WACO, Texas — "I'm ready to compete. I'm definitely cautiously excited," Chazz Fish, competitive Esports gamer for seven years, said.
The Esports world has officially made its way to Texas.
The first annual Rise 'N Grind Super Smash Bros Ultimate Tournament is happening right here in Waco.
"We wanted to find a place that we could help develop and we wanted to find a city and a venue that we could kind of grow with and give more visibility," Cyrus Gharakhanian, Co-Founder of Rise 'N Grind, said.
Singles, doubles, crew battles or squad strikes. This weekend is full of different ultimate events for every kind of gamer.
With over 200 setups for everyone to use, the event features friendlies rooms, lounge areas with amenities, Texas barbecue and other vendors.
"I think these people really get to experience more than just an event. They get to experience a show ... a convention," Gharakhanian said. "Something where they can meet hundreds if not thousands of people."
The Rise 'N Grind Tournament brings gamers together from all over the United States. Gamers, Michael Wu and Chazz Fish are from Dallas and Oklahoma City. They get to be here and play against each other.
"You can kind of go up to people, talk and say 'hey do you guys mind playing? It's a nice community. People are very kind," Michael Wu, Esports gamer, said. "It's just a fun time."
This marks Michael Wu's first major Super Smash tournament. These events are more than players looking to take the top spot. They practice their skills and perfect their craft.
"Honestly, I take all the information I can get, digest it in my mind and put it into the gameplay I have to truly become a better player," Fish said.
That's the goal of these events. For Rise 'N Grind, this is just the beginning.
"We love the games we play," Gharakhanian said. "We want people to be able to enjoy it and we want to be able to put on these amazing shows for everyone."
If you want to check out the action yourself, all events will be streamed on btssmash and btssmash2.
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