The US Open will feature an "A-List" of American gamers, including players from the defending Gold Medal 2007 WCG TEAM USA, including Geoff Robinson, Raghav Phadke, Shawn Teeter, Brian Boyle, Team EG, as well as several of the top-ranked Halo 3 teams on the planet. The gamers will be competing in the hottest PC and Xbox 360 games on the market including: Half-Life: Counter-Strike 1.6 (PC), StarCraft: Brood War (PC), WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne (PC), Command & Conquer 3: Kane's Wrath (PC), Age of Empires III: The Asian Dynasties (PC), FIFA Soccer 08 (PC), Carom 3D (PC), Need For Speed ProStreet (Xbox 360), Halo 3 (Xbox 360), Project Gotham Racing 4 (Xbox 360), Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock (Xbox 360) and Virtua Fighter 5 (Xbox 360).
"The World Cyber Games US Open offers spectators a rare chance to not only witness some of America's best gamers in action close up - but to also join in the excitement and take their best shot at making TEAM USA by entering into one of our walk-up tournaments," said Michael Arzt, general manager of WCG USA. "In addition to the elite eSports action, fans will also be treated to the special Guinness World Records certificate presentation on Saturday and possibly walk away with some of the amazing prizes and giveaways that will go on throughout the weekend, courtesy of our many great WCG Partners."
"Samsung is committed to modifying and designing new technology that allows gamers to fully enjoy their passion for gaming," said Steve Cook, senior vice president and chief strategic marketing officer, Samsung Electronics America. "Samsung has been a WCG Worldwide partner since 2000 and in an effort to ensure these top gamers experience the most compelling competition we are proud to host yet another exciting WCG USA event at the Samsung Experience this weekend."
During the first day of the WCG 2008 US Open, officials from Guinness World Records will be on-hand to present World Cyber Games organizer International Cyber Marketing with the record for the "Most Participants In a Video Game League in a Single Season." The WCG, which previously held the record, shattered their old mark of 1.3 million competitors in 2006, by drawing more than 1.5 million gamers to the World Cyber Games 2007 tournament. The World Cyber Games has been notable throughout the Guinness World Records 2007 and 2008 editions, as well as the recently released Guinness World Records 2008: Gamers Edition.
WCG US Open competitors will be vying for $20,000 in cash and prizes and automatic berths to the WCG USA National Championship, taking place in the fall at a soon-to-be-announced location. Winners of certain games will also receive roundtrip airfare and hotel accommodations to Monterrey, Mexico to compete in the WCG 2008 Pan-American Championships, June 20 - 22. In addition, spectators and local gamers will be invited to participate in the WCG US Open walk up tournaments in Guitar Hero III and Carom 3D. The weekend's winners of the Guitar Hero III and Carom 3D tournaments will earn trips to play in the WCG USA National Final.
With over 1.5 million players from more than 70 countries participating, the World Cyber Games is regarded as the gaming world's premier international tournament and videogame festival. Featuring online and offline events held throughout the world, the year-long series' 2008 television coverage will kick off with highlights of this year's WCG US Open on an upcoming episode of Spike TV's "GameTrailersTV with Geoff Keighley." For further in-depth and live event coverage, tune in online to eSportsTV.com and WCGLIVE.com for play-by-play calls, blogs, news, forums, live chat and videos of the tournament, all posted in real time.
There is still plenty of time to sign up to compete in the World Cyber Games 2008 USA tournament! Plus, as a special bonus "thank you" to loyal players and fans, the WCG - in partnership with GameTrailers.com and Xfire - announces its exclusive "30 Displays in 30 Days" giveaway. Every day in the month of June, the WCG USA will award a free Samsung SyncMaster 931c gaming display ($399 value), the "Official Monitor of the World Cyber Games" to one lucky winner picked each day via a random drawing and announced daily on the WCG USA website. No purchase is required, but entrants are also encouraged to register for the WCG USA online tournament(s) of their choice.
To register now for the WCG USA online tournaments and and/or enter the "30 Displays in 30 Days" giveaway; and for more information about the World Cyber Games, please visit here.