Durban - Rahil Bux was among the victors at the 2023 Shift Gaming Experience as his team, Dogs of War, won the Call of Duty tournament and R25 000.

The two-day competition saw thousands of players nationwide flock to Cape Town last month to compete in Call of Duty and Fifa tournaments.

“I am at a loss for words. Out of the four teams that were there, we knew we were the least prepared. This was largely due to the last minute roster changes. Us winning definitely felt amazing,” said Bux of the victory.

The 23-year-old said he initially started playing Call of Duty as a hobby back in 2010, but then realised its competitive nature seven years later. By playing the game, he attracted the attention of a team and was flown to Cape Town for his first tournament. Thanks to his exceptional performance, he was picked up by big e-sports team, Bravado Gaming.

“Our experience definitely helped us during this tournament because we have been in those kinds of positions multiple times compared with the others. It definitely showed in some of our matches.”

He joined Dogs of War last year, and the team is having a break while waiting for the next Call of Duty tournament in November. However, Bux said that if any more tournaments came up, they would definitely play them.

Gaming and e-sports were growing in South Africa, and there are plans to attract even more people to the sports.

‘’Given that this was Shift’s first year and the event was the first of its kind hosted in a mall environment, we think it was a great success. We had more than 1 000 participants in the Fifa tournament nationally, and many more people participated in other smaller tournaments we held at Hyprop malls. These events were not only for the esports community, but for all people who love gaming,” said Hyprop mall’s brand and campaigns marketing manager Christie Stanbridge, adding that by introducing new players to tournaments in a relaxed environment would attract more players and grow the e-sports community.

Winners of the 2023 SHIFT Gaming Experience Call of Duty Tournament, Dogs of War. Pictured from left to right: Jameen Essa, Cayden Beadsworth, Jordan Cupido, Rahil Bux. Picture: Moe Abrahams.

The growth of e-sports will be on full display next month as the continent’s biggest gaming festival ‒ Comic Con Africa ‒ will take place between September 22-25. There will also be various tournaments in Fifa, Rocket League and Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, to name a few. This year will mark the fifth edition and promises to attract thousands of gamers to the Johannesburg Expo Centre. Tickets can be bought on Howler and start from R200 https://bit.ly/CCA2023_tickets.

The Independent on Saturday