Esports to be played in Palaro ’23

FILE: GETTING READY FOR PALARO 2023. The Marikina City Sports Center gets a facelift on Thursday (July 20, 2023) in preparation for the Palarong Pambansa, the first after three years since the pandemic forced its cancellation. From July 29 to Aug. 5, Marikina will host grade school and secondary athletes from 17 Department of Education regional athletic associations and Filipino athletes enrolled in recognized schools overseas. (PNA photo by Joan Bondoc)

MANILA – Esports has been added to the list of events to be played in this year’s Palarong Pambansa in Marikina.

No less than Marikina City Mayor Marcy Teodoro made the announcement during the national meet’s press launch at the Marikina Sports Center on Friday.

Esports has been assigned as a demonstration sport.

Only one title, Mobile Legends Bang Bang (MLBB), will be played in the inaugural Palaro esports tournament.

“We chose the most accessible game for the Palaro. Most of the Filipinos right now use their mobile phones to actually play the game, so Mobile Legends muna ang ni-recommend namin sa board (so it is the first game we recommended to the board),” said Marlon Marcelo, the executive director of the Philippine Esports Organization (PESO).

PESO has been tapped to help the Marikina City government, the Department of Education, and the Philippine Sports Commission in organizing the Palaro MLBB event.

Marcelo then bared that some other esports titles, such as Defense of the Ancients (DOTA) 2 and Valorant, could be added to the fray once esports becomes an official part of the Palaro, probably as soon as next year.

Cebu City, Antique, and Negros Occidental are bidding for the hosting rights for the 2024 Palaro, but considering their economic advancements, Cebu and Negros Occidental’s capital city of Bacolod could provide bigger venues for the esports event should more titles be played.

For now, according to Marcelo, the goal is the successful staging of the 2023 Palaro MLBB event.

“Since this is a demo sport, we would want to make sure that everything is smooth as possible on the first try. Mas madali kasing i-organize yung MLBB (It’s easier to organize an MLBB event), to be honest, just because Valorant and DOTA 2 require PCs (personal computers) and a very stable Internet connection, so it’s really one of the optics na kailangang ayusin (that we have to fix),” he said.

While the eligibility guidelines have yet to be placed for the Palaro MLBB tournament, Marcelo said pros are not allowed to join even if they are still studying in high school.

“I would say that this is a very even playing field,” he said. “This is a very big step for Philippine esports kasi recognized na siya ng (because it is now recognized by the) Palaro.”