
Audiences watch the dwell feed of the finals match of CrossFire Stars 2024 on the Hangzhou Canal Asian Video games Park, China, Dec. 15. Courtesy of Smilegate
Recreation developer Smilegate’s hit first-person shooter, CrossFire, is efficiently consolidating its place as a long-running esports title, with the gamers and fan base for its high match, CrossFire Stars (CFS), exhibiting secure progress even after the competitors’s 11-year run.

Members of China’s Evolution Energy Gaming have fun after successful CrossFire Stars 2024 on the Hangzhou Canal Asian Video games Park, China, Dec. 15. Courtesy of Smilegate
CrossFire is among the greatest on-line first-person shooter titles in service in over 80 international locations, having over 8 million concurrent gamers with a complete of 650 million customers. Since 2013, the corporate has held CFS yearly because the title’s flagship match for skilled groups. It completed the newest CFS Grand Finals 2024 from Dec. 4 to Dec. 15 in Hangzhou, China.
Throughout its 12-day run, 16 groups from China, Europe, the Center East, North Africa, North America, Brazil, Vietnam and the Philippines competed within the knockout stage, playoffs and finals for the overall prize of $1.43 million.
Smilegate mentioned greater than 7,000 followers visited matches for the semifinals and finals on the Hangzhou Canal Asian Video games Park. Particularly, the 4,000 seats for the finals between China’s Evolution Energy Gaming and Brazil’s Vasco Esports had been offered out inside 10 minutes of ticket gross sales, with main Chinese language media shops masking the competitors.
“Regardless of the ultimate in opposition to the Chinese language workforce, we had been moved by the followers who cheered for us, which motivated us to play even more durable,” Vasco Esports mentioned in a press release. “We’re grateful that there are followers who really love the sport.”
Smilegate mentioned it’s doubling efforts to broaden and consolidate the ecosystem of CrossFire as a worldwide esport. As a part of its 2023 highway map to broaden the CFS franchise, it arrange a brand new CFS occasion in Vietnam, the CFS Summer time Championship.
The CFS Summer time Championship performed an vital position in enhancing workforce performances throughout areas, serving to not solely Chinese language, but additionally Brazilian and Vietnamese groups to make it into the CFS 2024 semifinals. Vietnam’s Wolf Empire, which gained the CFS Summer time Championship 2024, was one of many semifinalists within the CFS 2024.
One other main esports occasion that may characteristic CrossFire will probably be Esports World Cup 2025 slated for this summer season within the Saudi capital of Riyadh. Beneath a partnership with the Esports World Cup Basis, CrossFire will probably be featured within the occasion for the subsequent three years.
Dubbed one of many greatest multigame esports occasions, Esports World Cup first launched final yr, that includes 200 golf equipment and 1,500 gamers from 100 international locations competing in 21 occasions. The whole prize pool was $60 million, and the occasion attracted 2.6 million viewers and recorded 500 million views throughout its eight-week run.
“With a profitable generational shift amongst gamers, CrossFire esports now boasts a deeper and stronger expertise pool, making the competitors much more thrilling for followers,” a Smilegate official mentioned. “The sport’s esport scene is anticipated to proceed evolving within the years forward.”