The Niles West spring eSports season is underway with multiple events starting up soon with a wide range of games in play such as Overwatch, League of Legends, Fortnite, and an already well accomplished Valorant and Super Smash team.

Overwatch is a team-based first-person shooter team consisting of teams of 6. Players get to choose their characters, which allows for a more strategic game. On Feb. 20, the Overwatch JV and Varsity squads will combine and take to the stage, competing in a tournament hosted by some of Illinois’s well-known esports universities.

As for the popular game known as Fortnite, the teams have competed in an event at the beginning of the month with an elimination race style format. The only way to score points in this format is by the number of kills you have and gaining the infamous “Victory Royale.”

Captain of the Fortnite Varsity team, Oleksiy Abramiv, has high hopes for the team this season.

“I have high expectations for the season; furthermore, I am hoping to make it all the way to the finals with my duo. Team-wise I expect every duo to make it to the playoffs,” Abramiv stated.

The Valorant and Super Smash teams competed this past fall and have already have raised the level of expectations. They are putting our eSports program on the map.

“This season, we hope to build upon the success of our Valorant and Super Smash Brothers Ultimate teams, who made it to state playoffs and established our reputation as a formidable competitor. The Fortnite and League of Legends teams have been practicing consistently and have improved their team synergy and skills. Since our team has had great success in our first year, a number of college recruiters have reached out to me and my team, and are encouraging my team members to apply for esports scholarships. I’m really glad we’ve been able to build a professional team and put ourselves on the map as one of the best high schools for esports–we hope to build on that success in the future,” sponsor of the program, Ali Sayed, stated.

JV OverWatch captain and Fortnite team player Hannah Sas thinks highly of the program and idolizes the program’s hard work.

“With each of the teams, they have put in a lot of work and determination, at the end of the day, it shows. Many of our teams have gone to playoffs. With our two final games Fortnite and League, we are looking to continue that,” Sas stated.

This eSports program has accomplished impressive feats in less than a year, all while working with the restrictions the pandemic has put on them. It will be exciting to see what the spring season holds for these teams.