HP has announced the return of the OMEN Challenge, taking place on September 20 in London’s Camden Town. This year’s format will see five of the world’s best Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) players battle it out for $50,000 (USD).
Returning for its fifth year, the revamped and turbocharged OMEN Challenge 2019 will introduce a unique tournament format that allows for explosive duels and variety amongst players, in both one-on-one gameplay and four-player death matches.
Powered by state-of-the-art HP technology, athletes will be pushed to their limits, battling it out on OMEN Obelisks and OMEN X 25 screens. Set in an epic battle arena, the OMEN Challenge 2019 will blur the lines between gameplay and reality, through an immersive set, and augmented reality (AR) livestream, broadcast by HLTV.
In addition to the professional CS:GO players, HP will also be inviting two amateur players to battle it out against the pros for a shot at the prize money. To support the amateur players, HP will have pashaBiceps and Juliano on hand, who will help to prepare players for the event day and provide them with tips on how to both play and perform under pressure.
The two amateurs will undertake a bootcamp at the headquarters of one of the world’s best CS:GO teams – Astralis. They’ll be put through their paces by zonic, the coach, and get access to the full support team, including Astralis’ psychologists and fitness experts.
On the day, S1mple, Niko, Electronic, Rain, & Dev1ce – five of the world’s top CS:GO players – will find themselves immersed in an intense, custom-built map, developed by HP in partnership with some of the leading minds in CS:GO mapmaking, TopHattwaffle and TheWhaleMan.
The tournament will start with a four-player death match as a seeding phase, where each player fights to survive against the odds. After 14 games in the seeding phase, each player has the chance to level the playing field, gameplay moves into a more traditional tournament-style play, until one victor is crowned.
“The OMEN Challenge is returning bigger, better and more immersive than ever before,” said Chris Bohrer, Head of Marketing, Personal Systems EMEA, HP Inc. “We want to keep reinventing the gaming experience, creating technology and experiences that allow gamers, no matter who they are, to play at their very best. We continue to champion gaming as a force for progress and can’t wait to bring back the OMEN Challenge for a fifth year, giving esports stars and amateurs the chance to compete on an international stage.”
The OMEN Challenge will take place from 2:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. BST on September 20 at Hawley Wharf Camden in London, UK. It will also be live streamed on Twitch at www.twitch.tv/omenbyhpeurope.