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Echo Becomes the First VR Sport with an Academic Pathway to Professional Play
Many VR titles have seen eSports used as a method to engage their community, promote the game to new users, or offer unique experiences. Few, however, have seen the competitive aspect of the game take hold as strongly as Echo Arena. Supported by no fewer than ten combined community and professional organizations, Echo drives a considerable portion of all competitive participation throughout the VR space. Recently it has also earned the unique distinction of being the only VR sport to have a clear pathway from teenage academic teams to paid professionals.
At the entry level are the High School Heroes Esports League (HSHEL) and the High School VR League (HSVRL). HSHEL currently targets schools who do not already have eSports programs established and aims to provide hardware or help students who own their own headsets to organize and compete as campus teams. HSVRL targets generally more seasoned competitors, focusing on players who are already at least interested in VR and hopes to expand into campus teams soon. HSHEL is heading into their second official season, having awarded over $5,000 in prizes last year, and HSVRL continues to host a variety of community events year-round with roughly two years of activities on their resume. Both leagues offer organized, although admittedly somewhat sporadic, VR competitions for students of ages 13-17.
The Collegiate VR League is a somewhat more established entity than its High School counterparts, serving over 25 colleges and universities in various capacities. Players in CVRE cover a vast range of skill levels from novices to seasoned pros. CVRE currently has 10 active Echo teams competing, and the league is a logical next step for students graduating from either of the high school leagues. CVRE is in the 7th season of their Echo series – a longer tenure than most VR leagues for any game. While signups are now closed for the Fall semester, it’s never too late to try and start spinning a team up for 2022 if a college club team suits you.
Also serving players of all skill levels are the VRML and a variety of community leagues. VRML has been the biggest organized league for Echo for three seasons now, offering evenly matched competitive play at all skill levels, but with rewards being mostly targeted at the elites of each region. The VMRL has seen explosive growth, expanding from a few tens of teams to multiple hundreds over two seasons. VRML has already awarded well over $10,000 in prizes to the top finishers across all regions in its first few seasons. The various community leagues, on the other hand, vary wildly in offerings and timelines, but often can be the least restrictive and more flexible to experiment with shuffled teams or wacky rulesets if you prefer a less rigid expectation for competition.
Sharing a lot of elite personnel in common with the VRML, but far more exclusive, is the NEPA Pro Series. The newest and most ambitious entry in the Echo competitive space is a unique salaried league reserved for the best of the best. Players who make the tight 60-slot draft become paid talent in the first league intended for spectator entertainment. NEPA teams are franchised organizations associated with a city or region, and the league operates similarly to traditional professional sports organizations. They seek to prove themselves in this inaugural season and follow it up with a charity LAN in St. Louis in March.
