A gaming contest to promote clean driving

All the gaming freaks in the city are eagerly awaiting the Defense of the Ancients II (DOTA 2), a first-of-its-kind tournament to be held on May 27 at Extraordinary Gamers, Nungambakkam. A number of teams comprising five members and two substitutes each will fight it out in groups, though in a virtual world in the day-night event. “I’ve been playing DOTA since 2005. I just got back to playing the game recently after a two-year break. I want to meet the other DOTA players and try playing competitively,” says Abishek, a city-based DOTA player.

The tournament is an initiative of Lets Boz, an innovation house headquartered in Chennai, and is organised as part of their D3: Don’t Drink and Drive Campaign. This campaign was established to support and fund life-changing cancer research and recovery for the underprivileged sections of society at Adyar Cancer Institute (WIA), Chennai. Fifty per cent of the funds raised through the tournament will be handed over to the Adyar Cancer Institute, according to the organisers. 

The winners of the tournament too have exciting cash prices lined up. The team that manages to get to the top will win Rs 10,000, while the runner up will take home Rs 7,000. The second runner up will be given Rs 5,000. In addition, the three winners will get gift vouchers, while the participants too are entitled to exclusive gift vouchers. The entry fee is Rs 1,000 per team and an additional Rs 200 should be paid for each substitute. The tournament is being sponsored by Soul Garden, 196 degrees Below, M’Bessy kitchen and Bar and LXG India. 

“We are organising a DOTA 2 tournament for the first time in the city. We have plans to organise more tournaments such as Counterstrike and FIFA in future. To spread awareness against drunk driving, we have decided to print our D3 logo on paper cups and distribute them to pubs in the city. Regina Cassandra, a prominent actress in Kollywood and Tollywood, has supported our cause by donating money,” said Aditya Kumar, organiser of the tournament.