Shiva Nandy 'Skyesports Masters will return for Season 2 soon featuring more international players, including those from Tier 1 teams'

In an exclusive interview with Dust2 India, Skyesports' Founder and CEO Shiva Nandy talks about the inception of the Skyesports Masters, his vision, the long-term goal and the future of Counter-Strike in the country.

Skyesports Masters is going to be India’s biggest esports tournament. You have stated so many times that you want to build a Counter-Strike ecosystem in India. Tell us more about this vision you have.

My vision for CS:GO in India is a long-term one which we are kicking off with the Skyesports Masters. What the tournament is essentially achieving is providing a financial incentive to orgs to invest into the game, which is how eight of India’s top esports orgs now have a roster in the game. The liberty given by the publisher allows us, and also other TOs, to create a year-long roadmap instead of one which has gaps thus making more financial sense for orgs to stay invested.

Now that the base has been established, we plan to grow the gaming community. The eight franchised teams are our partners and have as many incentives to grow the community of the game. Coupled with their efforts, we will be bringing year-long activities to grow the community from the grassroots level. This also includes more café events, just like we did for the café qualifiers in the Skyesports Masters.

The initial response we’ve seen for the Skyesports Masters has been wholly positive and I look forward to growing this title over the next few years to become one of India’s leading esports. The Skyesports Masters is just the beginning and first step of a long ladder we aim to climb.

You have called Skyesports Masters as your dream IP. Can you reflect more on that?

Yes, the Skyesports Masters is a dream IP for many of us here at Skyesports. This is because the IP not only benefits us as an organization, but we are working with eight fantastic partners to grow and make it financially viable for them as well. Esports in India has reached a point of bloated salaries and few revenue streams. We are looking to solve these with the Skyesports Masters and provide a sustainable ecosystem for esports.

Where did this idea originate from? Did it stem from your passion for the game?

The idea for the Skyesports Masters isn’t something that we personally came up with at Skyesports. We have been talking to esports owners over the past year and all of them have complained about the financial unviability of the current esports scene. The idea stemmed from there to create something which has real value and helps in creating a sustainable ecosystem.

Counter-Strike has been a pioneer for the global esports industry, and with CS2 coming out, it felt like the best game for this vision.

VALORANT is obviously one of the games that is booming a lot in India. In light of that, does Counter-Strike seem like a risky investment?

When considering the risk associated with an investment, it's important to evaluate factors such as market demand, competition, potential revenue streams, and the overall sustainability of the product. Remember that investing in any title, be it Counter-Strike, VALORANT, or any other game, carries inherent risks. It's crucial to understand the market situation and balance your approach accordingly. Counter-Strike offers more potential revenue opportunities for tournament organizers and teams compared to other games.

If you look at the global esports scenario, the viewership and player base of both CS and VALORANT have been increasing. We believe India has enough audience for both titles to co-exist. While VALORANT has been able to establish a base among PC gamers since the pandemic, India still has a large Counter-Strike community hungry for events like these. And with CS2 coming out, the future for Counter Strike is looking even better.

It is pretty evident that the Skyesports Masters is a massive investment. Do you expect the event to be an instant make or break affair for Indian Counter-Strike or is it going to take some time to build from the ground up?

It’s certainly going to take sometime. We have focused on sustenance and longevity since we started planning this IP. Recent PC esports tournaments have shown a decline in interest from the audience, players, and even teams for long-format LAN events. This is why we abandoned our initial plans of a 50 day LAN in Mumbai. Therefore, for every step of the way, we are carefully considering and taking feedback provided by our partnered teams and integrating their suggestions into our plans.

We have created the Skyesports Masters with a long term goal and while we certainly have some expectations from the inaugural season, its performance isn’t a make or break affair. I can confidently say with 100 percent certainty that the Skyesports Masters will return for Season 2 soon featuring more international players, including those from Tier 1 teams. We have already initiated discussions with international talent agencies for the Skyesports Masters 2024.

How is it going to affect the sponsor’s market?

With a franchised league, we can provide a guaranteed minimum set of deliverables to each sponsor. Currently, we have partnered with 10 brands not only to the league but for all partnered teams. Our business team's efforts go beyond securing sponsors for the Skyesports Masters; they have also successfully secured team sponsorships for all of our franchised organizations. This includes renowned brands such as Gigabyte, AMD, NZXT, and more.

India has a horde of Counter-Strike enthusiasts. How do you think Skyesports Masters is going to contribute in generating more opportunities for them?

The Skyesports Masters café qualifiers were the first opportunity for them to make it directly into a professional team. The league as a whole is the first step to reviving the CS community of India. We have laid down the fundamental blocks for the ecosystem which can then be leveraged by other esports TOs as well. We have seen community events events from TEC, Upthrust, and AA Gaming for the game already. As we continue growing the game, more and more events will pop up for the community not only by Skyesports but others as well.

With CS2 on the horizon, What is your outlook for Skyesports and Indian CS in the future?

As we’ve already announced, CS2 will be the game that the Skyesports Masters 2024 is played on. CS:GO already has a large player base in the country and the release of CS2, along with events we have in the pipeline, will provide that jolt to grow Counter Strike exponentially in India.

You have obviously already done so much for the community. Cafe qualifiers are going to give upcoming players a chance to play with the big boys. You are also covering all the expenses for the teams. How well is the community receiving these developments?

Obviously, our café qualifiers were very well received by the community and we saw huge participation. I don’t think the community cares much about the expenses part but creating a financially viable league is crucial for us to ensure our franchised leagues can focus on community engagement as well. We still have a long way to go and this is just the beginning. The Skyesports Masters LAN Playoffs in Bangalore is set to be a spectacle with not only top tier esports action but also other entertainment. Stay tuned.