A recent report from the Swedish Gambling Authority (Spelinspektionen) has shed light on the growing prevalence of skin betting in Sweden, a practice that is increasingly popular among younger users and poses significant regulatory challenges.

Skin betting involves using virtual items, known as ‘skins’, as stakes or prizes in gambling activities. These items, often tied to online games, can hold real-world monetary value, making them a lucrative but controversial form of wagering.

The report reveals that skin betting accounted for 49% of traffic to unlicensed gambling sites in Sweden in 2023, dropping slightly to 41% in 2024. Alarmingly, six of the ten most-visited unlicensed gambling platforms in Sweden last year were skin betting sites.

These platforms often operate without proper gambling licenses and lack robust age verification measures, exposing minors to gambling risks.

Spelinspektionen noted that some unlicensed websites offering traditional casino games have started accepting skins as deposits, a move that blurs the lines between conventional online gambling and skin betting.

Many of these operators are based outside Sweden, including jurisdictions within the EU and offshore locations like Curacao, which account for a significant portion of unlicensed traffic.

The accessibility of these platforms has raised concerns about their impact on Swedish consumers, especially younger demographics.

Despite efforts by Spelinspektionen to block transactions and issue prohibition orders, skin betting sites continue to thrive, often leveraging influencers and streamers on platforms like Twitch to attract users.

The report calls for stricter regulations to combat the issue and suggests shifting from a direction-based model, focused on whether operators explicitly target Swedish consumers, to a participation-based framework that encompasses all gambling activity involving Swedish players.

As Sweden reviews its Gambling Act, policymakers face mounting pressure to address this growing black market trend and protect vulnerable users from its risks.

Krafton, the game developer behind PUBG, has unveiled a new system for its esports global rankings.

Developed in collaboration with data platform OP.GG, the new ranking system will be built around individual and team metrics, providing a more comprehensive measure of each participant. The updated ranking system will be revealed at a later date.

According to Krafton’s blog post, the new power rankings will integrate players’ own stats, such as kills, damage dealt and survival time, into the standings. This means that individual performances will directly affect team rankings. The level of complexity for the global power rankings will be more in-depth compared to the previous system, which only considered cumulative scores and placements in competitions.

Additionally, the game developer will account for different levels of competition across regions, recognising the importance of global and regional tournaments. This will be adjusted based on the schedules, meaning teams with extensive tournament schedules won’t be at a disadvantage compared to others.

The new PUBG Esports Global Power Rankings will also have a particular role in determining the teams invited PUBG Esports World Cup tournament that will take place later this summer in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Dates and format, as well as the prize pool, however, are yet to be announced.

The ranking system has been announced a few weeks prior to the start of the first major championship in the 2025 esports calendar, the PUBG Global Series (PGS) 7.

On top of the ten invited teams that are part of the PUBG Global Partner Team Programme, the PGS will feature 14 teams qualified through their respective leagues. Taking place offline in Shanghai starting on April 28, the teams will compete for a share of the $300,000 (~£227,000) prize pool.

After a one-week break, those same teams will compete once again in the PUBG Global Series (PGS) 8. Both events will give out crucial PGS Points, which will determine the teams competing in the year-end PUBG Global Championship, set to take place in December.

The complete lineup for Overwatch Champions Series (OWCS) Stage 2 has finally been confirmed revealed following the results of the Stage 1 relegation tournament.

Competitions for OWCS’ EMEA and NA divisions saw relegation teams face off against FACEIT champions to vie for the opportunity to compete in Stage 2, set to run from May 10th to June 29th, 2025.

Here are all the teams promoted to OWCS Stage 2 for either EMEA and NA:

An interesting detail to note is that all teams that are moving on to Stage 2 originally entered relegation after placing top two in the FaceIt League Masters Season 4.

Quick Esports ultimately prevailed after winning the upper bracket finals. The team’s first match saw the side win 3-1 against Sakura Esports, followed by a 3-0 victory over Team Vision.

During the livestream, ​Jake ‘JAKE’ Lyon, former Overwatch pro and commentator, said: “It’s clear to me that that long journey has made them (Quick Esports) stronger, right? They came out here as a team, and they played a lot of really nice compositional matchups.

“Vision didn’t make it easy, Vision is a real threat. But I feel like the team play, the ability to bail each other out of trouble, was what really brought it over the line for Quick Esports.”

After initially losing to Team Vision in the upper bracket semi-finals, Frost Tail Esports had a chance at payback after Vision lost to Quick Esports. This time, Frost Tail came out on top in a grudge match in the lower bracket finals 3-0.

During the livestream, Loïc ‘KroxZ’ Ricci of Frost Tail Esports said: “I mean, we take back our place, that’s where we belong, and we straight forward it. We are all happy about it.

“We scrimmed against them (Vision) recently, and they like kind of destroyed us. So I can feel the enemy team right now, their frustration. But we will try our best, and we’re going to get first again, no problem.”

Supernova proved to be the dark horse of NA relegation after beating Amplify 3-0 in the semi-finals, followed by a landslide 3-0 victory against Shikigami.

Commentators of the stream highlighted Supernova’s victory over Amplify as a long-awaited grudge match. Previously, Amplify defeated Supernova 3-2 in lower-bracket round 3 of the OWCS Stage 1 open qualifiers.

During the livestream, ​Jonathan ‘Reinforce’ Snowden, former Overwatch pro and commentator, said: “Welcome back to OWCS. It has to be said for Supernova, a team that lost out in the Stage 1 qualifiers after being upset by Amplify.

“At the end of the day, it was 3-0, it was a dominant showing. It’s what we expected from this Supernova squad because the player caliber on this team is insane, and rightfully deserves to be in OWCS.”

Perhaps more surprising is the performance from DhillDucks, an Overwatch esports team from the University of Utah. After losing the first match against Shikigami in the upper bracket semi-finals, DhillDucks defeated Amplify 3-0. In the lower bracket semi-finals, DhillDucks won 3-0 in the rematch against Shikigami.

During the livestream, Carson ‘pdk’ Terry of DhillDucks said: “It feels great just being able to qualify with these people, we put a lot of time and work in so it feels amazing.”

The Tekken 8 Season 2 update has not been sitting well with FGC players, and now pro player Bae ‘Knee’ Jae-Min has explained exactly what he doesn’t like about the changes, calling the season ‘selfish’.

Previous Evo champion Knee recently broke down the elements of Season 2 that he didn’t like in a massive rant on X. When asked if he believed that developers would listen to him, he replied that it seemed as though they wanted ‘rookies to come in and beat veterans’ instead.

When Season 2 dropped earlier this month, competitive players flocked to Tekken 8 to check out the changes. The result was an increased player count but also a massive influx of negative reviews on Steam, turning the sentiment into ‘Overwhelmingly Negative’.

The FGC has been complaining about the unpopular changes made to characters that don’t seem to fit original playstyles and strip away some of the mechanics players have attempted to master for years — it seemed like developers were hoping new players could catch up by removing legacy knowledge and simplifying strategies.

Following the Season 2 update, Knee started sharing gameplay clips on X, showing how he was forced to play after the changes. He then went on to passionately explain what he’s noticed after playing the game after Season 2.

“Honestly, I think the developers’ idea should be different from the player. However, I think it would be nice to accept some feedback, but I don’t care if they don’t listen. Tekken 8 is already [getting] negative reviews,” Knee said.

Knee’s first issue with the update was that the combos felt too long and dealt too much damage. The second issue was simplifying mind games, which made the game feel ‘boring’ because it was easy to implement these simplified strategies and safe solutions.

Knee also noted that the Heat System, implemented in Tekken 8, had become ‘unbalanced’ in the update. He noted that many of the Heat moves felt as though they had ‘less risk’ to pull off, making it a bit of a no-brainer to spam stronger moves constantly without worry since they’re easy to pull off and recover.

One of his biggest concerns was the removal of some trickier moves that competitive players have spent years mastering. These would reward players with more experience in tough situations.

“The legacy knowledge has just been removed,” Knee noted. “Air moves can’t be low parried and hold moves can’t be parried. So we have no way to [be tactical] in certain situations. Did it have to be removed?”

Other issues included characters with weapons getting too long of a range, too many 50-50 situations that make it difficult to block stronger incoming moves and chip damage taking away too much health.

Knee added: “Veterans have invested a lot of time and put a lot of effort into it. So it’s a fun game to play when you increase your knowledge and learn your skills. Actually, I don’t know why a veteran should have a high probability of losing to a beginner or a rookie. Isn’t that contradictory?”

Knee isn’t alone in this sentiment. Negative reviews keep flowing in on Steam, all accusing developers of not understanding the characters and simplifying gameplay to appeal to beginners.

This has been a big focus of fighting games the last few years, with many developers worrying that titles like Street Fighter 6 and Tekken 8 have become too difficult for newbies to pick up. However, the competitive community feels that the developers have taken this concern too far, punishing top players in the process.

Developers have responded to the ongoing criticism but the FGC is skeptical and not expecting a big overhaul. However, if nothing is done, it’s likely that pro players will drop ahead of Evo 2025, the largest fighting game event of the year.

The Finals isn’t just another shooter; it’s a demolition derby disguised as a game show, where skyscrapers crumble as squads rush to steal the Cash Out. This free-to-play FPS has captivated players with its signature destruction physics and frenetic battles since its 2023 launch. But as The Finals esports push with a $100,000 Major and structured leagues, a critical question emerges: Can a game built on chaos thrive in a competitive esports tournament that demands consistency?

This analysis explores The Finals’ rocky yet promising esports journey, examining how its identity could redefine competitive shooters or collapse under the weight of its own ambition.

The Finals is a revolutionary free-to-play FPS developed by Embark Studios, a team of former Battlefield veterans. Set in a hyper-stylized virtual game show inspired by The Hunger Games, a format ripe for The Finals esports competition, it pits four teams of three players against each other in destructible arenas where every surface can be demolished: walls crumble, floors collapse, and entire buildings can be brought down mid-match.

What sets The Finals apart is how it weaponizes destruction as a core gameplay mechanic. Players don’t just shoot through walls; they strategically demolish entire structures to gain advantages, using the environment as a weapon. This is enhanced by the game’s class system (Light, Medium, Heavy), each with unique movement abilities and gadgets that interact dynamically with the destructible environments.

The presentation fully commits to its game show premise, complete with live announcers reacting to plays and holographic crowds cheering dramatic moments. It’s this combination of visceral destruction physics, class-based tactics, and broadcast-style spectacle that makes The Finals a true next-gen competitive experience where no two matches play out the same. The question isn’t whether The Finals can become an esport — it’s when and how much support it will receive.

Within esports, The Finals exploded onto the scene with 240,000+ peak Steam players and critical acclaim as a fresh, inventive shooter. This launch period saw players experimenting with diverse weapons and gadgets, though balance issues around the overpowered Heavy class and server instability emerged. While some dismissed it as a tech demo, its potential as a disruptive FPS was undeniable, even as player retention naturally dipped post-launch.

Season 3 became the game’s lowest point, a cautionary tale in misreading your audience. The controversial shift from beloved Cashout to 5v5 Terminal Attack alienated core fans, while technical failures like the poorly optimized Kyoto 1568 map (with its infamously bad spawn points and performance drops) compounded frustrations. Embark’s balanced philosophy of constant nerfs rather than buffing underused options backfired, making Heavy nearly unplayable while cementing a stale Light-class meta.

The redemption came in Season 4 with the return of Ranked Cashout tournaments. Fortune Stadium’s arrival, coupled with new progression systems like sponsor contracts and weapon customization (including alternate sights/scopes), marked a turning point. This season’s success established a template that has carried through to the current Season 6, proving Embark could learn from missteps while staying true to The Finals’ chaotic identity.

The Finals is not without its share of controversies. The game’s player count has declined significantly, with current peaks around 15,000 to 17,000 on Steam. Even though its audience is primarily casual, the skill floor to enjoy the game is higher than its competitors. Solo queue is a frustrating experience, not to mention the concerns with rampant cheating. There always seems to be an issue with balance and overpowered strategies, like when Lights was able to cloak and stun gun for an easy kill.

Another point of contention has been the game’s use of AI-generated voice acting. Developers at Embark Studios have acknowledged utilizing AI for character voices, including announcers and contestants, aiming for efficiency and flexibility in content updates. 

Despite it all, The Finals is still going strong and even enjoyed a steady uptick in player count. Its foundational elements are solid: gameplay is polished, its destruction novel, and its unique gameplay is a platform for electrifying moments that could only happen in this game.

The Finals esports scene is poised for a major leap in 2025, transitioning from grassroots tournaments to a formal esports league structure. Embark Studios’ $100K Major announcement signals their commitment to building The Finals esports tournament ecosystem. The game’s esports potential was first tested through community-driven events like the $50,000 Twitch Rivals event and the more competitive Finals Masters series.

The first event showcases The Finals at its best: fun and unpredictable yet highly technical. It featured eight teams of three in a chaotic 3v3v3v3 Cashout format, spread over multiple maps in three rotating rounds. Teams earned points based on placement – 10 for first, seven for second, and so on – with overall winners decided by total points across all matches. The event peaked at 41,649 views on Twitch.

The more serious step came with the 2024 Finals Masters Series hosted by Breakout Esports. This year-long circuit ran two competitive splits, each offering qualification to a World Championship. Teams could qualify by winning Masters events or collecting points in online qualifiers.

The Finals World Championship features a two-phase format beginning with a group stage where teams compete in four-team Cashout matches across multiple rounds. Afterward, teams will go head-to-head in a best-of-five format. 

Embark Studios officially announced its esports ambitions, revealing the $100,000 Major slated for Q4 2025, featuring open qualifiers and an in-person LAN event. The studio has since rolled out esports-focused updates, including enhanced private matches and spectator modes in Season 6. While no major esports organizations have yet announced dedicated rosters, Embark has actively partnered with grassroots organizers to get the ball rolling. 

The Finals has the explosive action to thrive as an esport, but its chaotic presentation currently undermines its readability. Matches descend into visual noise for viewers, lacking essential spectator tools like a kill feed, clear team identifiers, or objective progress bars. Without these features, even seasoned casters struggle to narrate key moments, such as team wipes or steal attempts, forcing them to over-explain basics instead of heightening the drama.

The absence of a multi-team kill feed exacerbates confusion in four-team matches, making it unclear who’s fighting whom or which squads are gaining momentum. Objectives like cashouts lack visual urgency, leaving viewers guessing about steal progress or round stakes. While the game’s destruction physics create a spectacle, they often obscure critical details – collapsing buildings or particle effects hide player movements.

GerryTheMusicMan, a Rainbow Six Siege caster who has started casting The Finals, argues, “the viewing experience is far more important in esports than in sports.” Without these fixes, the game risks alienating newcomers despite its competitive depth. For starters, let teams keep their color between rounds and customize their names.

The Finals has made strides in onboarding new players, but retention remains a mixed bag. The game drops players where initial matches serve more as exposure than true tutorials. Retention struggles are partly due to a steep learning curve and matchmaking that can pit new players against highly experienced, organized squads. 

Updates that cater to growing and retaining its player base should be the highest priority. Casual game modes like the 5v5 Power Shift and Team Deathmatch are a hit with players since it offers a hit of its great gameplay in a less stressful environment. Progression systems with challenges to unlock rewards, like sponsors and World Tour, give players an incentive to play the game in different ways. 

A proper solo queue mode, where matches are filled with The Finals esports teams made up of solo players, could help alleviate the tremendous gap. Even so, this doesn’t guarantee that the casual audience will connect with the esports scene; just look at the low viewer count of the World Grand Finals, despite its excellent production value.

The Finals is torn between two visions: the chaotic sandbox shooter and its destruction physics promise, and the balanced competitive experience and its esports ambitions demand. Its emergent gameplay systems and multi-squad battles are its lifeblood, yet these same systems frustrate competitive players seeking consistency. 

This conflict is most apparent in Cashout, the game’s flagship mode. While brilliantly innovative in concept, its competitive viability remains questionable. The mode’s core mechanics, stealing cashouts, last-second turnovers, and the constant threat of third-partying prioritize drama over fairness. In casual play, these lead to exhilarating comebacks, but in ranked, play they can undermine strategic play. Even so, the players crave Cashout, and Embark should take another pass at its design.

For The Finals esports to thrive, its competitive matches should represent the same matches players can experience at the casual level. Its gameshow aesthetic and gameplay systems shine during fast-paced gameplay. Its in-game Ranked mode features a knockout system throughout many rounds to determine the winner, culminating in a tense two-team duel; it could be explored further by looking at the current esports battle royales. Stick to what makes The Finals unique, and don’t work against it to prevent the players from disconnecting from the pros.

The launch of The Finals esports tournament circuit has ignited interest among competitive players, but ranked mode must evolve to support this growth. Embark Studios should look to proven models from games like Fortnite and Counter-Strike. Weekly or monthly open qualifiers, similar to Fortnite’s Cash Cups or CS’ FACEIT leagues, would give top-ranked players a clear pathway to semi-pro competition without excessive barriers. 

That said, competitive integrity remains a hurdle. Issues like cheating and no-hit registration risk undermining ranked play and tournaments. Embark must implement stricter anti-cheat measures if there’s any hope for integrity in online play. Additionally, 

replay review systems or allowing players to view these matches (similar to Dota 2, allowing players to spectate high MMR matches) would expose more players to pro play. Moreover, content creators and analysts can use these matches to showcase technical plays from the game.

Competitive players will always gravitate towards ranked for fairer play. However, a majority of players vastly prefer World Tour mode for its progression, lower stakes, and better matches compared to Quick Play. Decent players are guaranteed to receive all rewards since it’s a matter of time and commitment. Streamlining or expediting this progression track could encourage more players to try ranked. 

Embark quickly addresses issues regarding overpowered builds or exploits, like attaching deployables to an explosive throwable to make an improvised nuke. However, as these alternate playstyles get nerfed, the game trends towards streamlined, homogenous weapons and gadgets. At the highest level, players tend to gravitate towards safe weapons like Assault Rifles for consistency, but these niche picks are healthy for esports viewership. Competitive players will always math out the best options, and it’s up to Embark to equalize the playing field.

As The Finals esports league, Embark is about to navigate the delicate tightrope of balancing for competitive and casual audiences. Games like Overwatch and Apex Legends demonstrate the risks of over-prioritizing pro play: stale metas, fractured communities, and a loss of casual appeal. Now more than ever The Finals needs to retain its strong core playerbase before it could jump into esports.

Competitive rulesets certainly help, as long as they aren’t too restrictive. Breakout has also introduced many house rules to ensure balance and variety, like not allowing teams to stack particular gadgets and specializations. These allow pro players to enjoy some separation without affecting all play manners.

The Finals’ physics-based destruction isn’t just a gimmick; it’s the game’s greatest competitive differentiator. Where other shooters limit environmental interaction to predetermined paths (like Rainbow Six Siege‘s controlled destruction), The Finals embraces full chaos as its defining feature, not a bug. 

While some argue that the randomness can occasionally lead to unfair situations, such as debris blocking sightlines or cashouts falling in tough positions, these moments test true mastery of the game’s systems. The best competitors don’t just react to destruction; they anticipate and weaponize it. It’s not random, as all players have access to the same tools to deal with these situations.

Rather than watering down this signature mechanic for esports, The Finals should lean into it as its selling point. The destruction creates highlight-reel moments that make the game uniquely watchable while demanding skills no other competitive shooter tests. It creates moments that are only possible in The Finals. This isn’t a balance problem to solve; it’s the game’s competitive soul that sets it apart. The Finals’ esports future lies not in restricting its destruction but in celebrating it as the ultimate equalizer where creativity and adaptability trump rote execution.

The Finals stands at a crossroads between its chaotic sandbox roots and competitive aspirations, but this tension could be its greatest strength. While challenges like spectator clarity, ranked integrity, and onboarding need refinement, the game’s destruction physics and emergent gameplay offer something truly unique in esports. Rather than compromising its identity, The Finals should double down on what makes it special: the ability to turn its thematic gameshow into a spectacle worth watching.

The recent esports initiatives prove the game can thrive competitively when it embraces its unpredictable nature. With improved spectator tools, balanced but creative rulesets, and a focus on making high-level play accessible, The Finals could redefine what a competitive shooter can be. The path forward isn’t about becoming another cookie-cutter esport but about proving that controlled chaos can coexist with elite competition. The Finals esports future hinges on embracing its identity while solving core competitive issues. If successful, it could attract top esports teams and establish itself as the most innovative FPS esports tournament circuit in years

Canadian gaming chair brand Blacklyte has partnered with international esports organisation Team Spirit.

According to a release, Blacklyte will become the official gaming chair and desk partner for the team, replacing competitor Secretlab.

The collaboration between the Blacklyte and Team Spirit sparked at the Shanghai Major 2024 when the esports team first tried out Blacklyte’s products during the practice and tournament matches, leading to talks for a long-term partnership.

Aside from the sponsorship, Team Spirit will be working together to release co-branded products, including gaming chairs, desks and other merchandise.

This is not the first time Blacklyte has worked alongside esports teams. Last year, it announced a multi-year deal with European organisation Fnatic and MAD Lions KOI’s parent company OverActive Media. Moreover, the gaming chair brand was the official partner for esports events such as BLAST Premier, Rainbow Six, as well as the Rocket League 2024 World Championship.

Based in Belgrade, Serbia, Team Spirit is an international esports organisation, mainly known for its endeavors in Dota 2 and Counter-Strike 2. The organisation has won two The International titles in 2021 and 2023 and is the highest-ranked team in the Valve Regional Standings (VRS) as of March 2025. The team also fields rosters in Hearthstone, PUBG Mobile and Mobile Legends: Bang Bang.

Nikita ‘Cheshir’ Chukalin, CEO of Team Spirit, commented on the deal: “We always strive to find solutions that help our players feel as comfortable as possible and stay focused on results. Blacklyte’s approach resonates with us. It is built on thoughtful ergonomics, functionality, and attention to detail.

“I am confident that this partnership will have a positive impact on our training process. We also share a common vision for technology and a commitment to developing the esports ecosystem. Together with Blacklyte, we aim not only to improve daily conditions for our players but also to set new standards of comfort and efficiency in esports.”

Popular esports title Counter-Strike 2, developed by Valve, has recently reached a new all-time record of concurrent players active on Steam.

With a number of high-tier tournaments being held this year, 2025 is also shaping up to be one of the biggest esports seasons for the tactical first-person shooter.

According to Steam DB charts, Counter-Strike 2 reached an all-time peak of 1.86m concurrent players on April 12th, 2025.

Before this, its highest peak in the past three months was on March 15th, 2025 when it reached 1.82m concurrent players.

Counter-Strike 2 remains one of the most played games on Steam, and continues to grow its professional scene as one of the most popular esports titles of 2025 so far.

Whilst not the sole factor contributing to CS2’s player activity, March and April’s figures coincide with several top-tier tournaments being held.

From April 6th-13th, 2025, PGL Bucharest 2025 took place with 16 teams, such as FaZe Clan and Team Falcons, competing for the lion’s share of its $625,000 (~£473,000) prize pool. In the end, Team Falcons defeated G2 in the grand finals.

Before that was the BLAST Open Spring 2025 that ran from March 19th-30th, 2025 – an event that concluded with over 850,000 peak viewers. With $400,000 (~£303,000) of total prize money on the line, 16 of the highest-ranking teams on VRS Global competed in both the Group Stage and Playoffs.

The last tournament to be held in March was the ESL Pro League Season 21, which ran from March 1st-16th, 2025. With two stages followed by Playoffs, the tournament ultimately smashed viewership records despite a decline from the previous season.

The past month saw a lot of top-tier tournaments back to back, many of which saw high viewership numbers. With such an active and popular competitive scene, perhaps some viewers may have felt encouraged to hop back onto Counter-Strike 2.