Game developer Riot Games has named digital media and entertainment production company Wisdom Gaming as its exclusive partner for Season One of the 2022 Wild Rift North American Series (WNS).
The deal will see Wisdom Gaming lead the tournament’s operations and broadcast up until the North American Regional Championship (NARC) in April 2022.
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The WNS tournament format features three circuits and a Last Chance Qualifier (LCQ), all culminating in the $150,000 (~£111,361) NARC event. The first event of the series will be Open Qualifier 1 taking place between February 4th-6th.
Jaycie Gluck, Vice President of Media at Wisdom Gaming, stated: “Wisdom Gaming is proud to once again partner with Riot Games for the first WNS season, further supporting the continued development for North American Wild Rift esports.
“Following the success of last year’s Summoner Series, the Wild Rift NA community has been eager to see more in the space, and we’re committed to establishing a bright future for Wild Rift esports by growing both the community and competitive scenes.”
As a part of Wisdom Gaming’s commitment to the Wild Rift NA space, the company will also introduce a brand new podcast series, titled ‘Rift Reload,’ and Fight Night: Rift, a bi-weekly Wild Rift event.
Both activations will both launch under Wisdom’s Giant Slayer brand. According to the release, the aim is to create a place to develop NA talent and further service the growing community with discussions and content.
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Chad Smeltz, Product Lead for Wild Rift Esports of NA/OCE at Riot Games, added: “We are excited to be continuing our partnership with Wisdom Gaming and utilizing their talents to deliver an exceptional Wild Rift NA tournament for the community.
“Wisdom has successfully created a seamless, integrity-driven competitive experience for our players in our inaugural event, and we are confident that they will continue to provide that for the first season of WNS.”
The two companies announced renewed its partnership at the end of last year. Moreover, both entities first teamed up in 2020 for Riot Games’ Legends of Runeterra esports competitions in 2021.
Esports Insider says: Riot Games and Wisdom Gaming continue its fruitful partnership, which will now see the latter take on even more responsibility. Choosing Wisdom seems like a wise decision given its track record when it comes to running other Riot titles.