Acer lets amateurs have a slice of the esports pie with Planet9 platform

Acer has rolled out Planet9, an esports platform that opens up esports to amateur and casual players seeking to participate, allowing them to build their team, train and challenge. It is currently in close beta and will enter open beta on 30 January 2020. Planet9 also allows amateurs to learn from the professionals, understand their strengths and weaknesses, connect with fellow gamers in the community and participate in online tournaments.

Planet9 can host tournaments from small to large scale, sponsored or official, and can be joined for a chance at fame, glory, and prizes. The platform pairs players of similar skill-level for matches or tournaments to ensure fair competition. When enough wins are accumulated, rewards such as gifts and prizes can be redeemed. Marketing has reached out to Acer for additional information.

To build their team, gamers can add friends, follow individuals they are interested in and receive recommendations on who they can play with based on a game played and complementing skills. For teams, functions such as a chatroom and sharing of game tactics allow the group to bond and learn from each other.

Planet9 also offers a series of features to help gamers level up their skills, whether to hire a coach to give individual guidance, play alongside veteran gamers, clock some more hours with friends at similar levels, or see advanced game statistics to track their performance.

Andrew Chuang, GM, esports services, IT products business, Acer said Planet9 encompasses what competitive and casual gamers need to level up and participate in esports below the professional tier. "Building on Acer's strength in hardware, software, and services, Planet9 will provide insights to complete the experience for gamers around the world," he added.

(Photo courtesy: 123RF)