'Aside from BGMI, Free Fire, and Valorant, I expect the Indian audience to accept more games with time': Rohit Raj, Co-founder of Esports XO

Esports in India is growing at an incredible rate. To ensure that the exponential growth in the industry is not paused, many esports management companies are trying their best to establish a strong professional gaming scenario in the country.

Esports XO is an esports tournament management company whose main aim is to encourage console, PC and mobile gaming in India and across the globe. In conversation with Sportskeeda Esports’ Debolina Banerjee, Rohit Raj, the Co-founder of Esports XO, talks about professional gaming, the three rosters of the company and more.

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Rohit Raj, Esports XO Co-founder, talks about the growth of Esports in India during the lockdown and creating Team XO

Q. The Esports industry in India has seen massive growth in the past one and a half years. Where do you think it will stand after a span of about five years? Do you think that the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions had a major role to play in the growth of the gaming industry in India?

Everyone will agree that Esports has grown exponentially during the COVID-19 lockdown. I am happy to see that things have reached the next level.

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Q. What should be the prime target of any esports tournament management company in today’s scenario? How did the idea of creating Esports XO come to be?

The perspective will be different for every tournament organizer. While some target the total number of underdogs participating, some will have viewership as their priority. However, for the long term it is our responsibility to bring excitement to every tournament to ensure good viewership. As far as we know, cricket is the most popular game and other games are not that famous. However, because of the wonderful events in football, kabaddi, hockey, etc., people have started recognizing the potential and opportunity in these games. Similarly, we host tournaments for other games like Brawl Stars, Clash of Clans, Clash Royale, Rocket League and more.

I along with Utsav and Vikas were planning to do something in gaming. Due to the COVID-19 lockdown, we found the opportunity to execute things that were required.

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Q. Esports XO’s gaming team has two rosters for Valorant and BGMI. What was the vision behind the creation of these two rosters? Do you have plans on further expansion with the creation of rosters for Free Fire, COD Mobile and other popular FPS/battle royale games?

We have three rosters for three games. We have also signed Team Bharat as Team XO’s Clash of Clans roster. The insane popularity of these games made us think about the actual Esports part of this industry. Most owners of esports organizations find it hard to even have one roster per game.

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Q. Many companies are building special bootcamps for their players to practice. How important is it for esports management companies to have bootcamps for their players? Does Team XO have a dedicated bootcamp for its gamers?

Yes, we have XO Space, which is one of the first gaming houses in India. Our BGMI team lives there.

When it comes to importance, I think it is important to have players in a bootcamp to ensure that they build synergy both on and off the game. By living together, gamers who have the dream of representing India motivate each other the most.

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Q. While Valorant is a PC title, BGMI is a mobile game. How different is the approach when it comes to training the players on the two rosters?

We keep both rosters in two different gaming houses. Our Valorant team lives in Mumbai and their analyst Vikrant mentors them along with Simar Sethi and Excali, who are very experienced when it comes to PC gaming.

If we talk about the BGMI team, they focus on their scrims. A lot of tournaments are being held, so the team is busy competing.

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Q. How hard is it for a start-up esports tournament management company to get a hold of a proper community for better interaction with professional gamers? What are the key aspects that every company should look into to have a strong community hold?

Esports will become one of the biggest markets in India. The push due to COVID-19 was exceptional, but even after things went back to normal, the growth was still exponential. Esports companies are putting a lot of effort into the brands that are participating in high commercials, this is going to be great. Even though BGMI, Free Fire, Clash of Clans and Valorant receive love from the audience, I expect people will accept more games with time.