to make it to the finals.
Here, Na’Vi played their redemption card, as they fought back and managed to breeze through without dropping a single map, taking both series in the semi-final and grand final 2-0 to take home the title.
Dota 2
The biggest surprise at the event was Dota 2, with the dreamleague finals featuring a whopping $1,000,000 prize pool. many teams participated, with the most renowned ones being Na’Vi, Team Secret, Team Liquid, Newbee as well as Evil Geniuses. However, the event itself was truthfully a story of Team Secret and Liquid. Both teams didn’t drop a single map except to each other in the winner bracket final, where Secret came on top with a 2-1 score.
However, Team Secret weren’t happy with their result, as they went on to reassert their strength, winning the Grand Final with a 2-0 score.
However, all events must come to an end, and so did this one, but don’t be saddened, the end is only the beginning of another, as Dreamhack organizers had already announced future ones up till 2018, so start saving up, and get ready to roll coming June for Dreamhack Summer 2018!
For more Esports and event updates, stay posted at esportsonly.com!
