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A video game tournament that has not been held since the middle of the 1990s will make a comeback in October of this year.
The Portland Retro Gaming Expo (PRGE) and Double Jump Events will co-host the third installment of the Blockbuster World Video Game Championship from October 14 to 16, and it promises to “create new memories for a new generation and is free to enter for all PRGE guests.”
Blockbuster and PRGE have partnered to recreate the traditional rental store for the duration of the Championship. In addition to meeting Sandi Harding, general manager of the “last Blockbuster on the earth,” visitors to the Blockbuster Experience room can pick up an updated Blockbuster card there.
Blockbuster, a business that declared bankruptcy in 2010 with only one shop left in operation, used Twitter to welcome back the Championship and issue a challenge to two-time champion Dr. Disrespect to defend his title.
Two rounds will make up the Championship. Players of Saturn Bomberman will compete against one another in Round 1, with the first player to win three rounds moving on to Round 2. The top three scores from Round 2’s Downfall OG Plus competition on the Atari Jaguar will determine the winner.
The winner will earn a $1000 PRGE exhibition hall shopping spree, while second and third place will receive $500 and $250 shopping sprees, respectively. There are rewards available for the top three competitors.
At the height of the fan conflict between Nintendo and Sega, the Blockbuster World Video Game Championships were first held in the middle of the 1990s. Players battled in Blockbuster locations all throughout the country, and the victor (dubbed the “Store Champion”) competed at the GamePro headquarters in San Francisco.