The executive director of the Philippine Esports Organization (PESO) sees Palarong Pambansa as one of the ways to bring e-sports to all Filipinos, emphasizing the need for giving opportunity for every athlete who wants to represent the Philippines.
“We understand, at the very core of everyone here, we also want to integrate esports at the grassroots level, and Palarong Pambansa is one of the avenues to make sure that e-sports is alive through grassrooting,” said PESO executive director Marlon Marcelo during the kickoff event of the Asia Pacific Predator League last Thursday, Nov. 9, at Whitespace Manila in Makati City.
E-sports was recently added to the list of games played during Palarong Pambansa 2023 as a demonstration sport, where players from Northern Mindanao emerged as champions of the “Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.”
PESO, thanking the aid of the Marikina local government unit and the Department of Education, called this event a “history in the making.”
Moreover, the PESO director said that the Predator League is also one of the few brand leagues that are helping “the ecosystem.”
“When we say ‘helping the ecosystem,’ it means that they are consistent in making sure that there is competition at the highest level and it gives an opportunity for every aspiring individual, whether you’re a professional or just an amateur to actually come over and win the grand prize,” He said.
Marcelo emphasized the importance of creating competition as it boosts performance of Filipino e-sports players who are sent to international leagues.
“That’s why we’re really happy to support, and we’re really happy to see this wonderful time to make—lalo na sa MOA Arena which is a really big dream for Philippines itself.”
The Asia Pacific Predator League 2024 is hosted by hardware company Acer, which gathers e-sports teams from all over the Asia Pacific region to fight for the Predator Shield award.
For January 2024, the Philippines has been chosen to host the finals, which is set to take place at Mall of Asia Arena in Manila.