Getting their game on, finding a league of their own at iPic in Redmond | SLIDESHOW

Published 4:27 pm Thursday, July 2, 2015

For kids who want to play baseball, there’s Little League; if they’re interested in football, there’s Pop Warner; and if soccer is more their style, there’s a league for that, as well.

But for those kids who enjoy video games, there have not been many opportunities for them to play with others in a team environment — until now.

INTRODUCING THE LEAGUE

Brett Morris saw this with his kids, who enjoyed playing video games but also loved sports. He and two other fathers wondered why there was not some sort of social environment for gamers.

So together in 2014, they founded Super League Gaming (SLG) — an interactive video game league with events that take place in movie theaters.

SLG recently kicked off a summer tour with events being held throughout the country. On Monday, the tour stopped in Redmond Town Center at iPic Theater, giving kids the opportunity to meet and play with other gamers and possibly make some friends.

“It’s become of a social event more than a gaming event,” said Morris, who is the SLG president and chief operating officer.

This was the third week of the tour and he said the will be in 87 theaters by the end of summer. The Seattle area was their third leg of the trip. Morris said they started in Los Angeles, where SLG was founded.

During these one-off events, participants are playing “Minecraft,” which features a multiplayer mode so they can play together in teams. The teams are made up of players within the theater and the kids play on their own laptops (SLG also has a few laptops on hand for those who do not have one or if technical difficulties arise). In addition, significant moments of gameplay and other points of interest are highlighted and featured on the big screen.

BRINGING PLAYERS TOGETHER

Kids and teens of all ages attended Monday’s SLG event at iPic in Redmond.

For cousins Aiden Hart, 7, and Dylan Severson, 8, they were excited to be able to play with others in person.

“This is cool because you’re in the same room,” said Aiden.

The Newcastle resident explained that they usually don’t get to meet the other gamers they play with online.

Aiden’s father Robert Hart said he learned about the event from The Seattle Times. He knew his son and nephew (who lives in Bellevue) play “Minecraft” almost on a daily basis and agreed with his son, saying being in the same room as the other gamers and meeting new people and making friends was “the best part” of Monday’s event.

The idea of being in the same room as other players was a large part of the appeal for many people.

“I loved the idea of being in a theater, playing ‘Minecraft,’” said 14-year-old Lulu Corona of Woodinville about what attracted her to the event. “It sounded amazing.”

Corona attended with her friend Danieka Beck, who also thought it would be interesting to play in the same room as others and see their reactions to the game.

For Sammamish resident Rod Chang, bringing his daughters — 10-year-old Elsie and 12-year-old Emily — to the event was an opportunity for them to socialize with others.

“It’s more than the game,” he said about the event.

A DIFFERENT PLAYING FIELD

Morris said this opportunity for friendship is one of the reasons he and his fellow co-founders created SLG.

In addition, he said SLG also gives young gamers the chance to part of a team and somewhere to belong. In the fall, participants will be able to form teams to compete against other teams in various multiplayer games such as “League of Legends” and “Clash of Clans.” And just like other sports leagues, there will be a leader board in which players can see where they stack up against each other.

Morris added that unlike in traditional sports leagues, the leader board is not restricted by geography and kids can see where they rank among teams from around the country and world.

SLG seasons will last six weeks, with participants playing once a week — typically on a Tuesday or Wednesday afternoon. SLG players will also receive jerseys representing their teams — just as kids in other sports leagues. And instead of a baseball field or soccer pitch, Morris said, their field is the theater.

ALTERNATIVE CONTENT

SLG has partnered with Regal Entertainment Group, AMC Theatres and Cinemark Theatres, in addition to iPic Theaters to bring their interactive video game league to the masses.

“The theaters have been terrific,” Morris said. “They have been great partners.”

At iPic in Redmond, Steven Minear, the day event manager, said iPic offered a kids’ food menu for participants, although they were able to order from the theater’s regular menu, as well.

When the theater first opened, it was a 21-and-older establishment, but Minear said they changed to an all-ages theater about a year and a half ago.

He said iPic has hosted other events for younger audiences such as a sleepover for a group of graduating high school seniors, but Monday’s event was the first time they had held anything that did not include an actual movie screening.

Morris said theater companies are open to hosting events and groups such as SLG because they realize they cannot rely on just movie studios for their business anymore. The companies know they have to find more content and alternative content such as video games to feature on their big screens in order to stay relevant and bring in customers.

“They want to be known as the entertainment source,” Morris said about the companies’ willingness to host SLG.

For more information about SLG, visit superleague.com.