FORMAT & RULE UPDATES
Knights Arena, the events arm of the Pittsburgh Knights and professional esports team and gaming technology brand, is the official tournament organizer for the Verizon VCT Game Changers 2023 season. The Knights Arena has hosted many successful VALORANT tournaments for women and non-binary players, and is committed to creating a space that helps support and foster North American talent.
Three regular season tournaments, Game Changers Series I, II and III, will begin with Open Qualifiers leading into a Main Event. For the Open Qualifier, teams will battle in a GSL Group format to determine the top 8 remaining teams. These top 8 teams from the Open Qualifier will advance to the Main Event, a double-elimination bracket with all matches being a best-of-three. The Main Event finals will be a best-of-five.
Teams will compete for a share of the $50,000 prize pool and earn valuable points for the 2023 Game Changers World Championship qualification.
There will be a total of 410 points available for the top 16 placed teams throughout each Game Changer Series. The point distribution will be as follows:
- 1st Place: 20% or 80 points
- 2nd Place: 15% or 60 points
- 3rd Place: 12% or 50 points
- 4th Place: 10% or 40 points
- 5th – 6th Place: 7% or 30 points
- 7th – 8th Place: 5% or 20 points
- 9th – 16th Place: 2% or 10 pointsThe 2023 Game Changers rank requirement to participate in competition has been adjusted based on player feedback, increasing from Platinum to Ascendant to ensure stiffer regional competition.
SCHEDULE
The Game Changers Series I registration period opens on March 21, with the last day of each main event reserved for that event’s Grand Finals.
GAME CHANGERS SERIES I OPEN QUALIFIER
April 4 – 6
GAME CHANGERS SERIES I MAIN EVENT
April 7, April 11 – 14
GAME CHANGERS SERIES II OPEN QUALIFIER
July 13 – 16
GAME CHANGERS SERIES II MAIN EVENT
July 26 – 30
GAME CHANGERS SERIES III OPEN QUALIFIER
September 28 – October 1
GAME CHANGERS SERIES III MAIN EVENT
October 4 – 8
VCT Game Changers Academy / Knight’s Sakura Cup
This year, the Game Changers Academy will continue as the Knight’s Sakura Cup. Previously, the Sakura Cup was a tournament inspired by the onna-musha of Japan where the Knights created an arena for modern warriors to compete. These bi-monthly tournaments allow top players to showcase their skills and compete for prize pools upwards of $10,000.
Stay tuned for further updates on the first official Sakura Cup tournament of the season and for registration details on the Knight’s Twitter at twitter.com/KnightsArena.